So, now the actual work starts. What did I do? Well, I should have started selling things right away. I didn't know that process would take so long! I mean, I thought selling my stuff would be as easy as posting a selfie on social media. It’s not! Not being one to visit yard sales, I was really at a loss. Someone suggested hiring an estate sale company, and let me tell you, that was a whole process in and of itself. It felt like I was auditioning for a reality show: "Who Wants to Sell Their Stuff?" But even that I waited on, because procrastination is my cardio. I started going through boxes and items throughout my house—whoa! I had a lot of stuff. Seriously, I could have opened a museum titled "The Hoarder's Hall of Fame." Every video I watched where they said, "Don't get storage, just sell it all," I thought they were crazy. I mean, come on, all this stuff I spent decades collecting?! No ma'am! I had items that even the local thrift shop would look at and say, "Thanks, but no thanks." But after spending a year—yes, a year—selling "stuff," I just got to the point where I wanted to throw whatever was left out. I was ready to take my remaining belongings and launch them into the nearest dumpster like it was an Olympic sport. Gold medal for decluttering, anyone? At this rate, my house was starting to look like a minimalist's dream, except with a few too many questionable knick-knacks. Who knew that letting go of a old camera collection would be so emotionally taxing? But hey, at least I found my long-lost sanity somewhere under the pile of VHS tapes from the '90s!
The biggest thing I learned is that people want something for nothing. I mean, who wouldn't want to buy a mansion for the price of a hot dog? And here I was, trying to determine the resale value of my items based on what I paid for them. Spoiler alert: my emotional attachment to my collection of old camera's did not add to their market value. Clearly, I wasn't made for this type of work. Or maybe I was just too emotionally attached—like a kid trying to sell their beloved teddy bear for a million bucks while still sleeping with it at night.
After interviewing several (yes, several, like I was on a weird reality show called "The Real Resellers of Apple Valley" companies, I thought I found one that would do the best job for me and respect me and the process... I was wrong. In fact, that deserves its own post—like a dramatic season finale where the villain is revealed. Stay tuned for that plot twist!
