(DF) SATURDAY AUCTION.....a tightwad's tale of bargains, breaking even and lousey weather reports

With spring approaching and time moving on, as it does, the new goat pasture fence is long past due. Problem is that fencing material is rather pricey. Being a confirmed tightwad, I will only pay full price if I absolutely have to, so I am always looking for a bargain. Anna and I have also been thinking of rabbits and she needs a goose to go with her gander. Add to these considerations the trailer I've been trying to sell for some time now with no results and the auction seemed the most reasonable answer.

The auction in question is located about fifty miles from my place and is held every first Saturday. They take consignments of poultry and other small animals, equipment and vehicles, and miscellaneous. Miscellaneous in this case means just about anything that can be hauled in and placed in rows in a twenty acre field. Keep in mind that prices at auctions are not always cheap, so be careful.

With a good weather forecast for the weekend, I took the trailer on Thursday and signed it in for sale and made plans to return for the auction on Saturday. Though we had heavy rain Friday night, the forecast for Saturday was warm and sunny with a light breeze. So far so good, right?

Saturday morning was warm (about fifty degrees), though still overcast. Running a little late and in a hurry, I made the first mistake of the day........... I set out wearing a light jacket, forgetting my heavy coat entirely. While still on the road, it began to rain lightly, but there was still hope that the lingering clouds would clear out soon.

Arriving at the auction, I immediately found that there were no geese, no rabbits of the type we had hoped to acquire and very little else in the way of poultry and small animals. Yes, that was disappointing. The next disappointment came when I found that a large pile of fence posts had already sold.

By this time, the temperature was cooling down and a cold, damp north wind had begun to blow. So much for a warm, sunny Saturday, but I was determined to make the best of it. The rest of the day was spent running back and forth between four auctioneers on all sides of the auction yard, in an attempt to avoid missing any good deals. Of course I did miss some good deals, but not all of them.

At the end of the day, I left the auction with fence posts and wire, enough cash from sale of the trailer to break even (had really hoped to make a profit), and a chill that had me shivering for hours, from the damp, cold wind (the temperature had already dropped to about forty degrees).

As you can see from the picture, the pile of fence material is not big enough to be impressive. However, it does represent a savings of over $200 compared to new price. All in all, not a bad day for a tightwad.