Auction house

OMG, I have found a new fun thing to do. No drinking involved, just fun fun fun. I had heard about this local auction house way back when we used to live in the area, but had never gone to it. A friend got a great deal on a huge dining room set with multiple chairs for her huge family of six kids at the time. I had wanted to go check the place out and finally got around to doing it.

A good friend and I went to this old beat up barn that looked like it was right off the farm. The parking lot was pitted with pot holes and we had to step gingerly to avoid the mud. Inside the barn was a hodge podge of everything. These people buy estates and do consignment items. We check in at the door and get our own bidding numbers. It is just a little Rolodex card. I am told that this number is now my permanent number for when I go back again. We wander through, browsing all the items.

Around 2:00 we find seats. There is a stage in front. The auction begins. It is a low key family affair. The old man up front is the auctioneer. His grand children run the concessions and give out raffle tickets. We find out that we should have been really digging through the boxes like at a garage sale. Boxes come up for auction with lot numbers. Without having dug through thoroughly we take a risk bidding. Many of the items go for less than $5.

Tom has asked me to keep my eyes open for a power washer. He also said to watch out for tools. I bid on a hammer drill and get it for a fraction of the price new. Of course I hadn't really meant to get a hammer drill, but it is a really cool tool. It is a drill that drills through concrete, great for basement remodels.

I also bid on a folding extension ladder, which I win for $30 plus the 10% fee the auction house adds. I had priced them at Home depot when we first moved, they started at $200 and go up in price. I loved that deal.

I bid on a box of drill bits, which I win for $7.50. There must be 30 drill bits in the box. I am pleased again. I buy a bucket of tools for $10 including a heavy duty stapler for upolstery work

Other things come up which I pass on. A grandfather is there with his grand children. The oldest child, of about age seven, holds the bidding card. His grandfather signals him when to bid. The boy buys himself three boxes of old baseball cards for a bargain price of $10 a box. There were hundreds of cards. It was fun watching the excitement in the boy's eyes as he bid. The grand father also has the boy bid on a box of gun parts, which they win against several other bidders.

My girlfriend is talking to me and the auctioneer takes it as a bid. She has to announce she wasn't bidding. You have to be very careful not to even scratch your nose during the auction. Between items we scratch like crazy every potential itch just to make sure we don't scratch while the bidding is in progress.

Everyone is cheerful. One young woman bids and wins a beautiful drop leaf antique desk for $90, easily worth much more. She grins ear to ear after she wins. I was tempted to bid, but I have enough furniture at the moment. I am on the hunt for book shelves, really tall ones.

An add on craigslist had responded to my inquiry regarding book shelves. I don't find anything I like as much at the auction. I will be buying the craigslist shelves. We have to leave before the auction ends as Tom is home worried about the weather. A snow system is expected. I could have stayed all night. As it was we got there at about 1:45pm, with just enough time to briefly look around. We left close to 6:00pm and they hadn't even really made a dent on all the stuff they had. I had heard the auction can last until very late, ten or eleven at night.

I could see many hours sitting watching the bidding. It is like one of those TV shows I like to watch. You just never know what may turn up. The audience is fascinating to watch. The serious faces while bidding and the smiles and comments when someone wins the bids. The audience watching is half the fun. We notice the number of men in Camouflage gear. It almost appears like a dress code, Jeans and camo jackets. I could have stayed all night and not been board, just waiting to see if the next item up is something I really want.

It was like going to 20 garage sales, but instead the garage sales are coming to me as I sit in my chair with my number card. I have found a new past time. Love It!!!