OUR ROAD TO FULLTIMING
March 12, 2000: THE FIRST "DENT"!!!
Yesterday, we held our first, of possibly many, garage sales. Although I had cleaned out drawers and closets in two extra rooms plus two linen closets in late January and early February, we had experienced rainy and all-round lousy weather for the weekends prior to yesterday. Since my last article (January 25), I also have helped my elderly parents move from their home to a substantially smaller one-bedroom retirement apartment.
First, let me offer some advice that I gleaned from my parents' downsizing situation. Simply stated, find a company or an individual that specializes in "estate sales" to handle the unwanted "big items" and any other miscellaneous "stuff". My parents live in Turlock, a relatively small town in the Central Valley of California, and their real estate agent gave them an estate sale recommendation. After I helped them move all the personal belongings, the moving company took the furniture they needed to the apartment and put some other pieces into storage. We all then, literally, walked out of the house and left the rest of the furniture and everything else!! The estate sale people handled the details of cleaning up and selling all those items, including disposing of toxic items and unwanted food products.
Upon returning home, I looked in my own Yellow Pages to try and locate estate sales. In my local directory, I didn't have much luck, so I turned to the internet. There, on the GTE Superpages website, I found listings within 50 miles of our home, most of which were not listed in the phone book. I have yet to contact any of these listings because of other obligations, but as soon as I do, I will pass on what information I find.
Now, as for our garage sale, we managed to sell many bulky items, such as extra blankets, bedspreads, sweaters, sweatshirts, and t-shirts. Ron sold a band saw that had been gathering much dust, as well as 3 oak barstools, some old 45 records, and numerous other unused items. I sold quite a few pictures left over from my storefront frame shop plus one man bought all my ready-made frames. I am certainly glad to be rid of those!! We still have much more to sell; I just hope that we do as well as we did yesterday, taking in over $300.
What to do with my framing business, which I have run from my home for the last seven years, has been, probably, one of our biggest concerns. Hopefully, although nothing has been finalized as yet, I will be selling my equipment and supplies to another framer, who will also use her garage as her shop space.
All in all, we are making progress, although with "baby steps", toward our fulltiming goals. Next week, I am going to order a dumpster from the garbage company so that we dispose of more than just one can a week. Here in our community, this service costs about $80, and they empty the container four times. That's a lot of trash!!! The next month will definitely make a difference. More later...
November 1, 1999 THE BEGINNING January 25, 2000 THE DOWNSIZING BEGINS February 6, 2000 RECEIPTS AND TAX RETURNS April 27, 2000 DUMPSTERS, DOCTORS, AND TRUCKS May 24, 2000 OUR TRUCK DECISION July 2, 2000 BITS AND PIECES July 21, 2000 MEDICAL CONCERNS July 27, 2000 STEPS TO A FULLTIMING BUDGET August 8, 2000 OUR TRUCK DELIVERY SAGA September 15, 2000 AN UPDATE ON OUR PROGRESS October 2, 2000 SIX WEEKS TO GO!!! October 15, 2000 MORE HURDLES CONQUERED November 14, 2000 ALMOST THERE!!! December 21, 2000 ELKHART.....FINALLY!!! December 21, 2000 LET THE COMEDY BEGIN!!!