I Think I Know Him - Thanks to Flicker.com
There are times when we can tell our age by how we remember words and their meanings. I won't bore you with the long list of words that I don't understand in my son Joshua's language, but there is one that really confused me, transformers.
You see to me a transformer is one of those things that go boom in the night when they are struck by lightning or the transformers that I had to have so that my Lionel train would run. But when I talk to Josh and he tells me about his transformers, it just doesn't register with me and that is when I say “People that turn into machines, what is that all about?” It didn't take long for Josh to tell me how old fashioned I am and that today there are movies, television shows, figurines and entire sets of these creatures that kids as well as adults are collecting.
Feeling a little embarrassed and not wanting to show my lack of knowledge I said, "Oh". But as soon as he left the room I immediately went to eBay and did I get an education. There are 41,261 listings on eBay for transformers and yes a few of them pertain to electricity but most are those strange toys. I wonder what kind of mind must have come up with the concept of humans turning into machines. The closest I can come to that was Jules Verne and “20,000 leagues Under the Sea.” Gosh that takes me back because it was written in 1870 but I still remember it as a boy. Can you imagine asking a young person today about "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" and seeing the expression of bewilderment on his or her face? Yes, I have to admit there are generational gaps and this seems to be one of them.
But how can this information make us money, you ask. Well, with so many listings on eBay for these transformers and the fact that they appeal to kids as well as adults, it must mean they are collectibles now and will only gain in popularity as time passes. So why shouldn't we get in this game and make a few bucks. You will find these strange creatures at most garage and house sales and their value will be just a few dollars. Always remember pieces in the box or in the box unopened will always be more valuable.
I will give you a list of items that sold on eBay – Transformer Custom Devastator $1900, 100 Generation 1 Transformer Action Figures and Weapons $1300, Transformer Series 2 Insections $1675 and last but not least Revenge of the Fallen $1281. These are all mint in the box but even played with pieces can bring $100 if they are complete.
I think that we have found another area of collecting that should take some of our time don't you? Isn't it amazing what our children can teach us and I guess I want to learn what is in their world.
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