Do I Have any Bids?

by Beverly Sutton

One of my favorite summer activities is going to auctions. The excitement of a live, face-to-face auction is just too thrilling to pass up. With everything spread out on the tables and sitting on the ground, you get the feeling that you are going to find something terrific. As you pick up and inspect the items offered for sale, you hear the people around you muttering to themselves, and the excitement builds. You watch as they, too, pick up the items and wonder if they will be the one who will be bidding against you for something you absolutely have to have.

One June many years ago, I had read about an auction in an adjoining county. Since it was a beautiful Saturday morning, I decided to just strike out on my own and see if I could find it. I followed the directions in the auction ad as best I could and just drove until I saw the auction signs. The early summer heat was just beginning to build as the auction started. The usual pots and pans and linens were offered for bid first. Some very nice china was put up. A few pieces of antique furniture were auctioned just to keep the momentum going. And, as the heat began to build, so did the excitement as everyone got into the auction spirit, and hands began flying.

Just as I was thinking I should be making my way home, the auctioneer pulled a box out from under a table. I hadn't seen that box. How did I miss it? I thought I had looked at everything! Curiosity got the best of me; I had to stay! The auctioneer pulled a cookie jar, a teapot and a smaller pottery piece out for everyone to view. The teapot and the smaller piece matched; the cookie jar was totally different, but it had a cute squirrel at the edge of the jar. All three pieces were gorgeous! At that time, I was not a cookie jar collector, but I immediately knew I liked what I saw. All three pieces for one money was the call by the auctioneer. He called out for bids. Everyone stood there waiting for someone to raise their hand. He finally started them at $5, and three of us raised our hands! Drats! Someone else liked them, too. But, with just a little perseverance, I became the victor and got all three pieces for $10. I carried my purchase to the clerk, paid for them, and made my way home with a smile on my face and joy in my heart.

I placed them in my china cabinet when I got home and looked at them and smiled. I looked at the every day and smiled! I just knew they were more valuable than what I had paid for them. A trip to the library a few days later quickly made my heart race even more than when I first saw them. They WERE valuable! Very valuable! The cookie jar turned out to be Goldilocks by Regal. The teapot was called Little Red Riding Hood. The smaller piece was called the Little Red Riding Hood mustard jar. Total value of my $10 auction purchase turned out to be over 100 times what I paid!

Ever since that great auction day, I have been collecting cookie jars. Over the years, I have also added to my collection several pieces of the Little Red Riding Hood line, including, of course, a cookie jar. Deals like that don't happen every day to a collector, and none quite of that magnitude have happened to me since. But, it is the thrill of the hunt and the ultimate find that makes collecting worth every minute. But, one word of caution: BEWARE! Auctions and cookie jar collecting can be addictive.