small things once large

©kjm

I'm leaving today for Spain, so will be missing my mom's annual rummage sale.

It's pretty serious sport - certainly no 'Saturday afternoon baby toys on the lawn' event. This is Thursday and Friday only (the days of the serious rummagers), with an ad in the local paper ("you don't want to miss this one!"), and lots of things, from both our family and her friends.

The process begins each year when items start appearing from nowhere, for review and pricing. I'm called on to evaluate the value and origin of odds and ends - old mechanical parts ("what's this?"), posters from my college dorm, shirts that my brother wore 20 years ago. There's always some surprising finds, like my glow-in-the-dark superball a few years ago, and the Matchbox car shown above. It's a Mercury Cougar, and was my favorite - mostly for the fine features like a cushy suspension and doors that actually opened. And who doesn't love a red interior?

Good luck, mom - I'm keeping my fingers crossed for sunny skies...