by Ron Hall
Member since:
August 31, 2005

To Buy or Not to Buy (for 4/23/06)

April 23, 2006 04:03 PM EDT (Updated: June 26, 2006 07:36 PM EDT)
views: 40 | rating: 10/10 (7 votes) | comments: 20

We almost got skunked this time out.  We went over to Uptown and Nokomis in Minneapolis first. We got a couple pictures there and that's it.

fileId:3096224743846862;size:inter;

Miss Piggy Aerobique record

price - $1

no sale

I met some artists the next day.  Maybe they could do something with it.  Oh, well.  I think I'll be seeing this again (hopefully for a quarter).

fileId:3096224743846864;size:inter;

Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies

price - .25

no sale

I know they sell a ton of these books, but I'm never buying anything that says "For Dummies" on it.  It's the principle.

Then we went over to St Paul, and at our first stop,

fileId:3096224743846868;size:inter;

Folding, portable table to turn your skill saw into a table saw

price - $5

sold

I had one of these but had a desperation yard sale and lost it along with a lot of other cool stuff.  You bolt your skill saw underneath the table and you have yourself a table saw.  Brilliant.

 

 

 

That's it for this week's yard sale finds, but Janie's parents took us out to dinner and handed me a bag, it contained,

fileId:3096224743846866;size:inter;

Set of 6 cocktail glasses with "RH" monogram

price - free

I'll take it.

Harriet found them at an estate sale in Florida.  Very cool.

 

During the week I had some grocery shopping observations I just had to document.

fileId:3096224743846869;size:inter;

20 oz packages of bone-in chicken breasts

price - $1 each

sold

Man, I wish I had more freezer space!

 

 

fileId:3096224743846871;size:inter;

Bulk almonds at the co-op

price - $8.89 lb.

no sale

Almonds have been going up and up.  These aren't even organic, and they just kept saying "our supplier is raising the cost to us."  I paid the higher prices for months until,

 

 

 

fileId:3096224743846872;size:inter;

Almonds - 2 lb. package

price - $6.34 (that's $3.17 lb!)

sold

I don't what the deal is. I'm not plugging the supermarket by name, but I have to say they have dedicated two entile aisles to real ethnic ingredients.  This was in the middle eastern section.  Our city has a lot of Somali immigrants, and most can't pay $8.89 for almonds.  I've decided I can't either.

fileId:3096224743846873;size:inter;

14 oz. bag of MSG (Chicken Brand)

price - $1.59

no sale

Price of cocaine getting you down?  Kill yourself with this  =:[

 

 

 

 

Later Saturday evening we went to the St Paul Art Crawl, and along with all the things outside our reach we saw,

fileId:3096224743846911;size:inter;

Tic Tac Toe Set

price - $5

sold

The artist was oh, 12 or so, and her little dog was drop dead cute.

 

 

 

 

 

And finally, in an encore appearance from the Hall household yardsale hall of fame,

fileId:3096224743846912;size:inter;

Stuffed Kokapelli toy

price - priceless

sold

I only wish it had a little thingy in it you push and you hear Bob Marley sing "Fly Like an Eagle."

 

 

 

 

 

--------

To Buy or Not To Buy is a weekly commentary on things I did and didn't buy in the past week.  This is the second installment.

Click here for links to all other episodes.
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Comments: 20

Cheryl C. Apr 23, 2006, 4:43pm EDT
Now that chicken was the best deal I've seen in a long time.
Ron Hall Apr 23, 2006, 4:55pm EDT
Cheryl, I'm tempted to get an additional freezer, like people out in the country have. Unfortunately, we live in a condo highrise and don't have room for it. Also, it takes a lot of deals to make the freezer pay for itself, especially if the power goes off long enough for everything in it to go bad (things happen). Yes, I was very happy with the deal and some other shoppers had their carts loaded up with chicken.
Mimi Mieux Apr 23, 2006, 5:29pm EDT
I'm with you on the "For Dummies" books! Don't know why those titles irk me, but they do! Love your RH highball glasses.
Ron Hall Apr 23, 2006, 6:47pm EDT
Mimi, yeah, no "for dummies" books for this guy. I've switched to beer, so I'm not sure when the highball glasses will get used. (Ah, Janie reminded me we used them for wine last night). And if you fill the glass with frozen raspberries it makes the beer last longer. So, I guess I am/will be using them.
jessie voigts Apr 23, 2006, 9:48pm EDT
hi ron! i think you mean 4/23? anyway - no sale on the miss piggy album? what a hoot!! whyever did they MAKE it??

not so great garage sales this time. where do you keep your table saw? throw a tablecloth over it in the DR? heh heh...
Ron Hall Apr 23, 2006, 9:54pm EDT
Ah, in case other's don't get it Jessie clued me into my date of June 23.

Tonight the table saw stays in the car. I'm afraid it's going to grace our balcony (folded up but still quite garish), until the 4th of July, when we drag it off to Colorado where I have a workshop and some reason to own such a thing.
AiLing K. Apr 23, 2006, 10:00pm EDT
:-) I love the 2 Ibs package of almonds! I just love nuts. Ron.... for the last item.... I am guilty as sin!!! Have you ever tried it?? I tried it once and I couldn't get enough of it. Man, I am hooked.... Please don't call the cops:)
Ron Hall Apr 23, 2006, 10:15pm EDT
Irene, we all but lived on nuts for a while and then the price started going up. We backed off. Oh, oh. New supplier. Old price. Look out.

Oh, and I may have been editing when you commented. There are two more pictures.
AiLing K. Apr 23, 2006, 10:19pm EDT
Hey, you sure did add two more pics:) I love the tic tac toe set. it is so cute! And that Stuffed Kokapelli toy, love that too.
You are right about the price of nuts, Ron. Why are they always so expensive? Sigh...
Ron Hall Apr 23, 2006, 10:27pm EDT
I guess it pays to shop around, but comparison shopping is tedious work. I don't mind the smug satisfaction of finding a better deal though.
jessie voigts Apr 23, 2006, 11:58pm EDT
i love the kokopelli!! what a hoot! and the art tic-tac-toe, how could you resist (was she selling lemonade, too?)...love it!

so all your tools are in CO? you must go there frequently? do they have good garage sales there, too? heh heh...double the fun!
Ron Hall Apr 24, 2006, 8:52am EDT
Jessie, we only get to take one two or three week vacation in Colorado every year. I guess we're lucky to have that. My mom has three older buildings there, all owner built by a non-professional so they need a lot of work. And when I work on those buildings I don't have to worry so much about cosmetics. Whatever I do is going to be an improvement!

We actally haul some of our finds to Colorado for sale in my mom's gift shop. See http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474976720312
George Corneliussen Apr 24, 2006, 11:28am EDT
You Dog, the saw table is awesome ! My hat is most definitely tipped to you on this buy.
Ron Hall Apr 24, 2006, 2:24pm EDT
George I find it to be one of the smartest inventions of all time. While a full-time carpenter may not have the time to bolt in his skillsaw every time he needs to rip a board, that's not the case with the average joe. There's just no reason to have two saws just because one needs to be attached to a table. It's a waste, in my humble opinion. Yes, one may also need to change over to a narrow ripping blade, but that's not so hard . . .
Ron Hall Apr 26, 2006, 3:55pm EDT
Yes Cindy, it was not from this past weekend. I think I paid as much as $3 for it, but I can't exactly remember.
Johanna C. Apr 29, 2006, 1:16am EDT
What a fun update you give us! I have to admit that when I was growing up, I had a Miss Piggy book among my favorites. I might've been sold on that silly album! -- I mean -- back then, of course -- not umm.. not now or anything.... ;)
Ron Hall Apr 29, 2006, 8:55am EDT
Johanna, there was a time when I thought smiley faces were cool. I had posters and a lamp. Now I only use it as punctuation, to indicate a lack of hostility or less-than-serious tone to the preceding statement. Occasionally I will hand-draw a one-eyed frowney face. That's not punctuation, but rather a spoof on the original.
Lori Cee (rest in peace, jJack.) Jan 8, 2008, 9:03pm EST
i like the stuffed kokapelli toy too. and its always good to keep a few steps ahead of the dummies. so, go on! read one just to see what theyre up to.
Ron Hall Jan 8, 2008, 9:33pm EST
I used the kokapelli as the icon for one of my groups, Lori. There are gems to be found out there. I only wish it had a little music machine inside that plays Bob Marley's "Fly Like an Eagle".

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