Area 51
At the Plymouth auction this week, things felt very garage sale-esque. That’s not to say I didn’t see anything worth buying, there just weren’t any $200 Art Ross pucks or $400 cast iron banks for sale dirt cheap.
This cigar box had some human hair braids in it, which is NOT CREEPY AT ALL. I’m shocked that these weren’t mixed in with some women’s underwear and random drivers’ licenses…you know, because that is how serial killers normally store their HUMAN HAIR BRAIDS.
Speaking of creepy, this container had a tiny alien fetus inside:
It was marked “Area 51” on top and was obviously a souvenir from there. Lemme tell ya, people were going nuts over this alien. I sat in my seat and just watched as each person would pick this up, look at it for a good 10 seconds, and then look frantically around the room for their loved ones. They would then mouth to them, “Did you see this thing?!” It was such a hit. I got a really good kick out of how much everyone was amazed by this. It sold for like $20.
I also cracked up over this gigantic walking stick/staff. It was hardcore Gandalf style. Zach for weeks now has been talking about buying a walking stick because “it’s cool,” even though he doesn’t really walk anywhere. He talked about this nonstop, and I would get really worked up over how embarrassed I would be if he started walking with a walking stick. I was literally begging him not to buy one online. A few days ago, he finally revealed that it was all an elaborate charade just to get my goat. And got my goat he did.
I just realized that there actually was one high priced item at the auction. This turkey platter sold for $300! I was going to bid on it, but when it passed $30, I was like nevermind.
The platter was flow blue and made by Ridgways of England. From what I have read online, it was probably from the 1920s or so. I’m really curious if this was worth the $300 price it sold for, or actually more. I can’t find anything comparable on ebay. Anyway, it is always a shock when things sell for lots of money at the Plymouth auction, so everyone clapped when the platter sold.
I was waiting on an old cast iron mailbox to go up on the block. In the meantime, I bought the following:
A nice giant rug that George and Milo were so kind to model for me. I’m not sure if this rug is Native American or Mexican, but I sure do love it. I got it for $5! It reminds me of the rugs/table runners I bought at auction in Canada.
I also got these Santa sticker things. I say “stickers” because that seems to be the only reasonable purpose for these. Maybe I should say “stamps” because it appears that you lick the back of these and stick them on things. I am planning to frame the whole sheet as is and hang it up at Christmas.
The last thing to note is that Timmy and Joan came to the auction, and they bought a Herman Miller office chair for like $30. Sold new, the chair is over $500. FTW! They were so pumped over this purchase that it kind of made them auction tyrants. They thought they owned the place. When I was being outbid on a cast iron mailbox, they started yelling at me, “KEEP GOING! KEEP BIDDING! WE’LL GIVE YOU THE MONEY! DON’T LOSE.” It was hilarious. I listened to them for a minute and then bowed out of the bidding because it was up to $75…for a mailbox! Insanity. There are tons on ebay for $30-$40.
-Erin