The Christmas/Year-End rush is certainly in full swing. It seems everyone is trying to finish up their Christmas shopping, wrap up projects for the year, and get ready for time with family. Today is supposed to be the busiest shipping day for the Post Office. I think last Saturday has to be a close second. I have never seen the line so long at the Post Office. It didn't help that several people just brought their items loose and were purchasing boxes and packing them right at the counter. Thank goodness for Click-and-Ship. One of my best investments ever was a postal scale. By having accurate weights, I can print my own postage (which is actually cheaper than paying it at the post office) and just drop the boxes off without waiting in line.
Of course the reason for being at the post office was my Ebaying. A couple weeks ago I thought the Smokey and the Bandit semi gravy train was coming to an end. Several other sellers started to get into the act, and prices started to come down. Then, surprisingly, the competition faded away just as quickly as it arrived. Demand continues to be strong, so I bought the last four trucks I could find and made one last batch. The last few days I have entered a new phase, the people that just have to have one for their son and can't wait for the auction to end or they won't get it in time for Christmas. I always prefer setting some minimum price and letting the bidders decide what something is worth. Setting a selling price for something someone's kid "just has to have" is never easy.
When it appeared the Bandit semi sales were going to taper off, I tried to think of a new, unique way to tap into that market. The Trans-Am has been mass-produced several times, the custom truck market is getting a little too crowded, so what is left? Why the police cars of course. One toy project that has been simmering on a far back burner for a while was to complete my "set" with police cars from the different scenes in the movie. Yes, I am that big of a geek. In the past year or so, someone has finally made a toy of the correct, late-70's dodge sedan that played such a big role in the Dukes and Bandit police forces. So, I decided to finally complete that project, and while I am at it, make a couple extra sets to sell. Much like the last time I took on a big, multi-car project, this one did get a little laborious, but I was happy with the results. The first set I sold easily covered my expenses, but didn't attract the bidding attention I had hoped it would. Well, they can't all be the home runs that the semis are.
Of course it's important not to get too wrapped up in all the rush, so we've been trying to take time with the boys to make some good holiday memories too. We got rained out of our annual Festival of Lights Parade tradition, but started a new one by taking to the boys to see Santa at Bass Pro. L still isn't so sure about Santa, but N sat on his lap like a big boy. L was more intrigued by climbing up on the boats and checking them out. We also enjoyed the big fish tanks and trying the shooting range with Grandpa N. No got to see Santa again when we took him to the Polar Express experience at Wildlife Prairie Park. We got a sitter for L, so C got to go with N and I this year. I think N really enjoyed it this year, not just for the Polar Express stuff, but also because he got mommy and daddy all to himself for a night.
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