Cheap Stereos from the Thrift Store

Even if you are broke, you can still enjoy music.  The key is to be a little behind the times in your stereo system and your media selection.  For example, you can get music on cassette at your local thrift store for about 99 cents.

By Ulli1105 (Own work) [CC-BY-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

 You can get CD's there for 2 or 3 dollars.  You can get a compact stereo system there for $30 or less.  You can get a full-sized stereo receiver for $50.  You don't have to go the trendy route; you can follow your own path and adopt technologies at price points that work for you!

Here's how --

How to Buy a Stereo at the Thrift Store

If companies want your business . . .

. . . they wouldn't put the job you used to do over in China.  They wouldn't hire and illegal with a wink and a nod and a handful of bogus ID documents.  They wouldn't replace your full-time position with a part-time position.  They wouldn't favor short-term contractors over permanent employees.  They wouldn't provide a raise that lagged behind inflation.  They wouldn't let your resume languish in a vast database while they wait for an M.B.A. to fill a basic office work function.  They wouldn't charge you 25% interest on a basic consumer credit card.  If the business community has let you down, why should you continue to buy from them? 

If you are flat broke and need to watch every dime, you might want to subject your purchases to some extra scrutiny.  Why not buy from Goodwill?  Why not try Salvation Army?  Why not buy from the desperate guy on eBay who needs the cash to stave off foreclosure?  Why not look for "Made in USA" on the label?  Why not think about every purchase once or twice before you get to the cash register?  Why not keep the money in your pocket?  "They" can earn your business.

A Man's Guide to Thrift Store Shopping

If you do scrape together a few pennies to go shopping, there's no place more fun than your local thrift store.  A lot of people think that thrift stores are just for women, but that couldn't be further from the truth.  There's a lot of cool stuff for dude's in thrift stores.  You just need to know where to look!  Here's a guide to thrift store shopping for men:

A Man's Survival Guide to Thriftstore Shopping

Park Avenue Thrift Store in Marietta, Georgia

New Goodwill in Atlanta

We recently visited a brand, new, Goodwill Store in Atlanta.  It had clean aisles, friendly staff, a great selection, and very reasonable prices.  The new store is located on Northside Drive in Atlanta, Georgia, between I-75 and the Georgia Tech campus.  Here is a steampunk clock that I saw while shopping:

For $12, it was a cool find.  But, ultimately, I passed on it.  What would I do with such a steampunk contraption?