Hooray For The Halti (And Why I Bought Six)

Yes, ANOTHER dog post. My first foster pup pulls like a sled dog on the leash and also wrestles with whatever other dog I am walking. Walking the dogs usually ends in a big ball of fighting dogs which I try to drag home. One plus though is the great arm muscles I must be developing with all the pulling and dragging. :)

I researched leash training online and since I don't have a lot of time to go to leash training classes with just one dog, I decided to try one of the 'no pull' halters. The Halti was highly recommended so I checked the price. $13 at the pet store. I checked ebay and found them for less than that but with shipping the price is comparable. So I decided to bid on a lot of 6. I figured I could sell the extra ones on craig's list and maybe my Halti would be free.

I won the auction and impatiently waited for my box to arrive. I used to walk the dogs three times a day for a short distance but now, with the arrival of the new foster dogs, I am reluctant to walk my first pup at all.

Well, my box arrived today and I tried it out. It worked wonderfully. The puppy hated it, of course, and kept shaking her head and pawing at it but I had a nice walk with no pulling and no fear of tripping and sliding on the rocks. I haven't tried walking 2 pups together to see if the Halti will stop the wrestling too. Maybe I'll test that tomorrow.

The lot of 6 Halti's cost me $26 including shipping. That is equal to the price of 2 Halti's if I had bought them from the pet store. Now I need to sell the extra ones for, let's say, $8 each. If I sell 4 and keep 2 I will gotten 2 Halti's for free and made a little extra money too.

Adventures In Defrosting

I was highly motivated yesterday. I made a list of all of the chores I have been putting off and even got out of bed BEFORE noon today to begin. I checked my email for my ebay payment, which was there as scheduled, packaged and labeled my box and headed out to the post office. Once there I found out the post office moved across the street...guess it's been a while. Mailed my package and went home to start the rest of the chores. Then I realised...it's going to be another HOT weekend. 95°F That means the chores I had hoped to do in the mobile home are not going to get done.

All is not lost though. Heat is good for defrosting the fridges. Unfortunately, I didn't think ahead. If any of you remember from this post my RV fridge died back in March. I was able to get a free circuit board replacement because I had the same problem less than a year before. But because the first circuit board replacement cost me $800! and the second replacement still cost me over $100 in labor, I turned off my RV fridge and bought a $50 mini fridge that sits on a table next to the RV fridge. I use the RV fridge as a pantry now.

I still needed my old fridge in my mobile home, which is probably a horrible money hog, for larger items and for the freezer space. 5 months later and there is a glacier growing in my mobile home fridge. The mini fridge freezer section, which didn't work well anyway, is frozen shut and the temperature in the main compartment has been rising. Both fridges are in desperate need of defrosting. I plugged in the RV fridge so that I can transfer all of the food but I should have turned it on yesterday because it is terribly slow to cool. It doesn't help that I keep checking it :)

I haven't bought a newer model fridge for the mobile home because it is very inconvenient to go outside and in to the mobile home whenever I want something, although ice cream is a motivator :) I don't want this arrangement to be permanent. When I decide what my future housing arrangements will be, then I will know what to do about my multiple fridges.

So I am posting while I am waiting for one fridge to cool. Then I can unplug the other 2 and try to contain the mess that will most likely follow.

My Ebay Goal Is Not Getting Off To A Good Start

I listed 5 items last week and disappointingly, only one sold. The collectible cars just aren't selling now and the fact that it costs $10 to ship them is a big deterrent for people. Perhaps I will have better luck selling them on craigslist or at my spring garage sale. I originally intended to sell the cars at the local swap meet but I'm a big scaredy-cat when it comes to doing new things like that...it's part of my ISTJ personality, really. Plus the fact that I don't have anyone to give me a bathroom break makes the swap meet seem unattractive. It is also depressing to sell my treasured possessions for really really low prices. People just don't have the money to be buying extra stuff right now. I wonder if I should just hold on to it for a little while until people start buying again...or is that just an excuse to hold on to my stuff? Ah, I have an idea! Everyone is getting a Nascar diecast car for Christmas! Unfortunately, no one in my family is a Nascar fan. Now if they were footballs...

I have a few other items that might help me reach my $500 goal. An expensive watch that I won and a brand new water heater that I never hooked up. I have a copy of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace book too. I watched one sell on Ebay for 99 cents. That's not even worth the trouble. Perhaps I should give it away in a contest on my blog. At least that would be fun!

Selling Off The "Stuff" Is Hard To Do

I have begun my second $500 Ebay challenge. That's where I force myself...I mean "challenge" myself to sell $500 worth of stuff before November. I was almost successful (that's the nice way of saying I failed) in June. I sold $450 on Craig's List and Ebay. After that I lost my momentum. Last weekend I started slowly by listing $50 worth of stuff on Ebay. I'm going to have to try harder to reach my goal this time because I don't have big ticket items like my sewing machine and serger that I sold last time. I did find a Movado watch that I won at a raffle. I checked on Ebay and I might be able to get $180 for it. I haven't listed it yet.

Today there was a post on getting rid of stuff at The Simple Dollar. How timely. I am doing some of the things he suggests like using Ebay and Craig's List. I do plan to have a garage sale in March went my renters leave. I can briefly use the garage and driveway to get rid of the junk that isn't worth my time on Ebay and I want to sell the house furnishings too if there is anything left to salvage. After that I'll rent it as an unfurnished rental.

And a little story about emotional attachment to stuff. ***Do Not Read Further If Your Are Squeamish, You Have Been Warned*** I have mentioned my dear little first car a few times. The pack rats have chewed the wires, nested in the wheel wells and used the interior to throw wild parties. I cleaned the nests out of the engine compartment and sprayed it all down with Lysol. Then I place rat poison around and even put some Bounce dryer sheets inside because I heard the rats don't like them. Well, when I was doing laundry yesterday I smelled something bad. I walked around the garage sniffing and was dismayed to find the smell coming from inside the car. After obtaining a flashlight I located a large dead rat on the floor of the back seat. He was nice enough to die on a dryer sheet so it made the pick up a little easier.

So, why do I keep this car which is now just a hotel for pack rats and their friends? Because it was my first car and I want to fix it. If I sold it now I wouldn't get much money for it. Some day I will have a couple thousand dollars to get new upholstery and new wiring. I just can't get rid of it when it looks so sad. Yup, emotional attachment at it's worse.

Chores For The Weekend

Ahhh, Friday...finally. Now for the chore list! It's pretty much the same old chore list because I don't get anything finished. I need Saturday to catch up on sleep and basically be a slug. Then I start thinking about starting a project on Sunday and then it's Monday again! I miss my 3 day weekends from my last job :(

I definitely need to put more duct tape on my homemade swamp cooler cover. It has rained a lot and I don't want the water leaking in to the mobile home again.

My trash has been piling up. I should make a $10 trip to the dump but I keep thinking that I need to sort through my stuff first so I am sure all the trash is together. I miss regular curb trash pick-up. I could get it out here but it costs around $23 and I would have to put it in my truck and haul it to the end of the road anyway. If I'm going to do that I might as well keep driving to the dump. At least I can drop off my recycling at the library for free.

Then there is the ebay stuff. Yes, that's right, I still haven't listed it. The cat's not for sale, she is just practicing her modeling skills.

My boss is out of town and I volunteered to check on his house for him. A few months ago he had a water leak while he was gone and it did about $40,000 in damage. All of the lower cabinets, furniture, carpet, and lower drywall had to be replaced. And then he found out that mold wasn't covered on his insurance. It cost $4,000 out of pocket for the mold certification. Anyway, while I am there he said I could fill my water bottles. That's good because I am almost out of drinking water. I have been buying Iced Tea in gallon containers and they aren't recyclable so I use them for fresh water. I'm going to have to stop buying them now. I have too many and I don't know what to do with them. I hate to throw them in the landfill. So, since I won't buy that ice tea any more, I'll have to make my own. That means I'll be using more fresh water. But a gallon of fresh water is cheaper than a gallon of tea especially if I can keep getting the water for free.

The Ebb And Flow Of My Money

My renters paid most of their rent today. This is good. They didn't have the whole amount. This is not necessarily bad. They will be paying a late fee. This is good. I like late fees when they are paid to me.

I found the Chase bank offer that will give me $125 for opening a checking account with direct deposit. I think it might only be for people that have another account with them because it didn't pop up until I logged in. I already have my mortgage with them and I park in their parking lot for my carpool so it is convenient. Finally I will be able to get rid of all this cash from the rent. It will be much more convenient to transfer funds to my mortgage account too. I am going to use the late fee to make up for the stuff I didn't sell on ebay yet. I'm being lazy. The next bunch of ebay items are sitting on my chair. I gave myself another month to sell $500 more. I better get started.

Speaking of procrastinating, I finally made an appointment for the dermatologist. Last year I had 2 skin cancers and I think I might have another suspicious spot. So much for any surplus money. I shouldn't skimp on health care though. That's one thing I can't buy back later.

Selling My Stuff Is A Little Depressing

At least I am glad that selling my stuff is a choice. I could be one of those people who HAVE to sell their things to pay the mortgage or buy food. I sold my serger today. I am glad to see it go. I hope the woman has better luck with it than I did. She is an avid sewer so I think it went to a good home. I still have more to sell but I will do it slowly and probably on ebay. I need to make sure the auction ends on a Thursday so that the people have a day to pay and then I can ship on Saturday morning at the local post office. Trying to ship during the work week is very inconvenient.

Since I was on the other side of town while selling my serger I decided to stop in and see some manufactured homes where the models are set up. Unfortunately, they were closed. The web site said 5pm but I guess they make up their own hours. It's better that I don't start looking at those homes. In a weak moment I could sign up for a 4 bedroom double wide just because I want a full size kitchen and fancy bathroom. Hmmm, I need a new hobby to take my mind off of houses...quick!

Ebay Wrap Up And More Rental Drama

I shipped off my Ebay boxes today. I had to take time off from work to go to the post office in the middle of the morning but nobody seemed to mind too much. My rolling luggage rack worked perfectly. I'm glad I didn't have any more boxes. I only had room for 6.

Total tally...8 diecast cars for sale, 7 sold for an average of $14. I guess that is an ok profit. It's not quite worth the trouble. Next time I think I will try some 'buy it now' prices and see if anyone bites.

I called up my renters to see what time they were dropping off the rent check. To my surprise they told me that the other family moved out. There were 2 families sharing a 4 bedroom house. I wondered how long 2 families would get along...4 months I guess. Now the remaining family wants to stay but they didn't have the full amount of rent since the other family left suddenly. I agreed to half of the rent now and half by the 13th with a late fee. I hope they can handle the whole amount by themselves. They have been good tenants so far. This does put my July mortgage pre-payment off for a few weeks. I'm not going to make the extra payment until the second rent check clears.

My renters also mentioned an abundance of spiders and 'water bugs' in the house. These delightful creatures come up the drains and under the doors when the rains start. I am reluctant to call an exterminator because they charge $89 a quarter. There isn't anything they can do about the drains. My tenants can put bleach in them and keep them closed. I would rather buy a safe pesticide for them to spray around the perimeter themselves and maybe some sticky traps for inside. I wonder if they will go for that. Can't hurt to ask right? Oh how I love being a landlord.

Finally, The Stimulus Check Has Arrived

Too bad I don't feel like stimulating the economy any more. This check is going toward my mortgage. When I get a rent check tomorrow I can deposit them together and send another jumbo mortgage payment. Yea! That is more interesting to me than buying something new at the moment. I have been watching all the things for sale on Craig's List and I have had to decrease my target profit from selling my stuff. I'm still aiming for 2 more years until mortgage freedom. I decided that $8,000 was more realistic for my RV and $4,000 for my stuff if I can find that much to sell. It is really hard to part with some things if they aren't going to sell for much. I have to work hard to evaluate how much I NEED it.

I am going to send my Ebay boxes tomorrow. I realized another mistake. I have 6 boxes and I can't carry them all in one load. Wait, I think I have a little rolling luggage rack...now where did I put that? And the USPS website wouldn't let me purchase postage online. It kept saying 'internal error' so I don't get that discount. Hopefully I will be more organized on my next Ebay adventure.

I've Become A Craig's List Stalker

It's a bad habit. Just seeing all of the stuff on Craig's List makes me want it. And the prices are so good. I wish I had known about that site before I bought all of my sewing supplies. I bought my serger used for $300 and my sewing maching new for $300, both from a sewing store. I barely used them and now I want to sell them. If I'm lucky I can get $100-$150 for each. If I had bought something used off of Craig's List to begin with I wouldn't have to take such a loss now. Now I know. Hobbies should always be tested with used or borrowed equipment before making a big investment.

I have been looking around for more things to list on Ebay or Craig's List. I can't decide if it's worth the trouble if something will only sell for $5. I plan on having a garage sale next March when I sell the contents of my rental house so maybe I will just wait to sell some things. I really hate packaging and mailing stuff.

My current ebay auctions have 2-5 watchers but not a lot of bidders. If one of my cars will sell on Ebay for $10 plus $10 shipping, then I think maybe it would be better to try to sell them at the swap meet for $20. That way I get the whole $20 and don't have to bother with shipping.

I did put my giant TV antenna on Craig's List today. No interest yet. Maybe after it falls down someone will want it. I found a free entertainment center close to my house so I sent an email. I don't NEED an entertainment center but it would be nice to have one if I am going to move back in to my mobile home. I sent them an email but maybe they gave it away already. It's probably better that way. I don't need more stuff, I'm trying to get rid of stuff! I know, I'm bad. I should stop looking. If I keep this up one of these days I'm going to bring home a horse!

Next Step- Listing On Ebay

Yesterday I completed the first preliminary steps to sell my stuff on ebay. Today I took the big leap...actually listing them. It was a big deal to me. I was very worried that I would forget to put some important information on it. I had to go back and edit one after I listed it. Good thing that was easy to do. I am a little worried that I listed them too low but I have more to list so I can increase my starting price next time. It took me a while to figure out how to save a template to make listing the next item easier, but once I did figure it out it went a lot faster.

I am hoping that I can find $5,000 worth of items to sell on ebay or Craig's List. Maybe I can if I part with some of my favorite possessions like my kayak. Ok, so I don't live near water and I have only used the thing twice since I bought it...but I'm still hopeful that it will see water again. Perhaps it is just a dream.

One Baby Step Closer To Cleaning Out The Closet

I haven't actually gotten rid of anything yet. Giving things away would be much easier than selling but I am looking for a monetary reward to help me severe my attachment to my beloved stuff. I looked in my closet and picked out 8 collectibles that I could list on ebay. I bought them when I had a much higher paying job and my co-workers introduced me to Nascar. I bought the cars off of ebay in the hopes that their values would rise. I also had a plan to sell them locally at the swap meet but I couldn't get anyone to sell with me and I couldn't figure out how to watch over my stuff and take bathroom breaks. So now I am going to list them on ebay and see what happens.

I did a few preliminary steps: I picked 8 die-cast cars. I took them out and photographed them (that took forever because they are in so much packaging!). I edited the photos. And I looked up similar items on ebay to see how to describe them in my listings.

That's as far as I got. Maybe tomorrow I will list them. Then comes the part I really don't like...packing and shipping! The auctions need to end on a Thursday so that I have enough time to package them on Friday and go to the post office Saturday morning. If these items sell for as much as I paid then it will be worth it. I just want my money back. If they sell for more, then I will be thrilled. My guess is some will sell for more and some for less so it will all even out. But first I have to take the plunge and just start the bidding!