This is a really cool story about Kyle MacDonald who had a dream to own a house. And the only means he had to get it was to take a childhood game he had played called "Bigger and Better" to the next level and trade up from a red paperclip to his ultimate goal a house.
He started with one red paperclip on July 12th 2005 and just a year later thru a series of smart up-trades he was not only able to get his house free and clear but he also gained quite a bit of fame as well.
You can read his story and see a collection of pictures of the items that he traded in the process of a year here.