Ebay! ARGH!

Sometime I really hate eBay.

I have a small store on eBay, ParaFanAlia Toys & Stuff. And as of March 30, they will be screwing the small seller once again.

I currently pay .03 to list an item in my store and 12% when it sells. This is not bad and I can make some money. As of March 30th, I’ll pay .20 for the same listing plus 12% when it sells. This in on top of the $15.99 a month for the store.

It may not seem much, but it’s is. Let’s say I 50 item in my store. Now that mean I pay $17.49 ($15.99 + $1.50 in listing fees) plus any final selling fees. As of March 30th, I will be paying $25.99. $8.50 doesn’t seem like a lot, but that’s the profit on 2 of my items.

Of course the mega stores that are coming to dominate eBay are still listing for .03.

It’s not enough for me to pull out of eBay, but it sucks. What’s worse they word all the notices to make like they’re doing us a favor. They have to gall to say:

For most sellers, the new fee options will bring significant savings with dramatically reduced upfront cost. Across the board, Insertion Fees are being dramatically reduced. Final Value Fees for Fixed Price listings are for the most part staying the same.

Just venting. I used to love eBay, but now, I just need it.

Take a Bite out this!

Friday, 6:00pm

It’s all coming together.

Weather is great - mid to high 80's. Same as tomorrow. Great for Yard Sales!

Rented the car from Alamo (pains to deal with, but better prices). $130 through Monday. Glad to have it. A Dodge Avenger

I ate at the buffet again. For $13.00 dollars it was worth it. Unless I wanted to go fast food, it was going to cost me that much. Things are picking up as the weekend hits. I think I’m going to have problems finding $5.00 tables. I did play some after breakfast. I sat down with $50, got up with $80.

I stopped at the ticket place and got a ticket for the show Bite. It’s at 10:30pm and was $30.00. The Stratosphere seems like a cool place. They got an observation deck & roller coaster that may be better than the one at NY, NY. So, I’ll check those out before the show. I’m not sure, but the guy at the ticket place may have scammed me $20. I gave $100 plus some change. He then gave me the change and rushed though their ticket policies & promotions. When I next checked my wallet, there was $50 next to some ones. No $20 bill was next to it. No way to prove it.

I went into my wallet, because I was at Luxor and decide to play some BLACKJACK!
Very good time. It was at a $10 table. One guy was betting $25 and if it was only the two of us, he would play two spots. I plunked my $50 down, and walked away with…wait for it…$180.00. Nice hour indeed.

So with my $20 bet on tonight’s Red Sox, I’m up $160. Not to bad. Let see how I do tonight.

New Item on eBay

Hey folks!

I've been feeling it the past few days.

On Saturday, I went out Yard Saleing.
Looked like the day was going to be a waste. I kept seeing people
leaving with the stuff I would have liked. All morning I kept telling
myself I should just go home. I picked up some books, a couple ties for
work, a lava lamp and two shelves for my new space at the Greenville
Antique Center (711 Putnam Pike, Greenville, RI, (401) 949-4999).
Well, for all my mumbling about going home, I stayed out as long I
usually do. When I did decide to head home, I pasted several yard sales
without stopping. At a red light I saw another sign and just
followed it. At first it didn't seem like much. I remember the stop
from a few years ago. (Yes, we remember where we've been, even if we
don't know where we are!). I remember lots of unusual art piece and the
two gay guys having it. It was weird, because none of the art was
theirs. Anyway, this time there was only one guy, and he didn't nearly
have as much as last time. However, there was a toy box with a lot of
different stuff in it, including some Lionel Trains. Not sure what up
with that. Normally, Lionel Trains would be scooped up, even in the
less than mediocre condition these were. Only thing I could think of
that guy was asking too much for them. I asked anyway. For the box, he
want $40.00. No bad at all considering what was there. I offered
$30.00. They day wouldn't be a total waste. Here is some of the stuff I
got:

• Heller 1/72 Curtiss 75.A3 Model


• Suydam H-O Modern Factory 541


• Suydam H-O Modern Industry 543


• Lionel 1872 Engine & Tender


• Lionel 1875W Western & Atlantic Whistle


• Lionel 1876 Western & Atlantic Mail


• Lionel 6219 C & O


• Lionel 1877 Flat Car


• Lionel 6476 Hopper


• Lionel 50 Gang Car


• Great American Belt Buckle – Dodge Van #426

Like I said It wasn't all in great shape, but price accordingly, I put a retail value at around $300.00.
Not a bad investment.

Sunday, with help my sister, her son and his friend. I set up my space at Greenville, using most of the
stuff I bought to augment what I already have. I think my space (B60) looks pretty good. I'll know Wednesday how well stuff sells. Felt good about thing. The only thing is needed to list some stuff on eBay.


Monday, I had some yard work to do after work (Thanks, Ed S.). I did write a few items, but mostly I
didn't do anything.

Tuesday, I chose one my .50 Yard Sale ties to wear to work. The guys on work get on me because of them. I
just don't want to $30 or more for a tie. As I was heading into my office, I notice a marking on the tie. I hadn't seen it before. I
smiled when I recognized it. Hermes! What a name. I know I had another score. I the office I showed it off to everybody. When was able to check it out on eBay, this design was selling between $40-50. More correctly, had SOLD for that amount. Tonight, I priced a few items for Greenville and listed my tie and a game on eBay.


The game is Acquire by Avalon Hill.
My tie is also there.

John