I digress.  I think I’ve more to say on the things I’ve blogged about in the past few days but this is a weblog after all: a day-to-day record to some extent.

He was a long-term supporter of the Sage’s auctions, both as a buyer and a seller.  He died rather more than a year ago, well in his eighties, and recently his widow has sold his collection, through a Norfolk auctioneer.  I’d not have been able to do the sale in the time she wanted, had she asked me – I might reluctantly have two sales in a year rather than one but it would have been just that, and I do have a lot of other clients, and she chose another auctioneer.

The first part of the sale was a few months ago and the second was today.  i didn’t buy first time round, though I went and had a good look and really liked some pieces … but the ones I liked best were too expensive and somehow I didn’t have the buying boots on that day.  Today, it seems I’d changed my shoes.

The journey was pretty dire.  It should have taken about an hour to get there, it took more than an hour and a half, simply because of roadworks with traffic lights.  But less simply, the first lot had gone wrong.  I saw, later, a post on a local website that said the temporary traffic lights had completely broken down and showed red in both directions, for hours.  When we went through, they were working erratically, allowing one car through before going red again and, though cars the other way seemed to come at a greater rate, the queue was awful.  So we resolved to come home a different way.  But even on the way there, there were three more lots of roadworks and many more traffic lights.

But we’d allowed time and all was fine.  We had time to view, for a snack lunch and to settle ourselves.  I met some old friends, one of whom I only had known by email and phone in the past, and was able to take the new address of someone I’d known for ages but whom I’d lost touch with.

I looked at the china and told LT what I particularly liked, but didn’t expect to buy.  But I ended up bidding for three lots and buying them – one, I was frankly helping the market, I just felt it was going too cheap and I’d liked it, I didn’t seriously expect to buy.  The other two, I’d identified as pieces I’d love to buy but only at the *right* price.

There was just one lot I missed, but I know who bought it and it’s gone to a good home. I waved my hand to bid once, but so did several other people and I just had to let it go, it went for too much money for me.  I congratulated the buyer afterwards – but I still have a sneaking regret.

Otherwise, I had a lovely time.  I first bid at a major auction some 28 years ago and have been used to visiting them for about 45 years – my mother bought much of her furniture at auction considerably earlier than that.  I’m not a collector at heart, I appreciate what it is to be one but i don’t share the compulsion or the expertise.  I have made the decision to have an item *at any price* on a few occasions (three, actually) but am usually very sensible.  Today, I have had the happy situation of feeling a bit recklessly extravagant, whilst also knowing that I’ve bought well and could (and won’t) sell on at a modest profit.  It seems that I’m more of a collector than  I thought I was and maybe have a hint of dealer in me too – only a hint though, as there were a number of items I know I could have bought and sold on at a profit, and didn’t care to bother.  I’m a genuine amateur, I’m in it simply for the love of it.