>maybe to get rid of some conditions or something, but i don't
>think i've slept in a bed yet. i just load up my companion
>with miscellaneous goods, but now i'm finding that to be an
>issue since i want to switch companions.

I sleep mainly to pass time. Like if there's something I need to do in daytime or nighttime but I have to kill eight hours or whatever to get to that point. I guess technically you could just "wait," but sleeping seems more fitting.

Also, if I'm doing some long-distance travel, I'll often try to start bright and early in the morning, as I've heard the beasties get tougher at night.

>and is there a reason you can't sell certain items? or is it
>just stolen items? but i need to pawn a lot of this shit off
>to make some loot.

Sometimes people just aren't interested in certain merchandise. Like if you go to a potion shop, they often won't buy your weapons because it's just not what they sell. Staves and other magic things you often have to take to the town mage to sell.

Stolen items I don't know, as I haven't really been stealing in this game. I seem to remember though that in Oblivion you had to either let some time pass, or go through some sort of laundering process, before regular shops would buy stolen goods. I could be wrong though -- it's been a long time.