THERE'S only one place to go to get a glimpse of life in the Ballarat suburbs.
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Or actually, two.
Between them, the competing Facebook groups Ballarat Buy, Swap and Sell and Buy, Swap and Sell Ballarat have more than 70,000 members.
They provide an endless stream of interesting tidbits, useless knick-knacks, missing pets and questionable services.
Here are some of our favourite posts from the past six months.
The $6 billion car stereo
"All works"? It'd want to be magical for that price – which is about the same as buying 12,000 brand new Aston Martins.
Normally we'd guess it was just a simple typo, but there's quite a big difference between "$50" and "$6,181,816,434" so who knows.
Bonus power cord
At least the car stereo worked. This Xbox 360 comes with no faceplate, no controllers and, let's see, anything else? Oh yeah, it's broken.
However it "has leads though! So that's a bonus!" A bargain at $20.
Proof of happiness
This one's part creepy and part cute. When this woman's cat "accidentally" went missing, she turned to Facebook to offer its new owners a reward for "proof of happiness".
We wonder what they would have sent back? A recording of it purring?
Free to a... home
Buy, Swap and Sell groups aren't just useful for looking for missing pets, they can also be a great way to give them away.
In this case, someone's brother, boyfriend or son is free to a good home – or just any home really. But beware, he's "not toilet trained yet".
Slow and steady wins the race
This pet – or "ride on mower" – might be a bit more useful. Maisy* the sheep comes with an attractive blue and white saddle and is perfect for keeping the lawn under control.
*The sheep's name probably isn't Maisy. We just thought it sounded nice.
This paper is a disgrace!
If you do end up with a few new animals, you might need something to help keep them in line.
Stock whips can also be handy for providing feedback to your local newspaper, as Lola Montez showed by whipping Ballarat Times editor Henry Seekamp in the 1850s.
We can only imagine what Sharon thinks of this story.
Spelling is important
People always complain when journalists make a spelling mistake, but rarely are our typos this bad.
On a side note, what do you get when you drink too much orange juice? Fruit bowel.
Thank god the seller included a picture.
Regrets, I've had a few
Bundaberg Rum is another thing that can lead to an upset bowel – at least the next day. We suspect that's why this half-a-bottle is up for sale.
Last we checked the highest offer was $20.
Sweet-smelling smoke
Perhaps this seller had a big night as well? Among the relaxing fragrances on offer in this incense pack are Cinnamon Orange, Vanilla, White Sage and... Cannabis.
We thought incense was for covering up the smell of marijuana, not creating it?
And finally…
This one just speaks for itself. Buyer beware!