Life is a rollercoaster

I was reading this post on Freakonomics where this guy plotted the ups and downs of the real estate market and turned it into a roller coaster ride. I thought it was kind of cool and funny, but what really strikes me as funny is "why the real estate market?" Isn't all of life just one big rollercoaster ride? Or maybe sometimes it's one of those great big "Superman" rollercoasters and sometimes it's the tame little kiddie one, but it's always going up and down. And MAYBE...life would be really boring otherwise.

After posting on this blog complaining about ThereBucks sales and the one of a kind bookcase/desk set I felt were meant to be mine but couldn't buy right now yesterday afternoon, I was talking to my bf on the phone. Normally we would probably have been texting, BUT the EDGE network seems to have stopped working on my iPhone. It tells me I'm not subscribed to that service. (Funny, I have a bill from them proving I've pre-paid for that service...but it looks like there are a lot of people in the Bay Area having this same problem.)

While on the phone lamenting about the bookcase to my bf, I saw that a few ThereBucks transactions came in of a size that wasn't quite enough to pay my next-in-line ThereBucks seller, but WAS enough to buy the bookcase set. I started weighing my options...seize this one-time opportunity to get this unique bookcase set while meanwhile further annoying people who are anxiously awaiting payment, or pass on the bookcase and keep accruing money towards paying for ThereBucks. (What would you do?) Before I had a chance to make a decision, my lovely bf offered to buy me the bookcase set. He'd already offered to buy the pieces needed to finish off my IKEA wall unit/bookcase (for my living room) so he said he'd just get me this instead and I could finish off my IKEA set later on my own, since it's hardly one of a kind and so it's not a problem to wait.

I was so excited I called the Craigslist bookcase set guy and left a message for him. Then I called and left another message for him. Then, since my phone wasn't sending/receiving texts I got a little paranoid and I emailed him, too, just for good measure. Craigslist is really a first come, first served place and hard cash talks and sellers are really bad about removing their listings after something sells. I was biting my nails, waiting for him to call back, watching my PayPal balance grow so I could pay that ThereBucks transaction. Finally the guy called back and said he would hold the bookcase for me but maybe my delivery area was a bit far for him and might cost more and/or have to wait an extra week. I was cautiously over-the-moon about tentatively being the proud owner of a multicolor bookcase set decorated with gargoyles.

Later last night, I received NINE chargebacks. WTF???? My PayPal balance went from "I can almost pay that large transaction" to negative a couple hundred dollars. I'm trying to be all philosophical about it, like there are bound to be a certain number or percentage of chargebacks overall, but at the same time the timing is just terrible and I find myself wondering why I sell IMVU credits or ThereBucks from/for anyone ever anyway. At least if I were only selling my own currency, I would only lose what I was making 95% profit on, not stuff I was making 6% profit on. It really sucks. Not like I think I'm all special or anything...merchants all over the place experience credit card and bank chargebacks, but it just seems like chargebacks for virtual goods are taken a bit less seriously.

So today I have watched my balance climb back up into the positive, but sales are still slow and I am still stuck on paying this one person and their large transaction, while meanwhile nine other people email me saying "do you think you could give me an estimate of when I'll get paid?" Erm yeah, I COULD give an estimate of course, but I'd probably be even less accurate than the weather forecasters here in the land of coastal microclimates. How do I know WHEN people will choose to buy? When I will have more chargebacks?

At the same time, I haven't heard back from the bookcase guy. I called him today to tell him my bf has access to a truck and I could pick everything up on Sunday so he doesn't have to worry about the delivery area...I just hope he hasn't found another buyer that is more conveniently located...that can give him money right away...that is a friend of his cousin...that he owes a favor to...and has had a crush on for years. I can't tell if it's the kind of week where OF COURSE I will end up not getting the bookcases, or at least I WILL end up with the bookcases.

In other words, I don't know yet whether I'm on the Superman roller coaster, or the kiddie ride.