Okay, okay.  The Pokemon one was up there as well:

The thought of being able to wear shirts like this un-ironically is somewhat pleasing. Three cheers for Japan!

On July 12, 2005 I posted a picture of a red paperclip on my blog and asked if anyone wanted to trade something bigger or better for it.  A few days later I traded the paperclip, and after making 14 trades over the course of a year, I wound up with a house located at 503 Main Street in Kipling Saskatchewan.

It was an amazing year.

Here’s a cool video that covers most of the project:

Over the year of making 14 trades, I met hundreds of awesome people made great new friends, and tried out many new things. The whole experience was incredible. Some of the more ridiculous highlights:

• I was made mayor for the day of Kipling
• Dom and I were made honorary residents of Kipling for life
• I was given the key to the city.
• I received a Guinness World Record for Most Successful Internet Trade
• Kipling erected the World’s Largest Red Paperclip, another Guinness Record
• Dom and I traveled to Japan to be surprise guests on one of those crazy Japanese shows.
• Another Japanese TV show made this.
• I was on stage with Alice Cooper at a concert in Fargo.
• The press had a field day
• I wrote a book about the adventure.
• Volkswagen Spain made a TV commercial based on the story
• I starred in a Mastercard commercial.
• Grolsch Beer made a TV commercial inspired by the story

But the best thing of all was not that I wound up with a house in a year, or that the but that it was fun to do the project. By far the most important trade was when I traded away the red paperclip to start the process. If I’d never made that first trade to get things going, nothing would’ve ever happened!

I have since donated the house to the Town of Kipling, where along with the World’s Largest Red Paperclip, it is a major tourist attraction and community asset.

Wikipedia entry
Pictures
The archived one red paperclip blog
Press Coverage

That’s right, Dom and I are trading the red paperclip house. With who? For what? Well that’s where things get interesting:

We have no idea yet.

I’m not looking for anything in particular in exchange for the house, other than maybe several 1990 Burgundy Dodge Caravana with low miles. That aside, it would be great to trade with somebody who:

-Plans to live or operate a business in the house.

-Understands the house is a tourist attraction in Kipling, and important to the community.

-Also, if you know who these guys are, it will come in handy in a tie-breaker situation. — Watch this video!.

Really, I’m looking for nothing in particular, just to make a trade and see where this goes. So if you have anything you’d like to offer in exchange for the house, and I mean anything, be sure to send in your offer!

Details about the red paperclip house:

Located at 503 Main Street in Kipling Saskatchewan Canada


Fully furnished.

Two floors + basement

Three bedrooms

Two bathrooms

Refinished hardwood floors.

Fridge, stove, sinks, drawers, shelves…all the regular kitchen stuff.

Electricity!

Large grass front yard + large grass backyard.

Gas hot water tank + gas furnace.

close proximity to schools, restaurants, grocery stores, hospital, etc. Kipling has most services in town.

Giant red paperclip on the front lawn.

located a stone’s throw away from the world’s largest red paperclip.

Click on thumbs to see more pics of the house:

Have fun,

Kyle