Elfnoodles

I think my favorite of the fake crystals I have found so far are the “naga eye relics” on eBay. Well, that’s the simplified name. Usually they are “RARE naga eye thai buddha lingam healing relic amulet,” in any order. Samples here and here. In the descriptions they tend to claim that they are from some mystical cave. Here is a reviewer kind enough to point out that these are, of course, glass.

The first time I ran across one of these amulets and searched in Google, I found it interesting that there was absolutely no mythological or folk tradition about them anywhere to be found. They only exist in eBay. Or maybe I was just suspicious since they sound so much like a World of Warcraft drop.

But apparently the big trend on eBay now is “haunted” items. Some of the most popular seem to be dolls and jewelry, but I can’t replicate the effect of looking through all of the listings (over 3000 of them at this writing) just by linking to a few examples. You have to see for yourself. Photoshop effects, black and purple backgrounds, long stories about Gypsy Druid grandmothers, and furious bidding abound. In addition to searching on “haunted” (and learning that the word “haunted” now encompasses the whole range of meaning between “possessed” to “reiki charged,” “enchanted,” or “I think it has something to do with fairies”), you can get excellent results by category: Psychic, paranormal. Really, don’t miss it. This is one of the funniest things I have seen in a long time.