I think there are two types of people in the world: those who look at the classifieds and those who don’t. I’ve always thought it was kind of fun. I think the same people who look at classifieds may also buy the latest copy of Uncle Henrys or shop eBay regularly but that’s a whole other story.
Sean and I both saw the same classified ad in this week’s The Ellsworth American for a pedestal sink: "like new", $35. It was in a town about 45 minutes away that we’ve never been to and yesterday was one of those sunny, cool winter Saturdays perfect for a drive.
There’s always these moments when you are embarking on these adventures where you wonder, will it be what I expect? How can I say no nicely if it isn’t? Am I giving up my Saturday afternoon for nothing?
Turns out Brooklin is a beautiful town with gorgeous ocean views and lots of boat builders. E.B. White used to live there apparently. My digital camera has had issues lately otherwise I would have loved to upload some pictures for you. It would have been worth a drive to see the town whether we got our sink or not.
But in our case, it turns out you can get something good in the classifieds. The older couple was nice and the American Standard pedestal sink was in perfect condition. They gave us all the little parts to go with it which I wouldn’t have thought to ask for and some tips of how to put it in.
I guess those of us who have had this kind of experience continue to look at the classifieds just in case something like this comes around.
Of course there have been disappointments. There was the snowblower that turned out to be an electric shovel that Sean bought out of guilt this winter. But as my friend Stacy says, the easiest was to get out of buying something you have gone over to someone’s house to see is to say "Sorry, this isn’t what I was expecting. Thanks anyway." A polite and vague exit I may have to use someday.
Now the question is do we attempt to put this in? I mean it isn’t like electricity that can kill you. The worse we can do is flood. Anyway I’ll keep you posted.
In the meantime, what have your experiences been with the classifieds? Any favorite stories, web sites, or small, slightly obscure publications?
Picture from: http://common.csnstores.com/common/products/ASD/ASD5837_s.jpg