Bless you (Curse you) eBay™

A generous offering it was. The powers that be at eBay™ decided to reduce the listing fee for one day, yesterday, making nearly every fee only 15¢. Fifteen cents! I'm not complaining, mind you. OK, maybe I am complaining just a little, given that I had just finished listing some things when the announcement came out regarding the special day. And I am complaining just a little, given that I did not have anything ready to list for the special day. And I am complaining a little because it sure made for a stressful experience while I looked for things to add before the special day expired. And I am complaining a little because I have an entire house full of stuff that could be listed in one day if I only had the project moving along a little better.

Curse you, eBay™.

Then again, it did help in some regards to have that special day. You see, even with all the stuff that I ingest and inject on a daily basis (medically prescribed, I'll have you know), none of it helps all that much with motivation. The other issue that slowed me down last week was the fact that I became a bit overwhelmed by the scope of the project, and began to slowly question why I was even attempting to take on such a chore. I suppose to some extent the lack of focus on a specific room played a part in the feelings of futility. [note: I do have a few votes, and am looking forward to the tally day. Oh, and I did not publish your vote, Mir, because I did not want to sway the opinions of others] The lack of sales on eBay™ played a part because it is sad to spend the money to list things and not sell them, but that is minor. I mean, heck, I sit out all day long for a yard sale and don't sell everything, so not selling is not anything new. Perhaps the biggest problem I had last week was the one thing that makes this project so important. I was having problems letting go of stuff. MY stuff. In the future I will present my position on all the declutter experts, but suffice to say there is one thing they really need to understand. In some ways, decluttering is like losing weight. If you don't look at the root causes, it will come back. There is a "possession factor" with clutter that goes beyond just getting rid of a few pounds of stuff. In future days I will discuss this issue more, but for now I will just say that between that factor, and all the holiday meals, I still have some weight to lose. I will also say that the special listing fee day did help renew some motivation.

Bless you eBay™.

Doing the Math - Week Four

Between the family home for Christmas, with associated distractions, and waiting for people to vote on one of the three rooms (hint, hint), the project was not a primary focus last week. Well, there was another reason, but I will leave that for another post. Still, I did manage to select items to pass along to new owners, one of which has an interesting story attached to it, and if you check out the current listings you will learn of that story. Today, however, is math day, and I think I shall make it a extraordinarily fun one, and I will dedicate it to Mirinda.

Part of my clutter is something that can be found in many homes, or so I gather from a variety of sources. Not unlike many people, I often toss my loose change into a jar, or more accurately, a pile on my dresser which ultimately becomes so large that the coins get transferred into a jar. A recent news story (about the relative value of smaller coins and the new legislation regarding that value) made me reflect upon this pile of metal. This reflection led to a non-felonious idea that made me chuckle, and made the Mrs. roll her eyes. You see, I have decided to use that pile/jar of change to create a special listing for eBay™. The fact that it makes a cool math problem is a bonus.

OK, the concept is simple. I take an equal number of quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies and put them into a bag. Let's say 25 of each. That means the face value is as follows:

25 Quarters = 25 x .25 = $6.25
25 Dimes = 25 x .10 = 2.50
25 Nickels = 25 x .05 = 1.25
25 Pennies = 25 x .01 = 0.25
Total = $10.25

If you put this into an ordinary paper lunch sack, it weighs between 13 and 14 ounces. Now, reaching into the sack and stirring it well, I take a handful of coins out. My cupped hand measures around 3 x 2 x 2 inches. In three random selections, I end up with the following:

Draw one (apx 6 ounces) -

14 Quarters (3.50)
13 Dimes (1.30)
8 Nickels (0.40)
11 Pennies (0.11)
Value = $5.31

Draw two (apx 6 ounces) -

13 Quarters (3.25)
7 Dimes (0.70)
11 Nickels (0.55)
8 Pennies (0.08)
Value = $4.58

Draw three (apx 6 ounces) -

10 Quarters (2.50)
6 Dimes (0.60)
11 Nickels (0.55)
15 Pennies (0.15)
Value = $3.80

Based upon this, the average of an approximate 6 ounce draw is worth around $4.56, or so it would seem. Just for giggles, let's take one more draw:

Draw four (apx 6 ounces) -

13 Quarters (3.25)
10 Dimes (1.00)
10 Nickels (0.50)
10 Pennies (0.10)
Value = $4.85

Now the face value of that 6 ounce average is about $4.63, a nice little increase. Of course, it could have very easily decreased. Based upon this little exercise, however, it would be interesting to see how much a Mystery Bag of Loose Change would go for on eBay™, don't you think? I mean, the notion is enticing, and I risk taking a loss, but it would be fun. Yes, I think I will do just that.

The Mrs. just rolled her eyes again and mumbled something about "silly."