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My Dad, The Pack Rat
My father is a pack rat. He keeps everything from bent paper clips to broken toys from our childhood. He loves holding on to random wires and old VHS remotes. He's also a fan of keeping old, unusable tires -- just in case. Just in case science creates a time machine, I like to quip. Worlds collided, recently, when I had the idea of having a garage sale. It took all my powers of persuasion to convince him to part with even a third of his massive stash.
The proverbial ball got rolling with a recording a HGTV Channel show about pack rats. It's one of those shows that has a gaggle of designers and craftsmen come in and sell off all the junk in order to renovate a new home. We just "happened" to catch the show during dinner. The subconscious is a very powerful tool -- and it seemed to have worked. The next day, he agreed to the garage sale.
My window of opportunity was short. I had to move fast, before the show wore off. I put posters up all around our neighborhood and prepared the front yard for the sale. I borrowed some fold out tables and had everything ready for the big day. As the day of the sale dawned, my father was in a foul mood.
All of our old, useless stuff began to move off the tables. It was amazing that there was a demand for his junk. Maybe he was onto something. One person's junk is another person's treasure. The only problem I had, other than my father's mood, was his propensity to double or triple the price when asked! There was one item in particular -- our stainless steel fan -- that put him in a stubborn mood. It was listed at $5, but he wouldn't take less than $20. I had to take him aside and assure him we could go to any modern fan company and buy a new one.
I managed -- eventually -- to sell the fan, but only after my father stormed off. At the end of the day, I counted the take and marveled that we had sold $300 worth of junk. Amazing. I treated the entire family, sans my father, to a burger feast. Knowing the meal was being paid for by my father's junk was extremely satisfying. Thanks, pop.
About the Author If you are hoping to convince that pack rat in your life to sell off his junk, assure him there is a modern fan company where he can replaced his stainless steel fan.
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