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Garage Photos:
My Back Yard
I agree, but it’s one of the inherent risks of cycling.
People who are that irresponsible annoy me. Even when you talk to them, they just don’t get it.
Worst case, I’ll start carrying pepper spray, but i really don’t want to go there.
Otherwise, yes living here is awesome.
Once I moved in, I began modifying the shelves on the container that came with the house. I basically just reinforced them and extended them. It would have been better to tear them down and start from scratch, but I didn’t have the time or energy for it.
Then I inventoried the abundance of stuff in the garage and began moving it all into the container. At the same time, I was taking daily trips to my storage lockers and moving my inventory into the garage. It was one big Jenga game on a daily basis.
The existing storage cabinets and tables etc had to be removed or torn down.
I made several trips to Home Depot and bought about $600 of lumber. The garage is about 10 feet high, so I built wood shelving on three sides going up and also built a shipping station.
The whole process took a good two months.
In the end I managed to fit just about all of my Ebay inventory in the garage and still had room for my motorcycle and a couple of bicycles.
The existing container is almost full with everything else, tools, paint, oil etc.
I still have a bunch of unlisted death piles I could list with the proper motivation.
Right now, I have enough storage, but would like more.
My nephew bought a 40 foot shipping container in good shape for about $3500 delivered, which seems to be the obvious choice for more storage. The problem I have here is that the land is not level, so I’d have to have some landscaping done before getting a container.
Unless I start making a good income, A steel building is not worth the expense right now. My life is very casual at present which is pretty cool.
Thanks for asking.
Long Term Update on my Urban to Rural move:
Hi All,
It’s been about 1 1/2 years since the move and it has been great.
My personal monthly expenses have dropped greatly and are about $1100 total for everything.
The former owners designed and had this house built with a purpose. It is framed with 2 X 6 studs (as opposed to 2 X 4’s. This enables the house to be insulated with more material and makes it super efficient. I cannot thank them enough for their design.
My bills now compared to the former place:
No Mortgage
Property taxes are less than half.
Utilities and insurance (including car) are about the same.
Groceries are about the same.
No more cable/satellite TV. I pick up the 11 local Los Angeles channels (all the major networks) with a digital antenna and that’s enough for me. Even though I’m rural, the community has a translator (relay station) set up, so we can get free over the air TV.
There is internet available, but I’m still using my phone for my internet access. Since it’s just me, it’s still working fine. I watch tons of Youtube and just mirror the phone to a TV or monitor.
My health insurance premium has dropped to around $100 a month. Since I don’t have a mortgage, I’m not pulling money from my retirement and declaring it as income. This means I can qualify for the health exchange rates and it saves me a bunch.
In Addition:
I live near the foot of a mountain, so hiking and bicycling are just outside the back door. I’m generally doing one or the other 3 to 4 times a week.
There’s almost no traffic here and it’s almost always quiet.
My biggest complaint is that some of my “Neighbors” don’t secure their dogs and I’ve been chased more than once on my bicycle.
I’m amazed at the vegetation and wildlife here, considering it’s the desert. There are lots of rabbits, squirrels and birds.
Locally, there are a couple of stores etc, but the big box stores are all about 20 miles away.
For me, the move to the country has been a complete success.
I’m happy to answer any questions you guys may have.
Thanks again for all that commented and gave such great advice.
JOE
I’ve been using (7 X 5 X 4) inch boxes placed inside of Flat Rate Padded Envelopes for years.
First wrap the mug around the outside with two pieces of bubble wrap. You fold them lengthwise and roll them around the perimeter of the mug. Place the mug in the box and stuff it with crumpled up paper. Tape the box shut.
Place the box in the Padded Envelope.
Stuff the Envelope with more crumpled paper around the box on all sides, so it looks like a pillow. There probably won’t be enough room on the top and bottom for stuffing.
Seal securely and label.
I have never had one broken or damaged yet.
JOE
I get offers all the time on items I’m not watching. I have nothing in my watch list ever for my selling account and have all the buying notifications turned off.
I’ve also begun to get notifications regarding items that are ending, that I may have looked at.
I do all my buying through a completely different account and never through the Ebay App.
It really feels like Spam now.
I’ve received questions about items and pricing, only to find it they’re coming from other resellers, who are going to list a similar item.
Everyone wants to sell for top dollar, but no one wants to do the work.
I have a couple of small utility trailers that cost me $300 each and can be pulled by just about any vehicle. If you’ve got the room to store them, when not in use, they are great to have for the occasional large buys or runs to the dump.
I ordered and received a bunch last week too. I still have the link, but it just show they’re out of stock.
The tape is on back order now too.
Yes, the bike market has been crazy. There are shortages everywhere and the rumor is that the supply of new bikes won’t be replaced until late summer or longer. I’ve also noticed shortages of parts, such as tires and tubes.
I keep an eye on “Offer Up”, always on the hunt for a good deal on used bikes. I’ve noticed that many are priced higher and many many are selling within a couple of days of being listed.
This is a bit unprecedented and I feel very temporary. I agree as Jay said, that if you have a bike you longer want, now is the time to sell. Once the situation changes and people get back to normal, we will be in a buyer’s market again. I think next years’s garage sales will have great deals on used bikes.
I just looked through a bunch of the sold listings, for mystery boxes.
Boy, people must be bursting with stimulus money.
I have little sympathy for people who buy these items and then complain when they are disappointed with the contents.
I think there are probably state specific rules regarding it. In California they have rules regarding what plates can be placed on which cars. It has a lot to do with the year of the plate and the year of the vehicle.
For California, the DMV has lots of information on line. If a car is not registered, there are late fees which can really add up and stay with the vehicle and plate. After a specific time, generally 7 to 10 years of inactivity, the car and plate fall off the system and start over from scratch.
Clearing a plate is generally the process of verifying if there are any outstanding fees owed and possibly paying them.
In California, the plate stays with the car for the life of the car. I’ve also lived in a state (Massachusetts) in which the plate was removed from the car, when it was sold and the new owner would get his own new plate.
Whether or not, this is the situation in your state will have a lot to do with the potential value of your plates.
You may want to start with your local DMV and see if there is any information online. You may also want to see if any local car clubs are available to help.
Good Luck.
Unless, I’m offering free shipping, almost everything is calculated.
A few well thought out shipping (business) policies will be good for most of your listings. In general, between 5 and 10 policies should be enough for all your listings.
First Class, Media mail, Priority Flat Rate Padded Envelope, Priority Calculated and Fedex Home (Ground) are mostly what i use. Each business policy can have more than one shipping option.
My default is First Class, because, if I’m in a rush and forget to change it, I’ll get an error message and the item will not list with the wrong policy.
How much weight to add for packing materials, varies greatly depending on the item.
Since your store is still small, I’d recommend setting up shipping policies and some type of inventory system now, as it will be much more difficult to do after you grow.
Good Luck.
