Things I Thought I Would Never Part With

We had a garage sale last weekend.

Twenty years of accumulation since we moved to Malta.

Almost everything sold. There’s not much left to donate or take to the dump.

Folks snatched up furniture, framed prints, used tires, old tools.

A few things didn’t sell: outdated electronics, sketchy exercise equipment, lightly worn boots, and my bicycle.

A Trek mountain bike that Barb gave me before we were married, it was my escape from the city when we lived in Bozeman. I could hop on the bike at our apartment on Wilson Ave. and within minutes be out in the country.

There were also some epic rides on the Trek including one on the Morrison Jeep Trail. From its start above timberline on the Beartooth Highway, the single track followed a series of tight switchbacks to the bottom of the canyon of the Clark’s Fork of the Yellowstone.

I didn’t ride the bike much after we moved to Malta, and over the years it fell into a bit of disrepair -- the seat was cracked, the handlebar grips had started to disintegrate, and it didn’t shift gears as smoothly as it once had.

But I figured it was still worth $40.

Barb disagreed, arguing she’d seen better bikes at the dump, a valid point considering we’d just visited the dump a day earlier.

Her bicycle, a nearly new Schwinn, sold quickly for $30, while my bike drew few lookers.

At noon, when we closed the door, the bike was still leaning against the wall.

“I told you it wasn’t worth $40,” Barb said.

“You were right,” I told her, something she likes to hear me say,

It was too late now, however, to lower the price.

I’m trying to be mercenary in cleaning out the house and shop. We’re moving to a much smaller house and downsizing our accumulation of debris is necessary. I’ve already tossed a few things I’d swore I’d never part with.

The bike is tough. Barb’s probably right that it belongs in the dump, but all it needs is a little tune-up, a new seat and handgrips.

Who knows? I might ride it down the Morrison Jeep Trail again.

Or not.

Apparently it’s not even worth forty bucks.

Parker Heinlein is at [email protected]