I counted over 400 storage units in this one place. The single unit that was open when I was there contained one item: a car. Norman, Oklahoma has seven separate storage unit facilities in town. The smallest units at this place (5x5x9) rent for $30 a month and largest (10x30x9) rent for $125 a month. But rates differ slightly depending on where you go. No doubt marketers and builders and investors have it down to an exact science how many separate units a town's population can accommodate.
My boyfriend Ira naturally beat me to the punch on this subject (Act 1, 16 minutes). Perhaps my picture idea subliminally came from him. In short, the This American Life story is about a group of people in southern California who bid for the contents in abandoned storage units without having a clue what's inside them. The only thing the auctioneer does is open the door, wait a few minutes (people aren't allowed inside them) and then starts the bidding process.
Say you: Thanks for the spoiler.
Say me: A necessary evil.
Because apparently the History Channel heard the story too and jumped on the idea. There is now a reality show in production about this very thing: bidding on abandoned storage units. Nope. Not kidding.
I think Ira should sue The History Channel for intellectual property rights. Then we wouldn't have to listen to those promos at the beginning of every podcast begging us to send him money. ->
3 comments:
My Dad knows a guy who regularly goes to those auctions in North carolina and once won an entire mint condition old motercycle, and the spare parts (still in original manufacture boxes) to build 2 and a half more....the winning bid? Less than $1,000 he ended up making lots of money on the deal. Lesson is that people will bid crazy amounts sight unseen and sometimes....if your lucky...it pays off. But probably you will just end up with lots of trash and maybe a dead body or two.
Right, Chelsie. That was the whole point of the TAL show: people hope to win the lottery and mostly just end up with crap.
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