I’ve always taken disproportionate pleasure in getting a good deal. It’s the one part of my Malaysian heritage I’ve not been in a hurry to reject – my Dad trained me to ask for discounts, and I always get that satisfaction of finding something cheaper elsewhere. In some regards, comparison web-shopping was made for me.

But surpassing the wildest dreams of eBay and comparison shopping sites – which after all have to cope with the burden of P&P – is the joy of the jumble and car boot sale. We stopped by a car boot sale on the way back from the coast a couple of weekends ago and picked up over 20 items of clothing for Emily at the grand total cost of £7.50. Similar purchases in shops would have cost us hundreds, and even occasional eBay purchases, with the aforementioned P&P would probably have stacked up to over £100. Fantastico.

In addition to the ludicrous deals, there’s some enjoyment to be had in seeing other peoples curios on display. I’ve always been comfortably materialistic – in the sense that I enjoy stuff rather than assign all value to it – so find it gives great insight into what other people take pleasure in to wander around these jumble sales.

Sadly this weekend’s car boot expedition was called off on account of rain, but there are a couple of more opportunities before the weather turns properly sour and the season ends…