Saturday, December 12, 2009

Birthday money runs amuck at an REI sale

Today was REI's scratch & dent sale in Buford. The doors opened at 10. I got there at 8:30 with hot chocolate, 3 layers on bottom, 4 on top, hat, gloves & my hiking boots. It was 34 degrees. They started passing out numbers to ge into the room where the sale was. I was #97. Some people had slept there in their sleeping bags to get a good place in line. The deals are worth it.

The woman in line in front of me and I got to talking. She only had one leg. She told me that she had had bone cancer 10 years ago and they removed it. I asked her if it was hard to get used to not having one. Her answer surprised me. She said that the only thing that was really hard to get over was the fear. I was thinking fear of how other people would treat her or how she would be able to do the things she always liked to do (she was very adventurous and athletic). But it was the fear of getting down the stairs. She just recently got a prostetic leg but because she doesn't have a stump to control it, she has to throw it around with her weight and momentum so she doesn't really use it much. She still goes hiking and camping all the time. She seemed so upbeat and never seemed upset about her leg at all when we were talking about it. I hope that I can have her positive attitude in the face of my hardships!

I looked through the items they had waiting outside the sale room and didn't find anything. They finally called my number so I went into the room that was so thick with people that I almost couldn't see the things I was holding. But in the end, I managed to find some cool items. Other than the things shown below, I also got a stuff sack with a repair kit for an air mattress.

The best part is that I used my birthday money and only had to pay 66 cents out of my own pocket. :o) Thanks Mom, Dad, Sheri and Mendozas!


My hiking boots have been too small since I bought them 10 years ago (and my feet have grown multiple times since then) but recently, the waterproofing has worn away. I finally have a pair of hiking boots that fit! It sure is nice to have toe room in ONE pair of shoes. These are a size 11 men's shoe...will my feet ever stop growing??


Tucker is modeling his new dog pack (back pack for dogs) and 2 of his new boots. The bag is in perfect shape. We tried it out today. He never had a problem with it. He carried 2 water bottles, 2 tennis balls, a few milk bones and my wallet. He was running around like it wasn't even on. The boots were an incomplete set of 3. You can buy individual ones from Ruff Wear. I got both items for less than either one would cost new (even when you add in the price of one new boot).


This is my new dog walking belt. I bought one at the last of these sales I went to. It got lost during the move somehow. I spotted this at the sale and swiped it. I have no idea what the belt is actually meant for but that's what I use it for. It feels really good. Now I won't be worrying about my organs getting bruised when the dogs give me an unexpected tug.

1 comment:

Stella Andes said...

You really did get some bargains, especially since you only had to spend 66 cents of your own money! Awesome, Tiff!

Related Posts with Thumbnails