Monday, October 20, 2014

What I Did On Saturday, Told Mostly In Pictures

When my dad closed his farm supply store in the late summer of 2011, he was left with a really big, really empty building (that is for sale, along with the warehouse next door, if you're interested in a building or two in Nevada, MO). Recently, an auctioneer in town approached him about using the building to hold a big auction. There was one big estate, plus a few smaller ones, making for a tremendous amount of furniture and household goods and plain ol' junk. There was so much of it, in fact, that they couldn't get through all of it in the one day allotted for the auction and had to schedule a second day, which was this past weekend.




I wasn't at the first auction, but my husband and I drove up to look at everything, at which time I found these two items among all the other stuff:


My 10-speed bicycle and my baby crib. To add insult to
injury, my mom thought it was my BROTHER'S bicycle.
He also reminded me that it was his crib FIRST.



Yes, my parents put them in the auction. When I let out a howl, they told me I was welcome to take them home with me and store them there, so I shut my pie hole.

I found an awesome table that would be for sale. My dad said he would try to get it for me and asked me what it was worth to me.

"A ten-speed bike and a baby crib," I answered.

The second day of the auction was this past Saturday. My husband, daughter and I drove up for it. Even though there was less stuff than at the previous sale, there was still a LOT of inventory



Bidders.


A chair made from horns. I kid you not.



Prince Albert in a can....



Beethoven. The one thing my mom wanted.


Found my old boyfriend, Shaun Cassidy.


Yes, it's a ping pong paddle. Yes, it's Richard Nixon.



Classic nativity: Joseph, Mary, Baby Jesus, and the
Four Victorian Carolers


My parents.



Either Old Order Mennonite or Amish. Not sure
as both live in the area.


A white guy dressed like a black rapper.


Well, it ain't New York City 'round here.

There was a funky chair that I really wanted. It was old and hand made and oddly shaped and upholstered in hideous harvest gold velvet. My husband hated it, but I loved it, and my mom said she would get it for me. I was a little worried about how much it would go for, because you never know at an auction if someone else might have fallen in love with something you want until it's time to bid on it. Lucky for me (and my mom), there was only one other bidder, who dropped out quickly, and we got the chair for $7.50 (which my husband says was overpriced). 

I was carrying my chair to the back of the store building to lock it in a back room when a woman called out as I walked by, "That's a cute chair!"

I stopped and said, "Isn't it? I love it!"

Then she sucker punched me.

"Did you buy it for your grandkids to sit on?"

Grandkids? GRANDKIDS?! DO I LOOK OLD ENOUGH FOR FREAKIN' GRANDKIDS?! (Never mind that IN THEORY I am old enough, but I'M NOT OLD ENOUGH FOR GRANDKIDS.)

I stomped off with my chair. Grandkids! Old witch.

Grandkids, indeed!

At the end of the auction, we all had a few treasures. My dad, for instance, bought an electric typewriter, but no one can figure out why.

My mom got her Beethoven bust:




My mom, daughter, and I got some fun costume jewelry.

And I got the little table I liked and my awesome chair.






And at the end of the day, everyone went home with their new things.  The end.






23 comments:

  1. Ohhhhhhhhhhhh the chair is DELIGHTFULLY HIDEOUS :D So very quirky. I have never ever seen a chair like it :D

    You didn't go for the bike or the crib then?

    (And no, no you don't. Promise)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not as hideous as the horn chair (which went for several hundred dollars).
      Did not take home the bike or the crib - sniff.
      THANK YOU!

      Delete
    2. The horn chair is VILE and should be BURNED. Several hundred dollars? People are WEIRD.

      Awwwh :( I hope they went to loving homes.

      And you're welcome.

      Delete
    3. The horn chair was really, really old. I cannot imagine what style of decor would be appropriate for it.
      My kids slept in that crib when they were little and at my parents' house. It passes no current safety regulation, I'm sure.
      :)

      Delete
  2. Your new table and chair look great.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love the table and chair!

    No, you don't look old enough for grandkids. I can tell you, though, that as soon as you actually do have grandkids, all of a sudden you will be proud to wear the title of grandma. At least that's what happened to me. ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me, too! I think I'm going to use the table as a night stand. The one I have is too small.

      I'm sure it will be delightful to be a grandma SOME DAY. But as I was a late bloomer, my kids are too young to be parents, making ME too young to be a grandparent!

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  4. Such fun. One woman's treasure is another's . . . . . . You would be one HOT Grandma. (just saying). I think you got your revenge though - pictures worth 1,000 words and all that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was great fun! And thank you for the compliment (old hag, thinking I'm a grandma - grrrr!). Maybe I should have talked to HER about foundation garments?

      Delete
  5. That bust of your mom's is checking out your bust. Keep an eye on him.

    I've met you in real life, and I can testify that you most certainly don't look old enough to be a grandma.

    Cool chair.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. boy, that chair looks comfortable.

      (...ok maybe the first thing)

      Delete
    2. I kind of thought Beethoven was getting a little fresh with me (calm down, Clark).

      Thank you for at least humoring me on the grandma thing.

      I love the chair! The seat is so tiny, we'll put put people in it that we wish to leave soon.

      Delete
  6. My mom used to take my oldest to auctions. He got himself a metal detector once which was cool, but the most memorable time was when he was rooting through a box of miscellaneous stuff and found a plug in vibrator. Just knowing how scarce plugs were in older homes makes me chuckle. That and picturing the expression on the germophobe's face when he figured out what it was.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. That is hilarious! There was an adult toy store here in town that got a direct hit from the tornado. People living to the east of it (and we're talking miles away) found "toys" in their yards that were dropped by the tornado. The police said to treat them like a biohazard, because it wasn't entirely known if they came from the "toy" store new or out of private homes used....

      Delete
    2. These two stories are absolutely hysterical! Thank you, Ladies, for the inappropriate toy humor!

      Delete
  7. Auctions are GREAT!!! It seems you got quite some steals :-) Having a larger home with a lot less storage now, I know how hard it is to throw out or sell stuff that for some reason I have an emotional attachment to (like about everything). I definitely have hoarder inclinations. Still managed to get rid of my old kids' room furniture set that I got at age 5 and passed it on to Lily after we moved back to Germany in 2010.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Honestly? Didn't know my parents still HAD that bike ;) But it is hard to get rid of things when you have memories attached to them. And things I am sentimental about, I usually find my kids don't care that much. Like my old Barbies. They weren't in good shape, because I played with them a lot, but my daughter didn't want anything to do with them.

      Delete
  8. I like your new old chair! That horny thing is hideous! I gotta wonder why Beethoven for mom? She have a Schroeder complex or something?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The new old chair is awesome, made even more so because my husband hates it. The horny thing is one of the strangest pieces of furniture I have ever seen. My mother said she has always wanted a bust of Beethoven for the top of the piano at the lake house a la Schroeder. I never realized that or I would have found her one years ago.

      Delete
  9. No doubt you can see somre pretty strange things at an auction. Take that chair for example. Yikes!
    Don't think that chair was designed for...comfort. lol
    Beethoven. Glad your Mom likes Beethoven. He's one of my favorite composers!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Neither the horn chair nor my funky chair are designed for comfort. I kind of thought Ruby might like my new chair, as she is the only living thing in the house that could fit in it comfortably.
      I don't know that my mom particularly likes Beethoven as a composer, but she sure likes his bust!

      Delete
  10. Fun! I love going to things like that, discovering random gems that you never knew existed. And never knew you wanted, until all of a sudden you have to have it. ;)

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