Thursday, June 28, 2018

Digest for misc.consumers.frugal-living@googlegroups.com - 7 updates in 1 topic

Michael Black <mblack@pubnix.net>: Jun 28 11:35AM -0400

On Wed, 27 Jun 2018, The Real Bev wrote:
 
>>> Right away.
 
> Actually, flea markets are a pretty crappy place to shop. Try yard sales for
> even better deals.
 
I like the notion of a cluster, lots for sale in one place, but yes, it
seems like a lot of "fleamarkets" are vendors. Actual full time
fleamarkets around here are "way over there" so I've never really gone,
but when some of the churches organize "community garage sales" where they
rent tables to people, it's often the same people and they are selling
toiletries and things they aren't just trying to get rid of, and they'll
be at the next such sale next week.
 
There even seems to be fewer "street sales" where people organize their
neighbors to have sales all on one day. Years ago those were great, simce
a lot of houses participated, but they seem to be fading, fewer of them,
and fewer participants. Actually, garage sales don't seem to be doing so
well, in recent years. I have money to spend, and I'm not finding
interesting new things to bring home. Or maybe I've found all that I need,
so it's not that the good stuff isn't appearing, but I've already got it.
 
I did get a 1.00 Garmin GPS a few weeks back. The internal battery needs
reoplacing, but even inside it picked up a bunch of satellites, while my
two previous garage sale GPS receivers need to be outside.
 
 
 
>> Psst: It's not necessary to capitalize every word in your sentence.
 
> It is if you're dumb. If you're even dumber you write the entire message in
> caps.
 
Maybe the original poster was trying to be frugal. Those capitals don't
get much use, while the lower case characters get a lot of use. If you
capitalize more than the standard, you use more of those "unwanted"
uppercase and thus become frugal in your use of lower case characters.
 
Though that assumes a shortage.
 
Michael
Vic Smith <thismailautodeleted@comcast.net>: Jun 28 03:07PM -0500

>rent tables to people, it's often the same people and they are selling
>toiletries and things they aren't just trying to get rid of, and they'll
>be at the next such sale next week.
 
There's flea markets and there's flea markets. Some might as well be dollar stores, but
the good ones are generally better than going to 20 garage sales.
The Real Bev <bashley101@gmail.com>: Jun 28 04:03PM -0700

On 06/28/2018 08:35 AM, Michael Black wrote:
> well, in recent years. I have money to spend, and I'm not finding
> interesting new things to bring home. Or maybe I've found all that I need,
> so it's not that the good stuff isn't appearing, but I've already got it.
 
We have not only IT, but backups for IT, along with maybe some spare
parts for IT. They heyday for tools was the 1060s, and we stocked up
then. A friend still buys Proto wrenches for a quarter when he can find
them. Proto makes/made beautiful tools.
 
> get much use, while the lower case characters get a lot of use. If you
> capitalize more than the standard, you use more of those "unwanted"
> uppercase and thus become frugal in your use of lower case characters.
 
I'm ashamed to say that I didn't think of that. It might also account
for a lot of misspellings on signs composed of letters that you attach
to something else.
 
> Though that assumes a shortage.
 
Pixels aren't all cheap, you know. The ones the iPhone uses are REALLY
expensive.
 
--
Cheers, Bev
"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can
only exist until a majority of voters discover that they can vote
themselves largess out of the public treasury."
-- Alexander Tyler (Unverified)
The Real Bev <bashley101@gmail.com>: Jun 28 04:17PM -0700

On 06/28/2018 01:07 PM, Vic Smith wrote:
>>>>> Right away.
 
>>> Actually, flea markets are a pretty crappy place to shop. Try yard sales for
>>> even better deals.
 
Tthe ones where people just want to get more space and maybe a bit of
cash and will contribute the leftovers to the Vietnam Vets afterward are
the best. I don't know why rich people even bother -- "That scarf cost
$100 five years ago and I didn't wear it much, it ought to be worth $80
now..." Apartment dwellers are the worst -- they seem to have lots of
bric-a-brac and glassware and hardly ever have anything useful.
 
>>rent tables to people, it's often the same people and they are selling
>>toiletries and things they aren't just trying to get rid of, and they'll
>>be at the next such sale next week.
 
A few local realtors organize sales consisting of all the houses in a
5-block x 5-block square. Maybe 10% of the houses participate. The
first time this happened the sales were very good. Now, 5-10 years
later, not so much. Everybody is just hanging onto their decent stuff.
Life was better back in Olden Tymes.
 
> There's flea markets and there's flea markets. Some might as well be dollar stores, but
> the good ones are generally better than going to 20 garage sales.
 
The ones here are semi-commercial operations held in former drive-in
theaters and generally attended by Ethnics of one sort or another.
 
 
--
Cheers, Bev
"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can
only exist until a majority of voters discover that they can vote
themselves largess out of the public treasury."
-- Alexander Tyler (Unverified)
The Real Bev <bashley101@gmail.com>: Jun 28 04:27PM -0700

On 06/28/2018 04:03 PM, The Real Bev wrote:
 
> parts for IT. They heyday for tools was the 1060s, and we stocked up
> then. A friend still buys Proto wrenches for a quarter when he can find
> them. Proto makes/made beautiful tools.
 
Yes, I REALLY meant yard sales before the Battle of Hastings. People
were willing to sell their used trebuchets dirt cheap!
 
Plus I ran out of 9s :-(
 
 
--
Cheers, Bev
"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can
only exist until a majority of voters discover that they can vote
themselves largess out of the public treasury."
-- Alexander Tyler (Unverified)
Michael Black <mblack@pubnix.net>: Jun 28 08:29PM -0400

On Thu, 28 Jun 2018, The Real Bev wrote:
 
> ago and I didn't wear it much, it ought to be worth $80 now..." Apartment
> dwellers are the worst -- they seem to have lots of bric-a-brac and glassware
> and hardly ever have anything useful.
 
July 1st here in the province of Quebec is a day for a lot of moving,
reasons are long forgotten why it happens on one day though previously it
had been May 1st and the government gave an extension to leases so people
would move after the school season was over. But I have no idea why they
all align on one day.
 
So garage sales before July 1st tend to be people preparing to move, and
thus need to clear out the "clutter". It's a good time for CDs and DVDs,
I'm finding people are now getting rid of the types of CDs I actually
want, and finding bits of technology that they've decided is "obsolete".
 
Then after July 1st, it's "trinket time", people selling off some things
they feel clutter up the place, but they are less in need of getting rid
of it, so not only is it less interesting, to me at least, but since they
aren't desperate, the prices are higher.
 
It's not consistent, I've found some good things in the summer, but
there's less incentive to get out early on Saturdays after July 1st.
 
So it's a disappointment when May comes and goes and the sales haven't
really started up yet.
 
You said before the shfit away from classified ads has made people less
reliable. I think that factors in, if you need the paper to announce your
sale, you will hang on unless the weather is really bad. But now that
craig's list is the place to go, they wait till Saturday morning to decide
if they'll set up. They'll have a raindate, but if the weather looks not
so great, they won't bother. So the sales seem to start later, or maybe
they are just selling their junk other ways.
 
There was a good street sale for some years, they'd get a good percentage
of houses involved, selling baked goods and lemonade if nothing else. It
was high density, and people on adjacent streets would set up too. Lots
of people from the area out on foot, suddenly lots of pedestrians in a
residential area. But I came to realize that despite all the stuff for
sale, most of it was kid's toys, clothing and furniture. It was an area
where most owned their houses, so they weren't getting ready to move, they
were getting rid of their kid's stuff after they'd grown beyond the stuff.
I did find some good stuff, but for all the houses offering thnigs, it
wasn't as great as it could be. Though if someone needs kid's
stuff, it's a great place. They've also shifted the date around in
recent years, so fewer participate.
 
I like the excuse of getting out early on Saturdays to check garage sales,
but as it tapers off, there's less incentive. And I find that sad, not
becasue I don't "get the bargains" but because the search is fun in
itself.
 
Michael
Michael Black <mblack@pubnix.net>: Jun 28 08:33PM -0400

On Thu, 28 Jun 2018, The Real Bev wrote:
 
 
> Yes, I REALLY meant yard sales before the Battle of Hastings. People were
> willing to sell their used trebuchets dirt cheap!
 
> Plus I ran out of 9s :-(
 
I can't believe it's been 18 years since we had to use all those "19's".
You'd think the supply of 9s had a chance to replenish.
 
I was watching "2001" last week, for a 50th anniversary viewing. I saw it
when it came out, I even had clippings about it from before the film was
released in my scrap book about the space program (I didn't mistake it for
reality, but it was as much part of the space program at the time as the
actual moon landing). I was eight in 1968, I did the math and thought I'd
be "old" in 2001. It came and went without a lot of fanfare, and it's now
17 years in the past. I was born closer to the end of WWII than the years
that have passed since 2001.
 
Michael
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