I honestly have to say that posting your first item for sale on eBay is more intimidating than losing one's er......"flower".  I don't know if any kids read the blogs so I'm just going to stop there.  You know what I'm talkin about.  I soooo wanted to mention that on my first listing, but I have a feeling it's been probably been done before & I'd just be flaunting my ebay noobiness...heh...

We had pictures of jewelry ready, but I just listed a couple of the post cards cuz I'm a big ole CHICKEN.  I figure postcards are SAFE.....they're small, easy & inexpensive to ship so we shouldn't run into any problems....right?

I spent 2 days on a custom "template" & did my best to learn off other listings without copying anybody.  Everybody (my family) was waiting for me to hurry up & start listing but I used the excuse of "having to work on the template" to buy me some time while getting up the nerve.  Yep.....I hid in html world for a while...I'm a little more comfortable there.  People really pay for templates?  (note to self......)

My mom's actually excited about putting things online....it's ME that's freaking out.  How can I put a price on a postcard that my great great grandfather gave my great great grandmother?  It's not like anybody displays it.  Why aren't we displaying it again?  We're SELLING this for a DOLLAR?  You know, if it was just stuff that we picked up at a yard sale & were trying to turn over for profit, maybe it'd be different for me, I don't know.  This is "stuff" that's been floating around in our families for a long time.

don't be a packrat, don't be a packrat, don't be a packrat....say it over & over.  

Ug.  I'm tired.  I'm off to watch a movie and "escape" a little.  Too much excitement today.  Be safe all you good people out there.  You don't have to leave a comment, it won't hurt my feelings.  I talk to myself all the time anyway :)

It has nothing to do with this family eBay account, but my personal business partner & friend Tony Salando of T&T Management and Booking Agency was contacted by a eBay seller in regards to a company check they were trying to verify.

Sure enough, this smart lady alerted Tony to the fact that he's a victim of identity theft & somebody's trying to pass checks on his business account.  They've already gotten away with over $20,000. The accounts have been closed, but Tony's still getting approached by independent artists who have been given these checks.   

Apparently, whoever it is has been getting artist names off of myspace & offering them gigs with some sort of hinky funds transfer scam.  We're talking about musicians that are surviving hand-to-mouth.  What kinda low life piece of sh*t steals from starving musicians?  unreal.  If you know any musicians on myspace, spread the word please.

Tony's also getting phone calls from eBay & craigslist sellers.  The FBI's been called, as well as local authorities...yada yada....but here's the names to watch for.

jude micheal
Micheal Jones
judemicheal01@hotmail.com
judemicheal01@aol.com (yeah, I contacted aol for Tony.....we'll see)

I found this website talking about the scam (after the fact unfortunately):

http://www.deanblog.deanfriedman.net/2007/02/15/musician-targeted-internet-scam-warning/

By all means, contact me if you've ran across this guy.  We're still putting pieces together. 

For the last 3 years, our families have talked about selling on eBay.  We've all bought items - but the selling.....ug.....

The "seniors" have been looking to us younger, computer-savvy family members to get it started and the heat's been turned up with the economy like it is, so we decided to just jump in.  As I sit here & type, people are going through their boxes & picking out what to keep.

It's not easy..."picking out what to keep".  We've all been pack-rats forever....hording stuff away in boxes, never to be used....only to pass it on to the next generation...who will never use it...an endless, repetitive cycle.

We keep saying "I bet somebody, somewhere would really love to have this..."

Everything has a story, and requested or not....you'll probably get the story along with the item when we list.  More than anything, I know we all hope somebody somewhere will find a use or special display spot for our auctioned treasures.  They do no one any good all tucked away in boxes.

While the family goes through their goodies....I sit & type...camera ready...blogging & hoping that we don't screw this up.