I had arrived at the auction a few minutes late and didn’t get a chance to make my walk-through to see what was there. I craned my neck over the tables behind the auctioneer, who had already gotten started on his singsong bidding calls.
I saw nothing that was speaking my name. I then wandered over to the items at the back of the opposite room behind bidders seated in soft-cushioned chairs. Nothing there, either. Instead of going home, I stood for a few minutes, and listened and watched as flea-market items went for as little as $1. In fact, one bidder – repeatedly interrupting the auctioneer – just shouted out $1 for items that the auctioneer should’ve started at $1 in the first place.
Sometimes the bids went beyond that, sometimes not. A number of items were passed because no one even wanted them at that cheap a price. Junk. For the past few weeks at this auction house, it’s been that way. Junk. The stuff we shouldn’t have bought in the first place at some giant discount store but did anyway.
I bidded on a lovely metal heat vent cover/register with decorative flowers and leaves but uglied up with white paint. It was the best item of the night, but another buyer out-bidded me. Still, instead of going home, I sat there hoping that something interesting would turn up.
And then it did. Out of the corner of my eye – striding down a ramp from another room in the auction house – I saw a man-sized white feathered chicken wearing a straw hat tilted to the front, making its way toward the auctioneer. It was waving its dark hands and strutting around in front of us. I later realized that it was not a chicken but a duck.
The display broke the monotony and threw us all into laughter. It was great comic relief. A hoot.
This was not just child’s play, though. The costume was for sale, and this auction employee as model was a novel way to get the attention of potential buyers. And he was good, walking the floor from side to side in front of us, turning around to show the back (which exposed his clothes; I guess it was a bit too small for him) and the sides.
The auctioneer began the bidding, knowing that someone among us was going to take the costume home. How could they not? It’s close to Halloween and a teenager or parent could wear it while trick-or-treating with young children. I expect costumes to come up quite often at auction over the next few weeks as they usually do just before the holiday.
At least two people were interested, and I listened as the bidding went past $10 to $12.50 to $15 to $17.50, and then the auctioneer tried to wrangle $20 out of a bidder. That’s where the bid sat, though, and someone got the costume for $17.50.
The duck itself walked back up the ramp unceremoniously and the auctioneer moved on to the next items. That’s the way it goes at auction.
