Seasons/coin shop/ Qs/tom stand/house sign

[Penn]

So- I deplore the extreme summer- and I could easily live abit further north- as my thyroid is shot... so sun light and temps are more impact on me.

Any extreme- SOP- is bad on me.

So here we are- the days are pleasant- temps are mild- and yet- my hands are cold- I look at the sun sometimes and wish it would not do this or that.

How are you adjusting?


It is nice to not have to worry about weeds now- but if we get alot of snow- then I might have to remove it. One neighbor use to do my walk- then he skipped a year- so I tried giving him tomatoes all Summer- this offended him. I am hoping he will still run the blower by now and then- because the mail man will report me.

Then there is the budget- I need about 50% more to live the life I have been living. For instance- I might have to get the furnace cleaned- and the toilet replaced- brakes for the car- and no idea if the roof is ok -bah- if there is an "emergency" I will have to sell some gold. I been putting this off for months.
SSDI- will get 1.7% increase- I am glad it rounds up- but in the mean time- so many other expenses have gone up. I shudder to look at what the medicare parts will cost me.- you have to take a class just to understand it!!!

Maybe I can get some ideas- I noted a coin shop here across the river- how do I approach them? It really would be nice to pop in - and say- hey buy these from me. Meanwhile a buddy tells me he will buy my junk at spot- but not past $34- when he has a hard time locating a buyer for it. I would prefer to cash in my gold- not my silver- but lets say I needed cash to pay the heat bill- (I am on a program- 66$ a month- if I miss a payment- it all goes away) so say I must sell a roll of quarters- am I better taking my buddies spot? or the coin shop? also- what do I look for in a coin shop? I live where 4 counties population is 200,000. So it is rural- many business operate- on take it or leave it- I am the only game in town.


Kind of funny- to those who think I am rich- when I am on SS but buy silver- they must think I buy a few rolls of eagles a month. When it could be as little as one dime or one half. Once I put my 401k funds into silver-@12$- there is not must big purchases I can make. Gosh- I even sold a spare bed and stuff around the house to stack- because people give that stuff away all the time.

Just about everything I buy is used. Socks and underwear- are the exception. Which it is time for more of that too! My favorite thrift store here- has a 3 for a $ rack- it is in a college town- I got 2 pair of shoes and many shirts and pants there. I might even buy things that dont fit at that price- if it would make a good cleaning rag. The thing is- when you buy used clothes now- you MUST let them in the sunlight for days and days! Why? bed bugs. Even nice places can get them. I dont have them- so as a matter of routine I hit the thrift store- if I go every month and spend $10-$20 I have a nice enough wardrobe that when my family comes in from Chicago- I dont look like a peasant.

You can only cut back so much- and after a while- it is hard to find new ideas to get the most bang for the buck.

It also is a zero sum game. I reduced my insurance coverages- well a truck damaged my house- and what that cost me- cancelled out- what I saved. You cant win.

I team up with the neighbor- we do dinners every night. We both buy the groceries for this. We hit sales- and she has a deep freezer. We often have guests to share dinner- this is a HUGE help to me.

I pondered selling tomatoes next summer- and if I do so- it has to be done right- I dont want people knocking on my door all day long for $20 for the whole summer- closer to $1000 would be worth it- if I could sell 500 containers of them at $2 each- that comes to around 5 bags a day. That effort could help me continue to stack. Jennies aunt did this and she is clueless but made money. Something in line with this- is what I need to do. I live on a busy street and am zoned r2. So I could use that to my advantage- I also considered- making the house into a live bill board- then be grandfathered in per code- you know a business could paint my house into there logo- if I did this- what price would be worth it???


I was thinking a huge red tomato sign- with $2 on it- posted- parking is not too bad- for in and out. I think people would stop because other stands now charge by the lb and if they dont the price is $2.75 and up. I could also approach a farm kid I know who does a booth in the next town-to see what he has to sell- that if I run to the door anyway- if I have 2 or more products to sell- make it worth my time.

I paid the fee to argue my taxes- and then I never went to the hearing- I kept thinking that they might raise them higher.

So- always looking for ideas to make a better living--

 

[Penn]

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/04/12/new-advertising-company-will-turn-your-house-into-a-billboard/

this company is not around now- I wonder what normal bill boards cost.

Billboard advertising ranges from $700 to $2,500 per month. However, if you want to build one it costs about $50,000, not counting land, zoning, and other costs.
Posted 1 year ago///

hmm- I was thinking $230 a month- it is a small town here

 

[Penn]

How to Start a Billboard Business
By Gail Cohen, eHow Contributor
How to Start a Billboard Business thumbnail
A great advertising message--at any speed

When President Lyndon B. Johnson passed the Highway Beautification Act of 1965 to constrain the sizes and locations of the nation's billboards, some thought the industry might die. However, it is now one of the fastest-growing forms of advertising media in the United States. Newspapers? Read and forgotten. TV? Too pricey for most. Billboards, on the other hand, stay up for months, get plenty of repeat glances and are cheap to rent. For these reasons, billboard rental is a good start-up business if advertising is your game.
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How to Start a Billboard Company
How to Start a Billboard Advertising Business

Print this article

Things You'll Need

Copies of area ordinances and zoning laws
Leasing contracts
Commercial insurance

Instructions

1

Research billboard advertising before investing money or getting a loan. In particular, compare rental rates for billboards in your area and then determine how many locations you'll need to launch your enterprise. National monthly rental rates vary, from $700 to $2,500 and more, so know what your market will sustain.
2

Contact state, county, city, village, township and other regulatory bodies to learn what areas are zoned for billboard erection and what areas forbid them. Become acquainted with federal laws governing billboard installation as well.
3

Shop for locations. Renting just the area on which the billboard stands will be the most efficient, but landowners may require you to lease additional acreage if parceling off a small tract means they'll lose revenue. Given this disparity, leases should be negotiated individually.
4

Complete all leasing transactions with property owners.
5

Decide on your billboard production medium. Hand-painted billboards are relics of the past, but legal statutes may require original art. Most of today's billboards are designed using Photoshop software, then the art is output on vinyl or other heavy-duty material that can withstand the natural elements. The art is glued to the billboard and stripped off after the ad contract expires.
6

Hire a graphic artist to handle billboard design responsibilities for clients who have not already taken care of this task. Traditionally, design students learn these two rules: Graphics are the single most important billboard element, and ad messaging is best accomplished in seven words or less. That rule is broken every day, but work hard to convince clients that short and succinct is the best rule of thumb for billboards.
7

Hire a construction company to erect billboard structures. Also hire an electrical contractor to run power to the site if none exists. Make arrangements for lawn maintenance if you don't plan to do it yourself or it's not part of the negotiated agreement with the landlord.
8

Draw up a billboard rate card. This price list should offer clients multiple options, so create a fee structure that covers a minimum amount of rental time, such as three months, and offers substantial discounts for longer terms. Align your rates with those of competitors.
9

Hire an attorney to draw up a standard leasing contract. Include language that stipulates contract length, states penalties for breaking the contract, designates which party is to supply the billboard art and outlines other legalities that will safeguard you and your business should a client withdraw from the agreement before the contract date is up.
10

Obtain commercial insurance to cover damage to your billboards should they be ruined or destroyed by natural disasters, vehicles or accidents.
11

Design and erect a billboard for your company. Use other means of advertising to gain customers if your budget allows.

Tips & Warnings

If money is no object, forget about wood, metal and other types of billboard bases that accommodate vinyl art and go straight for the LED billboard market. These advertising boards can produce messages in billions of colors that--for all intents and purposes--are nothing short of traffic stopping.

 

[Penn]

So I found a billboard broker and shot him an email. Why not??

 

[ancona]

Cliff,
If you need to sell a little shiny to stay ahead of the curve, I have an idea for you.

A friend of mine buys those little cardboard and celophane coin cards, then puts average circulated silver quarters in them [regular junk silver] then he lines them up all pretty like at the flea market and sells them for twelve bucks each. So that's 48 bucks for four quarters that anyone can pick up for 7 bucks each. You make five clams each. The smae thing can be done for dimes, only he sells those for six bucks apiece. It is a great scam. The kids love to look through the hundreds of coins he put in these cheap white slabs and have the pocket money to buy one or two. Part of his schtick is he has those Littleton or Whitman books can be had for as little as two fifty each when bought in bulk [50 or so] and can be set up in a display. He doubles his money on these. He also has cheap magnifying glasses and loupes he triples his money on.

I would say that each month [he only does one weekend a month] he takes in around 300 - 350 dollars, of which around two thirds is profit. He then replaces the stock he sold and starts again.

 

[Penn]

HOLY cow Mark! I already have the inventory!! I could do that!!

Great idea!!

 

[Penn]

Thinking this thru Mark- I see how it works- he generates excitement in his presentation.

(too bad he was not on this board)- if he did not have the books or mag glass- it would not sell as many coins.

One day I will be a seller- no doubt. Thus far- I have not had too. I tell myself dont be a cry baby- you can do with out- ABC/XYZ. Cash it short- but there is plenty of food- I hit a ham sale- it was $1 something a lb- store had 2 big ones- each on sale and marked down $3 off. I had the butcher cut them in half- so we now have 4 hams. They also had pork chops 4.99 a lb- buy one get one free. So that was like $2.50 a lb. I never feel like I do enough- I mean the lady buys things- and I always feel like I should do more. I try to load the freezer with meat. I got to thinking- the ham was cheaper then the cereal- that cant be good. So each ham was like $4.50 net- 2 of us will get 2 meals out of each one- maybe more. We eat like kings.

 

[Penn]

Does anyone know buying the books at bulk a link?

I see nothing even close to $2.50 each

 

[Jay]

next time you are at a grocery store that has a news stand, look in the back of a magazine like Coin World at the want ads. Usually there are zillions of ads for coin collector supplies. Also look at the ads by Paul Sims, he sells bullion very, very competitively with no tax and five dollar shipping no matter the size of the order. He advertizes in every mag I've ever seen, but not on the net.