Serious thoughts on garage sales

The one serious conviction that a man should have is that nothing is to be taken too seriously. – Nicholas Butler

Week #41 - 49 Weeks ‘til I’m 50 – Ready, Set, it’s all about A FOCUSed plan to get there!  Only 8 weeks left.

Welcome Back – Never fear, even if I’m not here writing a post, I’m thinking about doing so.  But then I get too serious and want to write something profound and can’t think of a single thing, so I walk away.  One of these days, maybe I should figure out how to blog from my smart phone instead of my trusty computer.  

On with the random thoughts for the day!  As one approaches 50, there's a strong desire to let go of things that are simply consuming too much of your time or space.  Letting go of stuff just feels right. 

The last few weeks in our spare time (LOL – as I write that, it’s hard not to chuckle, as spare time is pretty rare) my husband and I have been getting ready for a garage sale.  A last ditch effort to clear out some stuff before the winter season sets in.  High hopes to clear out stuff.  In our past, we’ve always had HUGE sales and big responses by shoppers.  So of course, the serious side of me set out to sell a ton of stuff!

Preparing for a thrift sale is a great way to let go of your serious side, let go of stuff you’ve been hanging on for too long, and let go of being afraid of wasting time.  There is someone out there who will seriously want your stuff, they will pay you a low dollar for it, but you will be FREE of the item and the space it was consuming in your life.  Try it…I dare you, you never know, you might just like it…seriously!

First step – get stuff ready.  This is the time consuming part.  Finding stuff, letting go, working through all the emotions related to it is kind of like getting ready to turn 50.  In fact, it is the perfect time in life.  You still have enough energy to do the work.  Your kids have likely flown the nest and you can clear out things you were hanging on for them, they seriously need some extra cash as they venture off into life and have outgrown the stuff.  Careful though…you’ll feel your life flash before you.  You’ll realize that you’ve held on to the past in hopes of what?  What is it?  What is it?

Change it up, think about what letting go will bring into your life instead of what holding on to things will take away from your life.  Ah…now we’re on to something!

Time to let go and move on to bigger and better things!  FOCUS – get rid of stuff! 

Serious FOCUS Method #1:  This is where you get rid of things that cause you stress.  There is no reason to hang on to things that you don’t love or enjoy or that you’re hanging onto because of ______.

• Find
• Objects
• Causing
• Undo
• Stress

Serious FOCUS Method #2:  This is where you get rid of things that have been sitting around just collecting dust or lurking in spaces that you forgot we’re even there.  If you haven’t needed it or used it in a long time, why are you hanging on to it?

• Free
• Obstacles
• Creating
• Unique
• Space

Serious FOCUS Method #3:  This is where you dig deep into drawers or under items.  Seriously, why have you been holding on to items that are taking up valuable space, especially spaces where you end up leaving things out because something you don’t use is taking up the space. 

• Free
• Objects
• Covered
• Under
• Stuff

After you’ve sorted, organized, and priced all the treasures (I’m by no means an expert on the pricing…just know there is someone out there who will buy it at the price you’ve set).  The big day will come.  The anticipation builds and then the day unfolds.  This is where the true test of your ability not to take things too seriously really comes in.  You’ve practiced and practiced as you let go of items.  Are you ready? 

Wait...here's a test to really see.  Are you ready? You’ll have to be patient and tolerant of:

People who want to take less than the price you’ve tagged the item for?  Seriously…breathe, just breathe…

People who tell you they don’t have any smaller bills, will you take $____?  Seriously…breathe, just breathe…

People who buy the item you thought would never sell!  Seriously…whew, a recovery breath…

People won’t buy the item you thought was the hottest deal!  Seriously…do I have bad taste or what?

People who actually touch every item and rearrange your whole set-up?  Seriously…oh well, at least there’s something to do during the long down time.

People who stop and don’t buy a darn thing!  Seriously…there are plenty of choices, it’s like a mini mall here…really…

People who find that one item you had no idea the value and they will resell on eBay for a high dollar!  Seriously…let it go…let it go…

People who have a story about why they are buying the item…Seriously, this is my favorite part, it helps the time fly by and helps you feel better about letting go by helping someone else. 

On a final serious note:  Must do item!  When you’re done, don’t bring the stuff back in the house!!! – DONATE what’s left…or seriously pack up what you’ll try to sell the next go around!  

That reminds me, now I know what I’ll be doing for a few more days.  Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your serious moments of not taking life so seriously!  We’re in the home stretch to turning 50, practice, practice, practice moments of not taking life too seriously.  

PS – photo moments.  This is my favorite part of photography.  Just letting go, seeing what random things I can find and capture in a different way. 

Some THING for everyone!

Seriously...I thought the books would sell!

There's plenty of down time to play with the
camera!

Let it go...at least the view is gorgeous!

Oh no...the next project bee removal!

Ah...the simple things in life!  

Ugh - so I saw it on Pinterest, and tried it

Ugh – an interjection exclaiming disgust, horror or the like.  – My version of a dictionary definition.  It also describes what I did while it rained on this Labor Day holiday.

Week #37 + 1 day - 49 Weeks ‘til I’m 50 – Ready, Set, it’s all about A FOCUSed plan to get there!  Only 12ish weeks left.

As females age, we start to notice personal things we wish we could reverse.  How about these two biggies – skin and teeth?  Just rub your hand on your arms or legs, are they soft and smooth or do you notice some rough patches or wish your skin was softer?   Take a close look at your teeth, unless you already whiten your teeth with chemicals, are they less white than you’d like?  There must be natural ways to deal with both of these things?  Enter in Pinterest. 

Gotta love this day and age – everything you ever wanted to know you can find on the web.  Or, if you’re like me, Pinterest has some interesting ideas/things that you can try.  Some things at first glance make me sigh, “Ugh!”    

One of my time wasting hobbies is pinning things from Pinterest.  Right, I know, UGH fits!  Unfortunately some days I can waste way more time than is definitely appropriate.  But, occasionally, I find something that might just be worth trying, and perhaps make the time spent no longer wasted. Or should I say, I wonder if people ever really try the things they see on Pinterest?  Especially the pictures you see that give you the desire to scream UGH!  When I saw these two things, I thought UGH at first, but then the more I thought about it, I wanted to test them out myself.  My ultimate excuse, (that which makes it okay to do today) it’s a rainy holiday...

What the heck…let’s be adventurous as a way to kick off the last twelve weeks of our adventure to 50.  Plus, if you happened to see these things on Pinterest and didn’t dare try, I can fill you in on what I discovered about the true facts, you know, a real life testimony.  

Pin #1 – Homemade exfoliating rub.

Must have’s to make this work: 

• Either a tripod (or an extremely willing spouse) to photo you trying this mixture on for proof you actually did the pin! 
• Coffee Grounds (about 2/3 cup) – since I couldn’t really tell on the pin if it was fresh coffee grounds or the grounds after you make coffee, I used a little of both, more of the after coffee mix since I didn’t want to waste good coffee if this didn’t really work.
• Brown sugar (about ¼ cup)
• Olive Oil (splash, give or take)

Mix all together to make a paste.  I made the concoction two days in a row.  First day I didn’t use the fresh coffee grounds, and I think I liked it better it’s more soupy instead of rough paste.  But, both versions do the trick.  If you can stand the mess in your tub, and the lingering coffee smell you carry with you the rest of the day, it is true you end up with very soft skin indeed!  I even used it on my face, not sure if I was supposed to but it worked.

I don't think you really have to measure,
I didn't either time, and both worked.

Ugh, am I really going to try this?

It's hard to get on your back, if the camera man
wasn't busy taking pictures, perhaps he
could have helped???

Yes, it is messy - that's the part they don't tell
you on the pins - the mess!  Oh well, it's natural
and washes away with soap and water.

Pin #2 – Activated Charcoal for a natural way to whiter teeth.  

The theory behind it is that the charcoal absorbs the tannins left behind on your teeth from coffee, tea and wine stains.  I told a friend about it and she said that she was told that your teeth will only whiten as much as the whites of your eyes.  Okay, not sure if that’s true, or not, but we’ll see.  I don’t care for the cost or the chemicals in the whitening strips, so if it's a natural way to whiten teeth, I’m game to see if this works!   After two days, I do notice a difference.  Don’t worry – your mouth doesn’t stay black, and it doesn’t stain anything, and if you accidentally swallow some it won’t hurt you.  

Must have’s to make this work:

• Activated charcoal capsule (1), break open capsule into bowl
• Glass bowl to catch the slurry
• Small spoon to stir up the slurry (you'll add just a little bit of water to the bowl and stir)
• A timer (you swish the slurry in your mouth for 5 minutes)
• A camera – to capture photos of you trying this.  If you don’t you won’t know if it really works or not.  I think the pin on Pinterest does a great job explaining everything.  I’ve only done this twice but I did notice a difference in whiteness immediately.  I would recommend not going dry red wine tasting after your first try at this, but that’s just a bit of unsolicited advice! 

Before shot - creepy!  

Oh, no, this IS creepy - see how the charcoal
attaches to the stains

Sure hope it comes off my lips, this isn't
my best color of lipstick!  

After 5 minutes, ready to rinse.

A perfect selfie opportunity...am I really this insane?

Does make the tongue black - just brush your
tongue and it goes away!

Ok...I see a difference, definitely no longer black!  I
think I'll try a few more times just to see if it
really does work!  Ugh...

Best pricing found was through Swanson's

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your UGH moments...they might just give you something new to try!  See you soon!!

PS – Photo lessons – doing these silly things from Pinterest is a great way to practice selfies and gives you plenty of things to randomly photograph.  Copper feels a little left out, here we are staring out at the rain.