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{{{{{ THOUGHTS ON eBAY, INFORMATION relating to the ITEMS WE SELL & INFO REGARDING "Ecologic Photographic Enterprises" and "Myself" }}}}}
WELL, I should start by saying I have always been considered somewhat skeptical about nearly everything and anything I am not familiar with and especially “NEW” things, products, ideas, programs, car companies (and yes, even new people), that suddenly appear and stir things up as being something beneficial, only to suddenly disappear and their name forgotten shortly after they suddenly appeared with such fanfare! And, quite honestly in today’s world of more and more exceedingly intelligent scams and the myriad of brilliant scam artists behind them, it becomes natural to become increasingly skeptical as well! And, in my case, after working my entire career as law enforcement officer, almost all of it spent operating in covert operations, working undercover investigating (from the inside out) South American narcotics traffickers, organized crime and other dregs of society, I believe that I am likely to be more skeptical and less trusting then your average bear. Well, what does this have to do with eBay? I’ll tell you.
About the time of the Great 2000 Millennium, I overheard two colleagues (actually subordinates of mine, however, for good reasons, these two had also become trusted friends) some friends discussing something called “eBAY” and never having heard this term I asked what was this “eBay” they were excitingly rambling on about like two high-school kids discussing the latest sports car model to hit the streets!? So … after getting a simultaneous, stereophonic half-hour description of what eBay was (and is) by these two friends, for whom I both considered intelligent, honest and not fool-hardy, I must still admit … I had difficulty wrapping my brain around what had been explained to me in just 30 minutes by two typically very astute, calm and collected friends, who were both well ‘healed businessmen, considered by most to be “men of few words” and when they make a statement, it was well thought out, without one extra word added then was absolutely necessary. When I first hear of something such as this, I generally remain an unbeliever, until I see its virtues for myself and after personally gaining an understanding of “how” and “why” it is successful.
Well, it just so happened, at the time, I had decided to purchase a beautiful Harley Davidson motorcycle that was being sold by another friend. This wasn’t your typical motorcycle mind you, it was SPECIAL! I had fallen in love/lust with this motorized devilish angel the moment I laid eyes on her and I decided that I had to have her! I did not wish to take out a loan, so I had decided to sell a couple of items I had little use for, but were definitely worth some money. The two items I was trying to sell were: #1) a Pair of Boxing Gloves, each signed by George Foreman and Mohammed Ali, from they’re famous 1970’s African Match, and #2): an antique Lady’s Ring, with a numerous diamonds of excellent quality. Try as I may, I wasn’t having too much luck in finding buyers using the “ask around” method … SO … I decided (after doing a bit of research) on giving eBay a try. And, within a week of signing up as a seller, I had sold both items (the Boxing Gloves went to the UK and the Diamond Ring was sold to a lady 90 miles away in Phoenix), and I had my lovely Harley, with some cash left over to take a trip with my beloved new HOG!
Well, to make a long story short, eBay is the real deal and I have now sold hundreds and hundreds of items, as well as making a number of purchases (some for a 10th of their actual value). I will say this … like everything real, it’s what YOU make of it! You can sell a few items now & then for some extra cash, or you can become your own boss and make it a full-time business with a yearly income exceeding several hundred thousand dollars, if you go about it the right way. For me, I’m somewhere in between by choice and enjoy the whole experience!
I have been an eBay Power Seller for over 7 YEARS now!
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT MYSELF AND THE ITEMS I SPECIALIZE IN:
As a [Professional Nature Photographer], [Published Author] of numerous books and articles on a variety of natural history, conservation, law enforcement and travel related themes, a[World Traveler] (5 continents and about 30 countries visited?), [ Absolute Camera Nut] (with more cameras & accessories then any "camera shooter" should own!), & last but not least ... a [True Packrat], who just knows I must keep every issue of every photo-related magazine ever received ... BECAUSE ... I'm quite certain that I will need them in the future (and this is but one example!) ... I HAVE ACQUIRED and CONTINUE TO ACQUIRE ... a vast "HODGEPODGE" of interesting, unique, and fair amount of rare or highly sought after items, that I list on ebay when its time to have my prescriptions refilled at Walgreens and my monthly cost, of about $3,000!!!
I am a retired LEO (Law Enforcement Officer), who spent my entire career operating in a covert capacity, actually getting paid for playing cops and robbers, which was a blast. I ended my career as a Federal Agent, who spent my time traveling throughout the U.S., it's terratories, and several other countries (mostly tropical), enjoying every minute of it, until I was seriously injured in Central America, which resulted in the end of my beloved career. So, my love of travel and being an admitted adrenalin junkie, required more pesos then I had coming in, so I have been selling items (often buying more then I sell in reality) to help with my exceeding rediculous health care costs and my travel-to-exotic-locales-adiction whenever possible (which continues to be less and less) as the price of EVERYTHING perpetually rises at a rate I can't seem to keep up with?
As a WORLD TRAVELER, I now make it a ritual to acquire unique and unusual items of ALL KINDS, while visiting other countries, that I make available to anyone window shopping on eBay! I have received some of the most pleasant praise from buyers of such items as "ALPACA SWEATERS" from Ecuadorian Andes, "FINE LEATHER JACKETS" from LaPaz, Bolivia, "BEAUTIFUL CLAY POTTERY" from an indigenous tribe on the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica, "HAND CARVED AFRICAN WAR MASKS" from Mpumalanga, Africa, "EXQUISITE SILK TAPESTRIES" from Xian, China, "A NEAR MINT ZEISS CAMERA" found in a tiny market in Trinidad, etc. For the buyer, they are purchasing a very unique and rare item for a mere fraction of what they would pay if buying from an "IMPORT & CRAFTS STORE", plus they didn't have to spend 40 hours round-trip in an airline, or pay for the $2,000 airline ticket to acquire such a special item!!!
OK, I'm done with the negativity and complaints ... and now, back to ebay. With few exceptions, my experiences with literally thousands of fellow ebayers have been great ... and have led to a number of friendships and contacts that are well worth having! I have a good number of "regular" buyers, who made numerous purchases from me over the years, and conversly, I have become a regular buyer of several sellers I know to be honest, reliable and trustworthy, one of which is KEH Photo, who I strongly recommend (that is, if I don't have what you are seeking). So, I look forward to making you a lifetime customer, who will be happy from Day-1, after winning one of my auctions. If you are looking for something in particular, and I don't have it, I'll do my best to point you in the right direction. LETS ENJOY OUR EBAY EXPERIENCES!!!! Cheers! Chris
As a WORLD TRAVELER, I now make it a ritual to acquire unique and unusual items of ALL KINDS, while visiting other countries, that I make available to anyone window shopping on eBay! I have received some of the most pleasant praise from buyers of such items as "ALPACA SWEATERS" from Ecuadorian Andes, "FINE LEATHER JACKETS" from LaPaz, Bolivia, "BEAUTIFUL CLAY POTTERY" from an indigenous tribe on the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica, "HAND CARVED AFRICAN WAR MASKS" from Mpumalanga, Africa, "EXQUISITE SILK TAPESTRIES" from Xian, China, "A NEAR MINT ZEISS CAMERA" found in a tiny market in Trinidad, etc. For the buyer, they are purchasing a very unique and rare item for a mere fraction of what they would pay if buying from an "IMPORT & CRAFTS STORE", plus they didn't have to spend 40 hours round-trip in an airline, or pay for the $2,000 airline ticket to acquire such a special item!!!
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