The Goodwill Last Stop

My friends and I were looking for yard sales today but most of them had closed down. We went to the Goodwill last stop before oblivion. I think it is the last stop. I have no idea of what happens to all the junk if no one wants it from here. I  just know that it comes from every Goodwill store in the area. Stuff that hasn't sold. Sometimes it is because things had originally been priced too high. Sometimes it is because it is too specialized. (My friend bought a bubble making machine for her store.)  Or it might be thirty or forty years out of style clothing or broken furniture. Or just plain ugly or uncomfortable furniture. You name it. Everything can be found here, including the HOARDERS.

This is a hoarders paradise. Every few minutes, more huge tables filled with junk are wheeled out on the floor and others are taken away. People stand at attention in lines, waiting to descend on the new tables. You have to be careful not to get into anyone's space or touch things they had been eyeing. It is like trying to horn on an old woman's extra slot machine. You could get yelled at or maybe even poked or stabbed for that.

I have heard that some people go there to buy things to resell at the flea markets, Craigslists or eBay.  (Many times in Mexico I have seen people selling clothing with the Goodwill tags still attached. Maybe they bundle them up as rags and sell them for even less after this stop. And then they make the long trip to Mexico to be sold at inflated prices.)  Clothes and small items are sold by the pound. The more you buy, the less per pound. Fifty pounds or more go for 89 cents a pound. The larger things are priced by the young people at the counters. They are not very nice to the shoppers but you had better be nice to them.

This is a giant warehouse. It took me twenty minutes to find my friends when we were separated.  It is not a place for the faint of heart. I bought a large suitcase for five dollars so I can bring home all the junk I have already collected from the sale we are going to have next week end. I may be having nightmares soon from all this junk.  It is overwhelming. I am beginning to look forward to going  back to my simple life in Mexico.