I can't believe what I'm seeing in my mailbox today. Instead of the manila envelope due to me, there is a piece of paper indicating that I have a package at the post office.
SIDE NOTE: Remember when postmen actually walked to your front door, knocked and delivered your packages by hand? I guess that .44 cent stamp doesn't buy customer service anymore.
In any event, there is a package waiting at the post office for me. I checked quickly to make sure there wasn't some postage due or some other reason why I would have anything in the P.O. instead of my mailbox.
And then I see that my package is international. International?
How international you ask? Is this a Canadian international? A Mexico international?
No, this is a TAIWAN international. Freaking Taiwan.
I run to the google machine and hurriedly look at my purchases on ebay. My stomach sinks.
In my quest to put together the Certified International insert set, I found lots of great deals - and made a rule to combine shipping on as much as possible. I wanted to show readers how effectively, and cheaply, I could put together an insert set. I wanted a real dollar value to pass along. The reasoning is that I thought that people might want to put together more fun little sets if they didn't get dinged on shipping all the time.
But here's where my mistake was. I combined two lots of cards. The first lot, which is apparantly waiting for me, had two cards. Two cards shipped for 4.98$. Now that's .99 cents a card with 3.00 shipping.
SIDE NOTE NUMBER TWO: How does anybody from TAIWAN ship cards for 3.00? Really, the price is the same as domestic shipping.
So, good deal on the first lot. That lot had Boris Diaw and Steve Nash cards. The second lot I bought a day later and it was from the same seller. And that lot had three cards (Nowitzki, Azubuike and Bogut). Again, I got all three cards for .99 cents and 3.00$ shipping. Really good deal. I got five of the 15 cards for a buck a piece plus standard shipping. With prices like that, it's a very buildable and appealing set.
But in my haste, I had no inkling to look at the seller's location. And that's odd to me why I didn't do that. I do that with EVERYTHING I buy off ebay. There's a Nic Batum gold refractor (Topps Chrome - not Bowman Chrome) selling for a good price. But the seller is in the UK, so I'm not going to risk it.
I bought a wii controller on ebay. But it took me about an hour to find a domestic seller and not one from Hong Kong. So the location is something I check.
In the end, I think it just was meant to be. The insert set is called Certified Internationals. And Taiwan is about as international as it gets. The first lot is here, let's hope that the second lot is shortly behind it. I will label this post under 'irony'.
2 comments:
What's the reasoning behind not buying international?
I often try to buy from the States as much as possible, but every now and then, I win an international auction. I have been pretty lucky. I have yet to have any problems.
So you are def going to pick up a box or two of "Court Kings"? The cards look beautiful. I think their best looking card designs to date, I just don't like sticker autos or small patches for $100 a box. There going to be a few nice on card auto too tho, but still. I'll have to wait to see more pics and just wait to pick up the singles I want on eBay.
I think the problem is that there are totally legit and speedy sellers that sell internationally and then there's the people that hide behind their... different nationality... and seem to use it as a crutch as to why it takes 6 weeks to receive something (or not receive it at all.)
Post a Comment