Floating on Air, Part 2

Once we made sure we had every box that contained photos, we relaxed a bit and started looking around and talking to the ladies. They told us it took them months to prepare for this sale because there was so much in the garage and home. It made me a bit sad to hear that they had thrown away the old magazines and ephemera. Oh well, can't win them all. It was the cleanest and most organized sale I have ever seen. Not a speck of dust and odor free. Even the old photos have no hint of smell so they were stored well over the years. Turns out the dad was a dentist and the mom a nurse. Maybe that’s why the place seemed sterile. I learned that they traveled all over the world and during the war, were stationed in Panama. I have amazing photos from there, as well as fantastic dental images. I have only gone through a fraction of the images, so no telling what I will find. Apart from the photos, we also purchased some cool old things like toys, a painting, old watches, decorative glass, vintage fabrics, and numerous other objects. We completely stuffed our vehicle. We had to go to the ATM so we left the ladies to price our goods while we were gone. When we came back, I heard the calculator going for at least a couple of minutes while she added our massive pile. Nothing was priced, so there was no telling what the amount would be. When she told us, I was shocked! She practically gave us the stuff, literally! She told us to make an offer for all the photos and we gave her a very fair price which was a bit padded to make up for the other items. I think she was very happy with our offer. To give you an example, we purchased a fabulous 1930’s lamp which was $1.50 and all the old toys for $1. Not $1 each, but a buck for all. They just wanted to clean everything out. It really was one of those once in a lifetime sales. The fun doesn’t end there because this sale did not include the items in the house. This was just for the things in the garage. They are having another sale in a few months for the rest of the household. They have our phone number and they said they will call us. You can bet we will be there early!

Here are some photos from one of the albums we purchased which is completely filled with hundreds of shots taken in Panama, circa 1940’s. These images are from the Darien and Kuna Indians.