[Shrek] A Not So Positive Post

I think all the snow is starting to irk me a little, so while I'm in a bad mood allow me to mention a few people that have raised my ire the last few days.

The douchebag driving the Pontiac Aztek who pulled out in front of Fiona and I Tuesday morning on the snow covered roads. Good thing you fishtailed in front of us because if you hadn't we would have plowed right into the back of you. I'm sure the Honda Accord in the oncoming lane that nearly drove into that snowbank was happy to see you too.

And speaking of Tuesday morning, the meteorologists who called for "a dusting to an inch" that morning that turned into 3" to 5" made me wish I could screw up as often as they do and still keep my job.

Continuing on the subject of snow, I'd like give a shout out to how well the city of Worcester has cleared the roads after all this snow we had in the last 30 days or so. And by "how well" I mean "could you possibly have done a worse job?". A word of warning to people heading to the city, if you park at a meter and can't get to it to put money in the "parking enforcement officers" will still ticket you.

Even more on snow, why does the city of Worcester demand people shovel the sidewalks that abut their property (and for folks that live on Meadow Lane, sidewalks that used to abut their property) but the city doesn't clear crosswalks and handicap ramps from snow? There's also miles of unshoveled sidewalk abutted by city property.

I'd also like to mention that one of the biggest morons in morning talk radio, whose name I refuse to mention because he's such a jerk, got one of the nicest guys I have ever met fired and replaced him with someone that is nothing more than a parrot. I guess I should be a little happy for SW (full name withheld, but most will know who he is) because he no longer has to work for that train wreck of a station in WTAG, but being out of work in this economy does suck so I wish him well.

Here are a few things I've been reading the past week or so...

The new Governor of California Jerry Brown is cracking down on workers who have a state paid cell phone. Not exactly a huge cost savings, but every penny counts.

Speaking of debt, ever wonder how they come up with credit card numbers? It's a quick, interesting read.

As a music fan I found this very funny. No mention of greatest hits or live records, though.

The bowling alley here in Worcester has a rotary phone, so I found this an amusing little tale.

Regis Philbin, the King of morning TV, has announced his retirement. I can't recall the last time I watched his show, but whenever it was I recall thinking he was a little out of it and looked like he was being led around like a small child.

And to make sure I end on a positive note, here's an uplifting story about a Southwest Airlines pilot doing a good turn for folks that suffered a huge tragedy in their lives.

[Shrek] Some eBay Tips For Sellers

Lately I've been surfing eBay to fill in some holes in my bookshelf. I hate to read a series out of order so if I'm missing a book or two from a series I prefer to grab them at Annie's Book Swap or eBay.

One thing I've also been doing is going through the wholesale lots on eBay to grab whole series from authors I like. In doing so, I see a lot of things sellers are doing wrong in that category. Even though I doubt any of those sellers will read this, I feel compelled to offer them some advice.

1) Look to see what everyone else is selling.
The number of sellers listing the same things are pretty high, and it's funny to see a bunch of sellers staring their lots at a low price and another couple starting nearly identical lots for five to ten times more. Unless you've got something different, don't expect to make a fortune selling book lots.

2) If you have romance books to sell, save your time and throw them away.
Don't take my word for it, use the search function. People that read romance books must not know how to use the internet, because the vast majority of lots don't get bids. Yours won't either, trust me.

3) Learn your genres
Science fiction and horror/suspense are not the same thing. Political thrillers and war novels aren't the same thing either. Don't put them together and expect bids. And another thing you shouldn't mix together: male and female writers of any genre. Lots of readers have a preference for one or the other. Mixing them, unless you find the right reader, reduces the number of bidders you get.

4) List the books in the lot, and have a picture of the covers
And don't do just one or the other unless you have no choice. I have a list of books I'm looking for, and if you don't list the books in the lot I can't decide if I'm going to bid or not. Having a picture of the covers helps for the folks that are more visual.

5) Multiples of the same book is a no-no
Listing a lot of four of the same book is dumb, even if it's a book people might care about. Listing a lot of four of the same book that no one cares about is just a waste of time and money.

6) Don't bother listing your book as "HTF"
When there were thirty listed in the last month, and a hundred available in the eBay stores, "hard to find" seems like a silly thing to say. Plus if it's a paperback released in the last ten years, it ain't "HTF" under any definition of the phrase.

There's a ton more stuff I could list, but as I have to snipe an auction in 3 minutes I'll have to leave it at this...for now.