"The desirability of and/or your need for an item at a garage sale will be in direct inverse proportion to the likelihood of your actually being able to purchase it."
The four most common/infuriating occasions when Murphy's Law of Garage Sales holds true:
(1) A desired item is something that's just stored in the family's garage; it’s not one of the items for sale.
(2) The item has already been sold, and the homeowner is just “holding” it till the buyer gets back with either the money or a vehicle to transport the item to his own home.
(3) The item is too expensive, and the seller will not budge on the price. (Note: this is not always an "all hope is lost" situation --- you may have at least two additional options. First, try coming back again later in the day to see if the item is still unsold --- if YOU think that the item is overpriced, then most OTHER yard-sailers may think so, too, and so nobody else may have bought the item yet, either, giving you a second crack at possibly purchasing it at a reduced price, especially since by now the seller may likely feel a bit "desperate" to get rid of it. And second, have a glance at the trash-heap out front of the person’s house that evening --- sometimes unsold yard-sale items will simply be tossed out, and so you can then get them for free.)
(4) The item is something that you would logically want to test out first to make sure it operates satisfactorily, but there is no hookup for electricity/water/telephone/internet/antenna/audio/video at the site of the sale, and the stubborn owner will not allow you to either bring the item into his house or temporarily take it somewhere else to test it.
(1) A desired item is something that's just stored in the family's garage; it’s not one of the items for sale.
(2) The item has already been sold, and the homeowner is just “holding” it till the buyer gets back with either the money or a vehicle to transport the item to his own home.
(3) The item is too expensive, and the seller will not budge on the price. (Note: this is not always an "all hope is lost" situation --- you may have at least two additional options. First, try coming back again later in the day to see if the item is still unsold --- if YOU think that the item is overpriced, then most OTHER yard-sailers may think so, too, and so nobody else may have bought the item yet, either, giving you a second crack at possibly purchasing it at a reduced price, especially since by now the seller may likely feel a bit "desperate" to get rid of it. And second, have a glance at the trash-heap out front of the person’s house that evening --- sometimes unsold yard-sale items will simply be tossed out, and so you can then get them for free.)
(4) The item is something that you would logically want to test out first to make sure it operates satisfactorily, but there is no hookup for electricity/water/telephone/internet/antenna/audio/video at the site of the sale, and the stubborn owner will not allow you to either bring the item into his house or temporarily take it somewhere else to test it.
by QuacksO August 1, 2018
Get the Murphy's Law of Garage Salesmug. Social Sales is the Process of Leveraging Online Platforms and Tools to Attract, Teach and Engage Targeted Buyers.
I use LinkedIn for my social sales activity to find my ideal prospects, identify shared connections and leverage existing relationships to get warm introductions and referrals.
by socialsellingal October 7, 2018
Get the social salesmug. 
by He-he-ha-he June 10, 2025
Get the Jard Salemug. by TheGeneralGenitalsPranksterian April 29, 2025
Get the <.7.9.6.>Sale De La Vidasu Mia Le De Sale<.7.9.7.6>mug. Pretty much a place that you get stuff to sell on eBay, and then pretty much they are wound up on other one of these places so another person can sell it on eBay and so forth
Oh I found this eBay item on a yard sale...lets put that back on eBay because it is crap and make some more money than 75 cents
by Kyle 230 April 28, 2010
Get the yard salemug. A salesman in charge of a team without being given any privileges, authority or respect by the directors, other senior salesmanor even his team
by McBareback December 18, 2018
Get the Junior Senior Salesmug.