[karibear]

Originally Posted by Mattie Jo

LOL. And you can order catalogs and shop that way, but mostly I don't. You learn where to find fun shopping. But often when I need something and can't find it I can on Amazon.

That only works if you can drive, which I can't, or if you live in a city big enough to have thrift shops [to which I am addicted]. So... I take my pleasures where I find them. Besides, most of my previous favorite catalogs now have websites!

[Synopsis]

I don't like buying things off of ebay; there's something I just don't trust about buying from an individual online. However, I do realize that loads of people love it and have ZERO complaints.

I buy online all of the time (overstock is a good place), but from discount retailers and not individuals.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by Synopsis

I don't like buying things off of ebay; there's something I just don't trust about buying from an individual online. However, I do realize that loads of people love it and have ZERO complaints.

I buy online all of the time (overstock is a good place), but from discount retailers and not individuals.

You do have to check people's reputations and comments, but so far, I've only had one bad experience w/ ebay buying, and that was a very minimally priced item, not even as much as I'd leave for a tip in a restaurant, including shipping. Besides, there are businesses that sell there, too, Besides, I liked the idea of getting a top brand coffee maker for .99 even if I did have to pay 10.00 for shipping it. I'd been spending 15.00 every 6 months or so for cheap throwaways from the local drug store, and my .99 cent one has lasted for about 4 years now.

It's also a good place to get parts for things, especially USB hubs and odds and ends that cost the earth if you have to order them from the OEM supplier [like new batteries for a Verizon cell phone]. It's like going to a garage sale without going out in the weather. I've gotten all my cell phones from ebay, with the exception of this last one which I got free from the new carrier I switched to, and the 'free' one is the only one I've ever had any trouble with - all the used ones worked great. And books! I should say audio books - I would NEVER be able to afford new ones, but used ones are far cheaper, and there are a lot of really old time radio programs on CD and CD/MP3 now for a pittance.

But I really haven't had any problems with the private sellers - it's just a matter of using PayPal, then you have all kinds of options to remedy any goof-ups. And as I recall, Overstock uses PayPal as well.

[EarthBound?]

Originally Posted by Synopsis

I don't like buying things off of ebay; there's something I just don't trust about buying from an individual online. However, I do realize that loads of people love it and have ZERO complaints.

I buy online all of the time (overstock is a good place), but from discount retailers and not individuals.

Hey Synopsis,

Bjb123 sells on ebay quite often and does a dang good job at it if I say so myself. If you have any questions on how to protect yourself, just give he a yell. I'm sure she would be glad to give you some pointer on what to look for and how to avoid problems areas.

[techienomad]

Using the Dr. Pepper test, the people of Oklahoma have offered me so many Dr. Peppers, I could've opened up my own distribution center.

[Mattie Jo]

Originally Posted by karibear

That only works if you can drive, which I can't, or if you live in a city big enough to have thrift shops [to which I am addicted]. So... I take my pleasures where I find them. Besides, most of my previous favorite catalogs now have websites!

I am addicted to thrift shops and antique stores.

[nightbird47]

Originally Posted by Mattie Jo

I am addicted to thrift shops and antique stores.

One thing I really do miss here are my thrift shops. Half of my stuff came from them. When I was back in cali for Thanksgiving that is one tour I had to take. Unfortunatily was limited to one box to ship back home.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by Mattie Jo

I am addicted to thrift shops and antique stores.

Oh, yes! That is the one thing I'd change in my little town, there are 2 second hand clothing stores, but they don't have anything that interests me. There's a pawn shop, but I haven't bothered going to it yet. Maybe in the spring. It's probably a good thing I can't drive any more, I'd spend far too much time going back and forth to Tulsa and OKC.

It always amazed me, some of the things people would donate. We got all our TVs from one shop for 5.00 each, because whoever had had them lost the remote. So they bought a new set instead of going to Walmart and getting a universal remote. I think the most expensive thing I ever got was a new Blaze Queen wood stove that I paid 100.00 for -and it was worth every penny and then some. It pretty much kept a 2,000 sf house warm all winter, which is saying a lot when one lives in Alaska.

[Mattie Jo]

If I were back in California there is one thrift store that I would love to return to, but it isn't work going back to CA to visit for any reason.

How come you no longer drive karibear?

I have only been into one pawn shop since moving here, but I didn't buy anything. I keep saying that I should go to some.

That wood stove sounds wonderful. what a deal; also the TV.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by Mattie Jo

If I were back in California there is one thrift store that I would love to return to, but it isn't work going back to CA to visit for any reason.

How come you no longer drive karibear?

I have only been into one pawn shop since moving here, but I didn't buy anything. I keep saying that I should go to some.

That wood stove sounds wonderful. what a deal; also the TV.

I can't drive now because I'm legally blind. It doesn't interfere with daily living and I can walk wherever I want as long as I only cross streets at stop signs. That's one of many reasons I picked a small town.

Pawn stores are different from thrift stores in many ways - it's usually men who take things in, and it's usually tools and such, but there are other things too. The one in the town where I lived in AK was also owned by the best locksmith, so I saw him fairly regularly. The problem there was that since it was a small town, I also recognized some of the less generic things, and it wasn't always nice discovering who among the people I knew was in trouble. On the other hand, DH had a ring stolen from him in Dutch Harbor that eventually turned up there - a very long way for a little piece of jewelry to travel!