Hang Dry Only

REI has a 100% guarantee on every item they sell, which means as long as you can prove you purchased and item, you can return it. What do they do with all of their returns? They sell them at used gear sales to people like you and I, who can't afford a new jacket without forfeiting the months rent! Within the last few years the sales have quickly gained popularity and now, as you can see from the pictures, by 3am there are 1

2 tents and in the morning a count of 24 people already in line. I was 25th, yay for me. I decided to show up in the early morning and planned on getting a few hours of sleeping before going, I didn't get that sleep.

Around 4am I noticed a Police car heading towards the end of the parking lot with its lights on. Over the next half hour a few patrol cars came and left, including one passenger in the backseat and a tow truck hauling an old school Cutless. For another ten minutes or so only one patrol car sat in the middle of the parking lot. Being the curious cat that I am, I decided to walk over and seeing what had happened. Last year my 4runner was stolen from the same parking lot with my DOG IN IT! Yes, I got him and the truck back the same night, but boy was I upset. So I was curious to see if this had been another case of auto theft.

As I was approaching the cruiser I gave a few whistles and attempted to gain the officers attention by waiving a hand in the air. At a safe and what I was hoping to be a nonthreatening distance I stopped and continued to wave my hand. In a split second the officer, who apparently had zero clue I was there, was out of his car with hand on weapon asking me, "what can I help you with?". Half serious and half jokingly I put my hands in the air and said, "Don't shoot!". I explained to him why I had come over. His demeanor immediately changed once he knew I wasn't a threat but I still kept my distance. He told me there was an old guy who was arrested for drunk driving his '72 Cutlass with glass t-tops, which he also mentioned was a pretty sweet ride. I told him I was planning on writing a post in my blog about the night and thought I'd see what was going on. We began talking about a few random topics and he mentioned that before he became an officer he had been a circus performer, and then quickly he said, "but don't put that in your blog", seriously?

That was a once in a lifetime conversation! A carny turned copper, of course it's going in the blog. I asked him if there was anything he'd like me to look for at the sale, since I enjoyed that sort of thing anyway. He said he had just had a child and was in need of a child trailer to pull behind his bicycle. So I took his card and told him I'd look for one at the sale. We said our goodbyes and I took off walking back towards the line. He followed a few mintues later and thanked me again. I asked if it would be alright for me to email him my blog address, to which he answered, "Yes but don't send me any porn, it's a work email!". I was cracking up. This guy was a character and a great addition to my night.

My friends Seth and Matt showed up around 5am and we sat sat and talked until the start of the sale at 9am. The sales are a madhouse. It's funny how quickly people lose their manners in order to save a few dollars. It reminds me of the movies where the world goes to hell in a handbasket and people end up shooting eacother over a loaf of bread. Sometimes I get the feeling that most of us appear to be civilized, but if needed we can snap. Give Portland one week without food and water and I guarantee it will become a warzone. Scary! I ended up finding what the officer was looking for and gave him a call, but wasn't able to get ahold of him. I found myself some $50 trekking poles for $12, a $60 sleeping pad for $10, and $65 Goretext gaitors for $7! Score!

Oh ya, and I couldn't help but post a picture of this BA BMW. I need to get me one of these.