It has been said , that if you find the end of a rainbow there will be a pot of gold waiting for you . I have chased many a rainbow and never found that pot of gold . As I have got older , I usually don ’ t chase rainbows anymore . Sometimes you need to let the “ gold ” find you , just be aware and keep a sharp eye out . What I ’ m getting at is that , in life sometimes you get lucky , sometimes not . Just the randomness of this existence . Which brings me to the following story .
A couple of months ago , I seen an ad in my marketplace watch site on Facebook . The ad stated “ 25 Grain Belt cans ” for sale , along with a picture . The cans were pictured on their side all in great condition . These looked to be from the 1970 ’ s , straight steel pull tabs . Nothing special , certainly nothing to get excited about . As I read the ad further , the seller stated they were from her grandfather ’ s collection , that the seller inherited many years ago and she had more . This little tidbit interested me . Plus , she was located in Hutchinson , so I did not have to drive across the state to see them , just across town . So , I thought I ’ ll chase this “ rainbow ”. So , I sent her a message that I was mildly interested in these cans .
She then sent a few pictures , still nothing I was interested in . I asked if I could come over and view the cans in person . She said yes , but she was very busy , was her response . I replied , I ’ m retired , so you set the time and date . She did not reply back . So , I just left well enough alone . Sometimes you just need to let these things marinate and not pursue to hard . After 2 or 3 weeks , she sends me a private message saying she has time RIGHT now and wants to stop NOW . Ok , I ’ m home and give her my address . In 5 minutes , she is in my driveway with her mom and 9 boxes of beer cans , about 400 or so cans total .
Her and her mom start unloading the boxes into my garage . I ’ m thinking , we have not made any sort of deal , I just wanted to look at them . She asks if they can see my collection . Sure . We go downstairs , they are quite surprised . We talk . She is not looking for a wad of money per se , she just wants the cans to go to a good home . Her grandfather loved collecting these containers , and she wants someone with the same love to have them . Her grandfather ’ s name was Lloyd Corbin , maybe some older collectors recall that name , I do not . They have been in storage since 1998 and her and her mom , are cleaning out “ junk ”. She is a stay-at-home mom and wants to buy her kids lunch at McDonalds , so she asks if she could get 20 bucks . I really do not want them , just by glancing at them I doubt there is anything interesting . Yes , I ’ ll give you 20 bucks for your kids lunch , I ’ m not that miserly . I ’ m not rich but , I ’ m not Scrooge either .
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