I agree totally, Zoe!

We can happily adjust to most any circumstances, and find our own comfortable balance.

One lady told me of when they were young, and saving for their future. The next-door neighbors were the same, and became good friends. Saturday nights they bought 6 beers, one each for the ladies and two for each man...and played cards.

Another couple started their married life in a rented attic, with apple boxes for furniture. In the dirty thirties she had walked across the city weekly, to pay fifty cents on a layaway plan for a woolen winter coat.

The shop-keeper was so grateful for her loyalty and determination that he gave her the matching hat when the coat was paid for...no small gift in those trying times.

Another tip for those who MUST raise substantial cash from their belongings...check out the marketplace. There are various ways of selling your best things. Some pay better than others. The more you know, the better off you are. Sometimes you can do better selling a particular item privately.

We have a British India carpet (completely pale yellow), for sale. We will consult with the expert carpet-cleaner guy who cleaned it a few years ago. He will know 'who's around'...who is looking for something like this, or who will want it in their second-hand shop.

Then there is a huge 12-drawer, curved front sideboard, in pristine condition. This may go by advertising in the classifieds, but we have already put the word out with a certain salesperson in our community's finest retail furniture store. He would mention it to a private acquaintance...not the store's customers.

There is a shop locally which deals in gently-handled fine pieces. But they won't pick up or deliver, and they charge 56% of the selling price (which THEY determine), for their service. That's fine for those who are just changing their decor, and don't need the money...but it is no good for seniors needing to raise some cash.

Look around, and help seniors you love. Nothing is more rewarding, forever, than helping, with affection.