HOUSTON – A Spring woman sold about $3,000 worth of items after cleaning house and moving on with her life after divorcing her husband of four years, according to a Craigslist ad.
In the ad, titled “Divorce garage sale – Get him out of my life,” the woman said the divorce from her “worthless, cheating, abusive husband,” took “two long years.”
The ad has since been removed, but screenshots of the ad have been shared on social media.
PHOTOS: Spring woman advertises post-divorce garage sale on Craigslist
Briana Barksdale said she posted the ad on Craigslist on Thursday morning, and had no idea it would gain as much attention as it has.
"It’s been really overwhelming and been really cool because the vast majority of the comments, not all but most, have been really supportive and uplifting and saying, ‘Hey, we’re just going to come celebrate with you. I’ve been there. You’re not alone,'” Barksdale said.
Barksdale said about 900 to 1,000 people showed up to the garage sale between 7:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Saturday.
Court records show that the woman's ex-husband is serving seven years of probation and community service after pleading guilty to assault of a family member.
“It was just a really hard situation. It was a bad situation that I had to get out of and I stayed for way too long,” Barksdale said. “And finally the light came on one day and I said, 'All right, it’s time to go,' and I did and I haven’t looked back since.'”
Her divorce became final on Jan. 31, and she said February is the start of her new year.
“We’re going to hopefully sell everything. We’re going to have mimosas and doughnuts and we’re just going to party and celebrate and have a good time,” Barksdale said.
She said her ad summed up everything she is feeling.
“If you've ever been completely screwed over by an ex, please come support my garage sale and help me get rid of this (expletive) so I can move on with my life,” the ad said.
Some of the items that sold were a living room set, a queen-size bed and mattress, a wooden bunk bed, a dining table, clothes, a TV stand and tools.
“I also have a ton of kids games and toys (boys or unisex),” she wrote. “They mostly belonged to my kids, but easily could have been his since the maturity levels are about the same.”
Below is the full text from the ad. Some colorful language has been removed:
“So after 2 long years, I have FINALLY been able to divorce my worthless, cheating, abusive husband. During that time, I had the distinct pleasure of paying for TWO entire households because he lost his job due to commiting (sic) a felony and couldn't support himself, so guess who demanded in court docs that I keep him in the lifestyle he'd become accustomed to???
“Fortunately, everyone eventually saw through his (expletive), and I'm free. I am also WAY more broke. But hell, divorce is expensive because it's worth it. Was it worth the more than $50,000 to get rid of him? Yes. Am I going to be eating ramen until I'm 50? Probably also yes. It's fine. Single ramen tastes better than married filet mignon anyday (sic).
“That said, I have an entire household worth of (expletive) that needs to be GONE. I don't want to look at it. I don't want the memories. And I'd like to recoup some of the thousands upon thousands of dollars I spent on his sorry ass.
“So, SATURDAY, February 10th is it. The "freedom from (expletive)" garage sale.
"I have ALL the things.
“Living room set, queen size bed/mattress, a wooden bunk bed that breaks down into 2 twins, an entire kitchens worth of things, dining table, some clothes, a TV stand, tools, linens, pretty much everything it takes to keep a lazy worthless human being in a state of comfort for a year.
“I also have a ton of kids games and toys (boys or unisex). They mostly belonged to my kids, but easily could have been his since the maturity levels are about the same :)
“Which reminds me, I do have a playstation (sic) and an Xbox. And a bunch of other electronic-y stuff. Ha. Selling that too. (Don't judge me, the guy tried to take my DOG... who does that?!?!)
“Oh, and I'm selling the grandmothers (sic) silverware. Because he deserves it. F him. Maybe he'll learn not to get bartenders pregnant and hit his wife.
“If you've EVER been completely screwed over by an ex, PLEASE come support my garage sale and help me get rid of this (expletive) so I can move on with my life.
“You can even help me burn the pictures, and my wedding dress, if you like. There will be mimosas. And doughnuts. Because I'll be up early and life is stressful.
“And I'll even let you pay me electronically (Venmo or PayPal) if you don't have cash. Yay technology.
“The address is 29210 Legends Beam Dr. Spring, TX 77386. It's in Legends Run neighborhood off of Rayford.
“Come stop by. Buy something. Support moving forward and getting rid of (expletive). Or just get a great deal on a couch. Think of it as a party and THIS is YOUR personal invite!
“Maybe bring some champagne or OJ, cuz it sounds like we may need it based on the response I'm getting.
“This is happening this Saturday from 7:30 AM until I need a nap... so maybe 2ish?”