Recently I’ve talked about kick-ass superpowers you can buy on eBay. Today a guest poster Amy shows us a few more odd things one can find there. Enter Amy:

Most people head to eBay in order to get rid of some junk from their house, or to buy retro video games, craft goods, or replacement parts for their washing machine.  It’s generally accepted that eBay is a great place to pick up odd bits and bobs that you’d struggle to find in a normal shop, but some of the things that are sold on eBay go beyond “niche” and well into the realms of “weird”.

Take a look at this list of weird items that have been sold on eBay.  You’ll never look at jiffy boxes the same way again once you’ve seen the strange and crazy things that people will sell – and buy.

1. Sell Your Life

Mr Ian Usher sold his entire life on eBay.  The buyer paid £200,000, and in return got Mr Usher’s car, house, job, and an introduction to his friends.  Mr Usher wanted to leave his life behind because everything he owned reminded him of his former wife.  He spent at least some of the money travelling the world.

2. A small Town

The small town of Albert, Texas was sold on eBay.  The advertisement boasted towering oaks, wildflowers, and German heritage – as well as a beer garden and a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.  Presumably, the town wasn’t boxed up into cardboard boxes and shipped out to the buyer.  If it had been, it would have been interesting to see the import tax on that one!

3. Rhino Dung

The International Rhino Foundation sold rhino dung on eBay.  The dung was dried and mounted in a trophy case. Buyers had a choice of dung from white, black, Indian, or Sumatran rhino.  That’s one set of cardboard boxes I wouldn’t want to open in front of my colleagues, although I could imagine that saying “Oh, my eBay package!  I’ve been waiting to complete my collection of rhino poo!” would be a good way to stop getting invited to boring office parties.

4. Mutant M&Ms

After the success of toast that looks like Jesus, and a cornflake the shape of Illinois, one unfortunate eBay seller tried to jump on the strange food bandwagon by selling “Mutant M&Ms”.  The sweets were joined together like Siamese twins. Sadly for the seller, the bizarre food market wasn’t doing very well that day, and the M&Ms fetched only $1 at auction.

5. A Baby

A couple jokingly put their baby on eBay for one Euro.  The authorities didn’t think much of the joke, and the child was taken into custody for a while.  The couple got their baby back in the end, and presumably learned a big lesson about joking around on the Internet.

Of course, not everything on eBay is outlandish, impractical, and just plain weird.  You can still get some great bargains on useful items from the site.  Next time you see an eBay seller lugging an armful of jiffy boxes to the post office let your imagination run wild – who knows what’s in those boxes?

Article written by Amy Fowler on behalf of UK Packaging, suppliers of cardboard boxes and jiffy boxes.