Don't scratch madam

Hello All,

Wyona told me that I could post this Oct 24th letter from her to her kids up on the web. I thought it was an interesting way of doing Xmas shopping, early in October. So ... for a long read, look below and know you are reading Wyona:

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I spent a few nights last week searching auction sales throughout southern England. So I found one antique auction taking place on Oct. 22 in a little town called St. Neots in Cambridgeshire. St. Neots is a 40- 50 minute train ride from Kings Cross. Tonia had never been to an auction so we headed out at 8:40 a.m from the train station. I wanted to leave at 7:30 a.m. but that did not happen. The train was to get in at St. Neots at 10:10 a.m.

Tonia and I were aware of the first few train stops but then we got to talking and Tonia saw Huntington pass by. I looked at my watch and it was 10:20 a.m. We went three stops past St. Neots. So we headed back on the next train, got there an hour later, and took a cab to the auction.

There were carrots, potaotes, etc. all being auctioned off at four pounds a bushel or one pound for five pumpkins where Tesco charges 6 pounds for one tiny pumpkin.The people and farmers around were real English country folk. It is a world so faraway from London. For one pound I could have had fourteen plants for my flowerboxes but my flower boxes are too full already.

Tonia and I took a walk around the furniture and general goods barn. Tonia fell in love with a table and six chairs. I fell in love with every other piece of furniture. I went into the little shack to register for a bidding number...I read on line that you have to have show resisdency to register and a passport does not prove residency.So I took a bank statement showing our Cavendish address and that was accepted. Now I can use this card number all over Britain at any Peacock Auction. Greg will have to foot the bill.

After getting the card I asked around until I found someone who would move big stuff to London, however it was going to cost 110 pound and that was a big deterent for me. At 11:00 a.m. the auction began with a good-looking, tall, tie and suit auctioneer beginning the auction. He began by telling the few rules about the auction and thenhe said, "Nell, where are you?" He looked around till she identified herself and then he gave her a public dressing down for not picking up her goods from the week before. She sassed him back and he did the same to her but everyone got the point that you must pick up your stuff immediately.

The auction systematically goes around the room selling every crazy thing youcan think about. There were a number of very nice furniture pieces that I wanted and they went for 12 pounds for a china cabinet, 18 pounds for another. I was just sick at heart. So when it came time to bid on a little stool, I bid. However, I quit at 12 pounds. But when this little folding out side table came on, I knew I could take it home on my lap, so I bid until I got it for 18 pounds. By then Tonia andI knew who the dealers were, who the poorest people were, etc.

This was Tonia's first auction and she was taking it all in and loving it. She was amazed at the speed which the auction moved at...like 10 seconds for items to sell.This beautiful old display case with three glass sides and flocked fabric on the inside went for next to nothing. So after an hour there was a five minute break so the auctioneer could move his stand and gavel to another place in the room. I happened to be in his way and commented that I was sorry for him that he had to move his own furniture around.

There were about 4-7 old antique horns and instruments that went for 20 pounds.Tonia had seen them when we were walking around but I missed them. I would have bought them for Lurene and Tim if I would have had more than five seconds to think about it. Tonia reiterated to me that she wanted that table and chairs if it went for under100 pounds. I was on the other side of the room from her when the table came up for sale, so I bid to 65 pounds and got the two pedestal, one leaf table and six chairs. Then I was so sorry that I had not bought the other pieces offuniture for 12 pounds. However, I still had time to buy six items to send back to London in the hired truck with Tonia.

Before we went to the auction, Tonia and I were reading about it online and one of the pieces of information we read it said that it was just a myth that if you scratched your face you could be buying the item. We were happy about that. However, at one point in the auction, after I had purchased 3-4 items I did scratch my face. I was standing 3 feet to the side of the pulpit and the auctioneer looked at me, went five pounds higher on whatever item it was, and I looked back at him shocked and shook me head. Then as he was writing down the final bid, without evenl ooking at me, he said, "DO NOT SCRATCH YOUR FACE, MADAME!"Tonia and I just about died laughing. So then when I had to scratch my face I ducked way down to do it.

S ome of the poorest looking people at the auction would buy a corner pieceof furniture for 2 pounds. At one point in time after I had purchase somethingI forgot to show my number to the auctioneer, and had to pull it out of my pocket. I kind of mumbled, "Oh sorry, I am new at this". One of the dealers said back, "You seem to be doing a mighty good job of it."

I think we will go to St. Neots every Thursday. It was just so much fun and we did not even get to take it all in. Tomorrow is a viewing for the auction sale at Chiswick which is the antique auction sale that is featured on TV here. In talking to some of the folks, Tonia found out that people are not paying as much for things as they used to because there isn't much money anymore.She also found out that at St. Neots auction things are going cheaper than at the Bedford aution even though it is the same kind of stuff. There were boxes of old china and bowls going for 2 pounds for a large cardboard box. Even one nice bowl in that box would be worth more than 2 pounds. So all you visitors, put Thursday St. Neots auction on your schedule andyou can get back in plenty of time for the evening Westend shows.

Now I am off to get me a senior ticket for Benjamin Britten's 'The Turning of the Screw", an English opera, a hauntingly atmospheric and ambiguously twisted tale of domestic abuse and corrupted innocence. Greg is not coming with me...he is taking a big pass on this one and Tonia has gone out with a friend. I looked the opera up on line and told Greg and Tonia that the twleve-tone 'Screw' theme divides into equivalent tetrachords, each a segment of the circle of fifths but not having achieved any higher learning in music, they screwed up their faces at me.I even played them some you-tube pieces from it.

Arta is arriving on Monday morning. I am so excited to see her. We have shows four days in a row. The sad part is we have matinee tickets for Thursday afternoon so we will have to miss one day at St. Neots.

Love, Wyona