Here is a non-exhaustive list of some of the treasure we have bought at yard sales (note: "Yard Sale" is synonymous with "Garage Sale" and "Estate Sale" for the purposes of this blog, unless we decide to write an entire entry on the subtle differences between the three. Stay tuned!) over the past two months. Prices are included when they are particularly impressive:

• Five foot wooden nutcracker with working jaw/lever/cracking device, $20
• Forty-two complete decks of playing cards, $2
• Vintage wood/metal school desk with attached chair, $5
• Box full of Brio train track and accessories
• Turquoise, leather (as yet unverified) arm chair, circa 1962, $15
• Bookshelf, 3' x 5', made of vintage wooden ammunition shipping cases, $10
• Ouija board
• 150 year old butcher block island from actual country store with knife marks and uneven surface from years of use. Included was the lore that an old dog spent his days in the country store, curled up under said butcher block. $100
• Vintage wind-up toy monkey that claps symbols together, $2.50
• Ten stainless steel restaurant plates, $1 each, from an ex-restauranteur who didn't really want to sell anything but was having a sale to appease his wife. (More information about "Mike" in a future blog.)
• Giant metal bullet shell casing. Seriously, this thing is 3 feet tall.
• "Xanadu" record album.
• Many self-help books, including "Get Fired Up!" and "Your Out-of-Control Ferret", bought specifically for the purpose of getting a hearty laugh out of my brother.
• Vintage Gameboy, original, with intent to resell on Ebay
• Two marble slabs, three sides finished, 2' x 3', $5 each
• Two large boxes of Legos and Lego related foundations, $150
• Life size owl made of feathers
• Miniature owl made of shells
• Countless books, kitchenwear, toys, clothes, and furniture

There is more. So much more.