SPO CHECKMATE 1000 Fingertip/Finger Pulse OXIMETER NEW

While it's not hard to find a pulse oximeter on eBay, always pay attention to the fine print, especially when it comes to purchasing stuff that is subject to rules and regulations that you probably wouldn't think that much of. Even though the auction purports this item to be ideal for athletes and pilots, there's a little disclaimer halfway through the auction...

The following is a mandatory eBay declaimer for ALL medical device sold on eBay. You are free to purchase this finger pulse oximeter. "The sale of this item may be subject to regulation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and state and local regulatory agencies. If so, do not bid on this item unless you are an authorized purchaser. If the item is subject to FDA regulation, I will verify your status as an authorized purchaser of this item before shipping of the item."

The plus side, they're probably not going to rip you off, although it's still something worth considering before making your purchase on eBay.

New FLOATY PEN-RARE For ENLIVE! Nutritional Supplement

Thankfully, eBay will recognize commonly misspelled words and typos such as "nurtitional supplements" (as opposed to "nutrition supplements"), and make the appropriate correction. So lo and behold, what does it spit out?

One particular item is for a ballpoint pen promoting a nutritional supplement store, or some other supplement supplier. Me, I think he's getting greedy, considering that these pens are routinely dispensed like candy at trade shows and conventions, and considering that they don't necessarily produce any higher quality ink than the free pens that you swipe from the hotels or the ones that you swipe from work.

For 99 cents? You can get pens for cheaper. Uh...try FREE.

Ring For Service Counter Call Bell Hotel Desk Reception

This is a fairly standard item, but for under $10, you can get get standard equipment that you'd find at reception desks. More specifically, a ring-for-service bell.


While the seller purports to sell items that are "unusual and hard-to-get", this is something that you can usually find in any Staples/Office Depot. But, it's notable how they market this particular item -- as it's something that's used to gain an edge in a married relationship.

I'm a firm believer that everyone should do their part in any sort of relationship based on one's abilities. For example, it would be fairly unreasonable to ask someone who doesn't know how to cook to do so, but would be fair for the other things (laundry, vacuuming, etc.), and thankfully, the seller is not intending this to be a serious auction.

As the seller notes: "Why strain your voice with yelling or nagging when you can ring the bell as a signal to bring food or as a reminder that work needs to be done?" The seller signs off with, "Not recommended by marriage counselors." Good call.

PALM SIZE YR 1904 SEXY GENIE POWERFUL JADE ANTIQUE LAMP

Okay, when they say "lamp," it's not exactly something for home lighting. No, these are oil lamps, used way before the age of electricity. But, this isn't what the seller's intent is.

The seller has several different images of different products, making it somewhat difficult to track down what the product is supposed to be. The seller claims that it will have wish-granting properties, and then shows a different type of lamp (pictured below), one of which more associated with the traditional ones that you'd see in the books and old artwork.

Among some of the more outrageous claims: "The power of this genie lamp might be too powerful for u to handle, so please be sure that u are well prepared."

Thankfully, most people are ruled by common sense and won't often buy into the claims like this. But then, it only takes one...

NEW HEMINGWAY Animal Print Luxury Bed in a Bag Cal King

Okay, really slim pickings in the bizarre file in eBay today, so, I just bring you mildly tacky instead of bizarre. But, if you believe everything you read, you too can save yourself hundreds of dollars and purchase this animal print bedding on eBay for under $40 (with shipping), vs. the retail price of $450.00.

Something like this is often a little bit suspect, and also you'd have to be very careful about how they word stuff. They say "comparable," which doesn't necessarily mean that it's the exact same item that would normally retail for over $400. Plus, what's there to say that the $400+ bedding set would include more things (ie: higher thread count, more pillow cases, etc.) than the one in the listed set?

Caveat emptor, as always, folks. Proceed and bid with caution.

Financial Accounting And Reporting by Joyce A. Straw...

With the search engine on eBay, it's not the most intelligent. Say, I'm looking for financial reporting software, and I punch in keywords to that effect, it'll spit out anything but. Possibly because eBay isn't the best place to get services like that, unless you're really really desperate.

What it spat out instead was a listing for an old business text book from 2004. The seller is offering it for $27.45 (buy it now price), plus $8.75 shipping. I was about to gripe about the shipping charge, and considering that it's a fairly hefty volume, it's fairly reasonable. But, considering the fact that textbooks are replaced on a semester-by-semester basis, one can be pretty sure that this book will be pretty out of date.

Otherwise, eBay is a pretty good resource for those selling and buying used textbooks for post-secondary education. Considering the exhorbant prices charged by University book stores and the absolute pitiful buy-back prices on textbooks, this is probably a better deal than you could get from a University book store (either through the buy-back program or purchasing used). But then, the book is 3 years old.

VTG WATCH LOT 9 BULOVA HAMILTON ETC..G6

On eBay, you can get Hamilton watches, or watches from any other company, for that matter. However, the likelihood of getting a good price is inversely proportional to the number of questions that you should be asking about the product.

As a result, this lot of 9 watches sans straps, and not even in working order, has received an opening bid of $4.99.

I dunno how good his English is, so you might have a ton of questions, but I'm not sure how truthful of an answer you'll get from "Where did you get them." Maybe the seller just "finds" them. Who knows.

Accidentz.com ACCIDENT Attorney Lawyer Legal Law WEB

Proving once again, it pays to pay attention to the listing. And, legitimate lawyers who are successful and will help you will not necessarily advertise through eBay.

So, you get in an accident and need someone that specializes, like say, a truck accident lawyer. While "accidentz.com" is a fairly easy-to-remember domain name, I'd prefer to be a little more discriminating when it comes to hiring help for such an important case.

Domain squatting (aka cybersquatting) is an old practice that has long since ceased to become profitable. Some will remember the days when enterprising computer users would buy up domain names for well known companies that were a little slow to get on-line, then charge up the nose to these companies. But, when the only things that are available are the likes of "accidentz.com," it indicates that companies are a little more on the ball.

This guy is selling it for $299 USD...and that's the buy-it-now price.

Chris Farley BIRTH CERTIFICATE Saturday Night Live Star

This actually borders on somewhat tasteless, and we'll ignore the fact that this is improperly labeled as a "birth certificate," especially when the thing clearly says "deceased" on it.

For fans of the larger-than-life Saturday Night Live star Chris Farley, this is a morbid way to remember a well known comedian who had such memorable characters such as that guy who was "living in a van down by the river."

Allegedly, one of the more popular skits happened by accident. When Farley was in a rig that was intended to hoist him in the air, something when wrong and he ended up hanging there, suspended by the rope rig. For the next few minutes, he hung there and just told fat jokes while waiting for the crew to get him down.

But if you're looking for other types of memorabilia like home theater seating, so you can recreate the Live from New York experience, you can forget it. The audience seating is technically on loan from Yankees Stadium, as it was believed that the show was only going to be on the air for a short time. 20-something seasons later...