Also not exactly a CL story, but a bizarre selling-related situation.
About 12 years ago I was selling my Kawasaki Ninja. I'd just gotten my dream bike (Ducati), and just wanted to sell it fast to free up the extra payment, etc. I listed it for something like $6300 FIRM, just a couple of dollars over my actual pay-off, and close to two grand under market value. It was a GREAT deal.
At the time I lived right on a major street, so I parked it out on the sidewalk in front of my house with a For Sale sign on it. It was a long sidewalk on a big front yard with a flawless lawn I was really proud of, and it looked spectacular in Ferrari red against all that green - an awesome "sale display"! About 7 o'clock on the first Saturday morning after I first started trying to sell it, my front doorbell rings (the bike wasn't even out on display yet), waking us all up, including my two kids, who were pretty small at the time. I dragged myself out of bed and answered the door. This heavy, older Hispanic guy with a thick accent says, "Hey man, I want to buy your bike!".
I say, "OK, great. Uh, you want to ride it first?"
He says, "No, I jus' give you cash!"
I was pretty groggy still, trying to keep up with what was happening and said, "OKayyy. Sounds good to me", but somewhere in the back of my peabrain, a Weirdness Alarm was starting to go off, I was just in too much of a stupor to realize it yet.
He then says, "You take three thousand, OK!"
Whoooaaa Nellie!! I knew this had to be too good to be true! I tell him, no - sixty three hundred.
He says, "No I give you CASH! Three thousand!"
I say, "Noooo, the price is sixty three hundred. I OWE sixty three hundred."
Him, "I give you CASH! Three thousand"
I'm getting annoyed quickly. "Look", I say straining to be nice, and try to explain to him, just in case he's not understanding for some reason, "I OWE that much on it. If I took three thou for it, I'd still owe the bank three thou for it! Besides, it's already priced about two thousand cheaper than what they're selling for. It's a GREAT deal. SIX thousand. Three hundred. That's the best price."
He acts like I've been standing there silent, "Here! You take my three thousand!"
I finally said, "No thanks", and closed the door. :?
The weirdest thing is he came back two more times! The next time at the same early hour. By the end of the second time, after having almost an identical conversation, I was about to go ballistic, and told him NOT to come back, and closed the door on him.
The next day - not so early - he came again! :shock:
I saw who it was, and about came through the door at him. I'd always talked to him through our security screen, but this time I came right out onto the porch and yelled "WHAT DO YOU WANT??!!" in his face. He shoved a fistful of bills into my chest! "HERE! YOU TAKE CASH! 3 THOUSAND! I BUY YOUR MOTORCYCLE!"
I couldn't believe it! Not really wanting to have an Assault and Battery charge against me (!), I just grabbed the money out of his hand and threw it toward the front yard and told him to get the "F" off my property or I'd call the cops. He kept talking as he picked it all up as if he still might get to buy the bike! I just yelled "GO!" again, and told him never to come back, and went back inside!
What The F??!!
