We've been on the road for the past three weekends, in territory inhospitible to internet communication. There's great wi-fi in Ouray, Colorado, but nothing I'd try to post photos over, so we've hoarded up the purchases until now. Here's what we did and did not buy during our summer vacation!
Find of the trip
Well, GOLD of course
price - a little digging
sold
There are two 80-lb rocks of very low-grade ore, found on the placer claim owned by my mom. This is blown up ridiculously large. The speck is incredibly tiny in this piece, but hey, gold is gold.
Least interesting thing we saw for sale
Handwritten realestate offer
price - $200K
no sale
I love the phrase "free recorded message". I guess not all entrepreneurs can have what it takes to be successful.
Other things we did and did not buy on our summer vacation
Phone calls
price - 10 cents a minute
no sale
I love it that the telecommunications industry has become a cutthroat marketplace. I remember when you had to pay the phone company a hundred bucks to come turn on your phone. Payback time baby. Yeah.
Truckstop coffee
price - I forget
sold
It may not taste like much, but it comes in its own hot pot, and they leave the check when they bring the food. I hate waiting for the check (like sitting in a restaurant with a full belly is some kind of carnival ride).
Deductible travel meal
price - bother of keeping track
no sale
Since the trip was half business, we deduted the mileage on the way out, but not on the way back. Only half of this meal was for me as I run a sole proprietorship. Only half of the cost of eating on the road is deductible (because the IRS says I would have had to eat whether I was traveling or not). That means I would have been able to deduct about $1.10 for recording the cost of this meal. Why bother.
Nap at a Nebraska rest stop
price - your tax dollars at work
sold
It is cheaper to build nice rest stops than clean up car crashes. It is cheaper to pay police and firemen than need them and not have them there. As long as I have to pay taxes, I say enjoy it.
"Burrito"
price - I forget ($7 or so)
sold
What a Cipotle wannabe this place was. The wrapper had the texture of wax paper, and the rice had no flavor. I know rice shouldn't have flavor, but that was before I tasted cilantro-lime rice.
The last weenie
price - free
no takers
First night at my mom's we had ribs and pork loin and chicken and brats and hot dogs and bell peppers and mushrooms and zuccini. No one left hungry.
Organic Mac & Cheese
price - I forget
sold (regretably)
Look at all this packaging for 6 servings of organic mac & cheese!
Actually, I bought it because the graphic on the front said "Rabbit of approval". Good marketing. Unsustainable product.
The chance to have our own yard sale
price - 10 hours light labor X 2
sold
This was a very, very preliminary testing of the site's viability for a real sale. We didn't advertise, we held it on a Thursday, we didn't have much merchandise.
And it rained.
Still, we garnered $100. We'll be back next year with a truckload of goodies.
30 lbs of scrap aluminum
price - 15 minutes of labor
sold
That aluminum door wouldn't sell as a door. It'll sell as scrap, and as a bonus, we have a large thick pane of glass for one of my mom's display cases.
Breakfast special at Cameo Truck Stop
price - $6.49
sold
Green Chile Supreme
price - $6.49
no sale
I asked what a green chile supreme is (as I'm quite fond of green chile). It's hash browns covered with brown gravy covered with green chile topped with two eggs and cheese.
I'll take the special.
Truckstop condom
price - I forget
no sale
1) We have a more effective family planning strategy, and
2) It's the wrong size.
Coffee table with a small water stain
price - $5
sold
It's got that Frank Lloyd Wright look. Very nice wood. You should see the ugly thing it replaced. No, really. You don't.
Unplayed Black Canyon Gang record
price - $1
I could hardly contain my glee. The Gang and I go way back. There were only 5,000 or so of these printed, and you have to pry them from a Western Coloradans cold dead hands. My copy looks like an old Creedence record. I'll take good care of this as soon as I transfer it to a digital format.
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Would You Buy This or Not is usually a weekly feature during all months but winter. We'll be getting back into the yardsaling swing now that we're back home. Yes, it's good to see you too.
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Comments: 53
It looks like quite the adventure.
Loved your items not bought...lol
Did not blame you one bit.
Siouxy, the record is great fun. We also bought a Stephen Stills/Mike Bloomfield record and a Blues Project record.
I think I'd have bought the table, if I had a place for it.
I also would have bought the record if I were you, of course I'm not, but just saying...
Thank you, Denny!
Thank you Lera!
Yes, MM, gold is good.
Nice buy.
Teresa, I can't imagine mixing gravy and chile. If they'd just left the gravy off everything would have been cool. Yes, I like the table a lot.
All the food looks yummy. You should've had a business meeting with a potential client and then you could've picked up the meal tab.
Thank you Heather and Elizabeth!
Rob, I wish I could come get some of these things of which you speak. I'm thoroughly into bargains, I'm afraid.
I'm glad Gather can accommodate photos, Angela. Thank you.
Lori, who writing a menu would ever guess it would end up on the internet, eh?
This might be the year we have a yardsale ourselves (or next). With both kids leaving, there's a lot of leftover stuff!
If I were to drive to Leadville to visit friends, do you have stopover /restaurant (really!) recommendations, or do you camp?
Cynthia, in Kearney NE, about 12 blocks north of the freeway, there's a cafe in the basement of an older motel, (I think it's called The Lodge). Great breakfasts.
In Pagosa Springs, CO, there's a Thai place. I can't remember where, but it's a small town. It's not the best Thai I've tasted, but how many good rural Thai restaurants are there in rural America? : ) I think Pagosa is on the other side of Leadville though.
There's a great Pizza place in Idaho Springs (right on I-70), and if it's too busy there's a small organic, new-agey place across the street (Annies, or something like that), that has really, really good food.
Nana, moving sales move me. I lived in a downtown neighborhood once that had lots of young adults who didn't own cars. When it came time to move, they'd just throw away everything they couldn't fit in a yellow cab. I found some remarkable things.
Rita, all Chipotle burritos come with cilantro-lime rice. I know they're owned by McDonald's, but they make great food.
I laughed out loud at the condom banter..funny!
Glad to see you back. As a record hound, I can appreciate your "Black Canyon Gang" find. What kind of music do they play ?
And if you are ever in Leadville on your way somewhere, try my favorite Mexican restaurant "The Grill" -- well, it was still there when I last visited sometime in the late 1990s. It had grown from the little mom & pop place I loved in the late 1960s, with folks coming from Vail to partake...but still good, then. I hope it's still there!
Jennifer, that "free recorded message" sign - I don't think the author was bright enough to think we were that stupid by the way : ) - that was the sign I was taking a picture of when the dragonfly came in the car window.