Monthly Archives: June 2012

I haven’t purchased many things on Craigslist.  In fact, I am thinking, that I have only used Craigslist in the past to list things I had for sale.  However, the other day, I found the greatest desk on Craigslist.  I saw the listing late one evening when I was working into the wee hours of the morning like I typically do.  I thought the listing had to be a joke, since I have seen many listings on Craigslist that were fakes and offering something really great for a small price just to play with people’s minds.  So I jokingly sent a link to the ad to my husband’s email since he had the good sense to be in bed asleep.  The next morning I asked if he had seen the link, he said yes but he thought it was for another similar desk he had seen a day or two ago for at least 4 times as much and he told me the guy emailed and said the desk was sold.  I told him that this was a different desk and he told me to call the guy and see.  It was about 10 am and I was sure if this was a true listing this desk would have been taken by now.  The only contact given was a cell number and a man’s name.  I think that may have helped us because had it had an email contact he would have been swamped with emails.

I was not too sure what to expect as the phone rang, but an older gentleman answered and I asked if the desk was still available.  He told me it was.  With my jaw dropped, I asked if there were any problems, thinking their must be something seriously wrong for it to be so inexpensive.  He not only told me there were no problems, he told me they had a kid free, smoke free, pet free home and there was not so much as one nick on the desk.  I put my husband on the phone and he made a deal with the guy and the guy told him that we sounded great and if we said we were coming that day, he would hold the desk.

My husband had some metal things to cart to the dump and recycling station so he figured while he was traveling down to pick up the desk he would stop at the dump and get rid of it.  So he packed up the bed of his truck and took off with both little ones to travel about 1.5 hours each way to get this beauty.  I was still expecting there to be a catch.  Well, when he arrived at the dump, the scales were closed and so he could not get rid of the load.  He called the man who said his phone had been ringing off the hook about the desk which scared my husband, so he told them man he was coming as is to pay for it.  So he called me and let me know what happened.  When he arrived at the man’s home, he said the desk was pristine, all wood, gorgeous oak, just as the man had said.  It even had the paperwork from the manufacturer with a lifetime warranty!  He said it was purchased for his wife and they were now moving down to Myrtle Beach, SC and selling the desk.

The next day he went back and boy was that fun, the desk was huge, thankfully the top could be unscrewed and the hutch as well to make the moving easier but it was still so heavy.  He thought at first he was going to have to make 2 trips to pick up everything including the chair.  Now, I was thinking if that was a third trip that this was not turning out to be such a bargain given his time, gas and everything but he was able to maneuver things and get everything in.  When I saw it for the first time, I really could not believe it.  After we got it set back up, I went to dust it and I do not think this desk was ever really used. The interior of every drawer is flawless, just like brand new.  The desk drawer on top was lined with brown felt and there was not so much as a speck on it or any wear.  The pen/pencil tray did not even have a lead mark.  When I dusted and looked at the cloth it was white, no dirt, ink transfer anything to even say that someone had used the desk.  I really had to sit and just look at it for the whole thing to sink in. The roll top also locks as well as the two file drawers. I truly think this is my Craigslist find of a lifetime.

See how clean and unused the drawers are.

So I am curious, have you found something stupendous on Craigslist or a similar online classified service.  I would love to hear your stories.