If you’ve never been to a country auction, it’s a pretty fun & unique experience. Residents from a 100 mile radius will come bringing everything from boxes of obsolete encyclopedias to piglets. Yes, I mean squealing, scurrying, live piglets. It’s farm country after all. 
Anyway, you sign up for a bidding number and then spend the day walking around from auction to auction, buying up whatever strikes your fancy at extremely reasonable prices. If you know the game, you can end the day with a houseful of quality, antique furnishings for less than you’d spend on one mediocre, new living room sofa.
When my husband and were just starting out, we had next to nothing. One of the ways that we found nice things for our home was to go to auctions. My dad, who is the tree that this apple didn’t fall far from, came with us on one such afternoon.
It was a blisteringly hot day, and shady places to rest were in short supply. We’d been shopping around for a couple hours and had become separated. In my search to find some relief from the sun, I came upon my dad sitting on a tree stump. Across from him sat a decorative outhouse (yeah, you read that right), complete with a crescent moon in the door. No, we don’t actually use them anymore; they’re just humorous tool sheds. Yeesh.
He had just called my mom to update her on our shenanigans and when he hung up, he found himself in nostalgic reflection, staring back and forth at the tiny flip phone in his hand and the giant outhouse which stood before him. Curious about the strange look on his face, I sat beside him, offering the last of my iced tea.
He smiled before launching into a story about growing up in rural Texas. His grandmother, who he’d visit on occasion, didn’t have indoor plumbing yet, so spooky, moonlit jaunts to an outhouse (not the decorative variety, mind you) were a part of his youth. Then he held up his cell phone. “I never even dreamed,” he said, “that a phone you could put in your pocket would exist or that I would be “rich” enough to have one. The world has completely changed within my lifetime, and I’m only 45.”
Now, I sit on my sofa, laptop on my knee, all of my children snuggled up in their beds and think of what I’ll tell them one day. I’m only rockin’ my early ’30s and it’s still amazing how much has changed since I was little, and I’m not just talking about my polyester, plaid bell bottoms.
When I have the “Good ol’ days” chat, which also doubles as the “You have no idea how rough I had it” conversation (depending on the situation), these will be some of the highlights:
1. Until I was an adult, Pluto was a planet.
2. Until shortly before I became a professional writer, there were commas after every item in a list and two spaces between sentences.
3. The world was less expensive. When I joined the workforce, stamps were 32 cents a piece, gas was 99 cents per gallon and minimum wage was $4.25.
4. Not only was 3D television a ridiculous notion, but you had to stand up and turn a dial to change the channels. MTV played pop videos all day, everyday, and cussing of any sort, was not allowed.
5. Safety wasn’t what it is today, I never owned a bicycle helmet, and seat belt laws didn’t come into play until I was a teenager.
6. There was no such thing as an MP3 player. I had 8-Tracks, records, and cassettes until I was in high school, when CD’s became affordable.
7. Speaking of affordable, I remember when microwaves, computers, CD players and DVD players were all cutting-edge, major household purchases.
I could go on forever, and I would, except my iPhone just reminded me that I have a video conference on Internet marketing in 20 minutes, my coffee should have brewed itself by now, and my 4-year-old wants to e-mail his grandma some of the digital photos he took yesterday.
How has the world evolved around you? What will you tell your children someday?
Image Source: flickr.com/photos/x-ray_delta_one
About jessi
