Collectibles, Junk and eBay

I've been an eBay buyer and seller since January of 1998. Back when you could sell body parts and guns on eBay, and the fees weren't so ridiculous. And it's been good to me. Hell, I even bought my car from eBay. (whoo! I wished I had a blog then! Maybe a story for the future)

I started out buying. And did so off and on, as my budget allowed, for several years. Only about 3 years ago did I leap into the selling part. And thats been mostly pretty cool. I've learned to list stuff for what I want for it, and not expect everything to sell. I've learned to take nice pictures of my listed items, and how to write a nice description that dosen't sound too terribly stupid. I've even learned about shipping to Canada and that you don't set it up online via your USPS account, you take the package to the post office. They can give you a better rate and their forms are easier to fill out (snap sets) than the online one. (yes, I KNOW the online one is filled out online (DUH!) but five pieces of paper printed off and crammed into an envelope is more hassle then their little carbonless snap sets) I speak from experience. Last night I endured a line of people sighing and looking at their watches while I filled out Canadian paperwork. Hey, look. The clerk moved me over so he could wait on other people. They weren't THAT hassled. Why would they only have two clerks on duty at rush hour? Sheesh.

There are things that eBay, or the people supporting eBay (me included) have priced out of existance. Used to be you could go to an auction, and bring home a bunch of stuff, GOOD stuff, not somebody elses GARBAGE, for not a lot of money. Now you've got eight people bidding against you for a garden hoe. THEY want to either (a) win it and triple the price and put it in their overpriced antique store/mall/quaint gift shoppe, (b) Nail to the wall of their house for decoration, (c) take to the flea market the next day and double the price, (d) put it on eBay, to sell to someone who probably lost the goddamn thing to them at the auction in the first place, or (e) use it as God intended, as a garden hoe. I want it as a hoe, dammit. It's too much like work to list it, answer asinine questions from city people about the hoe ("I need some information on the item you have listed as a hoe, is the handle made from ash, hickory or pine? Was the head manufactured in Akron, Ohio, or hand forged at Esh's Forge, northwest of Fort Wayne Indiana? It appears to be a poor imitation of an authentic Esh hoe) Oh, I could just poke my eyes out when that shit appears in my in box. "Dear eBay customer, It's a bloody fucking hoe. Made by the bloody fucking hoe company out of Toadsuck, Arkansas in the late 1800's. My grandpappy hoed his fields with it, my pappy hoed our little meager patch of land with it, so no, it's never been NEAR Akron Ohio and Hiram Esh of Esh's forge is resting peacefully in his grave tonight knowing that his workmanship is in peril of being tacked up on some assholes wall for decoration.

Where was I?

Oh, yeah. eBay. I can't find anything to buy anymore. If I win the auction for 10 bucks, they'll charge 20 to ship it from Maryland to Pennsylvania. Those shipping gougers are on the shit list in a big way. No matter how I love something, I'm not getting fucked on shipping. Period. I was bidding on Volvos again last week. (I don't particularly need a new car, but it's an exercise to bid on cars that I just may win. I've done it long enough I know what a pre-1995 Volvo 240 wagon goes for. And if I win a new one, hurray and oh shit, but if I lose, oh well. It's not like I'm bidding huge amounts and SNIPING to win one. (Snipers are on my shit list too) So I'm not buying beads (have a bunch I need to sell) I don't buy dragonware (look it up) I'm over that and should sell what I have, I buy clothes periodically, but since I'm in a fat transition stage, there's no point, no more cowboy boots (10 pair is sufficient) and no 'stuff'. I got more stuff than anyone should have. Since Obbie moved in, he carted all his stuff from his apartment, and since his mom died, all her stuff is here too.
So no more stuff.

It's almost sad. eBay was so entertaining, and now it too is boring me. DAMN!!