This week, it’s my pleasure to introduce Doug Sparks, postmaster and
self-proclaimed "cautious entrant into the 21st century."
Since I met him in a transaction on an online auction site, it’s appropriate
that he’s writing about his experiences online, specifically about online
auctions. To us eBay bidders, he is "multimonger," to three kids, he
is Dad, and you can reach him by e-mail at chappedmind@juno.com.
Welcome, Doug. It’s great to have you ravin’ about your rovin’ on the
Internet. And, though it may be difficult, we do forgive you for the remark
about overkill in regard to
Gone with the Wind. You aren’t from around here,
are you? Mike
Copyright © 2000 by Doug Sparks, All rights reserved
I
live in a small town in the North Carolina mountains. I never thought that we
would have an exit on the information highway, but here we are in a new
millennium, interconnected to the one big e-family of computer users. Like most
people, I used to think "Why do I need a computer; what would I do with
it?" But my family talked me into it, and after we got accustomed to it,
eventually we got "Connected!"
The
more I learn about this invisible organism they call the Internet, the less
confident I am to understand how truly vast it is. It seems like that old story
about the blind men describing an elephant; each one thinks he has a grasp of
the thing, but none of them actually comprehends the whole. In our own small
way, each of us is gripping a tail or an ear; but do we have hold of this
animal, or does it have a squeeze on us?
I
first got involved in cyber-commerce last summer. Some friends of mine have an
auction gallery, and they asked me to consider posting some small items on
Internet auction. These were items that had value, but just weren't worth
putting through the traditional auction process. I agreed to explore the idea. I
started a sharp learning curve, and am now actively selling every week. What an
eye-opening endeavor! As my wife says, you wouldn't believe what people will
actually pay money for! It's as if there are millions of eyeballs out there
staring at their monitors chanting "show me something, show me
something".
There
are folks out there right now gathering awesome collections. Of what? You name
it; you can't name it. Individuals specialize in the most minute, arcane things
imaginable. To illustrate, lets look at pies. You could collect pies, but there
are so many different varieties. You narrow it down to pie crusts; but there are
so many kinds (sugar-top, graham cracker, lattice, vent-holes, no-holes).
So,
you limit your collection to the crinkled, scalloped edge of the crust
(technical term: fluting), but only blackberry (although you might consider some
cherry). Next, you begin corresponding and comparing your knowledge with other
piecrust fluting collectors. You learn that the best and most desirable flutes
come from 1965-1967; remember the drought in '64 produced a sorry wheat crop and
less-than-ideal flour. DDT was banned in '68, and the parasites hampered the
quality of wheat flour after that. And so it goes, and goes, and goes.…
In
the end, I think, it's not the sports cards, the vintage wine, or the stamp
collection that really excites us. It's the thrill of the hunt, the satisfaction
of completing a full set, the joy of finally getting that elusive item you've
been stalking for a long time. That's the pleasure we seek!
One
of my sayings is "you can live your whole life on eBay",
and you can! Like all computer involvements, you need to establish boundaries or
it will take over your life. I read that Internet traffic doubles every 100
days. A person simply cannot keep up with the expansion of technology.
For
example: I collect slide rules: six inch miniatures/corporate logos. (I know;
it's obscure). I knew there were thousands of them out there in the hands of the
old professors, scientists, and pilots who used to use them everyday. But how do
I get to them? I made a few unsuccessful efforts through retired professional
journals, and then I stumbled onto eBay. What a revelation! In 1998 when I first
started browsing, there would be a page of slide rules up for auction; there are
now 200-300 on sale each day. Impossible! I post about 10 items for auction each
week; any more would be imposing on my real life (boundaries!).
Just
as in real life, the computer world offers everything; good and bad, danger and
opportunity. There is cyber-crime, cyber-shopping, cyber-fraud, cyber-romance.
My oldest son met his girlfriend through electronic communication; they now
attend the same college and have a very solid relationship. It can happen!
As
we get involved in our own little cyber-worlds, we sometimes forget that there
are millions of eyes out there watching. If you make even a tiny mistake, they
spring like tigers to alert you that THEY KNOW you are wrong. (Don't take it
personally, you'll do the same to them.)
I
try to research my auction items and describe them as accurately as possible,
but occasionally I make a mistake. Hawk-eyed browsers let me know immediately!
Like the time I referred to the "late" Loretta Lynn (not being a
country music fan). Hostile e-mails corrected me real fast!
My
buyers also give me a glimpse of how narrow an existence can become with the
assistance of computers. One lady was ecstatic to win an autographed photo of
Butterfly McQueen. She told me she couldn't wait to hang it in her "Gone
With the Wind Room". Hello, overkill. Another time I was selling a very
nice Audubon print, and described the background as a neutral color. A man
e-mailed: "What color neutral? Is it tan? Beige? Gray?" This guy needs
some fresh reality in his diet!
Have
fun! Plug into whole new galaxies of knowledge out there. But be sure to set
limits that make sure your computer is your pet and not your master. Keep
priorities in perspective; a CD-ROM will never sit up in your lap and say
"I love you, Daddy".
____________
It’s
Mike, again, with lots of links for Internet auctions for you.
Time
Magazine has two good articles on online auctions as well as this
list of online auctions:
www.pathfinder.com/time/digital/reports/ecommerce/auction.html
Here
is "The eBay Revolution" from Time:
www.pathfinder.com/time/poy/ebay.html
And
here is "Auction Nation" from Time:
www.pathfinder.com/time/poy/auction.html
Here
is BoxLot Communities, which I stumbled upon while searching for these links:
About.com’s
guide to Online Shopping offers lists of general, multiple, and specialty
auction sites:
http://onlineshopping.about.com/shopping/onlineshopping/msubmenu8.htm
Keep
your feet dry, your heart full of noble thoughts… and by the way, wouldn’t
this be a great week to clean out the attic and try your hand and mouse at
online auctions?
Rovin' on the Internet: Online Adventures