Globe West Video: The Ex-Boyfriend Economy

GLOBE WEST VIDEO

Christine King's old high school flame, Dave, treated her to a Kanye West concert last week, even though the 28-year-old from Franklin hasn't seen him - or admittedly even thought about him much - for years.

More precisely, it was a 14-karat gold chain he bought her that funded her trip to the Tweeter Center. The necklace had been forgotten since their breakup a decade ago, King said, until the other evening, when she was sitting around lamenting her lack of discretionary income. Then she saw a television news report about the sky-high price of gold, and her relationship with the necklace suddenly had a much happier ending.

With the price of gold near historic highs, more and more suburbanites are selling their old, unwanted jewelry for cash to buy groceries, gas, or just to use as fun money.

The video above was filed by Globe West web producer Ralph Ranalli, who also wrote a recent story about the trend.

-- Ralph Ranalli