Buying Country Music CDs - A Yard Sale Perspective

This past weekend I finally had me a two-day yard sale. The purging of items I no longer wanted, used, or needed was way overdue, but I suppose waiting did me some good, as I ended up having it on two beautiful sunny days. I also lucked out that a nearby church was having a "garage sale" of their own this same weekend....so I benefitted by receiving some of their traffic.

What do early risers seek out at the crack of dawn (starting at 6:50 am to be exact)? You would be surprised. From stained candle holders to a 1980's Miracle Broom ("As Seen On TV"), from my high school leather bomber jacket to a gum rack I acquired from a K-mart that closed (don't ask me why I had that)...the buyers and spendthrifts bought just about all of it.

But junk was not all I was selling. I offered stacks of CDs, mostly Country Music CDs that I received free when I interned at Capitol Records in Nashville, or CDs that I myself bought used, thinking I liked the songs enough to own the entire disc. And let me tell you, every single one of them sold.

Now I am, and always have been, a Country Music fan. I grew up on the stuff since my Dad listened to it, and that wasn't "normal" up in Yankeeville where I come from. Needless to say I got picked on for it (ironically by people who years later would tell me, "I don't like Country Music, but I like Garth Brooks and Shania Twain." Whatever. That's another Oprah post....).

Anyway, while I still am a Country Music fan, the CDs I sold were ones I didn't care too much for, or were ones where I saved the songs I liked best onto my computer. They included several Garth Brooks CDs, as well as Suzy Bogguss, Dean Miller, John Berry, Trace Adkins, George Dukas, Ty Herndon, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band...I even sold two Reba McEntire concert videos.

Most interesting though (and this applies to any garage sale purchase, really) are the stories the buyers share with you, the reasons why they pay for your dirt-cheap goods:

• A gentleman purchased two Trace Adkins CDs from his early years. When he handed me the cash, I commented that he must be a Trace fan. The man said he hadn't been, but watched Trace Adkins on Celebrity Apprentice, liked what he heard, and wanted to hear more.
• Another guy bought a stack of twelve CDs, which included several of the Garth discs, Suzy, and others. He told me that his young daughter was really the Country Music fan, and the CDs were for her, but he admitted that she was starting to make him like Country Music too.
• Late in the afternoon on Saturday, a teenage girl squealed with glee when she spotted Tim McGraw's Everywhere. Mom gave in and bought it for her.

Many people complain that yard sales are such a pain to have. And for sure, they require hard work. But they can also be saitsfying, on many levels. Making extra money and cleaning out old stuff is fulfilling in its own right. But to know you also end up making someone else's day better (or even life better) because you give them something they want or need for not too much money, well......it's just a beautiful feeling.

Hmmmm...That sounds like a Country song in the making. Sammy Kershaw had his "Yard Sale" tune, but I don't think he was as happy about it.....