Several books and their authors have inspired me over the years.
I’ll never forget the first time I read a Lewis Grizzard book or the first time I listened to a cassette tape of one of his live performances. I knew I wanted to be just like him. Then, I found out about all of his health problems, and I thought, maybe I could be just like him, minus the heart condition.
Other authors have influenced me in similar ways. David McCullough made history read like a novel. Robert Hicks, the New York Times best-seller from Franklin, writes novels based on historical events. Both authors inspire me to digest as much history as I can possibly retain because, as evidenced by their books, everyone and everything has a story — only some stories are just waiting for someone to write them.
But, sometimes, inspiration comes from more obscure titles and authors, such as the book I just finished: “Killer Stuff and Tons of Money: An Insider’s Look at the World of Flea Markets, Antiques, and Collecting,” by Maureen Stanton.
Being a lifelong lover of history, I’ve also been an avid collector of antiques — when I can afford them. Antiques are tangible items that link directly to history, especially when one considers who lived during the time the item was created and who might have touched or used it. I’m happy believing Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson personally used every antique item in my collection, even though I know that’s a long shot with a short pistol. But, who’s to say they didn’t?
Stanton’s book was truly an insider’s look at the world of antiques. The book follows an antique dealer from finding and buying an item to showing and selling it, an endless process that this dealer duplicates 365 days a year. The book was realistic, if nothing else.
Most people watch “American Pickers” and “Antiques Road Show” and think, “Wow! All I need is a little cash to buy an item and I’ll make a million bucks!”
Even I have been under this impression before. But, the truth is, getting to the level to make money from buying junk and turning it into profit is a long, rough and winding road.
I hit yard sales and auctions for weeks on end, sorting through others’ trash to find that one, special item. When I thought I had amassed a good-sized collection, I got a booth at the flea market and tried to peddle my wares to the rest of the world. I think I broke even on most of the items, but I did double my money on a piece of Vaseline glass. I paid a dollar for it and made a whole dollar in profit.
The truth of the matter is that the antiques market is a hard row to hoe. I was just doing my booth for fun. For others, though, they make their yearly salary $1 at a time. And things aren’t getting any easier.
In her book, Stanton suggests antique collecting may be a thing of the past — the majority of people would rather buy something new for the convenience rather than searching for that special, old item. How sad it is to think about items, hundreds of years old, being tossed aside? But, this is a trend. Only time will tell what the future will hold for antiques.
Those of us who love antiques need to band together, to preserve our items, and where better than the Athenaeum, Maury County’s headquarters for the Association for the Preservation of Tennessee Antiquities?
“Antebellum” and “yard sale” are terms that typically do not go together. But at the Athenaeum in Columbia, those terms go together like peanut butter and jelly, especially since the second Antebellum Yard Sale will be 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday.
There will be handmade items, books, reenactment gear and antique items. Please come and feast your eyes and spend your money. Or if you have items you’d like to sell, call the Athenaeum for more information at (931) 381-4822. I hope to see you there.
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Named a Tennessee colonel by Gov. Phil Bredesen, Adam Southern is resident of Columbia and can be followed at http://colonelsouthern.blogspot.com.
