![]() |
iMad at eBay Auction Fraud |
Links:
What we would like to see eBay change Yahoo Group (requires login): |
Steve, New York
I own a new small production business in upstate NY that's been a struggle to get off the ground. Like most new businesses, turn around time seems to come in the 3rd year. That's what I'm expecting for this one and thought that I was right on track until lately. I live in what is considered to be the 2nd most economically depressed county in the nation. I'm not certain of the absolute truth of that statement, especially when I learned of it a year ago. However, this area is and has been such a depressed area for decades. So trying to make a living of the corporate industry up here is hard enough-there isn't much at all within a 60 mile radius. While focusing on national television series for the PBS market which can take awhile, I produce corporate media/videos for the local industry to keep the cash flow coming in. Lately, I've had a few projects come in that would afford me to get into my own editing suite rather than renting one - I refuse to buy on credit anymore. In order to keep the flow going, and be able to sell projects for the near future, I purchased a partial system (Mac G4 w/ monitor) from Teresa in Mid January - I've purchased other hardware/software from other sources to make the system complete. I knew during the month of Feb. that I would have time to learn much of what I needed with the new software and hardware to get the projects that needed attention finished in the following months. Feb.'s usually a slow time for whatever reason. Mid Feb. came around and I started getting pretty nervous. I'm a pretty low key guy with a lot of patience. I believe the best of everybody, but also know enough to stay alert. I was now more than a few weeks behind schedule, and had to put a hold on pricing any new jobs due to the uncertainty of the system. I could not even do any small jobs such as weddings, events, or the like, due to cost/efficiency- the time you rent a system for these jobs, it's not worth it. Every Feb. seems like things get tough for the business. This year is not much different. I had just enough cash flow to purchase the needed equipment to finish the present jobs and try to sell smaller ones. With 4 young boys and a baby girl, it's been tough to say the least. But the Lord has gotten us through. I didn't (and still don't) have enough cash set aside to purchase another system while waiting for this situation to be rectified. As you know, marital relationships seem to work much better without the extra stress of misappropriated finances too. This week I'm looking for a part time job to compensate for the loss of income, not to mention the time spent trying to remedy the problem with shadowsb. Its been a struggle. One that I would like to help others avoid if at all possible. |