Fun Friday Finds #6

Okay...who's ready for today's Fun Friday Finds?  I know I am.  I spent the whole week looking forward to today.  I lurve me some garage sales.

It was kind of slow again this week, I stopped at a few where I didn't buy one single thing.  But, I did eek out a few fun things.  So, I pushed the coffee table back (so I could have more room) and after I picked up the Matchbox car, mega block, and popcorn crumbs that were under there, I was able to take a few pictures for ya.

Total spent - $29

That's more than I normally would have spent on such a small amount of items, BUT... I wanted one of those items really badly but the crusty ol' broad who was selling it wouldn't budge on the price.  (More on that humorous story in a bit)

Great industrial style metal box - $1 

Cigar box - .50 

I'm keeping this.  I have a collection of them that I use for fun storage in my crafting area.

Set of 3 vintage license plates - $1

(also keeping)

Old metal gas can - $3

Very cool industrial metal bin - $3

As you can see on the right there, I started to clean it up a bit to show you that in this business you have to be able to see beneath the dust and grime and see the hidden potential.  This is such a popular color right now, I'm hoping that it'll help it sell well.

Set of 2 French style vintage towels - .50

And now we come to the piece that I really really wanted.

Todd Protectograph Check Writer (from the early 1900's) - $20

(Doesn't it remind you of an old steam locomotive?)

I have never seen anything like this before so at the time I bought it I had absolutely no idea of it's value.  I just knew it was unique, it was old, it was awesome, and I wanted it!  The lady who was selling it wouldn't budge on her $20 price tag.  I knew in my heart of hearts I would regret it if I passed it up, so I bit the bullet and paid the full $20. 

I came home and did some research, and they have a neat history.  It's probably from around 1910 or so.  It's value seems to be all over the place ranging anywhere from $10 - $100.  So, my $20 investment might not be as good as I had hoped for, BUT... I do not regret it one bit.  It needs cleaned up, but I love this piece and I'm glad I went for it.  I think maybe I'll hang on to it for awhile.

Okay, now for the funny story I promised.  If you're only here for the pictures, feel free to move on with the next thing on your "to do" list .  BUT, if you have an extra minute and wanna good laugh, stick around.

The lady that was holding this yard sale was something else, let me tell ya.  She was not afraid to tell you like it is.  While I was squeezing my way through her packed out garage, she got a phone call and spent the next 10 minutes yakking it up about her dead husband.

Apparently, he had just recently passed away after a 4 year battle with cancer and she was holding this sale to pay for the funeral.  Normally you'd think she'd be a heartbroken widow.  Uh.....not so much.  She proceeded to tell the person on the phone about how much of a drunk her husband was and how she had to hold this sale because the (insert a not-so-nice name) didn't have a life insurance policy and she was discovering tons of debt that he racked up that she never knew about.  She said, "I'm so mad I wish I could bring the (insert the not-so-nice name) back to life just so I could kill him!!"

She then went on to say that 4 days after he died the police showed up to arrest him for something or other.  She told them, "Well, you can take his can of ashes down to the station if it makes you feel any better."

Wait...there's more.

So she finally got off the phone and I started the negotiating process with her for my pile of stuff.  I don't know where it came from or why she told me this but she said (referring to the dead husband's ashes) "He's in this garage somewhere.  I told the kids to put him in the fridge with his last can of beer."

And this would be why I described her as a crusty ol' broad.  

Another reason I love garage sales.  You just never know what kind of people you'll meet.

                                              

Linking up to:

Saturday Nite Special - Funky Junk Interiors