PW02 - Bidding on Death Read Online Free PDF

I was abo ut to shut the door , but Amy hauled out some old chenille bedspreads that had been behind the box. “What about these?” she asked.
    “Those are no good,” I told her. “They’ve got tears in them. I don’t know why I haven’t pitched them.”
    “We’ll take a look,” said Amy, tucking the bedspreads under her arm and following me to the office.
    There we started pulling out tablecloths, draping them over the sofa, the recliner, and on the floor. Amy nodded happily. “Nice. Good condition, great graphics, very true to the era. These ought to do well. So – you want to sell them?”
    “Sure, if it’s not too complicated,” I said.
    “No problem,” Amy assured me. “We’ll have you eBuying in no time. Now. Got a digital camera?”
    Ooh, I’d been wanting one of those for a while now! “No,” I told her regretfully.
    “So we’ll use mine.” Amy rooted around in her oversized shoulderbag. “Mine if I install my camera driver on your computer? You can always uninstall it later. Or just leave it if you get the same kind of camera.”
    I waved her toward the computer. “Feel free.”
    Amy sat down in my chair and briskly got to work. I chuckled. “I can remember a time when installing a device driver was something ‘the IT guy’ did, much too esoteric for mere mortals.”
    “Huh,” said young Amy absently.
    Julia knew me too well. “Now, don’t start, Cissy,” she admonished me. “We don’t need to get into card decks and mag tape s .”
    “Do you even know what card decks and mag tape s are?” I asked her.
    “No, and I don’t want to,” she said stoutly. “I just know they’re your equivalent of walking to school three miles through the snow, uphill both ways.”
    I couldn’t deny it. “These kids today,” I said.
    “Exactly.”
    “Done,” said Amy. “Let’s take some pictures!”
    Well, I immediately fell in love with the digital camera. The little screen that shows you your pictures! No more taking your film out to be developed, only to get them back and discover you had your thumb over the lens, or you’d chopped off the top of people’s heads, or that the target item was out of focus. “I must have one!” I declared.
    This was going to be wildly useful. Not just for listing things on eBuy, but to create the winery website I’d been saying I was going to make since the dawn of the world wide web.
    First, of course, I had to take pictures of Tough Stuff (who was scowling down on us from his perch on the high shelf) and Polly. Then we got down to business. We spread out and took photos of tablecloths, with Amy dictating appetizing auction copy for each one.
    Then, incredibly, she raved about the bedspreads. “But look at that big hole!” I protested.
    “Doesn’t matter,” Amy said knowledgably. “Oh, you’d get more if they were pristine, but these will sell, trust me. Put the word ‘cutter’ in the listing title. Start them at ten bucks apiece and I’ll eat them if they don’t sell; I’d bet they’ll finish higher than that. ”
    “What’s a cutter?” Julia asked.
    “That’s a fabric item that’s not usable for its original purpose, but still have value for crafters. Someone will buy these bedspread s for the great designs on them and repurpose them as pillows or other craft items.” Amy held up the chenille bedspread. “Look at this great central medallion, and the damage is on the edges. Someone could cut out the center and turn it into the cover of a crib quilt.”
    “Golly, if torn bedspreads are saleable, I’ll bet I’ve got a lot of things around here worth something!” I exclaimed.
    Amy nodded. “You’d be surprised. Seriously, ladies, don’t throw things out without checking on eBuy. That’s the most important lesson to take away today.”
    We returned to the computer. Julia showed me the cookie jar she was bidding on. Amy showed me her eBuy listings. She already had several of those pieces of Ruba Rombic listed, and they