The eBay Effect

I like eBay. I buy on eBay. I sell on eBay. Their current slogans are "Win Victoriously" and "It's Better When You Win It!" I agree although I'll say it's better when you win it from me!

eBay doesn't seem to follow the written laws of supply and demand. I find it interesting and perplexing as to why when something is available to the general public, at nationwide stores, i.e., easily obtained, that product can still sell on eBay for two or three times what it's selling for in a store. Case in point:

Last spring McDonald's included in their Happy Meal eight inch dolls made by Madame Alexander in the image of Wizard of Oz characters. Now, I'm not a doll collector but I am an eBayer and have an eye for what might be the next hot item. So, I checked eBay and of course they were selling like hotcakes! Not only selling but making people money! On eBay they were selling for over $3 a piece and some (like Dorothy and Glenda) were selling up around the $7 mark! Now remember, these dolls were still available at your neighborhood McDonalds with a Happy Meal (which is roughly $2.75) or you could purchase them seperately for $1.77.

Another example are the Shrek glasses that came out when the movie was released over the summer. You could buy these for $1.99 a piece at McDonalds and sell them on eBay for almost $15.00!!!

Here's the strange part. A soon as the promotion was over the prices on eBay for the Madame Alexander dolls and Shrek glasses plumeted. I mean, literally bottomed out. What kind of sense is that? You can't get them at McDonalds anymore so they become rare but now they're not worth anything because you can't get them anywhere else but private sellers? Last time I checked the law of supply and demand if the supply is down, prices are up and vice-versa. I'm not a business expert but I do remmber that much of economics 101. Can someone explain it to me? My husband swears that McDonalds was buying all the inventory on eBay and reselling in the stores...yes, he said this with much grinning and winking.

Anyway, it's just another exciting phenomena in the world of eBay. And just to be clear...it is better when you win it! Give it a try!

Reading is the Wine of Life!

I like to read historical fiction. If they taught history like this in high school I think I would have had all A's.

Diana Gabaldon is one of my favorite authors. She wrote the Outlander series and what a series it is! Its about a 20th century woman going back in time to 18th century Scotland. It has adventure, romance, intrigue...you name it, she's got it in there. The series is five books long plus additional books about the characters. Give it a try! You'll be hooked!

I love reading about the Renaissance era - Tudor, Queen Elizabeth. My favorite author for this era is Philippa Gregory. She writes about the Tudor family from every perspective. The wives, the mistresses, the King's Fool. She also writes about later eras (King George) and is very descriptive and detailed about the characters. Again, gripping and a series you won't put down!

I'm not always stuck with historical fiction though. There are two books by Wally Lamb "I Know This Much is True" and "She's Come Undone" that tackle the issue of mental illness and how it affects those around the characters. It's not clinical or dreary but tells heartfelt stories of how mental illness really changes the way the afflicted person and their family views the world.

I'm now reading Ken Follets sequel to "Pillars of the Earth" called "World Without End". This is the continuation of the story of folks in Kingsbridge England back in the 12th and 14th centuries and shows how little politics, wars and family intrigue have changed in the past 900 years.

My biggest "surprise" read was Wicked. This much acclaimed book is a new take on the Wicked Witch of the West in Wizard of Oz. Now, I don't know much about the author but to come up with a story that makes the fairy tale look almost comical is amazing. Its a very cerebral book in my opinion and how they ever made a play out of it and manage to keep the audience's attention is beyond me. Don't get me wrong, the book is fantastic but the parallels between it and what is going on in our world today do not make for a gripping stage play. But, I haven't seen the play so if you have, let me know what you thought of it. I read "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" before I read "Wicked" and should have known what I was in for but I must "confess", I was surprised!

So, now you know what I'm reading and if you have any suggestions on books I ought to take a look at I'd love to hear them! Happy reading all!

Save Scrubs!

I don't watch much tv. Don't really have the time but the three shows I try to watch religiously are The Office, Desperate Housewives and Scrubs. Well, Scrubs is in their seventh and final season and I'm so depressed! Its funny, its entertaining, its cerebral enough to be interesting and for goodness sakes, now more than ever, we need to laugh. So, go to www.nbc.com and click on shows, click on Scrubs and start your campaign! Title it SAVES SCRUBS! Who knows? Maybe we will. No, we must! We have to! There's far too much garbage on tv. This is the one show that gives hope to all, ignores none and has the talent to carry it for many more years!