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Craigslist Adventure

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The quest for a vacuum cleaner via Craigslist continued today.  Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been trying to find a vacuum cleaner on Craigslist and I wasn’t having much luck.  They were selling quicker than I could contact the seller until today.  I found one that looked like a good fit and after a few text messages back and forth I met the seller to check out the vacuum.  The vacuum was close to new just as she described and at first glance…it looked to be a great deal.  I removed the canister just to take a quick, closer look and even before I removed it…I was overwhelmed by the smell of smoke.   The seller confirmed she was a smoker and I had to decline the purchase.

I am really such a logical thinker that it really does not occur to me to even ask if someone is a smoker.  That may be very naive but my black and white brain says if the overwhelming evidence says something is bad for your health…you stop doing it.  Smoking simply does not compute to me…so I didn’t even think to ask her if she smoked until I smelled it.  She was so kind and offered to clean it out and air it out as much as she could…but I had to decline.  After almost 2 weeks of Craigslist searching and a carpet growing more and more frightening…I left our meeting and went to Target.

I really did give this an honest chance.  I must have contacted 7 or 8 sellers only to learn that the vacuum was already sold.  Then today’s adventure yielded an “A-Ha!” moment and that’s okay.  I ended up spending less than planned at Target with a sale item as well as the 5% discount we get by using our Target Red Card (as a debit tied to our checking account).  Total cash spent:  $46.

Now I need to keep in mind that carrying massive loads of debt is also BAD for your health!  That helps me understand the very legit reactions many of you have to my debt!

I’m off to vacuum!


8 Comments

  • Reply Claire |

    To clarify what my “A-Ha!” moment was…there are some things that I just cannot buy used. A vacuum is one of those things!

  • Reply emmi |

    Baking soda is a great smoke odor remover. I wonder if vacuuming up a box of it would have cleaned the vacuum.

  • Reply Felicity @ Waist & Wallet |

    Too bad Craigslist didn’t work out for you (I’ve gotten some amazing deals that way), but glad to see you made a good choice at Target. Happy vacuuming.

  • Reply Dream Mom |

    Things on Craigslist move very quickly, especially if they are priced correctly. I am not a smoker either and that would drive me nuts. Good for you for making a conscious purchase. I think that is what it’s all about in the long run; really thinking through each and every purchase. I always look for a coupon of some sort for any purchase and it’s amazing what you find. I am proud of you Claire. In the end, that’s really what it’s all about-using money wisely and spending your money on necessities and what is important to you (vaccuum cleaners are necessities in my book!).

    I know I’ve shared before, when I needed a new vaccuum and didn’t have the money, I searched a ton of online reviews to locate a vacuum under $50 and found a near 5 star review at Walmart.com for the Hoover Nano Lite. I paid $38 and that thing does a fabulous job let alone is extremely light weight and probably the easiest vaccuum, I’ve ever used. I have a small place so it’s just perfect.

  • Reply Claire in CA, USA |

    I totally understand. We went searching for a futon-type couch on Craig’s List, and it took awhile, but we found a nice one. The one question I had to always ask was, “Do you have cats?” because I am very allergic. The folks did not have a cat…but they were Indian, and the couch reeked of curry for awhile after we brought it home. 😀 It aired out, though, and we still have it.

  • Reply Joe |

    I wish I had seen your post about needing a vacuum cleaner sooner. One website I had some luck in purchasing small appliance is ubid, which is an auction site, because it is not very well known. I actually bought a vacuum cleaner a while back that retailed for over $100 for $1 plus about $20 shipping. However, you must consider their fairly high shipping rate when putting in the bid and have patience as they will relist same products repeatedly for some time.

    I have no affiliation with the site but maybe someone can use the info. I checked the site and I saw two Eureka canister vacuums (retails at $89.99 and $60.54 @Amazon) up for sale and bids are at $1 and $2.

  • Reply Meghan |

    Smoking isn’t exactly something you can just stop doing, as easy as it does sound.

    Though I do agree, I wouldn’t buy a used vacuum either.

  • Reply Shirley |

    I shop Craigslist a lot for furniture but once made the mistake of purchasing an area rug. They had it already outside on the drive way so didn’t notice until I got home it was full of cat pee…. I was so grossed out that I drove back and got my dollars back. Cross Rugs off the list to purchase from unknown persons.

So, what do you think ?