The $5 ceramic dog or the $20 mystery box? I went with the box.

At a flea market in Bakersfield, I had to pick between a cool little ceramic dog for five bucks and a sealed cardboard box the seller wanted twenty for. He said it was from a closed down toy store, no peeking. I took the risk on the box. Inside was a mess of old board game parts, some broken plastic, but also a complete, mint condition 1979 'Dungeon!' game. That alone is worth over a hundred. The dog was neat, but the gamble paid off big time. It's a good reminder that sometimes the weird, unknown lot is the real find. Has anyone else ever taken a chance on a sealed box or bag at a market and been really surprised?

2 comments

2 Comments

sullivan.elliot7d ago

Grabbed a sealed bag of old camera gear at a yard sale for ten bucks. It was a total mess of random lenses and filters, but one weird little lens turned out to be a rare enlarging lens for darkroom work. Sold it for enough to buy a whole new lens I actually wanted.

clairebrown7d ago

Seriously? I'd be bummed to sell a cool old piece like that, @sullivan.elliot. Finding a rare lens is the fun part, not just flipping it for cash. The hunt is way better than the new gear.