Stuff that sold

Super 8 Movie Making Equipment

Sears 8mm Projector, Sear 8mm Movie Camera, 4-300 watt light bulbs, A Daylighter Movie Light, 8mm editor, Splicer, Film to Video Converter Box

After holding on to it for the past 15+ years, it became time to let go of my 8mm movie equipment. The camera and projector were from Sears and I purchased them when I was about 12 years old.

Several movies were made with this equipment. I kept the movies.

The camera had slow motion and single frame capability for slow motion stop motion animation. The rest of the equipment was collected and purchased at yard sales and flea markets. Lots of people were interested in this movie equipment, but only one guy arrived first to purchase it.

Abercrombie & Fitch Pants

Bad habit: buy clothes, wear them once, store them for a while, then discard them.

These pants were purchased impulsively at A&F and worn maybe once. At least some money came back to me and they went to someone who liked them.

He also purchased a belt from me that I purchased on a mall trip with Pamela.

“Alter Ego” Sculpture

This sculpture was made in my bedroom when I was 18 years old.

I’ve carried it with me for the past 15 years, proudly displaying it in my apartments, and freaking out visitors who all agreed that it was too scary and made them uncomfortable.

The sculpture was made of wax melted over a tin foil mold of my face. The teeth were an exact replica of how my teeth should have looked after after my braces came off. Although my teeth are close in real life, the mask had much straighter and whiter teeth than I ever have.

Maybe I could have tried selling it on eBay, but I instead broke the face up into little pieces and discarded it. Here it is in a plastic bag, ready for the trash.

Fender Amp Can

I was always on a quest for the perfect street amp. This little thing came from craigslist — just $20!

The Amp Can is a portable, battery operated model made for the streets. They retail for $179. This amp needed servicing, which cost $50, so I put out $70 total. It turned out to be too weak for bass, so I sold it on eBay for $125. Not too shabby.

Guitar Stands

The stand in the photo of the left was given to me by Audrey, my high school sweetheart. I kept it for the past 15 years, and sold it with the newer stand, which was purchased at Bradlees for $7 during a going-out-of-business sale.

The stand that Audrey gave me broke in high school. I asked my friend Joe to weld it back together in his welding class. He did, and it worked fine ever since.

I sold them both on eBay for a decent price.

Concert Poster

In 1995, when you performed at Barnes and Noble, they’d make a sign to promote your appearance.

This sign was promoting a very fun show at the Barnes and Noble on Rt. 46 in Totowa, New Jersey.

The manager wrote me a nice thank you letter, and a girl told my I have a beautiful singing voice(!). A guy was inspired to switch from guitar to finger style bass playing because of my playing. It was a good night. The poster finally became trash after 7 years.

Timberland Backpack

A newspaper ad read, “Test drive a new Isuzu and get a free backpack.”

When I showed up at the dealer, the salesman said, “Here for your free backpack?”

I said yes, and he simply handed me a paper to sign. Two weeks later my backpack arrived in the mail. It was well used until my cat peed on it, which made it trash.

Old Blue Blanket

This blanket kept me warm when I was a kid. It was one of the first things to go. It had holes chewed in it by Bebo, my dog from Philadelphia. It was a sentimental item, but it became trash.

Bottles

These came from various locations. Two are antiques, and were purchased at a yard sale near Lorrie’s house. The old man who was selling them kept telling me they were worth much more that $1 dollar each. I told him I’d take good care of them. I sent them to a friend as a gift, and now he’s taking care of them.

Laundry Basket

Living in the basement was nice, because the washer and dryer were right outside my door (and I couldn’t hear them when the door was shut). The laundry basket came from Bed Bath and Beyond.

It should have been one of the first items to sell, but it went for free to a young couple who also took my shower curtain, iron, and a pair of Gap pants.

They declined to have their picture taken, because the guy with the pink fan was photographed moments earlier. He got nervous and said, ‘No pictures!’ He did agree to have his hand photographed.

“We just arrived to this country from Israel so we’d rather not be seen,” the couple said.

I kept the Benihana Buddha.

Little Pink Fan

This fan was given to me by my high school girlfriend, Audrey. I don’t remember why she did not want it. It was perfect for the desk.

Now it’s gone to a bearded man who didn’t want his picture taken.

He allowed me to photograph the fan in his hand.

Books

I had a lot of books. The bulk of my collection was sold at the end the summer, 2002. One day, a guy showed up and started selling books on a table on the sidewalk just down the street from me.

Knowing my lease was coming due, I asked him if he wanted to come to my place and buy my books. After he was done selling for the day, he packed up his car, and then stopped by my place.

He took off his shirt (said he was hot) while he thumbed through my book collection. It was a little awkward, but he paid $75 dollars and took all the books I was willing to sell.

Some of the books I sold were found under the stairs in my apartment building. People would leave things there, and I’d sell that stuff on eBay. For instance, I found and sold a Cartier Jewelers coffee table book for $24 dollars.

These Dungeons and Dragons books were purchased at a yard sale for $2 last summer. They sold on eBay for $25 dollars.

Ceramic Bowl

Not sure where this bowl came from, but I used it to hold coins from around the world. It went to a friend who said she will also use it for holding coins.

Hats

I had lots of hats. Some were given away, some were sold.

This Bowler hat was given to me by Elmo, my coworker, during a holiday pollyanna at Costumes by Pierre in Philadelphia years ago. He also gave me an umbrella, because I was leaving for London.

Other hats were picked up here and there, and I gave them away.

I used to manage a Halloween store, which is where I got this top hat. I gave it to Valerie.

Cassette Tapes

Remember when tapes kicked ass? They were small, portable, and reusable. I had a bunch.

All my vinyl LPs sold before I began photographing people who took my stuff. The only LP record I kept was the first one I ever purchased. It was "Rock and Roll Over" by Kiss.

This guy took a box of tapes. I had collected a bunch of blanks that I planned to use to make recordings. Now everything is going digital.

Incense Burner

Got this somewhere in NYC. Sold it for $1. It worked well but who really needs one of these when you can just stick incense into your plants?

Cable Box

Got this cable box for free from under the stairs in my building. I tried to sell it online, but nobody purchased it so I gave it away to this happy camper.

Do you ever think of all the things you have used and discarded in your lifetime? If you put all that stuff end to end, you could climb to the moon.

Camper Shoes

This pair of Camper Shoes changed the way I feel about footwear. They were the most comfortable shoes EVER. They set the standard for purchasing new shoes, because they had a wide toe box.

Nissan Z Playing Cards

I signed up for a mailing list for the Nissan Z, and they sent me a limited edition set of playing cards.

I sold them on eBay for $14.

Clothes

That Gap sale rack was addictive. If something was cool and cheap — whether I needed it or not — I’d often buy it. Bad habit.

The orange thing was a hoodie/rain jacket that folded up into a little bag. Pretty cool, but it was hot as hell in warm weather. The rest are pants.

This guy took a bunch of stuff (including the rain hoodie) during the last day of my sale, where everything was free.

I called giving things away, “Spreading Joy.” Lots of joy was spread in the final days of my apartment sale.

Kitchen Things

Got the chimes at Bed Bath and Beyond, sold them on eBay. Got the Buddha in Colorado, couldn’t sell it, couldn’t give it away, couldn’t throw it away, still have it. I gave away the plant, and the little statue went back to Lorrie. So many things in the world. So many things we can never really own.

Wall Clock

Nothing is better than a nice, large wall clock. How many times was this time machine glanced at?

All of the things in my little studio apartment were accumulated over the course of several years, but it was all sold or given away in a matter of days.

Credit Cards

My credit card collecting began at an early age. Being granted credit felt like some sort of privilege. Too many cards eventually got me into trouble, and I started to avoid credit like the plague.

Computer Desk

They say a clean desk is a sign of a weak mind, and those who have a clean desks are not doing work. Therefore, a messy desk is a good desk.

My desk looked this clean only twice. Once when it came out of the box, and once when I put it up for sale.

Dave was a really nice guy who purchased the desk and chair for his home-based computer audio studio.

High School Diploma

I kept this around for so many years, and nobody ever asked to see it. I threw it out, and still nobody asked to see it. Now you must wonder, did it ever exist?

Dishes, Cutlery, Pots, Pans

The only dishes I kept were two mugs that had my name on them, and a blue metal colander that belonged to my grandmother.

Imagine how many forks, spoons, knives, cups, dishes, pots, and pans exist in the world...

...and yet there’s not enough food.

DSL Cable

This cable came with my super expensive ($109 a month!) ADSL (asynchronous digital subscriber line).

After switching to cable, there's no going back.

She said she will use it in her office, and she took a bunch of office supplies.

Working from home is the best.

DVD Player

I got this JVC DVD player for a really good price, but never once watched a DVD on it.

I sold it to my friend Danny, who hopefully has watched DVDs on it.

Ceramic Face

Found this under the stairs and hung it on my wall for a while. Almost kept it, but decided to send it away as a gift.

It’s in good hands now, or in someone’s garden.

Fax Machine

This fax machine was purchased at the Bradlees going-out-of-business sale for $50, and I sold it for $20. EVERYONE wanted it. The guy who got it came during a busy period, so he wasn’t photographed. People wanted me to hold it for them, but I could not.

Plastic File Cabinet

Files with nothing in them. Never organized enough to file. Gave it away during the last few days of the sale.

All of the best intentions are hidden away in the things that surround you.

Things should remind you of progress, and not haunt you with heavy regret.

He also took an Indigo Girls cassette.

Van Gogh Framed Picture

I found the picture and frame under the stairs, took the painting out of it, and threw it in the trash. I kept the frame in anticipation that it might fit one of my paintings. It didn’t. During the sale, my superintendent knocked on the door and handed me the Van Gogh painting to sell. She had fished it out of the trash after I put it out. I sold it all for $5. (It’s wrapped in the plastic bag.) It was just a print, of course.

Futon Frame

I found this fine working futon frame on the streets of Manhattan, and used it as a bed frame for three years. I gave it away to the guy on the left who is using it for a couch in his living room. He was really nice and, as a thank you, gave me free tickets to see De La Guarda!

Effects Pedals

The Morley Fuzz/volume/Wah pedal was purchased years ago, and I used it all the time.

These were some of my effects pedals. They are devices that change the sound of my bass before it goes into the amplifier.

The Echo Delay pedal was only used for one show. It was cool, but not cool enough to keep. I lost $50 bucks on it!

The Digitech talker pedal was cool, but had limited use. It would alter my voice to match what I played on my bass.

All the pedals were cool, but they took up space, and I’d been playing clean more often than not.

Road Atlas

This road atlas came with my friend Jason and I when we drove across America in 1989. The main USA map that has our route traced on it was kept. The rest was thrown out.

A road trip without any maps or itinerary would make for a nice adventure.

Bass Cases

The hard case had been mine for well over 15 years. I sold it for $25 or $30. It was the original case that came with my Fender P bass, which I got by trading stuff for it with Rodney in high school.

The gig bag was about 12 years old. It was holding on, but the pocket was ripped and there was no padding so it was time to trash it.

SWR Bigfoot

This vintage SWR Bigfoot bass cabinet was cool, but wasn’t getting used by me. It was too big for the venues I was playing, there was no place to store it, and moving it was a pain in the butt. I sold it on eBay for more than I paid.

GI Joe

Collecting G.I. Joe dolls was a fun hobby for a while, but not as fun as it was to get a new one when I was a kid. Purchasing them as an adult doesn’t have the same magic, so I sold them for a profit on eBay. Actually, finding 1960s G.I. Joe stuff still has some magic, but there is no attachment to the items like when I was a kid. That makes them easier to sell.

Pier 1 Stuff

The glass head came from Pier 1 Imports. It was something totally useless, but kinda fun and quirky. I sold it on eBay. The hall rug was sold to the guy below who also took the receiver. It was a nice rug.

Audio Receiver

The guy on the left bought a bunch of stuff including the hall rug (above), JVC receiver, and my much-loved coffee table (below).

Selling things is addictive, and doing so may be more fun than buying them.

Coffee Table

This was found under the stairs. It had wheels that could lock in place. My storage space is so limited that it had to be let go. It was a cool table.

KISS Mask

I do not know why I purchased this. My fascination with the rock band KISS started when I was a kid. This mask was never used for anything but display purposes. I never wore it while playing bass and standing in front of the mirror — I swear! Seriously, I never did. It was a failed Halloween costume. Sold it on eBay.

Practice Gloves

Studied Muay Thai for a short time. Used these on the bag. Sold them on eBay for so much lower than their initial cost it’s embarrassing. You win some, you lose some.

Mic Stands

He and I a conversation about attaching memories to things. He said that he went through a phase where he tried to buy all the things he had as a kid. He said his house is filled with stuff. I was envious that he had a house, he seemed envious that I was getting rid of everything to go traveling.

The grass is always greener on the other side.

Sony Vaio Laptop

It was a good move to have sold this one before it was worth absolutely nothing. But maybe it was a stupid move to sell my tiny laptop right before leaving to travel. No, I’m glad I sold it.

Letter Holder

I used to hold my bills and outgoing mail. Probably got it at a yard sale. It was sent away as a gift to someone who wanted it and was excited about it.

Yoga Mat

This was my first Yoga mat. It was pretty well worn, but someone still took it.

For a short while, Yoga classes were part of my regular schedule.

For a short while, a regular schedule was part of my regular schedule.

Yoga can still happen anytime.

Johnny Sunshine

I don’t remember what Johnny Sunshine purchased, but he was one of the most memorable apartment sale visitors. When I asked to take his picture he said, “How about with the cat?”

I told him that most people posed with the stuff they purchased, but he picked up Jim the Cat. Johnny stayed a while trying to get me to sell him my bass. He offered me all sort of illegal things for it, including a huge bag of weed and pills.

Upright Bass

I always wanted an upright bass, and when I could finally could afford one, I ran out and grabbed the first double bass one I could find. It was too stiff.

The good thing was that I had a bass, but the bad thing was that I had a bass that wasn’t right for me. I didn’t have the space or the desire to store this one, so I sold it.

Next time my selection process will be less hasty, if I even get another upright. Electric might be enough bass for me.

Interplak Electric Toothbrush

This thing made brushing fun! To my amazement, it sold on eBay. Why not? Just put a new brush in it. It worked.

(Maybe it’s just me, but when I get a new electric toothbrush in the future, I will not purchase a used one.)

Laser Printer

This NEC Superscript 860 Laser Printer worked fine, but it needed toner. It was purchased in 1996 for $500 dollars, and sold in 2003 for $15.

New ink costs approximately $70 per cartridge, but it lasts for a whole year of regular printing. Prices were nuts.

My giant monitor at the time cost $500.

Akai Reel to Reel

This was purchased from my cousin in 1990 for $20 dollars. It was used to make some cool tape echo delay sounds, and to record some songs and stories.

I had it about ten years, and then sold it on eBay for $150.

Oakley Sandbag Shoulder Sling

Got this and traveled with it to California. It was/is a nice bag, but the one shoulder thing hurt when the bag got heavy. It really wasn’t meant for overnights, and was more suited to around town.

I sold it on eBay at a $20 dollar loss. Oh well.

Yamaha Speakers

Purchased these speakers at Macy’s In Morristown, NJ (when Macy’s was there) for $50. I sold them for $10 ten years later to two college girls (who didn’t know that was a dog pee stain on the front). Bebo was a troubled dog, and he left his mark in a lasting way.

In Line Skates

Got these in Missoula, Montana for $60 dollars. Rode them a bunch there, then a few times back east. After that they sat in the closet. Skating was always second to biking, and my bike was so great.

Hand Carved Statues

Got these little statues at various yard sales for $1 each. Sold them as a collection on eBay for $7. You never know what you have until it sells.

Toolbox

This was a Christmas gift. I got two of them that year, so one had to go. Once again, eBay...

I still have the other one, but kind wish I kept this one because it was metal.

Temporary Tattoos

I bought two boxes filled with temporary tattoos in Myrtle Beach, SC for $50 one year while I down there with friends. John asked what I was going to do with them. I said I’d sell them.

That summer, I sold 70 of them for $1 dollar each at the Trenton Avant Garde Festival. After that I didn’t do anything with them until they sold for $25. Not too shabby.

Turn Table

Had this turntable for years! Hadn’t used it in years! Sold it on ebay for near what I initially paid for it! Also sold all my vinyl LPs. It’s all digital for me from now on. Digital is the way of the future.

Headphones

Sold them way too cheap ($5). Probably should have kept these, but what can you do...

Headphones are a bit like cheap sunglasses.

Pencil and Pen Collection

I hated being without a pen in my pocket, and I used to always find one throughout the day if I forgot one. After amassing more than could be used, my pen collection dried up. The pens became trash and the pencils went to a guy who was going to use them at his school with his students.

A few special writing instruments were kept, like the one that says, “Stolen from the desk of GM Podems.” Mr. Podems was my high school principal, and he let me take a pencil from his office when I was called down there one day many years ago.

Key Necklace

My ex-girlfriend, Christine, gave this to me to signify the key to her heart. To my surprised I still had it hidden in my stuff.

Hopefully someone else finds it, and is more suited than me to be in possession of it.

Graduation Photo Album

This photo book was made for me by my neighbor, Carol, for my high school graduation. Pictures of my high school girlfriends, my prom, and my 1989 cross-country road trip were in it. I took the images out and threw away the lovely, but aging, book.

Space Heater

This space heater was given to me by my parents. It was used well, right up until it was sold, and I could have used it a few times after that.

The woman who purchased the heater didn’t want to be photographed, but she agreed to let me take a picture of her hands holding her find.

Keybox

Got this key box at Bed Bath and Beyond during one of my semi-habitual trips to the store, which was an effort to make myself like my apartment better. What happened was that more stuff ended up in my place, but the key box was nice, and it was used daily.

Leather Toiletry Case

In 1992, I was informed that I’d need a bag to hold my toiletries for a trip I was taking. The leather toiletry case was purchased at Wannamaker’s in Philadelphia with Danielle. She may have gotten it for me, I cannot recall. It worked fine for the six month trip, and then it was never used again. It held odd items (like my wisdom teeth) for the past ten years until good ol’ eBay helped me sell it.

Master Lock

Purchased in 1996 to add some much needed security to my apartment on 24th & Sansom in Philadelphia, this lock kept random workers out of my apartment. Still, the place got robbed anyhow. Had the lock all these years until I sold it for $5 at the start of the apartment sale.

Pick Guard

I took this off my Frankenbass, which is now free of any pick guards.

The bass started with a white pick guard, then I switched to a black one, then to this tortoise shell. Now there is no pick guard on the bass, and I sold this one on eBay.

Old VCR

My brother purchased this VCR years ago. It cost like $1000 dollars — no joke. He paid for it with money he earned from cutting lawns and delivering newspapers. It was state of the art when it came out. One of the memories I have about the VCR was that it had voice over capabilities, so you could narrate your home movies. My brother taped Mr. Rogers, and we recorded our own voice over mimicking him, but we said, “Hello children. Can you say penis?” We thought that was hilarious.

Weights

My brother purchased this weight bench, and I ended up owning it at some point.

The Gold’s Gym steel weights were purchased over time from sales at Bradlees on Union Square in NYC (now Whole Foods).

I never used the weights consistently, and ended up doing way more exercise after selling them. Go figure.

Television

My brother sold me this television for $50 dollars about 10 years ago. It was my primary TV ever since. The color was good, but it wasn’t cable ready, so it was time to sell it.

This guy said he is going to use the TV when camping. He also took the inline skates, punching bag, and jump rope for his kids.

Knives

Forgot about these until they were found in my stuff. Most likely they have been around since I was about 13 or 14. I kept one and sold the other. Might have used one of these to carve my name in a huge old tree in Parsippany, NJ.

Romance Jar

Threw this out at the last minute. My ex gave me this little jar on Valentine’s Day. It was filled with tiny love notes. It was a really sweet gift that I’ll never forget, because I took this photo. I do not remember what was written on the notes, however.

Software

Not sure if you do this or not, but I tended to buy things in anticipation of needing them. I purchased some cheap software that had over 10,000 clip art images on it, but never used it. It was only $10, and I sold it for (I think) $5. This guy also took leftover Woolite from my trip to California, and the fake glasses he’s wearing were part of a Halloween costume from years before.

Stool

This was my performance stool. It came with me to gigs, and I sat on it while I played bass and told stories. After moving to NYC, I just didn’t need it anymore.

Goodbye wooden stool! Thank you for your service. Have a nice life!

Steinberger Bass

For those of you that don’t know, Steinberger basses were made in the 80s, and are nearly indestructible. They are made out of some kind of super-strong plastic, and were very innovative, because they had no body or head. Sting used one on the Synchronicity tour with the Police.

I got this Steinberger bass after having purchased a cheaper knock-off, and then I wanted the real thing. It seemed like it would be the perfect travel bass except it was heavy, the neck was too long, and it was a collector’s item that was worth lots of money. I purchased mine off eBay, and sold it on eBay.

Three Suits

These three Brooks Brothers suits were given to me. I sold one, gave one to Mike, and kept one for a while.

Tascam 4-Track Recorder

This multi-track tape recorder was a popular item. Lots of people emailed from the Craigslist ad, and wanted me to hold it for them. It was first come first serve, and only one person arrived first to proudly pose with his well priced prize.

All you people who didn’t even try to get it, look! He got it, and he didn’t arrive until like an hour into the sale.

Vacuum

My superintendent gave me this vacuum to sell. She probably got it out from under the stairs. It worked great, but it smelled just a little bit of cat poop when you ran it.

This lucky group took it. They probably think I used it to clean the litter box.

I didn’t! I never used it, but I made $5 from it.

Tripod & Monopod

I got these a while ago in anticipation of needing them. I used the tripod a few times, and then sold them both on eBay.

I did not make money on the sale, but I also did not lose money, so that is good.

Wait until you need the thing before you get the thing.

Rice Cooker

I liked my rice cooker, but for some reason I did not love it.

Lorrie’s kind sister-in-law Karen gave it to me, because she never used it.

Then I ended up not using it very much.

Hopefully this guy will get good use out of it, and love it like it’s meant to be.

Shelves

My new theory is that if you have to have shelves, you have too many things.

I sold these to the Movement Salon.

Rocks’n’stuff

The leftmost item is a vintage NYC Subway Token. The marble ball is a mystery. The fool’s gold came from Heather. A long time ago she sent me a package that had all sorts of cool things in it that she made in college, and she also put in some fool’s gold. That package is one of the nicest things I’ve ever gotten in the mail. I hope she’s still as creative and passionate. The last thing on the right is a pretty, smooth rock that I picked up after Leslie sent me to the curb.

Shoe Rack / Sweater Rack

Another item from Bed Bath and beyond. These were used in my closet to store my clothes instead of having a dresser. They worked pretty well, and were a good, inexpensive alternative to heavy furniture. I sold them.

Tree & Plant

Benjamin Ficus trees rule! This one was rescued from the street. It went to this girl, who was going to put it on her outside patio. She also took a plant that was in my kitchen.

A bunch of other plants went to a guy, but I didn’t photograph him, because it was too busy in the last moments of the sale.

I collected quite a forest of sorts during my time in NYC. People often threw plants out when they moved, and I’d take them into my small apartment.

Prerecorded Tapes

So many tapes! Getting rid of them was sort of sad, but okay. MP3, baby! Tape shmape! So many cassettes were sold. I con’t even recall all the albums I had on cassette.

Mattress

Someone is sleeping in my bed!

Jim the Cat liked my bed. He would climb under it, and pull on the mattress with his claws when he wanted attention. There was a blood spot on the bed from a friend who slept over and got a nose bleed. Other than that this was a clean, comfortable mattress.

The guy who took it probably won’t completely fit on it. He was really tall. He also took my last roll of toilet paper (I purchased two for my last two weeks in NYC, but only used one) and he took some tapes, which I was selling for really cheap at that point in the sale.

Jewel Cases

My plan was to make a new homegrown CD, so I collected lots of free CD jewel cases from places around the city. I had a few cases of them.

The idea was that I would burn my own CDs, which was a wild concept at the time, but doable with the right equipment.

My plan ran out of time, so I had to get rid of the jewel cases. Since I got then for free, I gave them away for free. Lots of people came to get some.

Art Stuff

The bulk of my art supplies came from a purchase I made in the mid 90’s. Included were oil paints, brushes, ink, and an art table and chair. Over time, I purchased acrylics, and preferred to use them since they tended to be cheaper, and dried faster, which kept the cat’s hair out of my paintings.

I purchased that stuff from a lady who’s artist daughter had died. Before I purchased the table I asked my father, an art teacher, if he thought $200 was a good deal. He never said if I should or shouldn’t get it but he did say that sometimes people think that buying an art table will make them an artist and that is not what art is all about.

He was right, but I purchased the stuff anyway. The lady who sold me the table invited me to check out a Jehovah’s Witness meeting. Several days later I drove to Randolph, NJ and met her at her church.

At the meeting, they were practicing public speaking, and getting ready to go door-to-door. I found it interesting that the people who go door to door were called “publishers.” There was a photograph of the Jehovah’s Witness book publishing plant on the wall at the church, and that seemed to hold strong significance. Although everyone was friendly, I decided the Jehovah’s Witness program wasn’t for me.

The art table sold to a woman who purchased it before I started photographing people. The paints and supplies were sold to a nice lady, and her husband bought a staff.

Canvas

I had several canvases that were sold to a painter who said he’ll just paint over them as if they are new. I only sold one canvas individually. It was totally blank. The woman who took it didn’t want her picture taken. She also took two ten pound dumbbells and a large wall clock.

Frames and Pastels

These guys were the first buyers to arrive at my apartment sale. They purchased my sweater holders, and pastels that were once owned by my grandfather, which I had kept for many years, but hadn’t used.

They also purchased a bunch of small frames that I had used to display printed photographs in my hallway.

Random Stuff

After most of the bigger things were sold, lots of little things remained. The last day in my apartment was “FREE: Take Everything” day. People showed up and took the remaining stuff.

Torker Cruiser

My bike was one of the hardest things to part with. It was purchased on eBay for $135 dollars in an auction run by a police station in Oregon. They didn’t know the make of the bike, so nobody was bidding on it. I won!

I LOVED my bike. I loved it so much that I wrote a story about it. Initially I posted an ad on Craigslist.org with a price of $180 dollars. So many responses came in that I knew the asking price was too low, so I put up a second ad and asked for $225, firm.

It was a vintage Torker 24" cruiser, after all. It had 3 piece Torker cranks, a gel seat, metal pedals, and a Snafu stem.

(I saw this very same bike for sale on the NYC craigslist about fifteen years later. It looked the same, but the frame was all dinged up.)

Thermometer & Random Toys

So many people came to the sales.

My former mailman, Julio, took some little toys for his kids, and a nautical themed thermometer.

Yes, I had a lot of stuff, but I also bought and sold a lot of stuff at the time. It all had to go, however, because I was about to start living the life of a nomadic traveling storyteller.

Wires

There were lots of wires in my apartment: RCA, Phono, Coaxial, Phone, Electric, PC, Ethernet, ADSL, etc.

Most of the wires and cables were sold or given away. I would have no use for them while traveling.

Jim the Cat

Jim the Cat stayed for a month with Arissa and Mark. They lived on the sixth floor in the same building. Jim eventually went to live with my ex-girlfriend, Lorrie.

(Mark took my shower shelf and push up bars.)

It was hard to give up Jim the Cat, but I had to live my life, and he ultimately ended up in a good place.