I'm Addicted

Yes, it's safe to say, I'm addicted to Ebay. Not buying on Ebay, but selling on Ebay. A couple months back I decided to place some of my books on Half.com. I just thought I'd sell a few here or there. Starting out I sold 2 immediately and then nothing came of it. I just thought to myself, nothing gained, nothing lost (since it costs nothing to post). Then I started talking to my co-worker who encouraged me to post the books on Ebay. She said it's quite easy and it helps to get things off of your shelf. Mom has been trying to put fire under my butt for several years to start selling stuff on Ebay, but I just saw it as intimidating. So it's been in the back of my mind, but having even more encouragement pushed me to finally take the steps to start selling. So I started selling some of my books.

Most people can understand how buying on Ebay can be addicting. It's like gambling since you're trying to be the highest bidder. But I never knew I could get addicted to selling. But once you start making a few dollars here and there, you think to yourself, "I can do this! What else can I sell?" That's when David and I started going through the house. Not surprisingly, it was quite easy to find things sitting around the house that we no longer need/want/use. So we went from just selling books to now even selling clothes, housewares, David's old drum stuff, and odds and ends. I must say, it never ceases to amaze me what people will buy. We put a few things on there that I thought no one would buy. I took the risk, posted them for a $1-2 and waited to see. Those were the first things people bid on! What?! Now mind you it's not like we're going to get rich on $1-2 but it's now out of our hands and we made a buck. We won't complain.

Selling on Ebay has kept me busy. I'm sure no one would be surprised that I have it down to a system....I find items, take pictures, write up descriptions in a Word document, and then post a couple every day. The biggest time consumer is getting everything together and organized. Posting it is quite easy. And thankfully I have access to a decent amount of boxes and packaging through work (due to deliveries) so we haven't had to buy much, other than some extra bubble wrap. I have even gone so far as to help mom get a few things out of her basement. We sold Vintage Fisher Price toys, and some other odds and ends. Once again, it's not like they'll become rich, but it's off their hands with a few dollars in their pocket....and less clutter in the basement.

We've had a few snafus here and there but things have gone a lot more smoothly than I initially expected. I know the time will come when I run out of things to sell, but for now it's giving me something to do (like I need more, right?) and I'm enjoying it. Not to mention, the little bit of extra money pads our pockets just a bit more during this time when money it quite tight. As my co-worker stated, the money is helping to pay for Christmas gifts. No matter what way you look at it, you're a bit more ahead of the game than when you started.