The sun came out. It warmed up. And I think I even heard some birds singing, or maybe that was me humming a happy tune.

The first Saturday in January rang in the first good day for garage saling following a bit of a dry spell. I'm grateful for the rain. But it sure can dampen the spirits of garage-sale lovers.

"It really irritated me because there weren't enough sales," said avid garage saler Robin Johnson of Mesa.

That's right, treasure hunters like Robin and I just went through a really rough period - you might call it a bit of a garage-sale drought. Thanks to miserable conditions three weekends in a row with cold, wet, windy weather - and then the holidays - garage sales seemed to evaporate in the Valley.

But aahhh . . . January would bring mild conditions and, as a result, an abundance of sellers and buyers.

"I've never seen anything like it. It's been a hoot," said Gina Simpson, who along with a friend was holding a garage sale in Gilbert.

When I pulled up to their sale, I couldn't believe my eyes. There were nearly 50 people gathered in the tiny front yard picking through boxes and looking at furniture. That's a lot of folks because typically, I might see a dozen or so shoppers at an average sale.

"We were planning on doing this several weekends ago but the rain caused us to cancel it. So, we've been ready to get rid of this stuff," Gina told me in between making change for customers. They made nearly $500 in just four hours and sold almost everything.

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