Kiwi Garage Sales

I LOVE garage sales! I love to find a bargin at garage sales, I've even got Brendon to where he likes them too. I'm addicted to them but there is a difference in garage sales in New Zealand and the USA.

One difference to me is they never price anything! You have to ask how much they want for each item. What a waste of my time! Then, when they tell you the price and you put it back they are just dumbfounded that you won't pay that price for it! Kiwi's think that at garage sales it's the time to ask near new prices for things.

Once I went to a sale and I found heaps of baby undershirts for Madelynn. Of course they were were not priced and they were in really good condition. I can buy a pack of about 3 for $10.00 NZ new. I asked the owner how much and she says "$3 each. They weren't worn very much and they are in still good condition". I just looked at her and put them back. The look on her face was priceless, she couldn't believe it. I'm sure no one ever questioned her prices before.

It really is mind boggling to see items still in the original box, perhaps a few years old the original price sticker still on it and they are only asking $5 less than that.

I've seen some real doozies over the past couple of years but last Saturday I ventured out to one that just took the cake. When I got there the 1st thing I noticed was the sign...it had a totally different street and address on it as if to tell you where the "real" sale was. That should have been my first clue.

When I got up to the garage. There was a few people looking around with the same look on their faces "As if to say, this is it?" There was a man about 35-40ish sitting in a DIRTY garage 1/2 full of firewood and on the other side an old couch which he was sitting on surrounded by more firewood and 3 boxes of old jars from jam, mayo etc... He was telling one person how he just really needed to get rid of all this stuff, it had to go, and he was willing to let it go for bargin because he wanted some money.

I just about wet myself! All the stuff he should have just put into the weekly recycle bins that they collect on Thursday. Only in New Zealand!