I always ask the standard questions: What and how much have you got? Where are you? Do you know how much you want for it? But yesterday I ALMOST got caught short:

Telephone caller has some stuff she wants to sell and wants to know how much I'd pay. I determine it's about 2 to 300 pounds of Light Iron and she's about 30 miles away. I'm not buying light iron (not worth it, especially if I have to pick it up) and explain this to her. Ask her if she's got anything like copper wire, aluminum pans etc. "Nope". Tell her I'd give her .04/lb if she brings it here. That's when she tells me she also has a bunch of windows and how much for them? I determine they're wood frame. Tell her it'll cost her $50 plus $1 a window to get rid of them.

End of conversation.

By CALLER ID and cell phone #, I figured out she'd just moved here from Indiana.