Hi! Happy Thursday! The majority of you like the idea of shorter ezines each week…so here goes!

Welcome to Lynn’s Latest #00009

Thursday, August 15th, 2024
Volume V Issue 00008

Is it really back to school time already? Yikes! It seems like the summer just began.

I did travel to Washington once a month since May. Four trips up to help my mom get her house ready to sell was kind of exhausting. No bites yet on her house, but we did drop the price $100k and it is now at $899k. Fingers crossed!

This trip was more play time for me…than the past three so that was nice.

Started off in Marina del Rey on Thursday afternoon to drop off Cha Cha at the kid’s condo and then I took them out to lunch at Tony P’s to celebrate Houston’s birthday.

The kids drove me to LAX and I was back on a plane to Bellingham. We were delayed out of Los Angeles so I didn’t get to my mom’s house until about 10 pm. Long day.

The next day, Friday, my mom and I crunched numbers, ran cash flows and strategized on how we could get her house sold quickly. Hopefully, the price drop will do it!

That afternoon my mom and I were supposed to go to Mt. Vernon to a Dralle Family Reunion. I had reached out to my Aunt Amy on Tuesday and asked her if it was still happening and I did not hear back from her, so I made other plans.

It was one of my best friends from high school’s birthday, Kathy Rutan, and some girls were meeting in Birch Bay for Happy Hour and dancing. So off I went. At about 3:30 I got a message from my Aunt Amy that it was still happening, but it was too late. Bummer!

In any event, we had a great time celebrating Kathy and dancing to a live band.

The next day, Saturday, my mom was having her best friend from grade school over to sit on her deck. My mom and Verlaine met in 1st grade (1944 yikes!) and have been as thick as thieves ever since. Verlaine lives in Utah, so it was quite the treat.

Verlaine showed up with her daughter Karen, son Jeff and daughter-in-law Kathy. While we were chatting, Verlaine called her son, John, who was in my high school class and made me talk to him! LOL. I told him about the reunion later that day and he said he would try and make it.

We had to cut our meet and greet short as I needed to be in Ferndale at 4 pm to help set up for our Sehome High School Class of 1981 Mini Reunion. We have decided to do these every year because they are sooooo much fun!

One of our classmates, Kurt Lunde, owns a HUGE barn with a full gourmet kitchen, living room and 10 classic cars. No imports! He graciously agreed to host the party and we decided on a potluck and BYOB.

Check out a few of his cars.

Once I posted the invite for the party on Facebook. I got the greatest message from Dave Nugent. I had been in charge of our 20 year reunion and I can’t believe Dave remembered that!

And Dave did show up with 4 big tables, 30 chairs, tablecloths, garbage cans, paper plates, cutlery, cups, and to go boxes. He was a Godsend!

34 People showed up with amazing food…we had crab cakes, salmon, homemade salads, chicken, rolls, and tons of dessert. Susie Hashisaki even made Nanaimo bars that were a hit!

Here is a shot of one of the tables at dinnertime. From left to right, Leslie Arntzen, Carrie & Bill Caldwell, Les Lee, Dave Nugent and Walt Flint.

The Reunion was a blast! Here is a shot of most of the 34 people who showed up!

Dave said it best on our group Facebook page after the event…

And here is a photo of that mini reunion committee in one of Kurt’s classic cars.

And guess who showed up? John Van Horn…my mom’s best friend’s son. Will miracles never cease?

Time for an eBay score! You have probably heard me say that collector’s plates just don’t sell anymore. It is not like the 1970’s when they were as hot as Beanie Babies!

In any event, some collector’s plates will bring big bucks. You just have to be super picky and careful. I love Arabia dinnerware and their collector’s plates do sell well. We just sold this one for a best offer of $70. You can check out the listing here.

I just mentioned to Cindy that people must be shopping for Christmas already, as this appears to be something that would make a great gift.

My grandmother made a fortune on collector’s plates in the 1970’s. I must share story #90 from “eBay Money Making Madness” the 2nd book in my 100 Best Series about some expensive plates.

Vicki Cratzenburg and Stacey Davis drove me out to my mom’s house after the reunion. Thanks Girls! We were some of the last ones standing and left Kurt’s around midnight. Here is a shot of everyone at the end.

From left to right, Druann Sophusson, Kelly Magruder, Susie Hashisaki, Kurt Lunde, Diane Korunda, Leaslie Arntzen, Vicki Cratzenburg, Stacey Davis, Jodi Guthrie, Dave Nugent and Kathy Rutan.

Just so you know, I do these names for my mom….otherwise she will call me and ask me who everyone is….HAHAHA!

The next day, Sunday, I flew back to LAX. Whirlwind trip. Glad I won’t be doing that anytime soon..unless my mom’s house sells and then I will be back up there to help.

Arrived back in LA at 5:30 and took an uber to the kids condo, where I picked up Cha Cha and headed back to Ventura. Another long travel day. It is nice to be home!

And time for another eBay score. This one belongs to my mom. It was a Rya rug that she and my dad bought in Sweden in 1960 and she never finished it. Sold it as is on eBay for a best offer of $340. You can check out the listing here.

Check out this message my mom put in with the rug….

PARKING LOT…and this is where the “Friends, Family and Foes” ezine subject comes into play. As you know I had a wonderful time this past week with my friends and family. But during the past few months, we have encountered a Foe at the store. A new residential tenant has moved in and he is not a happy camper. Doing everything he can to make our lives miserable at the store. Just what we need….ugh!

So, this is your warning. He has one parking space and it is the center spot. He will have your car towed so please don’t park in his one spot. It is clearly marked. Why can’t people just be nice? And please don’t confront him if you figure out who he is…we don’t want to poke the bear.

EXCITING NEWS……We will be having an in person eBay course on Thursday, August 22nd from 3 to 6 pm and Mo will be joining me to teach! Mo has been my eBay assistant for 20 years and she knows more than me…sometimes!

Learn more and sign up here.

Here we are back in 2005 at eBay Live in San Jose. From left to right, Russel, Griff (the famous eBay spokesperson) with me, Jesse and Mo at the B52 concert! Fun times!

Since we have a Foe in our midst, I can’t leave anything in the parking lot. We did have a make an offer pile, that I may no longer have, so these items are now free. Please take them off of our hands! Thanks 🙂

We need to make room in the store for new and exciting items. Because of this, I have drastically reduced the prices of the two bathroom vanities in the back garage and the brown leather sofa and love seat.

Here are the two vanity bases. Think about putting a cutting board block on top of each one for your kitchen or to use as storage. The white one is now $295 (originally $695) and the brown one is $145 (originally $395).

Both are brand new and do have their hardware. Because they are brand new, for shipment, the handles/hardware are placed on the inside.

Here are the brown leather (I think) sofa/futons that are drastically marked down. The brown sofa (has a small slit in the side) and was originally brand new. Damage happened in the store and original price was $995 (retail was close to $2k) It is currently $145. Ottomanson Living Room Sofa Bed Brown

The love seat size futon was originally $695 (retail was close to $1.2k) and is now $95. Check them out! Ottomanson Living Room Love Seat Bed Brown