The Oracle

IMG_4983

My sore foot slowed me down for a lot of the week. Walking was difficult, particularly over uneven and snowy surfaces. I had a friend help me on my Monday night run, and we came across a place that provided a good weeks’ worth of finds. I’ve already made nearly 200$ from stuff I found here, and I expect there’s a lot more money yet to come!

IMG_4998

In one of the bags were two old scrapbooks.

IMG_4999

It was a kid’s school project about Expo 67. The books were filled with newspaper clippings …

IMG_5002

… and some official Expo ephemera. I like the wheel (below to the left) that shows the location of each pavilion.

IMG_4996

This map is the coolest piece, however. It’s some kind of master pavilion plan for the Expo, published in 1966. It’s signed by Gilles Gagnon, one of the head engineers of the project. I posted some pictures to the Expo 67 Facebook group and a few people seemed genuinely excited to see it.

IMG_4997

This map likely isn’t very common since it wasn’t public domain and wouldn’t have been mass produced. I imagine someone would have had to have had some connections to get a copy. It might be worth a bit of money, but first I’ll get a nice quality scan to share on the Expo 67 Facebook page.

IMG_5188

I found three old business card holders, full of business cards from the 1950s to probably the 1980s.

IMG_5198

IMG_5193

One card belongs to a familiar name, at least to those who follow Canadian politics. It’s the card of Justice John H. Gomery, who became known in 2004 when he headed the commission that investigated the sponsorship scandal. Later, after the conclusion of the commission, a federal judge determined that Gomery had displayed bias and judged issues before all evidence was heard.

It’s a bit funny, as I just saw Jean Chretien speak at Concordia last week and might not have remembered Gomery otherwise. This business card was probably made in the early 1970s, and will likely go into my box of garbage keepsakes.

IMG_5207

I found a yearbook from 1944.

IMG_5209

It was published by the Strathcona Academy, a high school in Outremont. From what I can tell it closed back in 1956.

IMG_5216

This piece of paper, which (attempts to) talk humorously of all the changes that happened in the lifetimes of these graduates, was tucked inside the pages. It was probably given out at a reunion. The tone of some of the statements are bizarre, a great example being: “In our time closets were for clothes, not for ‘coming out of'”.

IMG_5184

There were a lot of old photos and large-format negatives.

IMG_5239

I saved a collection of buttons, cufflinks, jewelery, and baubles. The bird pendants are a part of a set that was made in Japan.

IMG_5244

I thought the Star of David pendant on the left was interesting. The front surface (but none of the rest) seems to be rusty. I’m not sure if that’s part of the design, but it looks pretty cool. The pendant on the right is marked “e-sterling”. I’m not sure that means, but it’s definitely not pure sterling.

IMG_5245

Two 10 Commandments charm bracelets …

IMG_5228

… and a 1952 Town of Mount Royal curling club pin were part of the collection.

IMG_5172

There were a whole bunch of vintage sunglasses and frames, which should do well at a yard sale.

IMG_5270

One oversized pair by Christian Dior was particularly nice. I expect to sell them for close to 100$. The were probably made in the 60s or 70s.

In terms of miscellaneous stuff, I found a 1940s-era plastic ring box, some vintage ear plugs (unused of course!), a Dunhill lighter case, a little music box mechanism (which plays the “Happy Birthday” song), two very beautiful miniature perfume bottles, and an old Canadian military patch. The lighter case and bottles are already up on eBay, for about 50 and 60$ respectively. The patch (below) has already sold for 23$.

IMG_5088

IMG_5067

My most valuable finds though were watches and watch parts. This 1940s Nova watch unfortunately doesn’t work, but looks very attractive. I may be able to sell it for parts.

IMG_5064

This Art Nouveau-era (~1910s) watch also doesn’t work, but looks awesome.

The gold-plated Mount Royal on the left is also just for parts, but the newer Anne Klein on the right probably just needs a new battery.

exacto1

Here’s the first truly valuable piece. It’s an old Exacto (apparently Rado before it became Rado) in a 14k gold case.

IMG_5020

I already sold this watch for 160$, and received positive feedback to boot! It worked, but was missing the crown (the piece you use to wind the movement).

IMG_5022

This Doxa also has a 14k gold case. Its band is made from lizard and calf leather.

IMG_5030

The mechanical movement was replaced with a quartz. The watch was dead when I found it, but it only needed a new battery to work again.

IMG_5055

I have it listed on eBay for around 600$ (Canadian, with shipping included). I may end up lowering that a bit, but I figure it’s better to start too high than start too low! Regardless, I’m sure I’ll make at least a few hundred from it. It’s a very attractive watch, and it’s worth a fair bit in gold alone.

IMG_5259

However, this watch band may be the most valuable find of them all.

IMG_5263

The band is by Patek Philippe and it has a signed 18k gold buckle. I originally figured it was just a piece for my scrap metal collection.

IMG_5264

Patek Philippe is a prestigious brand, and some of their watches sell for over 100k on eBay. As a result, watch collectors (who tend to be a passionate bunch) pay good money to get authentic parts for their watches. Buckles of this type regularly sell for between 400$ and 600$!

I have mine set at 700$, in case a collector is looking for a buckle of that exact variety (specific markings of this type, and their desirability can be difficult to research). I may end up lowering that price, but it’ll certainly be a nice payday either way!

This just shows to show that trash picking even casually has the potential to make you some good cash. I gained over a thousand dollars in stock (and that’s a conservative estimate) in just one night. Obviously this kind of thing doesn’t happen every day, but the potential is always there.

My foot is feeling better this week, so I hope to do a bit more exploring in this suddenly pleasant weather. I hope the good luck keeps up!

Last week’s garbage sales (March 2 – March 8)

1. 14k gold Exacto watch: On eBay for 165$. This sold to a guy in Ontario within a day of being listed. I already received positive feedback, so this transaction is a done deal. It’s fun when transactions are completed so quickly! This is one of the watches I found this week, just to be clear.

2. Canadian Officer’s Training Corps patch: On eBay for 23$. Another one of this week’s finds.

IMG_4686

3. Tag Heuer F1 watch: On eBay for 105$. This is a nice watch, albeit one that needs some love. Found mid December in NDG.

IMG_4591

4. N.E. From sterling pin: To a reader for 30$. Found mid February in Cote St-Luc.

IMG_4299

5. Baby cup, silver ring, and book: To a reader for 15$. The shipping was a bit more expensive than I expected, but through my error I learned a bit more about how Canada Post’s prices work. The cup was from Outremont, the ring from Verdun, and the book from Mount Royal.

6. St Christopher medallion: To a reader for 1$. This also cost me a bit more to ship than expected, since it had to go over the border and was subject to customs even though it fit in a regular letter envelope. I was expecting to make just 4$ anyways, so it wasn’t a big loss. Found last week in Verdun.

Total: 337$, 12905$ since May 18 2014 and 3222$ since the new year began. Another good week! I’ve been doing a good job keeping on top of my listings, which has definitely helped make my income more consistent on a week-to-week basis.

New listings

1. Exacto 14k gold watch (SOLD!)
2. Canadian Officers Training Corps patch (SOLD!)
3. Patek Philippe 18k gold watch buckle
4. Vintage Christian Dior oversized sunglasses
5. Vintage 1950s Shell key finder
6. Vintage copy of “Through the Looking Glass”
7. Orientations (WWII-era magazine)
8. Hillbilly Cookin’ cookbook
9. Romanian Jewish theatre book, 1956
10. Vintage Brass book holder
11. Vintage La Castillere miniature glass perfume bottles
12. Dunhill lighter case

If you have a question, see anything that you’re interesting in buying, or to just want to say hello feel free to email me at thingsifindinthegarbage@gmail.com. I also enjoy reading your comments! Keep in mind that I frequently get behind on emails, so I apologize in advance if I take a few days or weeks to get back to you.

Like “Things I find in the garbage” on Facebook!
My 122 eBay listings
My Etsy store

14 thoughts on “The Oracle”

  1. Hey there , this is Vladimir the artist..I was wondering if I can buy the cuffs from you..I am happy that your foot is getting better..let me know and the price please…

    1. Only one pair actually has a match unfortunately, but the one pair is nice. Just fire me an email and we can work something out

  2. Wow! That’s a whole bunch of cool stuff you found there. A lot of variety too.

    Some people’s eyes will pop at all that Expo ephemera (besides yours, of course).

    You’re having a great year find- and money-wise. The only negative = the foot injury. 🙁

    Take care of yourself now.

  3. Look at the sunglasses below. Remember my pair from NYC?

    Donna

    >

  4. Wow, nice finds! I’m curious; how many bird-themed pendants are there and how much would you sell the lot of them for? Thank you 🙂

    1. There are four of them, and I’d sell them all for 10$ (+ shipping if necessary). Send me an email if you’re interested

  5. “To all survivors of 1944”.

    Not sure that thing is funny to read. It sounds like “first there was [god-loving] man and proper wife” and then there were “house husbands” and wives who had jobs, and people who came out, and people who made out, and girls who had children out of wedlock – i.e. all sorts of people who might be associated to that made-in-Japan “junk” category.

    Great other finds. You should get that foot checked.

    1. Yeah, it’s not so much funny haha as funny weird. It’s an attempt to be humorous, but it’s not on the right side of history. Maybe I should make an edit to make sure that people know I don’t agree!

  6. Nice stuff, I envy all your older historical finds, those are my favourite things to find and research 🙂 I love the image of the boy and his dog on the scrapbook, I don’t suppose there is a name or title on it saying who painted that picture, is there?
    I hope your foot feels better soon. I’m on week 5 of my thumb sprain and I’m still feeling it a bit, so it might be some time before your foot is completely healed. Take it easy out there so you don’t hurt it anymore!

    1. No mention of the artist (maybe it was signed on the bottom right, where the paper has torn off).

      I’m thankful for the spring as it makes getting around a lot easier. When it was cold the ground was always uneven, and there were lots of snowbanks making it harder to get around. It’s already way better, and it’s just been a couple mildly warm days. Looking forward to the end of snow!

    2. That scrapbook had to be common, I have one where I collected clippings about the space program, and bits about some upcoming film called “2001”, so I got the scrapbook in ’67 or ’68. I turned it over to have a blank cover, the boy and dog relegated to the back cover, upside down.

      It won’t be long now, the rummage sales pick up in April, about three weeks away, and the spring cluster of booksales too. So garage sales nd really good weather can’t be too far behind.

      Michael

  7. I’m amazed at your finds, and the daring it takes to get them. Also astounded at the prices they command on eBay! Nice hobby!

Comments are closed.