Saturday, April 24, 2010

My $121 Garage Sale Experiment

In November I did a special sign up deal with a new checking account and got a bonus of $121. I haven't spent that $121 and decided I'm going to see what I can buy with that at garage sales. I do sell some stuff on eBay, so hopefully I can make some money and get a bunch of useful stuff in the process. I'll be blogging about my finds, both good and bad.

It's not QUITE garage sale season here yet, so I hit a couple thrifts. Here's what I found ($8 spent):

a shirt I really like
2 local commemorative plates
1 crock (possibly Christmas gift for my aunt)



I figured that was it for the day. Well, I'd seen a wheelchair for $25 at a garage sale. I have been wanting one for mom for a while, but she doesn't like the idea. As it is, she has arthritis in her back and refuses to use a wheelchair because she says it's like giving up. I told her that it would be for occasional use only. Like when we were in Virginia Beach last year and we both wanted to see the National Aviation Museum, but we both missed it because she couldn't walk and I hated to have her sit in the car while I toured it. I told her just for mueums. (Which really is what it would be for at this point.)

Well, a few hours later she said if it was still there when we passed again, I could get it and she'd use it. It was, and as I walked up the porch, I asked the man, "Would you take $20 for the wheelchair?" He jumped up and was more than happy with $20.

He started showing me the features. I thought it was ye ole average wheelchair. The foot rests come off. The sides come off, and to make it easy to get in and out of a car, the wheels even pop off! Wow!

I THOUGHT he said to me it was $240 new. Mom thought he said it was $2400 new. I thought Mom was hearing things. I looked it up online and Mom was closer than I was. This wheelchair sells for. . .



(This isn't the exact wheelchair, but one almost like it I found online.)

And it sells for EIGHTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS.

I'm so excited and I hope Mom will use it to do a few things. She rarely does anything now because she has such a difficult time walking and so she just stays home a lot. I hope this encourages her to do a little more! And of course if she doesn't, it's $20 spent.

The man was thrilled we bought it, and even said to Mom, "I'm glad it's going to a good person". (This was at an estate sale for his father. Estate sales are always sad, but the man seemed to really be happy that it will be good for Mom.) :)

So total spent so far this garage sale season: $28.