Rummage Roundup

SALE DAY TWO. Steady rain and raw tmperatures early, lightening and moderating as the day goes by. W comes over from Dry Goods to help out, and staff outnumber customers at the beginning. I tell K she looks like Brigitte Bardot. By ten thirty we are rather busy, even with the rain. I go to Action and get a blue raincoat. Later, my gloves are soaked, so I go back for a pair. I find a pair I lost a few weeks ago, pinned together in the sales bin. One count is exactly the same figure as the same count, last sale. A lady who speaks only Spanish gives K a kiss in gratitude for getting a three-legged horse. Dad and nancy turn up, in blue raingear, at the flu shot area. They talk quite a while to KE, and then I take them around to Vintage to show them the baby pictures. J chats with them very pleasantly. He buys a copy of "Canterbury Tales" from Books and Nancy gets Emily Post's "Etiquette". I find a safety pin pushed most of the way through the sole of my shoe. BN's S thinks I am following her around. She bought the smaller boat. B and J are in the midst of an endless conversation; I break in to say goodbye to B. J has forgotten I am to be with her tomorrow. I find a box unattended at the end of the day. I hear SL was down in Furniture talking about me. K is in my chair in the counting room; B tells her to move. J sits beside me for a while. Later she moves. She is quiet but her eyes are open.

SALE DAY ONE. Cold; light frost, warming later. Calm. I am the first volunteer down. I put up the entrance and exit signs on the main barn. An early arrival asks many questions. Retrieve boxes from J's car. Everyone is tense. I tell k she looks like Rambo. The new sweater racks collapse when we move them in ront of the Bon Ton door. K and I transfer the sweaters to the rods as the customers stream in. J is wearing multicolored pants. I am a cowboy.I give J and B squirting frogs. S gives me a very cool nametag that J made. There are dogs barking in the Town Hall men's room. One check is made out to "B & A of Somerset Hills". I put the nurses' tables and chairs away.

Day Twenty-five. Cool, occasional brisk wind. Shopping for guests and staff. I take over the cashbox in Vintage while B and J disappear. J arrives later for a while. Later to cover the door at Toys. K and K discuss internet porn, but we are constantly interrupted by the customers. things are slower the last hour, as it starts to feel pretty cold. I open the locks, close some flaps, talk to K about signs, and go to count. We are running the checks when K comes in and sends me back to the fairgrounds to help there. Then back to the countinmg room. S loaned me two books. I see two of my guests, who are spending. The papers blow off the table where the nurses are dispensing flu shots. N picks out a shirt for me, and J thinks it's OK.

Day Twenty-four. Colder, clear. Everyone is set up, and the volunteers go around to do their final shopping, and pay up. J is seen with a volume of Jane Austen. I look around a while and shop very little; it doesn't seem worth the effort. I get some more books, settle with men's haberdashery, get some napkins and placemats for Bob, walk through Furniture with eyes unseeing. B picks up the bike. S thinks I sound just like her daughter. L makes me carry her bag to the car. Her move went okay, and it's over. I go with D to count the receipts, and no one knows where I've gone; K fears I am in a swoon somewhere. Finally I put up parking signs and the maps. Pre-sale tomorrow.

Day Twenty-three. Cool, crisp, autumnal. Tuesday, where's the man? He's with J, and he sits down in the mud. later, asleep in the wagon with his shades on. some more shopping, some signs go up, but it is a quiet day today. I put up the karma sign for J. I push, she pulls. W was up all night with her jewelry. I talk to the guys about the bike for S's neighbor. R contrives to misplace some important stuff and I find it for her. Hooray! The green jacket fits. K left the lights on again.

Day Twenty-two. Clear, cooler. By the end of the day most of the departments are starting to look ready to open. The mud is not as bad as I had feared. I do some shopping, sell a few things for Vintage, and do various odd jobs. The Baker and Drexel tables come inside. Tomorrow is P's birthday. I get my guest passes and paperwork for my flu shot. J runs through. I must bring clothespins tomorrow. K explains to a young reporter.

No rummage Intermittent hard rain. Back to it tomorrow.