What? You Want to Know What "That Thing" Is? hehehe :)

Today was the day that our "stuff" was put up for sale at auction.

The place was pretty packed which we initially saw as a positive sign.  The more people, the more likely there will be several bids on one item or so we thought.

Ross get away from that table.  That's our stuff.  

But once the auction started and the bidding got going, we realized right away that was not going to be the case.   I guess two weeks after Christmas everyone is tapped out.  The buyers were very conservative and the bidding was low.

It was a long day.  We got to the firehouse at 8:30 and the auction literally dragged on until 5:30.  I'm sure the auctioneer felt more like a dentist today because getting bids out of people was...well you know just like pulling teeth.

Although we were not as successful as we had hoped, the experience was still a positive one, for a number of reasons.
First, and in my opinion, foremost, our garage is empty and we can fit at least one of our cars in.
Second,  if something happened to Ross and I, our kids would not be saddled with the task of getting rid of our stuff.
Third, we did come away with some cash, which would not have been the case if we had just put the "stuff" out to the curb.
And last but not least I finally found out what "that thing" was.

This is what "that thing" looks like.

I bid on "that thing" at an auction a while ago because I thought it was so unusual.  I thought it would be interesting and fun to try and find out what it was and what on earth it was used for.  But all of my searching and googling led nowhere and I never solved the mystery.

So we put "that thing" in the antique store we were renting space in.  But I guess no one else shared my curiosity for it and it just sat there for months.

And so, "that thing" wound up in today's auction.

 There it is sitting on the table waiting, just waiting for someone to pick it up, just as I did, wonder what it was, just like I did, and have to have it, just like I did.

A group discussion takes place as several people ponder "that thing".  That's Jim in the green shirt.  He is the auctioneer.

Okay there it goes, next in line for bidding.

Oops, looks like he can't figure it out either

 The bidding is underway and Jim, the auctioneer actually knew what it was.  As he described it, I thought, "Oh of course. Of course that's what it is.  Now it makes all of the sense in the world.
The bidding started off at $5.00, then $7.50, $12.50, $15.00, $17.50...and the winner is

Yep, he paid $25.00 for "that thing".  Guess, he just had to have it :)