My foray into Ebay
I’ve been attempting to clear out some of my old stuff now that I’m in the process of trying to move out of my parents’ house. I am a born packrat, just like my dad, and I used to find it nigh on impossible to throw/give anything away (or even sell it - though that was far more appealing than the alternatives). So I’ve kept A LOT of junk. I’m afraid even to go through my “Memory Box” (which is the size of a 40 gal. or so Rubbermaid container - FULL). Most of that stuff is old poems (from random sources, not me), “love” letters from elementary school “boyfriends” (lots of those), and other toys and trinkets I can’t seem to get rid of. For Pete’s sake, I have a plastic, gummy bear-shaped charm off of a necklace that broke probably 20 years ago! WHY?!
The simple answer is: I don’t know. I think it’s partly memory, but also some bizarre sense of asthetics as well. I think maybe I oughta string a bunch of my trinkets together and make some funky “Memory Necklace”; I like making jewelry, afterall, and it would certainly take up less space - not that I’d ever wear it though, so I guess that makes it more of an art piece…
Anyway, I’ve also got over a dozen Lego sets (which I love but haven’t played with in years). I’m actually quite proud of myself for having far less Barbie stuff than I originally might have. (Still finding it hard to give up that Soda Shop though - it actually holds and dispenses soda! Into the Barbie stools (when you turn them upside down)!) …Sheesh, see what I mean?! Listen to me! HOW OLD ARE YOU?? *sigh* But I digress…
This weekend, I made an effort to rid myself of a good batch of stuffed animals (that haven’t seen the light of day in years). Many of these are from the 80’s and are now regaining popularity, so I turned to that “worldwide garage sale” known as Ebay to try and pick up some cash for them as well as please some collector or nostaligic young adult (with a bizarre sense of asthetics) at the same time. So I registered as a seller for the first time, and put up my: Good Luck Care Bear (he’s winking! the new ones aren’t!), Gloworm (’82), Lurkey (from Rainbow Bright ‘83), stuffed Theodore (from Alvin & The Chipmunks), and a Baby Beans doll. I put a few other items up as well, just to see if they’d go anywhere, including a Phantom Regiment bear (with T-shirts from Carnival of the Animals and Phantom Voices ‘91) and three of my handmade anklets.
The Gloworm currently has a single bidder, which is exciting, and there are several people watching the Good Luck Bear. Now, that may not seem like a lot, but they’ll be up through Saturday, so I’ll wait and see how it goes when it gets closer to the end of the auction. But I must say, this is fun, and a little addictive. 
I hope they sell for something that at least helps me break even (that’s really my only goal).
…And I hope they don’t sell to my dad.