Countrywood Yard Sale Draws Excitement and Ire

(Cordova, TN) The annual Countrywood yard sale is expected to bring thousands of visitors to the front lawns of residents trying to get rid of old furniture and clothes.

While most are excited to find a good deal, some are vexed by the problems that come with a growing commercial presence.

On Friday, some lawns were already full of merchandise, with people looking through the items for sale. But the crowd pleaser was the funnel cake stand and the tents set up by flea market businesses.

Janie Davis, who lives around the corner, came by looking at the baby cribs for her soon-to-arrive great grandson.

“They sell anything, everything. Like a Corvette!”

Indeed, she and her husband sold their Corvette at this yard sale a few years ago. While they don’t want the hassle of being sellers now, she does like finding some good deals.

“Like around the corner, I saw a twin bed set, a dresser, two nightstands. With box springs. And the lady only wanted a hundred dollars for it,” Davis said.

She said she doesn’t mind the crowds, as long as they don’t block her driveway. Still, she knows there’s no coming or going on Saturday anyway. Traffic will be a nightmare.

Maybe Davis is still easy-going about it, since she has been in the neighborhood for only four or five years.

But Howard Bailey has had enough, after almost 20 years of yard sales.

“They don’t have no respect for you at all. Park in front of your mailbox; the mailman can’t deliver the mail,” he said.

Most importantly, Bailey said the doctor told him his heart wasn’t doing too well. If an emergency happened during the yard sale, he said he’d worry about the ambulance getting through.

Plus, he knows he’ll have his work cut out for him when the sale is over.

“Pick up as many as 20, 25 Coke containers out in my yard after one day,” he said.

Bailey said at least police presence in recent years has made it better, but he still wishes the sales would stop.

He may not like it, but thousands of people still do. Residents see sellers and buyers in action earlier each year, even though the official sale date is Saturday.

In fact, Janie Davis already bought something Thursday night.

“If they’re selling, and they got buyers, they’re not going to turn them away. I wouldn’t.”