It was hilarious how many comments were not about the six year old coffee and if it would be drinkable or only suitable for the compost heap but about the fact that I'd paid only £1 for the very small, lightweight cafetière from the house clearance people at the boot sale!!
(Comments were from Anons who had, perhaps, never been to a boot sale in their lives!)
The thing about house clearance businesses is that they charge several hundred pounds (between £400 - £1,000 I've read) to clear out houses of the deceased. They take anything good to auction and then chuck the rest into boxes and haul a van full of boxes to car boot sales for people to sort through for anything useful. The bits and bobs in boxes are virtually worthless but they still sometimes ask more than what seems sensible because what they can't sell gets dumped in landfill - they don't sort it or take anything to charity shops.
The whisks that I mentioned last week - both the 'new' one and the top-heavy one bought last year came from house clearance boxes and other things I'll save from landfill are part boxes of foil/greaseproof paper/baking parchment and anything I know I can use and need.
I paid £4 for a larger glass cafetiere from a charity shop in February, so that I'd another way to use ground coffee as well as the lovely machine I had for Christmas. I've become interested in all the different coffees that are for sale............. very late in life moving away from jars of instant.
And if you don't know what I'm talking about you haven't read the last two posts and comments! And Anons should remember that I love to make a post out of your comments!!
Vernal Equinox today - Proper Spring - weather to match? We shall see.
Our equinox weather is bright sunshine and bitter cold wind. All bundled up again, winter's back.
ReplyDeleteJust another grey day here in the East of England
DeleteI think it's really sad that people have to have house clearance people come in to sort out houses though it is such a daunting job. I helped with both my Mum's and Aunt (on husband's side) Jane's in the same year. Even though Mum was really neat and tidy there was a lot to sort through. It's really tough to sort through things that you know meant a lot to someone. Aunt Jane's was another kettle of fish altogether. She was a hoarder of sorts (no rubbish per se) but there were so many treasures in there too. It took MIL and I about 9 months to sort through the house.
ReplyDeleteWeather? Snow yesterday, so bitterly cold and windy today. I was back in full winter gear for my walk today!
I remember all the weeks it took you to sort your Aunt Jane's house -.
DeleteI will try not to leave too much junk for my family , but I hope they keep the photos
Trying not to add to my clutter so just as well we don't have car boot sales here either. Similar weather to the above comments so will be well wrapped out when I venture out tomorrow! Haven't put my winter boots away yet!
ReplyDeleteI try not to add clutter too so the things I buy at boot sales are usually something to use rather than just to look at
DeleteSo it smelt ok but how did it taste? We only drink 'real' coffee and have done for years and your packets looked like the ones we buy with a strong inner lining, so yours will probably be ok, maybe a bit weak tasting?
ReplyDeleteAs I said in my post yesterday - it tasted perfectly good.
DeleteI don’t comment often and I don’t have a blog, no idea how to go about that but I do read your blog every morning, early, and often wonder if people read the comments before commenting as questions often repeated. I don’t drink tea or coffee but keep a little of both for visitors so it can be quite old before being used, nobody has ever complained. Sarah Browne.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure it's easy to look at comments on a phone screen? - or I might be wrong.
DeleteSometimes I read all comments on blogs but not always so I expect it's the same for other people
I enjoyed that particular 'discussion'. :-)
ReplyDeleteI rarely drink instant now - I blame my daughter for buying me a basic Nespresso machine and I now keep the cafetiere on the side.
And now I want one of those posh machines that start with beans and end up with great coffee. Not this year though.
Good coffee is a great pleasure in my life.
xx
I'm loving my machine for making frothy coffee - glad not to need sachets anymore and nice to try different ground coffee from different countries
DeleteReading other people's comments can be quite enlightening.
ReplyDeleteThere are so many different flavours of coffee beans. I enjoy buying them for other people.
Sometimes the Suffolk sense of humour isn't understood elsewhere and lots of people take things far too seriously
DeleteMum had hung up a pair of navy blue school knickers along with her best clothing...she knew we would one day be sorting through her belongings. It made us all laugh and my brother immediately put them on over his trousers. Couldn't have left family treasures for strangers to sift through.
ReplyDeleteThat was quite a find!
DeleteWe had awful Maroon school knickers at Grammar School - definitelt didn't keep any of those
There's a shop in town where they sell off House Clearance items. My OH has found some real bargains in there. Usually unpriced electronic equipment, where the vendors have no idea of its value. "Make me an offer" they say. And he comes home smiling with an item worth twenty quid, and change from a fiver.
ReplyDeleteWhat a handy shop to have - second-hand shops were quite a thing when I was little - now even charity shops are expensive
DeleteI know my house will be cleared by house clearers which is why I try to keep possessions to a minimum and deal with stuff now. I was thinking the other day what if all houses had to be cleared and how much stuff there would be. I don't drink coffee at home so wouldn't know whether the coffee was good or bad. I only drink coffee when out because I don't like tea made by other people and coffee is the lesser of two evils.
ReplyDeleteEnough stuff to fill the world 100 times over probably.
DeleteAt home, I can't be bothered with fancy coffee machines. Here in OZ, I use Robert Timms coffee bags (just like tea bags and just as easy). They make delicious coffee. I often go out for a Flat White just for a change and to read their newspaper.
ReplyDeleteMargaret B.
There was a coffee bag advertised on TV here for a while but I've not seen the ad lately and haven't looked for them in shops
DeleteIsn't it sad how people's possessions end up chucked in a box for people to rummage through at a car boot. It's a sad thing having to sort through loved ones belongings after they die, and I know they're just 'things' but even so, some of the things which end up in those boxes have been treasured by their owners.
ReplyDeleteMy sister put so much stuff in a skip when she cleared the house after Dad died - she did most as she was next door and we were several miles away and I was unwell at the time too. I might have kept some things perhaps - or maybe not. I did get to keep some photos.
DeleteI've never been to a boot sale in my life, either, except through you blog.
ReplyDeleteCar boot sales seem very popular here in UK. In NZ (at least before I left 3 decades ago) it was driveway sales - you simply emptied our garage and the house contents you wanted rid of onto the drive on Saturday morning having put an advert in a particular section of the local paper the previous Thursday and prepared to be greeted by the 'dealers' doing early rounds to see if they could pick any bargains to flog on before general joe-public started rummaging. It is amazing what you could move if you were realistic about price and simply wanted someone to take it away so you didn't have to transport it to a dump site for instance.
ReplyDeleteAfter having to sort through my Dad's packed to the rafters garage when he died, two thirds of it good stuff hoarded and ruined due to damp, I'm determined that I will have minimal clutter for my sons to have to sort through when I go ... there might be quite a few books though!! ;-)
ReplyDeleteMy friend and I visit resale/thrift stores often and we always comment on the fact that nothing new needs to be made as there is so much useful stuff already out there to buy!
ReplyDeleteI love the way you just bat away the comments
ReplyDeleteYou make good purchases at bargain prices at car boot sales. Estate sales, home clear out businesses/shops and thrift shops are no bargain in the US. Everything is overpriced and then reduced over time if not sold at the higher price. Like you, I enjoy a good cup of coffee and am always buying different types of coffee from around the world.
ReplyDeleteThis post about house clearance reminded that I am meant to doing ‘Swedish Death Cleaning’ - basically you clear your own belongings to save your children/relatives from the task. Reduce personal belongings and household items so you just have your favourite things. Nothing hidden or saved for best. Use it & enjoy using it. Debbie
ReplyDelete