Awesome Coins

6 MINT HALF 1/2 Oz Ounce Fine 999 GOLD Clad COIN SET: 3 PIG, 2 HORSE, 1 DRAGON US $19.99 (1 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 12:12:19 PST

1ONE oz Ounce Fine 999 24k GOLD 100 Mill 2010 Walking Liberty Eagle Coin US $19.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 12:15:27 PST

1915 $50 DOLLAR PAN AM GOLD (OCT) COIN PROOF REPLICA US $24.99 End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 12:20:35 PST

1879 $4 DOLLAR STELLA C/H GOLD COIN PROOF REPLICA US $24.99 End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 13:01:17 PST

2008 W Buffalo Uncirculated 4 Coin Set Box w Capsules - Get Ebay Bucks Too! US $22.95 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 13:05:28 PST

$50 DOLLAR PAN AM GOLD (ROUND) COIN PROOF REPLICA US $24.99 End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 13:08:14 PST

$5 St-Gaudens Uncirculated U.S. Government American Eagle Gold Coin US $200.00 (1 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 14:01:30 PST

2000 American Gold Eagle $5 NGC MS-70 highest collectible grade coin. US $225.00 (1 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 14:39:58 PST

2008 W $50 1 OZ UNC. GOLD BUFFALO ANACS SP70 US $3,149.00 End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 16:12:26 PST

2010 W PROOF GOLD EAGLE 1 OZ. $50 - UNSEARCHED US $2,249.00 End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 16:14:00 PST

L@@K OLYMPIC GOLD/SILVER SET 1984 PROOF HALF OUNCE GOLD/TWO OUNCE SILVER US $848.99 (12 Bids) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 16:35:00 PST

1929 INDIAN HEAD (.999 FINE SILVER) BULLION COIN US $15.50 (8 Bids) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 16:57:09 PST

1 Grain SOLID 24k Gold Bar .999 Pure US $1.74 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 17:12:46 PST

Lot Of 20, 1978 Mini Krugerrand Gold-Plated Replica Coins US $7.49 (1 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 17:41:42 PST

(Rare) Gold/Silver Buffalo Mixed (5) Coin Set US $5,500.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 18:05:05 PST

BEAUTIFUL 1907 ST. Gaudens $20.00 Gold Piece MINI 22 KT. GOLD COIN.. US $0.99 (1 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 18:16:18 PST

2005 $5,$10,$25,$50 PCGS MS70 GOLD EAGLE SET 20TH ANNIVERSARY RARE 1.85 OZ US $4,199.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 18:41:31 PST

Huge 59.00 CWT, A Grade, Fancy Cut Brazilian Emerald US $99.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 18:41:49 PST

(.999 FINE SILVER) BULLION COIN 1/10 US $5.51 (8 Bids) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 19:05:31 PST

Huge 99.00 CWT, A Grade, Pear Cut Natural Ruby US $69.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 19:22:13 PST

2009 BUFFALO .9999 GOLD COIN NGC MS 70 EARLY RELEASES US $1,902.00 (6 Bids) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 19:50:15 PST

2010w $25 PF EAGLE-HALF OUNCE-UNopened Box From Mint!+ US $1,499.99 End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 20:21:12 PST

1865 MAXIMILIAN EMPEROR MINI GOLD COIN CHEAP INVESTMENT GOLD BULLION US $4.25 (2 Bids) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 20:22:28 PST

1989 Liberty 1/10 oz. gold $5 coin US $207.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 20:51:06 PST

2003 proof gold eagle 1/10 oz US $210.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 22:14:34 PST

2003 W Eagle G$50 PF 70 ULTRA CAMEO US $1,025.00 (3 Bids) End Date: Tuesday Feb-07-2012 23:56:33 PST

5 GOLD Bullions US $15.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 0:57:28 PST

1986 $50 25 10 5 DOLLAR GOLD COIN LOT AMERICAN EAGLE US $4,499.00 End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 2:33:17 PST

2010 W GOLD EAGLE 4 COIN SET NGC PROOF 70 E.R. + OGP!! US $3,999.00 End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 3:22:41 PST

2008 W Gold $25 Eagle 1/2 oz NGC MS70 "Burnished" US $1,495.00 End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 6:36:32 PST

2005-W $10 PCGS PR69DCAM Gold Eagle 1/4 oz. Fine Gold Coin US $739.50 End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 8:46:51 PST

****EXCLUSIVE -11- PEICE- 22 KT. GOLD MINTED COMMERATIVE MINI COIN SET**** US $8.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 12:51:56 PST

1988 United States Olympic Gold & Silver Proof Set. US $350.00 (13 Bids) End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 15:43:32 PST

2011-W $50 AMERICAN GOLD EAGLE BURNISHED 1oz.COIN 25TH ANNIVERSARY NGC MS70 US $2,575.00 End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 16:51:35 PST

LOT of 2 2006 W $25 1/2 oz Gold American Eagle Burnished MS70 Very RARE Pop15164 US $3,795.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 17:48:06 PST

2007 PR69 PCGS $50 proof 1oz. gold american eagle US $2,100.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 19:26:55 PST

2010 (NGC 4 Coin Set) W Gold Eagle Set Early Releases Proof 70 (Ultra Cameo) US $3,750.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 19:59:01 PST

22K Yellow Gold 1/2oz American Eagle Coin Jewelry US $1,850.99 End Date: Wednesday Feb-08-2012 21:18:43 PST

1916-S Cent Wheat XF SALE! 088K US $15.40 End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 3:43:15 PST

1916-S Cent Wheat AU SALE! 0880 US $26.60 End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 3:43:22 PST

1921 Cent Wheat AU SALE! 08ju US $15.30 End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 3:44:48 PST

$1.00 U.S. GOLD COIN-CIRCA-1856 US $250.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 7:42:08 PST

1 Grain SOLID 24K Gold Bar .999 Pure US $1.37 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 7:56:06 PST

1865 MAXIMILIAN EMPEROR MINI GOLD COIN CHEAP INVESTMENT GOLD BULLION US $0.99 (1 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 9:37:33 PST

2004 American Eagle Gold $5 1/10 Oz. Uncirculated w/ US Mint Box COA US $199.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 10:30:07 PST

****EXCLUSIVE -11- PEICE- 22 KT. GOLD MINTED COMMERATIVE MINI COIN SET**** US $8.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 11:29:00 PST

1000 1907 ST GAUDENS DOUBLE EAGLE MINI REPLICA GOLD COINS PLUS FREE GOLD US $225.00 End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 12:11:17 PST

****EXCLUSIVE -11- PEICE- 22 KT. GOLD MINTED COMMERATIVE MINI COIN SET**** US $8.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 12:29:26 PST

****EXCLUSIVE -11- PEICE- 22 KT. GOLD MINTED COMMERATIVE MINI COIN SET**** US $8.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 13:29:21 PST

1879 $4 DOLLAR STELLA F/H GOLD COIN PROOF REPLICA US $24.99 End Date: Thursday Feb-09-2012 14:20:52 PST

Does the downturn spell the beginning of the end for suburbia? Some experts say yesterday's cul-de-sac is tomorrow's ghost town.

The downturn has accomplished what a generation of designers and planners could not: it has turned back the tide of suburban sprawl. In the wake of the foreclosure crisis many new subdivisions are left half built and more established suburbs face abandonment. Cul-de-sac neighborhoods once filled with the sound of backyard barbecues and playing children are falling silent. Communities like Elk Grove, Calif., and Windy Ridge, N.C., are slowly turning into ghost towns with overgrown lawns, vacant strip malls and squatters camping in empty homes. In Cleveland alone, one of every 13 houses is now vacant, according to an article published Sunday in The New York Times magazine.

The demand for suburban homes may never recover, given the long-term prospects of energy costs for commuting and heating, and the prohibitive inefficiencies of low-density construction. The whole suburban idea was founded on disposable spending and the promise of cheap gas. Without them, it may wither. A study by the Metropolitan Institute at Virginia Tech predicts that by 2025 there will be as many as 22 million unwanted large-lot homes in suburban areas.

The suburb has been a costly experiment. Thirty-five percent of the nation's wealth has been invested in building a drivable suburban landscape, according to Christopher Leinberger, an urban planning professor at the University of Michigan and visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution. James Howard Kunstler, author of "The Geography of Nowhere," has been saying for years that we can no longer afford suburbs. "If Americans think they've been grifted by Goldman Sachs and Bernie Madoff, wait until they find out what a swindle the so-called 'American Dream' of suburban life turns out to be," he wrote on his blog this week.

So what's to become of all those leafy subdivisions with their Palladian detailing and tasteful signage? Already low or middle-income families priced out of cities and better neighborhoods are moving into McMansions divided for multi-family use. Alison Arieff, who blogs for The New York Times, visited one such tract mansion that was split into four units, or "quartets," each with its own entrance, which is not unlike what happened to many stately homes in the 1930s. The difference, of course, is that the 1930s homes held up because they were made with solid materials, and today's spec homes are all hollow doors, plastic columns and faux stone facades.

There is also speculation that subdivision homes could be dismantled and sold for scrap now that a mini-industry for repurposed lumber and other materials has evolved over the last few years. Around the periphery of these discussions is the specter of the suburb as a ghost town patrolled by squatters and looters, as if Mad Max had come to the cul-de-sac.

If the suburb is a big loser in mortgage crisis episode, then who is the winner? Not surprisingly, the New Urbanists, a group of planners, developers and architects devoted to building walkable towns based on traditional designs, have interpreted the downturn as vindication of their plans for mixed-use communities where people can stroll from their homes to schools and restaurants.

Richard Florida, a Toronto business professor and author of "Who's Your City?: How the Creative Economy Is Making Where to Live the Most Important Decision of Your Life," argues that dense and diverse cities with "accelerated rates of urban metabolism" are the communities most likely to innovate their way through economic crisis. In an article published in this month's issue of The Atlantic, he posits that New York is at a relative advantage, despite losing a chunk of its financial engine, because the jostling proximity of architects, fashion designers, software writers and other creative types will reenergize its economy.

[painting via Sharilyn Neidhardt]