26 Sep Exploring the strange and amazing world of estate sales: Part 1

One of the many fascinating things about the U.S. and San Francisco is the estate sale.

An estate sale is the sale of the possessions of a person who has died or is moving to another house. You can go through the person’s house and personal things and get a glimpse of a previous life. Yes, it’s sad, but it’s also intriguing.

While I’m in San Francisco this fall semester, I will go to estate sales and share my experiences.

Here are some of the things I found at my first estate sale, in a garage in Outer Mission, hidden in piles of cardboard boxes, magazines, empty paint cans, and dusty vases and pillows:

View the full photo slideshow here.

Estate sales keep fascinating people: Watch Slate Magazine’s slide show: “The Intimate and Peculiar World of Estate Sales”, read the blog “Estate Sale Stories” about estate sales in Chicago and its suburbs. Or listen to the song “Estate Sale” by Cheryl Wheeler:

“Estate sale today, from 1 o’clock to 4. You go and get ready, I’ll go start the car. Better to be early, then we’ll be the first in line. And you know how I love this, it’s amazing what you’ll find.”

Do you want to check out an estate sale? Go to Craigslist and search for garage sales. Look for the words estate sale in the ad.

Also check out the All Must Go blog and read more estate sale stories from San Francisco.