Everything has value. That is a life mantra that can turn out quite lucrative. We may make fun of and cast judgement on the hoarders we see on tv, but some of them have hidden treasures that have a higher value than a lottery ticket all because they held on and believed everything is worth something. Of course it's sad they never knew it, hence hoarding not being healthy, but I digress. This is why 'Antiques Roadshow' has become such a phenomenon, we all have things that seem ordinary but could be worth a fortune.... or that's the dream. Let's find out....
Redditor u/onemangang15 was wondering who has discovered that the thing they believed was trash was a surprise pearl by asking.... What 'piece of junk' did you find that turned out to be valuable?600?! Dollars?!
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I found a small envelope with a few inches of wire in a junk shop. Bought it (US$2) because it had some faded penciling about troy oz. Turned out to about 1.5 troy ounces of platinum wire. Sold it for US $600!
I WIN!!
Years ago I bought a condo in foreclosure. We couldn't go inside, just look from outside and put in a bid. My bid won. When I went inside the place it was pretty trashed. I checked all the rooms, calculating the costs of getting it back into shape. At the end of my walk thru I went into the garage and saw there was a car under a tarp. Hmmm... I pulled the tarp back and saw a 1972 Barracuda in nearly mint condition.
Oregon Trails....
A first or second edition of the Oregon Trail book. It's a bit damaged, so not that valuable, but still a few hundred more than the $15 I paid for it.
The Wrist Buy
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Found a "fake" Cartier watch in Goodwill for $10. Bought it because it still looked nice. But it's a real Cartier watch and it's worth $1000+. Keeping it because I'd never buy myself something like that.
Sunburst Ugly
Dad carried around a junk guitar for 50 years. Ugly as hell sunburst Gibson acoustic (circa 50's or 60's can't remember) that he eventually sanded down into something prettier. When I was learning he took it to be tuned up by our neighbor who owned a shop and was a collector.
Dude came back exasperated and told us that my dad had sanded about 50k off the guitar, and that it would have been totally worthless if he hadn't left the logo on.
Small Metals....
I found a very small, round piece of metal on the floor in my workplace. I couldn't figure out what the item was and knew I should just discard it, but felt compelled to keep it for some reason.
That afternoon my co-worker was distraught - the unique type of battery that her cochlear implant needed fell out, and was probably in a dumpster somewhere because the cleaners had come through. I gave her the weird piece of metal in my pocket, and she almost burst into tears from relief.
Jean Carlu
Old folded up piece of paper in the bottom of a box my dad had I found cleaning up the house, torn up and faded.
Turned out to be a 90 year old original Jean Carlu poster worth roughly $20,000 after spending $1,000 for restoration.
We have the English version of this making it worth more. Depending on the art market which is currently down it is worth less but still this range is about right. No plans on selling it yet, might go to a museum or exhibit first.
Karma Paid
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Well, a moron couch surfer who crashed in my guest room for a few months left behind a 1970s Fender Super Twin tube amp worth $1800 he didn't know about.
It made cleaning up his urine bottles worth it.
Dali Luck!
Typical not me but a friend - she found a copy of a Salvador Dali painting at goodwill. She loved him and it was a big print so she grabbed it for like $20. She took it home and took it out of the old junky frame and it had a stamp of authenticity on the back, and she had it assessed and it's worth 20k. Lucky B! Ha.
bidding in Texas....
A few years ago, I was looking through the goodwill website the let's you bid on stuff that you find. I stumbled across one of the Texas goodwills pages, and then saw an auction for a huge box of phone accessories, that no one was bidding on. I started looking through all the pictures, started researching some of the brands, and started realizing the whole box was worth a decent bit. I took a shot, and made my bid. Someone else saw what I saw, and started a bidding war with me, but I eventually won with a bid of $106, then $24 for shipping.
Few days go by, and I finally get the box, well 2 boxes, and they were both huge. Started taking inventory, and ended with 100 iPhone chargers, 100 android chargers, about 250 iPhone 8 cases in all different styles, 80 battery packs, a few iPad cases, and about 1000 screen protectors. Turned my $130 total investment into an EBay business, and made almost $8,000 in about 9 months.
Flip!
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Someone gave me a hideous purse out of a box on its way to goodwill. I sold it on eBay for $1,100. I've had some good flips, but that was the best.
Paying Back the Cat
Weird painting of a cat with birds on its back no one wanted. Paid $20, worth $400. My mom thought it would be an investment. Bought a ton of stuff done by her fav artist. Kept saying she got it at a steal and it was worth way more. Artist got screwed when he got Alzheimer's and people took advantage somehow (I don't remember) but now his work isn't worth anything.
The Bracelet
My mom in college worked for a small grocery store. She was sweeping aisles one day when she found a bracelet and just threw it in the lost and found for someone to come back for later. Months went by and I guess the employees got to check the lost and found for anything they wanted if no one claimed it. She remembered the bracelet and just grabbed it. She got it home and cleaned it up. It ended up being a Tivol bracelet wrapped with real diamonds. Its since been turned into a new wedding band for her lol.
The Long Shot
My friends and I were at a concert and found this broken bracelet under a merch table as we were about to leave the venue. It had an interesting engraving on it, something about being a son and friend. Because it was broken we were thinking about just tossing it, but ended up throwing it in our backpack to bring to the office later (my friend worked at the venue so she was going to turn it in). The next week I was browsing reddit on a thread of the same kind of music we were listening to at the show and just as I was about to fall asleep, someone's post caught my eye.
It said something like "This is a long shot but I lost something..." and it piqued my interest so I clicked it. It was someone from that same show asking if anyone had found a silver bracelet. Turns out it was the same one we found and it seemed to be a special gift from the person's parent and they were looking for it. We connected and got the bracelet returned to the guy, and the whole interaction is actually in my reddit history, it's a fun (albeit quick) read!
A cheap Matin....
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Bought a cheap Martin guitar because I was broke and wanted to play. I didn't think much of it at the time, but it's worth a few grand now because it was a limited edition thing. It's still appreciating to the point where I had to insure it.
Calcium for the Win
So my family went to a nearby town's vintage sale thing. My dad found this dirty old glass milk bottle, and he got excited when he found it. I didn't know what he found so exciting since it was just a milk bottle. After we got home, he explained that it was a a milk bottle from a dairy farm. One of the cofounders of that farm was my great great grandfather (on my dad's side). When one of the world wars began, he sold it off to the other founder.
Tl;dr my dad found a glass milk bottle, and I found out I'm a descendant of wealthy dairy farmers.
All for 30....
I was at an estate sale and bought a few paintings sweet lady told me to take the last one I liked as package deal since I ran out of cash, turns out one of them is a pretty rare original print worth about 3500$ and I paid maybe 30$ for all 4 prints and paintings I wanted.
Priceless....
When I was younger, I would rummage around the drawers and cabinets in my grandmother's house, just "adventuring" and "discovering", which is what I called it. I happened to find this old folded piece of paper, but it only took three seconds for me to just disregard it and push it aside. I think I was trying to get something else that I saw.
After I finished with whatever I had, I picked up the piece of paper to throw it away. Out of childlike curiosity, I opened it up and saw the words in it. It looked like a letter. It seemed important, so I gave it to my grandmother who gave it to my mother when she came to pick me up (my grandmother is blind).
Come to find out, it was a love letter from my grandfather to my grandmother. That really made their day.
EDIT: Some of y'all need to chill. I was three-years-old. My grandmother and grandfather (who isn't blind) were fine with me doing that, as long as I cleaned up after myself. I didn't give her hell. She isn't some stereotypical "poor old blind grandma". She has the hearing of a bat and a hand of iron.
Unexpected Juice
My father in law goes junking occasionally for side cash and strange gifts. One day he shows up randomly with a 1st gen fatboy ps3 with backwards compatibility. He goes "hey I don't know if you can use this but I thought you might enjoy it. Somebody had it sitting out for garbage."
I fired it up fully expecting to have to do some repairs but it booted up and plays just fine! He refused to take any money for it. He can be a real stand up guy.
In the Bin....
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I found a book at a trash bin. The Wind in the Willows I never got to read it as a kid... after finishing it I googled the edition date turns out its a collectible worth $300...? Who knew.
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When we're intoxicated, or even the slightest bit tipsy from having a little too much to drink, our immediate perspective on things is hazy.
But there's nothing like a bit of alarming news or a jarring incident to snap us out of the fog and focus on the moment.
Sometimes alcohol isn't always to blame for our impairment.
It can be a state of mind, like a perpetual numbness from being complacent in life, and all it takes is one shocking moment to rattle us back to our senses.
Curious to hear from strangers online about this type of scenario, Redditor Known_Challenge_7150 asked:
"What’s one thing that sobered you up real quick?"
These individuals were witness to shocking events that sobered them up right quick.
Bleeding Out
"Got out of a taxi and found a naked man profusely bleeding from his head crawling up the driveway in my condo. Called him an ambulance completely forgot I was absolutely wasted until 45 minutes later when I'd helped him translate and in to an amublance and stepped in my front door."
"Later a few days later learned he'd slipped in the tub and literally crawled out for help. Poor dude. He was fine but I genuinely thought he was going to die there."
– DongLaiCha
Tragic News
"At a bachelor party and we got a phone call that the groom’s father had suddenly passed."
– accountnameredacted
Bottom Of The Barrel
"I went to visit my parents back in July. I was homeless and deep into fentanyl addiction so I lost a lot of weight. My folks could see it. They knew something was up. Anyway, I spent the night and I was getting ready to leave in the morning and I looked at myself in the mirror for a good long time. I finally had enough and told them everything. They took me to detox, from there I went to rehab. Graduated in August and been living with them ever since then. I have 160 days clean and sober."
– Crotch-Monster
A reality check can be enough for some people to snap out of it.
Like Father, Like Son
"Was driving a drunk friend home, he had been on a bender again and was smart enough to call me for a lift rather than try and drive. As I helped in to his house his mother came down the stairs and said 'your as drunk as your father' and went back upstairs. I haven't seen him drunk since then, he still drinks but the thought of turning into his dad scared him out of hard drinking."
– psycospaz
Busted
"Flashing blue lights."
– FiddleOfGold
"This sobered me up just thinking about it."
– redmaple_syrup
Losing Sight
"Woke up to no sight in one eye. I had cataract surgery so just thought one of the lenses had slipped and it was an easy fix. Eye doc says nope, you had a stroke. I loved soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and salty food, which caused high blood pressure, which caused retina damage. Over six months was able to get most of my eyesight back with medication, and all back within a year. Trying to navigate life with one eye was very sobering. Started taking HBP much more seriously."
– MissHibernia
Quitting The Bottle
"Looked up someone I went to highschool with who was an awesome guy. Found out he had been dead for 3 years from alcoholism, at age 33. I made an overnight change. I hadn't started drinking that night yet, 10 months ago. Haven't touched it again since."
– omgtater
These disturbing moments were enough for Redditors to immediately come to their senses.
Unplanned House Guests
"Me and a buddy Woke up in someone’s living room, realized neither one of us knew the people, they were just nice and let 2 drunk guys sleep on their living room floor. We didn’t even say goodbye."
– Oneinsevenbillion75
Serious Health Warning
"Elevated liver enzymes."
"And the knowledge that this sh** was gonna kill me and I just couldn't orphan my family over it."
"So I opted for recovery, instead."
"Clean and sober since June 5, 2009."
– Far_Meal8674
The Joyride
"Grew up in a rural area. The little town hosted dances at the hockey arena, everyone (adults and kids) went and they overserved everyone, regardless of age. I was maybe 16 or 17 and was absolutely sh*tfaced, and jumped in the back of someone's truck with about 8 other people to go back to someone's cottage for after dance drinking. The driver (still don't know who it was) started racing one of his buddies and we whipped around small dirt roads, flying around blind corners on the wrong side of the road, going god knows how fast. It was basically a disaster waiting to happen. It was crazy scary and I was sober and thankful to be alive when we finally arrived."
– foxfood9116
The human psyche is a fascinating thing, isn't it?
How we can automatically focus on something urgent at a crucial time, even after getting buzzed from drinking too much alcohol.
But as we're in the thick of the holidays, it's a good reminder to drink responsibly and stay off the roads if you drive to your celebratory destination.
Cheers. Stay safe. And happy holidays.
We've all complained or vented about something in our lives which, in the grand scheme of things, wasn't exactly a problem, or is very easily solved.
Then there are those who complain about things that others almost hope will happen to them at some point in their lives.
These are known as "first world problems", as they are problems that pretty much only the world's one percent faces.
From having to fly business class instead of first class, or being served Roederer instead of Dom Pérignon, these complaints are often met with amusement, bewilderment, or even anger.
Redditor jennimackenzie was curious to hear the most absurd "first world problems" anyone ever complained about, leading them to ask:
"What’s the most ridiculous 'first world problem' you’ve seen people get worked up over?"
"Tale As Old As Time..."
"I once knew a mom who was legitimately devastated, to the point of tears/grief, because a doctor predicted her 8 year old daughter's final height to be around 5'2","
"Which wasn't tall enough to get cast as Belle at Disney World."
"That was the child's (and her mother's) only dream in life, apparently."
"Didn't appreciate my suggestion that she could be Minnie or Mickey."
"Lol!"
"Only a face character would do!"- TravelLovingMom
"Must Be Funny, In A Rich Man's World..."
"My boss from about a decade ago was this insanely rich dude who always went to the bank to get fresh and crisp currency."
"He'd call the bank in advance to make sure they had some on hand."
"I think he was a germaphobe."
"He had a trash can that he'd throw $1 and $5 bills in that he thought was 'dirty' and regularly just donated it vs spending it."
"I asked him why he did this and he said it was too much trouble and asked if I wanted it."
"I said f*ck yeah dumped it into my bag and when I got home it was close to $400 in singles and fives.
"Another time, he wanted to upgrade all the computers in his studio, so we went to a store and bought 10 PCs."
"They all had $150 mail in rebates and he wasn't bothered to go through the trouble of mailing them in."
"3 weeks later I received $1500 after spending a whole afternoon filling out all those goddamn forms."- azninvasion2000
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Who Wore It Better?
"When I was about 19 years old, I was at my boyfriends family BBQ."
"I was wearing this pretty floral sundress."
"His cousins girlfriend showed up in the same dress and she was SO mad that she went and changed."
"I will never understand being upset when someone is wearing the same thing as you.'
"Did you really think that your shirt you bought off the rack is going to be unique to you?"
"No."- mertsey627
Seeing Red! Or Blue In This Case...
"The blue of the balloons wasn't quite the same as the bridesmaid's sashes."
"Years ago my wife and I attended a wedding."
"It was very low key."
"The dinner was in the dining hall at the university where the couple met, cinder block walls and all."
"It was a Baptist wedding - no booze and very serious."
"The dark blue balloons attempting to liven up the hall were a slightly darker shade of blue than the sashes on the bridesmaid's dresses."
"The bride lost here sh*t and absolutely raved for nearly an hour."
"I can't remember how they finally managed to talk her down."- mechant_papa
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See You In Court!
"Rich neighbors who end up in expensive court battles because they disagree about where a tree can be planted or whether the color of a fence fits in with the street’s 'amenity'."
'These disputes get really heated and rack up huge lawyers’ bills."
"The most pathetic part is after the judgement when they are arguing about who should pay the other party’s costs."
"Lots of affidavits filed citing the 'emotional distress' they had to endure, or painting themselves as brave warriors who were forced to take a stand to fight for 'justice'."
"Also lots of pompous litigants insisting that the judge refer to them by their 'Dr' title."
"An absolutely insane dumpster fire of entitled rich people problems."- ElectrocRaisin
It's Always People With Money Who Don't Want To Pay!
"I work in a public library."
"People will get so so mad if they have to be put on a wait list for a book."
"A popular book that just came out."
"Ok our services are not only free but so are the books."
"You’re welcome, a**holes."- Switchbladekitten
A Warm Butt Is A Happy Butt!
"My own."
"We have a bidet toilet seat (Fabulous! Everyone should have one!) and not only does it wash your bum and blow dry it, but the seat's heated!"
"It's shocking how much a heated toilet seat makes the whole process more agreeable."
"Except: We had a power outage and I went to use the toilet and the seat was cold!"
"Unacceptable!"
"This shall not stand!"
"I was really upset because it didn't feel good."
"Then I stopped and thought: This is the most first-world problem anyone's ever had."
"I was really pissed because my heiny was tepid."
"I got over it."- DeathGrover
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Holy Matrimony!
"Weddings are a gold mine for this question."
"People get so hyped up over their 'most important day of their life'."
"They'll destroy friendships, go into debt, and have crazy expectations."
"It's not always the couple who go crazy, either."
"Sometimes, it's the parents or another family member who feels entitled to control the wedding."
"It's just a party."
"Be considerate of guests, have plenty of food and drinks, and enjoy it."- magicrowantree
When Fast Food Isn't Fast Enough...
"Having to pull off to the side to wait for a drive-thru order to be brought out to you because your food isn't ready and there's a line building up behind you."- demanbmore
In Case You Don't Think Customer Service Employees Are Undervalued...
"I was working the return desk at a Target next to a military base so I have so many stories."
"One of my favorites was a lady who had her baby shower before revealing the gender and was livid that she had received floral newborn diapers when she’s having a boy."
"It was a huge box of super expensive, all organic diapers, that we didn’t carry and therefore could not return."
"I cannot accurately express her fury and disgust."
"How dare either suggest her boy could wear feminine diapers."
"I suggested she donate them if she didn’t want to use them and she instead threw away the entire box."
"When she left we pulled it out and threw it in our donate bin."
"There have also been multiple times where mom’s order massive toys and when we bring them out to the car they get furious that they aren’t wrapped."
"We don’t offer wrapping services."
"Here’s the thing, if you don’t want your kids to see the toys you got them for Christmas or their bit to day DON'T BRING THE CHILD WHEN YOU PICK IT UP."
'I’ve had multiple women scream and curse me out that I had ruined their kids Christmas by bringing the toys they ordered out to the car like they requested."- clever-mermaid-mae
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Happiest Place On Earth!
"I used to work for Disney."
"That in itself should tell you everything."
"However for fun I'll give you two specific stories one form our tech department and one from my wife who worked bookings."
"I specifically worked for their call center to help with technical issues with magic band and the website."
"Suddenly got worse huh?"
"A right of passage call everyone has at least one story of is the 'Dome call'."
"Basically there is a subset of Disney Guest (TM) that believes if it rains at Walt Disney world there is someone that will push a button to encapsulate the whole of Disney property in a dome to keep out the rain."
"I'm not kidding."
"If this button is not pushed they call our tech department to angrily ask why."
"My wife worked booking."
"Pretty much everything including Bibbidi Bobbidi boutique and Pirate's league."
"These two things did roughly the same thing difference being price and theme."
"BBB was expensive did more and was focused on princesses, pirates league did a bit less and focused on mermaids and pirates."
"Lady called up my wife, and got pissed about BBB being booked up (It goes FAAAAST)."
"Karen: 'Im going to give the phone to my daughter and I want you to tell her how you are ruining her vacation by not letting her do BBB'."
"Wife proceeds to explain how pirate's league is so much cooler and how she can be a mermaid or pirate and basically gets the kid to start demanding to their parents about how they want to be a mermaid instead of a princess."- trollsong
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The horror!
Being booked into a junior suite at Disney World instead of an executive suite!
It's almost as bad as having no money for groceries, or no food to feed you children...
Said absolutely no one.