It feels late coming this year.  Even as the seemingly endless winter finally faded, it took a long time for spring to arrive.  But it’s official – it is now our favorite time of year here at Tandem Antiques.  

I don’t care too much about the streams thawing out, or the sap running (although I do love maple syrup.)  What captivates me about spring is the stuff coming out.  As the snow melts, and outbuildings are accessible again, people remember all the things stored away.  And they call the local auctioneer to come drag it away to sell, or they pull things from attics, barns, cellars and garages themselves and display them on their lawn for sale. 

What could be more fun, really?  And while the yard sale items are often not what we are looking for (baby clothes, plastic toys, candleholders from Wal Mart, more baby clothes) there is always the chance that at the next sale, around the next bend in the country road there will be something great.  The next sale is going to be the one where they are cleaning out Great-Aunt Hilda’s house which hasn’t been touched since 1973, or unpacking Grandpa Elderberry’s boxes from the old country.  Right? 

Hope springs eternal.  Nothing proves that in quite the way that we antiquers do as we get up in the pre-dawn hours every Saturday morning, and leave home clutching our travel mugs, newspaper classifieds and mapquest printouts.  Or spend an entire day picking through lots at a country auction, eating hotdogs and drinking bad coffee waiting for the objects of our desire to come up.  Some folks might call it crazy, but we love it. 

We have found some nice things so far this season, but we haven’t hit the truly awesome sale.  Not yet.  But Saturday is coming, and I saw an ad for an auction …