And another:   
      
   "My husband is NOT a collectible enthusiast as I am. Yet, one day he spotted   
   something in a neighbor's trash collection barrel and actually stopped.  He   
   found an almost perfect Pepsi truck made in 1948 .  Also was a not- so   
   -perfect identical Pepsi truck which he also brought home.  At that time, they   
   were going for a lot of money on Ebay.  (As with everything, going price is   
   much lower now) But, I was so proud of him for doing that, I will probably   
   just continue to display my husband's one and only collectible."   
      
   From an unknown responder:   
      
   "An old singer sewing machine table that I now use as a TV stand!" You can see   
   a photo of this repurposed antique on our facebook page by copying and pasting   
   this link into your browser: http://on.fb.me/ZpNczk   
      
   Two weeks ago we asked for an ingenious way that an estate was divided up   
   among family members.  Here is another response that we received, this one   
   from Harry H.:   
      
   "My aunt and uncle lived on the West Coast, a great distance from most of   
   their relatives in the Midwest, and they had no children. Some of their nieces   
   and nephews visited them often, while others had never bothered to visit.    
   After my uncle passed away, my aunt wanted her entire estate liquidated, and   
   all the proceeds were to be distributed evenly among her nieces and nephews.    
   An executor was appointed to do that.  The executor held a silent auction by   
   mail among all nieces and nephews.  Any niece or nephew who wanted anything   
   from the house was invited to place a bid, telling what item(s) they wanted,   
   and how much they wanted to bid for it in the silent auction.  The auction   
   would go through four rounds of bidding, with only the executor knowing who   
   was bidding on what items, and how much they were bidding.  After each round   
   of bidding, each person who placed a bid was notified by mail of his bid, and   
   if he or she had been out-bid.  But nothing else.  After the fourth and final   
   round of silent bidding, the person having the highest bid won that item.  And   
   the cost of their bids was deducted from their share of the estate. The beauty   
   of this was that those who had visited my aunt and uncle when they had been   
   alive knew what was in the house, and they had an advantage over those who had   
   never bothered to visit them.  So they knew what items they wanted, while   
   those who had never visited my aunt and uncle did not know what was in their   
   house.  Some persons wanted nothing from the house, so they got their full   
   share of the estate in a check.  The auction generated no income for the   
   estate, since the cost of the winning bids was deducted from the winners' cash   
   share of the estate.  And the only expense to the estate was for postage, for   
   four rounds of bidding.  There were a few items in the house that more than   
   one person wanted, mostly for sentimental reasons.  But it was only after the   
   auction had ended that they learned whom they had been bidding against.  In   
   the end, everyone was happy.  And especially the probate judge, who had to   
   approve this auction process and the estate dispersal.  Harry"   
      
      
   If you have a story to share with our readers, please email it to   
   phil@Bignews.biz and we will include it in an upcoming issue.   
      
   For next week's issue:   
      
   Many people collect things because of the memories inspired by those objects.    
   All of us have deep memories within us.  Sometimes they are triggered by a   
   smell or a phrase, but many times they are brought alive by a simple object   
   from our past.  To collect these things is to hold onto something dear and   
   precious from the past.  How about you?  Tell us your story of some small   
   vintage item that you remember from your past that has strong memories.  Send   
   your story to Phil@BigNews.biz and maybe we will run your story in an upcoming   
   newsletter.   
   ----   
   A request for identification:   
      
   "Hi Phil, LOVE the newsletter!!!  I was wondering if any of the readers could   
   possibly help me identify my figurines or refer me to someone that could.  I   
   found these in an old abandoned house probably about 45 years ago.  Three of   
   the figurines are made out of metal but one of the small ones is made out of   
   some sort of material that is cracking as it ages.  They appear to be all hand   
   painted and that's all I know about them.  Thanks in advance.  The two (2)   
   larger sized ones are approximately 4" each in height; the one that is not   
   metal is approximately 3" in height and the smallest is approximately 2-1/2"   
   in height.  Please let me know.  Cindy, OH"   
      
   You can see a photo of Cindy's figurines by copying and pasting this link into   
   your browser: http://on.fb.me/YOrw4e   
   -----   
      
   Do you have an item in your collection that you need help identifying or just   
   would like to share with our readers.  Drop me an email with a photo attached   
   and we'll include it in our newsletter and on our Facebook page.  Send them to   
   me at phil@Bignews.biz   
      
   -----   
      
   We have even more interesting items that need to be identified.  They will be   
   posted in our next newsletter and on facebook within the upcoming weeks.   
      
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   --- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Dada-1   
    * Origin: Prism bbs (1:261/38)