I fell into a blogging black hole the past few days, only getting back here in time for Mailbox Monday.
The problem was a garage sale. My sister is off on a madcap adventure to try to be a chef in Bavaria. So, wisely deciding she didn't want to pay for a storage unit while out of the country, she sold as much as she could part with of her accumulated stuff at my house this weekend.
I didn't appreciate what a LOT of work it is to have a garage sale! And I didn't realize what a dumb idea it was to invite people over for a going away dinner the night of the second day of that garage sale! We had our mom in my kitchen cooking up a storm while my sister and I sold off everything from her childhood Fisher-Price toys to her REI tent to an 1800s "dough bowl."
No time to blog. No time to read.
So, getting back into the swim of things and going back to pre-garage sale days:
Two books came into my house last week (not counting a box-worth of books I snatched out of the hands of garage sale customers, but I haven't had a second to process those).
California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker (which won the Edgar Award in 2005)
The Foreign Correspondent by Allen Furst (because I really enjoyed Kingdom of Shadows so want to read more of his books).
The Foreign Correspondent looks so good. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteI had a grage sale once. It was so much work! You never realize how much work one is until you have one! I hope you get a chance to catch up on life this week!
ReplyDeleteI love going to garage sales, but having one...not so much!
ReplyDeleteGarage sales are a ton of work. I had one several years ago and swore I'd never do it again. I donate to Goodwill now.
ReplyDeleteThe books you got look good!
Love the cover of the Furst novel...hmm...looks like one I'd like to read...have a great week
ReplyDeleteBermuda -- I like a good Cold War spy thriller now and again, so I am looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteBeth -- Thanks! I feel like I'm 100 years old! Schlepping all that stuff around was exhausting! I hope to have an easy week.
Vicki -- I'm with you! I love going (mostly with the hopes of finding books), but it will be a long time before I have another.
Mary -- Exactly! The tax deduction from the Goodwill donation seems like more than fair compensation compared to the HOURS of work for the garage sale.
Serena -- I love that misty, foggy cover! And since our Spring here in Portland has been so cold and rainy (we had a fire in the fireplace last night), it looks like the perfect book to snuggle in with.
CA Girl sounds interesting! I hope you enjoy your new books. :-)
ReplyDeleteFor a peek at my mailbox: http://suko95.blogspot.com/2010/05/just-another-mailbox-monday.html
Not so into garage sales, though I have certainly found a few good steals there...So time-consuming!
ReplyDeleteAs I said in my response to your comment over at my blog, I immediately added 'The Foreign Correspondent' to my Amazon wishlist. That looks so good!
See my list on my blog.
Michele
SouthernCityMysteries
Love the cover of The Foreign Correspondent, hope you enjoy them both.
ReplyDeleteI like to buy at garage sales but have never hosted one, and maybe that's a good way to be.
ReplyDeleteDo share what books were in the mystery box when you have a chance!
Garage sales take a lot of time to set up and then to box up what didn't sell...sounds like your weekend was wild!!
ReplyDeleteI love that you snatched a box of books from someone's hands at a garage sale you were hosting!
ReplyDeleteLets see what the box of books reveal as well
ReplyDeleteSuko -- Thanks for visiting and for the link.
ReplyDeleteMichele -- Glad I inspired a wish list addition!
Ryan -- It is a haunting cover. Definitely enticing.
J.G. -- Shopping at is definitely better than hosting the garage sale. I'm still working out the kinks from hauling all that stuff around.
Staci -- Exactly! I fantasized that it would all magically be gone at the end, but of course there was lots left to box up.
Booksync -- It was more like snatching several individual volumes from the hands of several people. :)
Mystica -- I have to find the book box and make a list. I'm afraid it is in a large stack of boxes of "childhood memories" my sister brought to me to go through and other stuff I ended up with after the sale. But the books are what I want to find!
You didn't sell books at the garage sale did you? I vowed never to have another one after I discovered how much work they were. Enjoy one of your mailbox books while you recover from all the work!
ReplyDeleteI have had Cold Pursuit by T. Jefferson Parker on my list forever. I finally actually bought a copy at a library sale last year, so maybe I'll finally get around to it soon(ish). Enjoy!
ReplyDelete