The yellow brick garage-sale road

Last weekend I spent the sunniest part of a whole day in my own backyard - and it was one of the most enjoyable Saturdays I've spent in a while.

I met a whole bunch of friendly neighbours I'd never seen before. Talked about waves with a couple who bought one of my surfboards and a copy of my book Surf's Up: The Girl's Guide to Surfing (pardon the plug). Chatted with neighbours I do know, who popped in to say hello. Gave away brownies I'd baked the night before. Got rid of some pretty good stuff that other people wanted more than I do. Oh, and I made a few bucks in the process.

All thanks to the Garage Sale Trail - a Bondi-based initiative started in 2010 in the name of "sustainability, community and creativity" to encourage people to offload things that might otherwise go to landfill. That first year, there were 130 garage sales across Sydney. Last weekend, there were 6000 garage sales across Australia - pretty cool, huh? You can register your sale (and give it a name, like The Man Sale or Brownies in the Backyard) and people find you online or on their phones as they wander around your suburb.

I don't think I've ever spent a whole day in my own backyard. An afternoon, sure. A morning having breakfast and reading the paper in the sun, certainly. This was different. I liked the commitment of it. Stay. Go nowhere. Be here for whomever walks in through the gate. Greet them with a brownie (my favourite part).

There's something to be said for sticking with one thing, one place, particularly at a time when it's easy to feel paralysed by choice. Next weekend I might try staying somewhere else all day, switching off my phone and just being, well, there.

Psst! Want to buy a windsurfer? Two sails, harness, new mast-step, going cheap...