Treasure Hunting
2006-01-30, 9:46 a.m.

I�ve heard people remark that one could find one�s own grandmother for sale on eB@y. They have EVERYTHING. Turns out, they�re right.

Every so often for kicks I�ll type in the names of our hometowns to see what�s up for grabs. It�s fun to see items from small SC and NC towns offered for sale by folks in Vermont. I�m always curious as to exactly how a 1957 H0liday Inn flyer from Da Burg made it into their possession, and wish these little items could tell their stories. Well, a few nights ago, we happened upon an amazing prize and can share the tale of two such things:

Fresh from an estate sale in New York, 2 postcards sent from NC in 1915, with handwritten notes by Hubby�s grandmother who died when he was 9, a tough little lady who loved her garden and was twice-widowed and raised 5 children on her own.

Yes, we�re sure. We�ve verified it not only from certain clues in the notes themselves, but also by calling MIL and checking the signature. Definitely her.

Let the bidding war begin.

You would not think that with the millions of choices out there that anyone else would be interested in an old postcard from a tiny NC town. Bidding is currently at $31. The family has very few mementos of Hubby�s grandma, and this is something that needs to be in the family, and I am not about to nickel-and-dime it out of our possession. So, betting on the inherent goodness of people, I did two things:

1. I emailed the seller, asking if she had any more items at all signed by his grandma. Postcards, notes, scrap paper, whatever. I told her why, and hoped for the best. The seller is now totally psyched, plowing through her entire collection, and tickled with having a story behind these bits of paper. By �entire collection�, I mean 3000 postcards (not kidding, she was keeping a bunch from the estate sale and had already mixed them into her private stash) and God-only-knows how many antique greeting cards. So far she�s found a couple of birthday cards and will probably unearth more. She rocks. Once the current auctions are complete, I will share a link to her auctions, so buy from her, she has great stuff, and she is awesome.

2. Tempting vengeance from the touchy gods of eB@y, I pulled up the current bidding history and emailed the other buyer who keeps bidding against me. According to his purchase history, he collects antique postcards from that region of NC. I did not ask him or intend for him to cease and desist; I only told him why I�m bidding on that particular card (as well as one other), and asked that should he win, if he would be willing to make a photocopy of the note on the card for us. He emailed me this morning saying that he will gladly no longer bid on the card, and his only request was that I send him a color copy of the front of the card. More proof that good folks abound. I will gold-plate the copy and deliver it to him on my knees if I have to.

The auction for that postcard has about 7 hours left, and you bet I�ll be glued to eB@y and hitting �refresh� every .008 seconds on a sniper hunt. Same for the second card, but I have three more days on that one.

In a week or two Hubby is going to the little hamlet to do his turn at momsitting, as MIL is recovering from knee replacement surgery a week ago. Hopefully by then he will have postcard in hand, ready to pay a visit to his beloved uncle at the nursing home. His uncle is the older of grandma�s two last living children. He was born in 1918, is in the home only because circulatory problems have rendered him unable to walk, and is the most jovial, intelligent, upbeat person you could ever hope to meet. He and Hubby have always had a special bond, and now Hubby can give him a precious little gift, a piece of his mother from so long ago.

As long as you keep looking and believing, you will always find someone and something good.

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