Board Games + Growing Up with Them & Selling Them

Board games!   I loved them as a kid and as an adult.  Many happy memories on our summer holidays of playing UNO and Tri-Ominoes and How to Be a Complete Bastard (whoops!!).


Some board games bring back memories of my early childhood - especially the ones with the same boxes - Masterpiece, Cluedo and Scrabble.  Getting blisters on my finger playing Ants in Pants.     Ah, happy memories of my lovely little brother grabbing the game board and throwing the entire thing in the air when he knew he wasn't going to win.   Then doing a fantastic imitation of a fly-sprayed blow-fly on the floor.     Happy days.


I still have my packet of Dukes of Hazzard UNO that I bought as a teenager.   Boy I thought those two men were hot in that show!!!!    My teenage heart *yearned* for them.

Bwahahahah!  You didn't think I meant limp Bo & Luke!   Hah!   I have better, more refined, singular taste in men, even at that age.   Imagine my dismay when I found that instead of putting Enos on the UNO cards, they had that putz Cletus.  Those cards went back in the box, and I never used them again.     They're in a little box with the other things I'm secretly a little embarrassed about but absolutely will not part with.

Australia has some great old board games - many of them revolved around horse-racing, drinking, gambling and driving cars in the outback.  Because apparently that's all we do here.   I remember one game we used to play had a little foam esky that the game came in, instead of a box.   Classy as.

I love Trivial Pursuit and I love word games like Scrabble and Boggle.   I have a built-in spell-checker.  I anally spell-check menus, road signs and anything else I can slap my peepers onto.   

I hate games like Monopoly and Chess that you have to think ahead and plan.  My tiny brain lives in the right now (or even ten minutes ago) - not five, ten or fifteen minutes into the future.

Board games was my new venture on Ebay after selling only books.   It was a new subject to learn about.

This is all the games I have listed on Ebay:

Yes, they're nearly up to the ceiling.  Some of these I've had for over a year.  At 40 cents a month on Feebay to keep them up, they have to sell quick or they become a little money vacuum hidden inside a lovely box.      I have found a non-Ebay selling site, Quicksales.com.au  where I can park these lazy little squatters and get them moved on with no listing fee.  I need to do that this week.  This site is probably similar to Bonanza, in that you don't get many sales, but when you do, the fees are very low.

This is one of my piles of "To Be Checked" board games.     

The other pile is in my family room.    The other problem with board games is you can't be sure all the items are in the box.  I spend a lot of time holding boxes above my head and squinting at the Contents list,  sneakily slicing through boxes that are sticky-taped up so I can peruse the contents.

I hate the sight of an "AS IS" sticker on a game box.  Either it is all there - or it isn't.  Please let me know, so I don't have to arse around on the op shop floor with people tripping over me.

Having said that I love it when you get to push the lid back on the box and it does a loud farting sound. Very very satisfying.  Please excuse my game sir, I have no control over it.

And here one of my piles of games that don't have all the contents, but I think could sell as parts - these are just the ones where I have kept the box.  I also have a box full of miscellaneous game parts from different games.  I will be using Quicksales to put these pieces up to.   I still have to do that.   Must pull my finger out.

Remember that Scrabble game I talked about last week that I left behind and then found the price was good.  I beetled back there first thing Monday morning, and found the game was still there.  Yay!   I forked over $5, hurried home and put it up on Ebay.

One hour later, I got this: 

This customer paid nearly $20 to get it posted to them.  Hmm, think I under-priced it.  Live and learn.

Remember the other Scrabble game I mentioned last week?  The Sydney 2000 Olympics one.  There were others up at $8 that weren't selling, so I didn't price mine too high.   I put it up, and then one day later:

I have given my sister my BOLO list for board games as she is also a keen op-shopper.   Yesterday she found me this one for $1.  This is always a sure-fire seller in Australia.

I put it up when I got home.  Then one hour later:

She also found me Nightmare III for $2 which I have put up, and also Cluedo (which sadly was missing all the murder implements). 

I wish all the sales were nice and quick like the above-mentioned, but as you can see by my photos I have lots of games that are taking up space and not paying rent.  A lot are ones I bought early when I didn't know what to look out for, or I didn't check to see if all the contents were there.   

Others are just bombs that nobody would bother using even to start a bonfire with.

The only thing that will move these now is my free-to-list website.   Sometimes I want to take them back, but I can't find myself willing to part with them - after all that time I spent photographing them and counting all the blasted cards.  I guess I'll give them a free holiday on Quicksales for 6 months or so and then give them their marching orders.

I've enjoyed branching out into games, they have added some much-needed income - but like anything else, they are hard work.

Do you sell many games?   What games are your sure-fire winners?

Some Sales For the Week + More on Videos

I had a mish-mash of sales this week from every category, which was nice.


I sold this bulk lot of Girls Size 1 clothing (30 items) for $49.99.  The buyer paid straight away, and it costed them $20 in postage to get it there.   Yay, some more space in my wardrobe to fill with more kiddies clothing:

 <<<<<< WARNING : Whine of the Week >>>>>>>>>


Then there was this second lot of clothing - Girls Size 6 Clothes (29 Items) - this actually sold on the 31st of January for $49.99.    I was very happy with this sale in an otherwise terrible sales week.

 The buyer contacted me one minute after buying it and said "Can I pay on pickup - I only live in (somewhere less than 10 minutes from me).   I replied yes, and told her I'd be home that day until 5pm.  

Nothing.   Then on the 3rd, she phoned and said "Can I pick it up on Wednesday 9th?  I'll be there at 9am."  I thought that was a bit long to wait, but I agreed.


Waited home on Wednesday.  Nothing - no email, no phone call, no twit customer.    On Thursday I sent a "Where were you, if you no longer want these please let me know so I can cancel it."   
It's now Sunday morning and still nothing.  I HATE that I have to wait 5 days until I can relist these.  I hate that the seller gets punished for having a twit customer.  I hate that if she does ever get back to me, it will be with some sob story about her grandfather dying or her husband getting assassinated by a ninja.  


I got rid of the pickup option on all my items except the clothing , but I will be removing it them as well, as the inter-state customers pay quickly and are no trouble at all. 


<<<<<<<  Hic!  That was a nice glassfull ! >>>>>.


I have a friend from years ago when I had a bookshop - she would trawl garage sales and op shops for books during the week, and I would buy them off her.   It worked well for both of us.


Fast forward six years or so, and she still visits me every couple of months at home to bring me more things to sell - we have branched out from books with other things as well.   We go halvies on these items.   These three books sold within a day of me putting them up.


Military History always sells well.   I try to buy any military history books I see - especially ones that are related to a  certain platoon/unit/etc.     This book was signed by the author and a couple of members of the AWWC.  I got $25 for this one.    

I nearly kept this one just to identify the contents of my back garden.   I got $45 for this book on Weeds.  Who would have thought?

I always laugh at this book, because it was the one I used when I was forced delighted to do the Home Economics class in high school.  Everybody wants this book (except me).  It's a nice quick buck or two.   I got $25 for this one.   The older editions can go for up to $80.

And now on to videos.   Do you remember my blog from last week about the video haul I got?


I've already sold 3 videos from this lot.   These only costed me 10 cents each.


Gary Busey and his teeth score!   $10.00 for this trashy beauty!

This one was in pretty bad nick and was an ex-rental.  It played well, and I debated whether to list it and put it up for $8.   I forgot about the allure of a fugly man on the front cover!   Yes!  He sold within a couple of days.  I must remember that fugly sells (as my friend Tina always says.  ;-)    So remember to add Fugly to your Video BOLO list.   Fugly + Rated R = Irresistible.

And this one links to my next Video BOLOs :


Ah, Denise Austin.  I remember trying to do these videos years ago, my parrots watching me from their perches with something bordering on disgust.    Yes I "squeezed my buttocks" with the best of them.  Lovely Denise never mentioned that it would make my butt bigger.    What's the deal with that???


This is a very early one - probably the first she ever made.  It's so old, it should be a silent movie and I wish it was.  As I tested the movie, I winced listening to her perky voice rabbiting on about hips, thigggghsssssss & buttocks!!!!!    I got $10 for this one.

Exercise Videos - although they make me break into a sweat before I've even taken the video out of the cover, they are big sellers where I am.  Of course only certain ones sell.


You can get anything from $10 to $20 for these.    My BOLO List for Videos are:


~ Any Denise Austin
~ Any Jane Fonda
~ Any Cher   *bwwwwwahahahahahhahaaa*  sorry, I nearly choked then.
~ Any Richard Simmons
~ Any super-model workout (eg. Rachel Hunter, Elle MacPherson)
~ Any ex-actress/singer workout  (eg. Jennie Garth, etc ...)
~ I also pick up any Aussie Fit series


~ Any Billy Blanks / Tae Bo videos - I did these for a while.  They're fun because you pretend you can kick someone's butt.   However I kept getting distracted by the very dishy Mr. Blanks lovely *ahem* package.   Sometimes lycra is a *good thing*.   

  Sometimes it isn't.  :-(    (hint:  Richard Simmons)


Have you had any success with selling exercise videos?  Do you have any others you can add to the BOLO list?

This Week's Finds

I have been slack with my blogging this week - but now it's Saturday which I consider my day off.   I have had lunch with the parents, and Mum has some new tiny people clothing to de-stain.   :-)


This week has been a good one in sales - but I'll talk about them tomorrow.    I have found a few interesting things.  I have gone out of my comfort zone and bought some children's toys.  Not little ones - but great big honking ones that run on batteries.  I don't even want to think about packing them for postage, and I haven't even tested these to see if they work, and I certainly haven't looked at the completed's for these.  They sit in the corner mocking me, but I am determined to get through my mountains of unlisted Videos and Books that have been there for anywhere up to 6 months.


Here they are.  These ones costed me $1 each.

This little thing costed me 50 cents.   No books with it unfortunately.

I pounced on this.  It screamed retro-80s at me.  It costed me $3.  When I did some research, I realised that there is supposed to be a booklet that it comes with that actually allows you to *use* the blasted thing.   It just beeps and flashes and me when I press the buttons and I'm beginning to wonder if it would fit down the loo.  Not sure if it's worth putting up on its own.

I saw this and it was New in the Box, so I forked out $3.    When I got home and pressed the "Try Me" button all I heard was the sound of crickets, and some choice swear words.  I've never heard of this show.   I don't want to take it out of the packaging to test it.    I will probably regret buying this one.

Yay, yay!  I snapped this one up.  The Nightmare game is a good seller, and even though I forked out $4, I know I can get at least $20 for this.   This one is in very good condition, so maybe more.

At $2 I couldn't go past the 2000 Sydney Olympics Edition Scrabble.    This is also in nice condition.

When I was at my Salvos this morning, I saw this game and passed it by - because it was $5.   All their games are $5 or more and they are NEVER half price.   *grumble grumble*.     I thought I'd go home and research it first - my purse has been on a severe diet lately!     Well, then I found these in the completeds:

Aarrgghh!  That's what I get for being a tight-wad.   And you know I will be scuttling back there on Monday morning when they re-open.  Did I place that game at the bottom of the pile, and put others games on top to hide it?   *looking shifty*   Maybe I did ... Maybe I didn't.     (Hint:  I did   ;-))


I found this little iron trivet  - 50 cents - isn't he just gorgeous!!  This one is not leaving the house.  He will look nice sitting up against the wall on the kitchen bench.  I will NOT be placing hot things on his little birdy face.

Those were the only interesting things I got apart from more books and videos.  I had some interesting sales, and I will share them with you tomorrow - with perhaps some more information on what videos to look for.   I love videos now, they are boosting my sales figures.  I'm not sure if kids toys will be my forte, but I am dipping my toe in the pond.  It's a little tepid.   :-p

Living with blank walls

I moved into my new tiny unit a couple of years ago during an emotional time.  I hated the place, and only moved here because it was all I could afford.  I had no "job" at that time, and my only personal income was my Ebay shop.  I went to see my local bank manager for a loan, I was a little proud because I said I was a small business owner.   He looked at my figures and said "Is that all your business makes?"   I came home in tears and put my head under the sheets and vowed never to come out again.   I said I would live here a year and by then I would have a job and I could move somewhere I like and enjoy life again.

Fast forward two years - and I'm still living in the same tiny unit.   My job interviews have been disasters, and now I'm focusing on getting my Ebay shop sales to a figure that won't make the wanker gob-shite bank manager laugh.   I find I'm liking these tiny walls that I exist between.


The trouble is ... that they're blank - not only that, now that I come to really look at them - they are beige.  Oh dear.


So, I'm sick of these blank walls.   I read somewhere that the way people's houses are decorated show their personality.    So, I guess that means I'm bland, empty and hollow.      The walls in my sister's house are so crammed with stuff, that it takes a spider an hour to get just to cross a wall.   Those poor spiders - they're very fit in her place.  In mine they're fat and lazy, just sliding down that smooth wall.  I want ninja spiders!

I have lots of pictures from the other house - they are stuffed in corners behind and between furniture, and in the back of the wardrobe.   I didn't want them in this house.  This was my fresh start and I wanted the pictures to be ones I chose.    But now I'm taking a fresh look at them - after all, they were my choices in the first place.  Why should they suffer my fate and get tossed aside?

These pictures have been sitting collecting dust for two years.  Lets have a look at them with fresh eyes.

Here is what I found in the first pile:

   

Why would I not want these up?  I used to do lots of cross-stitch.  Some of these are dated 1997 - wow!


I did a silk ribbon embroidery class with my ex-mother-in-law about 5 years ago.  I had totally forgotten about this one.

My mum gave me this for Christmas about 7 years ago.  My cousin Diane did this - it's a pastel drawing.

Not only did I find some things worth putting up, it reminded me that I need to get crafting again.  I've got three plastic containers full of DMC wool all anally numbered and ready to go.  All I need is a chart and some Aida cloth and I can get started again.   I'm even a little excited. 


I might leave the other pile for another day.


Here are some op shop finds that I have gotten over the last 2 years for decorating my blank walls.


This one makes me laugh - I did buy it two years ago for $2.  I proudly showed everyone in my family and said it was the first picture I had bought for my new house.   Where has it been all this time?   In the back of the wardrobe.


Look at these fat little birdies :-)

This cute little plate costed me 50 cents.  It's hand-painted and signed, dated 1988.  It already has little holes in the back for the picture wire :

I love this one because it's so bright and sunny.  It has no name or date on it.  I think this costed me $4 at the Salvos:

This one is sweet.  I like the lace-like look around the edges.  This one has a named etched into the back.  It costed me $1:
  

I got a couple of those plate-hangers for Christmas so I should be able to get these up easily.


What are the walls of your house like?  Are they filled with photos of loved ones or do they have gaping gaps in them?


So over the next few months I will make the goal of filling those blank walls and prove that I am not as boring as I think.   


I will post photos when I do put my picture/plates up to show that my blank walls are no longer alone - they have friends on it - they are not just there to hold up the roof.


Then soon, ** rubbing hands together **  -  soon, I'll have ninja spiders.

Well excuse me for existing .....

Have you ever seen someone standing on one side of those automatic doors, jumping up and down and waving their arms madly?   We don't do it for exercise.   Let me make it very clear that  I am *allergic* to exercise.

However, that twit is probably me.    If I'm not bouncing up and down like Richard Simmons, I'm doing some serious re-arranging of my nose as the door refuses to acknowledge my existence in our space-time continuum.

I can stand at a counter for 5 minutes waiting for service, and as soon as someone else arrives - the salesperson suddenly appears and serves the new arrival first.   I suck it up and keep my mouth shut - because I don't want to make a fuss, I don't want to draw attention to myself.   I don't think I belong here.   *Shhhh - don't tell anyone*


My Mum has always called me "Creeping Moses."   I slink around the place like somebody who has no right to exist.   I tip-toe around op-shops and give the employees heart-attacks when I appear wraith-like near them with no warning.  (( Okay, sometimes that part is jolly good fun.  ;-)  ))       Sometimes those Depends need to be quality tested.   I'm willing to be paid for it !


I want to be helpful - but at a distance from humanity.   I want a warm-and-fuzzy feeling without too much interaction.    I'm constantly on the alert in my car - waiting to wave a pedestrian across the road, or to allow a car to pass ahead of me.  I am waiting for the secret thrill of "The Thank you Wave."   It lets me know that I exist.  


See that person, they see me, they know I'm here.   They wiggled a finger at me - I saw it!   


Often my generous gesture is ignored and I sit there like Jerry Seinfeld wailing "Where's my thank you wave?"

More often than not, you will see me hovering hopefully at checkouts - waiting for the person ahead of me to bemoan the fact that they don't have enough money to buy that desired packet of biscuits.   I slide in with the required change - Bang!   


Does that lovely elderly man look like he needs help with his shopping?   I grab a bag or two!  Zing Zang!


Has that woman gone off and left a bag of shopping behind?  See me run after her! Kabloomey!


Does that man at the side of the road need a mobile phone to call a tow-truck because his car's broken down.   Here I am with my trusty mobile phone!    Bam! - The Wraith strikes again.


Quick, fast, deadly, done and dusted.    No excessive personal involvement needed, and I get a little warm & fuzzy.
For almost a minute, I have existed in real-time with the rest of humanity.


So the next time you see somebody doing star jumps in front of an automatic door, give them some dignity, spare them their blushes.    Avert your eyes and find interest in something over there.   ---------->      Ta very much.   We're not like you.


Until then, I will wait for someone from my own planet or space-time continuum to realise that I am missing.   Hellllooooo out there ?????

Doctor, you want me to come with you?  Me?  Little old me?  You are very dishy, but how could I leave my family, my country, my friends, my planet.  

Ermmmm .....  You have books and wine in outer space?    You do?  


<<<  Running very fast towards the Blue Box >>>


"See ya!!!""