True Grit: Don't Mess with Mom

I roasted like a peanut Saturday, but it was worth it! People hauled away my stuff and I was $150 richer before we got rained out.

My mom is the true garage sale guru. She likes to dicker (or "bicker" as a friend of mine calls it). Though I can hold my own, my mom is a rock when it comes to negotiations. Don't even try to pay $5 for the plastic climbing set with a slide; Mom will hand your money back to you and make you ashamed at the same time.

My favorite exchange happened at a different garage sale we held a few years ago. An older man who looked liked Mr. Drucker from "Green Acres" brought up several blinds Mom had marked as a set for $10.

Mr. Drucker: Take two fifty for this?
Mom: I'll take seven.
Mr. Drucker: How about three--there's a spot on this one here.
Mom: Eight dollars.
Mr. Drucker: (Shakes head.) All right then, four.
Mom: Eight fifty.
Mr. Drucker: You're not doing this right.
Mom: Yes I am.
Mr Drucker: (Mouth opens, nothing comes out. He peels a five and two ones from his wallet.)

I bow to the master.