July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Stop him, before he bids again (01/16/08)
Back in the Saddle
By By JACK RONALD-
Stop me before I bid again.
Okay, okay. It's not that bad. I'm not a full-fledged eBay addict. But I must confess that I've found myself browsing and bidding at that Web site over the past few years more than I ever imagined possible.
Of course, a couple of decades ago, I couldn't have imagined eBay at all. It didn't exist, nor did most of the cyberspace we now take for granted.
Like everyone else, I'm still sorting out how the Internet fits in my life. It fits somewhere. But not everywhere.
If I'm shopping for groceries, it makes no sense. If I'm shopping for books - particularly newly published books - it makes more sense.
But mostly, via eBay, it has made sense when shopping for something out of the ordinary or odd.
For instance, I love to prowl through the old postcards at the Jay Garment Antique Mall or at the Tri-State Gas Engine and Tractor Show.
No one needs old postcards. But if you find the right one with the right emotional connection, it can make sense.
At the antique mall or the engine show, it's all about the hunt: Having a goal in mind and enjoying the search.
On the Web, it's more about acquisition, which is satisfying in some ways but far less entertaining than the hunt.
That's because an eBay search for, say, postcards from the lake in New Hampshire where Connie's family has a cabin generates plenty of activity, whereas (Note: This is the first time in my life I've ever used "whereas" in a column) I could look through box after box at engine show after engine show and never find a one.
The down side is the acquisition itself.
When this noodling around on eBay started a few years ago, it seemed like a nice idea to find an old postcard of the lake, buy a frame at CVS, and give it as a gift.
But just a few years later, everyone who might be interested in the sentimental value of a framed old postcard has one. And I can't very well give them away to strangers or people who have never visited New Hampshire.
The problem is, having met the demand (if that's the right word) I can't stop the supply. Just when I think there are no other interesting old postcards of Gregg Lake or Antrim, New Hampshire, or Greystone Lodge, or Mount Monadnock, another one pops up.
And I feel compelled to bid.
Okay, okay.
Maybe I had that wrong. Maybe I am a full-fledged addict.
But I've sure got a great collection of old postcards.[[In-content Ad]]
Okay, okay. It's not that bad. I'm not a full-fledged eBay addict. But I must confess that I've found myself browsing and bidding at that Web site over the past few years more than I ever imagined possible.
Of course, a couple of decades ago, I couldn't have imagined eBay at all. It didn't exist, nor did most of the cyberspace we now take for granted.
Like everyone else, I'm still sorting out how the Internet fits in my life. It fits somewhere. But not everywhere.
If I'm shopping for groceries, it makes no sense. If I'm shopping for books - particularly newly published books - it makes more sense.
But mostly, via eBay, it has made sense when shopping for something out of the ordinary or odd.
For instance, I love to prowl through the old postcards at the Jay Garment Antique Mall or at the Tri-State Gas Engine and Tractor Show.
No one needs old postcards. But if you find the right one with the right emotional connection, it can make sense.
At the antique mall or the engine show, it's all about the hunt: Having a goal in mind and enjoying the search.
On the Web, it's more about acquisition, which is satisfying in some ways but far less entertaining than the hunt.
That's because an eBay search for, say, postcards from the lake in New Hampshire where Connie's family has a cabin generates plenty of activity, whereas (Note: This is the first time in my life I've ever used "whereas" in a column) I could look through box after box at engine show after engine show and never find a one.
The down side is the acquisition itself.
When this noodling around on eBay started a few years ago, it seemed like a nice idea to find an old postcard of the lake, buy a frame at CVS, and give it as a gift.
But just a few years later, everyone who might be interested in the sentimental value of a framed old postcard has one. And I can't very well give them away to strangers or people who have never visited New Hampshire.
The problem is, having met the demand (if that's the right word) I can't stop the supply. Just when I think there are no other interesting old postcards of Gregg Lake or Antrim, New Hampshire, or Greystone Lodge, or Mount Monadnock, another one pops up.
And I feel compelled to bid.
Okay, okay.
Maybe I had that wrong. Maybe I am a full-fledged addict.
But I've sure got a great collection of old postcards.[[In-content Ad]]
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