Greetings all,
Those who know me may be aware I have been struggling
with an illness that includes a bad cough and weakness for a few
months. I have gone to a lung specialist for medication and last
night spent the night in a "sleep center" studying my brain waves
and breathing patterns (VERY weird) and will be using a breathing
type device during sleep from now on.
Anyway, the point of all this is I have been delayed in getting
the auction catalog up on line in a timely manor. In addition, since
the rent on the place I hold the auction has TRIPLED since last
year, I have had to come up with some ways to cover that cost, and
one of them is a graduated fee for sellers based on time they provide
me with a list and quality jpg of their item(s). However, since I am
late getting my catalog up (target date was Sept. 30!) I have decided
to give a "special" to all list members who get me their item lists and
JPGs before midnight, Sunday, Pacific time. They will get the lowest
rate offered, which those who got in before Sept. 30 got - the same
10% I have charged all along.
NOTE: Entries graduate as bidding time starts all the way up to 40%
if you walk into the auction in the last 15 minutes before bidding begins.
MANY people have done so in the past, and they will be helping to pay
for the dramatic increase in overhead. I believe at the moment, a mere
15% is in effect - but as I said, for the weekend all list members get the
10% lowest possible commission rate.
I do plan on having the catalog "up" within 72 hrs - in fact, I
commit to doing so right now. However, I cannot guarantee ALL the photos
will be "up" when I "launch" but several are in place all ready and I am
working on it even now. I have 75 items to date, most of which have NO
minimum bid and many of which are superb specimens (ie a 6.5g whole
slice of LA 002 with no minimum - as well as many historic falls as well as
super rare NWA Type specimens, etc). I am looking at limiting the catalog
to 100 quality items and limit last minute entries to the highest quality
specimens with little or no minimum. This should keep the auction snappy
and ending at a reasonable hour - and I hope to have someone taking payments
DURING the auction for those who only wanted to bid on one or two items
and then leave as well as having two people "cash out" at the end (if
possible).
As always, I retain the right to decline any entries I believe would
meet with less than enthusiastic response from bidders. This is always a
balancing act between value, rarity and no or low minimum bidding, except in
cases where the value or interest is so low I will not accept it even with
no minimum. Any item must be one that stimulates interest.
While photos do not have to be professional quality, they do need to
be in focus and of reasonable quality.
Please mark the SUBJECT box of your email entries, " Tucson
Auction." If you do not hear back from me within 12 hrs or less, your email
got lost. Please use only JPGs and NOT "Zip Files," as I cannot download
most of them.
Thanks! The catalog will be up SOON!
Best wishes, Michael
--
It is difficult to get a man to understand something if his
salary depends on him not understanding it.
- Upton Sinclair
--
What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know.
It is what we know for sure that just ain't so.
- Josh Billings (but oft credited to Mark Twain)
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