PLUM CrAZy!

Well, well, well.... Last Sunday marked the 1 YEAR anniversary of the day I ACTUALLY made the move to embark on my AUCTIONEER journey. I spent the day 1p-7ishp calling bids & spotting bidders @ the Plum Catholic Church Feast in little ole' PLUM, TEXAS.

It's SO funny to me. As I was riding over there in the truck with Uncle Melvin - I remembered how NerVouS I was just 1 year ago. I talk A LOT, so we weren't short of conversation, but last year I was saying my auction chant, asking him if I sounded okay, asked him what I needed to do if THIS scenario happened or THAT scenario happened, or if I just lost the bidder (which did happen the 1st year :)). Then he told me what we were going to do and what I was going to do first. This year those worries were LONG gone :). Thank goodness! PLUM CraZy how things change with just a little bit of experience...

Thank you Ms. Stephanie Antosh for the pics!

The people there are SO nice. Every community is close, but the thing that stands OUT about Plum (to me) is how PROUD everyone is of their community, church, people, kids, grandkids, other peoples' grand kids, feasts, food, business owners...YOU name it! If they like ya...they'll let you know and anyone that will listen know. Keep in mind...they know EVERYTHING about ya (if you're part of the community)...like, if you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, how you got you're butt whooped by a tree limb, what political office you're runnin' for, old debts from 10 years ago that finally get paid off, what you got your college degree in, what families need to be biddin' on baby quilts :)...I mean...NEVER, EVER short of entertainment or knowledge.

I was walking to the truck when I had a little break...around 5 & finally ate something (BTW-They feed you some kinda good. I'm pretty sure I'll make 3 meals out of their one plate.) Anyways....the ground is dry, we are all literally ENGULFED in HEAT (PLUM ridiculous how HOT it was) and I see some younger girls in their shorts & tank tops & it just brought me back to how BLESSED I feel for growin' up the way I did. I mean...It was HOT! Have I told you that already? Yet...supporters of the CHURCH stuck around to bid on items, drink a few brews, and dance a little jig...instead of headin' for the house, their AC, and the boob tube :). It was COUNTRY LIVIN' @ it's Finest and I'm glad to be a part of it.

It was good to see some kind, familiar faces & meet some new people too. It's also nice to reflect back & I have to say...I'm pretty stinkin' PROUD of myself for BUCKIN' UP and gettin' on that stage & callin' bids. Folks...It all started right there...in PLUM, TX. It (surprisingly & unexpectedly to me) opened up a whole new world & a whole new vision. I'm still not quite sure why it took me as long as it did, but you know TIMING can mean a whole lot & only the GOOD LORD knows when things are right

Funny to think that before this auction business... the last memory I had of Plum, TX was learnin' how to dance & gettin in an EGG & food war at a friend's house. Now that....was PLUM CrAzY....and pretty disgusting, but we all had a BLAST.

I want to say a BIG thanks to everyone that showed up at the PLUM feast: the bidders, donors, volunteers, & patrons. THANKS also for welcoming me back! EVERYONE should go PLUM CraZY every once in a while.

BUCK UP BABY! Do what you want to....as long as you ain't hurtin' nobody! You'll be glad ya did! God Bless! Until next time....

Heather Kaspar
Licensed Auctioneer
TDLR LIC#17037

Catchin' Up on the Goins On....

I know....I KNOW.... It's been awhile. Let's just say that I've been so cotton pickin' busy on complicated real life things, that I've been slackin' a little bit on my bloggin'. It also didn't help that I have been off and on with my computer for a WHILE........... I had to send it off a month or so ago to let the techs work on it. It took about a week. Then, when I got it back - they had fixed the problem, but then somethin' else didn't work. SO....I sent it off again. (Took another week almost.) Then we had wild & wooly weather come through Rockport & my INET was down for almost a week. Let's just say that I've been playin' lots of catch up...& I'm still not caught up BUT...I"m back :)! It AMAZES me at how important my computer and my Internet are to me now....

Well...I thought I'd get ya'll a little caught up on everything. Since I last wrote. I've helped out a few auctions. Me & Unlce Mele helped the RTC Varsity Volleyball Team raise over $9000 for their trip to Florida to the ESPN Invitational HS Tournament!! Way to represent!!  We're all proud of ya! Big props to all the bidders, donors, & volunteers too!

I also called bids at a Theatre Auction supporting the Rockport-Fulton Theatre Department. They were invited to attend the National Thespian Conference in Nebraska...and PERFORM!!! It was AMAZING at how talented these kids are! It was a smaller auction, with a really mixed group of people. Some had been to auctions before and some had not, but I think everybody had a GREAT time!! The first time I didn't use a PA :). I think I entertained'm! Break a leg in Nebraska! Big THANKS goes out to all the bidders, donors, & volunteers also!

Members of the cast & crew helping with chores at the fundraiser venue: Estelle Stair Art Gallery in Downtown Rockport! Big THANKS to Mr. & Mrs. Frederick!

Award Winning Cast & Crew!

A lot more is goin' on in my life right now... AUCTIONS & otherwise....and I will do my best to share what I will. We're gonna be shakin' things up a bit in the Kaspar household & not quite sure where, when, and how it's all gonna go down yet, but BUCK UP BABY. My ride has been pretty WiLD this year, but I have a feelin' I ain't seen nothin' yet. LIFE is gettin' ready to GRUNT, curl up to the sun, and give us all it's got. You better believe we'll be whoopin' and ridin' as hard and fast as the GOOD LORD needs us to. Wild rides lead to WiLd stories, so stay tuned :)! I promise it won't be a month until the next one!

OH! A couple weeks ago, at ELCO Auction in Odem, we were able to sell the 1998 AC Delco #3 Monte Carlo, 1st chassis built by Dale Earnhardt Inc, & the VERY SAME CAR that Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his 1st two championships in! I have to say it was pretty cool! The auction house was set up kinda like a car auction & we drove through the cars. If the car didn't sell there it was headed to Barrett Jackson. 

Creating That Sense of Urgency

First off.... I apologize for my lack of posting lately. Hopefully...over the next few months I'll be able to share stories with you about the last couple months :)!

At the last general consignment auction I helped at, we did things a little different.

We started the auction out....like we always do. Well...we had A LOT of items and not near as many bidders as we did the month before. I call bids closer to the end and you could tell that there was VERY little interest in some of the items... It was kind of like we were pulling teeth to get a $5 bid at times - so a couple of the auctioneers decided to ShAkE things up a little bit.

It seemed a little CHAOTIC at first, and it was a little hard for the clerk to keep up with everything going on because we were skipping ahead 20 lots, then we'd go back 10, etc. I have to say though...that she did a FANTASTIC job. She's good...

So instead of beggin' for a bid, we asked the bidders to tell us WHAT they wanted to bid on. One of the other auctioneers would go with them, get the lot number they wanted to bid on, we'd get it up on the screen - so everyone knew what we were selling. The person that wanted that lot - started the bid. Then I auctioned it off and we went from there. We developed a system and kind of had the Auctioneers/Ringmen take turns with the people that came to them for an item.

I DEFINITELY have never seen that done, BUT it did the job. It was the end of the day and folks were kinda sittin' there with their eyes glazed over. This made them get up to their feet, so they could bid on what they wanted. If they wanted it - they had the chance to take it home if they were high bidder & we didn't have to worry about passing over items. AUCTIONS are ALL about URGENCY! This helped pep things up a bit!

I had to share that story. You never know what could happen at an auction and every one I go to, I seem to get put in a little different situation.

Be expecting MORE posts this week. I've got a lot of catchin' up to do. Remember to BUCK UP BABY! I kinda feel like the pony express! I've been ridin' hard in SO many different directions - I can't seem to catch up. Don't fret though....everything will wind down eventually and I'll have some pretty cool stories to tell :).

Thankful Thursday: Junk Proms

I KNOW I've talked about the FANTABULOUS Junk Proms in several of my blogs & how WONDERFUL they are & how THANKFUL I am that the Rockin' & Rollin' Junksters @ The Junk Gypsy Company know how to THROW a PaRtY!!! I've seen it grow every show & have seen some of the WiLdEst Get-UPS, feathery hats, SPARKLY enembles, and CrAzY WiLd Women....havein' a ball!

Kacie & I found these dresses at a Jr. League Rummage Sale in Corpus  Christi.  We cut off the  metallic belts it came with, added our own....& a little FRINGE!

We called ourselves the Sequin Squad :). (Me, Sister Mandy, Cousin Staci,  Kacie Leah w/ Rowdy Maui & Long-time friend & photographer Shannon Buck!)

There are a couple of reasons I am SO thankful for this:

1) It gives me & my friends a chance to dress up as sparkly, CrAzY, & feathery as we want to - with hair as BIG as our teasing combs will make it & just go out and have a BALL. There are groups of people (not just the ladies) that come from ALL over EVERY show - to partake in the festivities! If you've never been...you need to BUCK UP BABY! Turn yourself loose, put 'yer boots on, find you a prom dress or a tutu & head on over to Warrenton!! You'll be glad you did.

Both tutus in the center are home-made! Just add feathers, chunky jewelry, flowers, hats, boots,  blingy belts...whatever you want & you've got your outfit!
LOVE my friends: Dayna, Kaysie, Aubrey, & Me!

2) The growth of the prom should be a HUGE inspiration for ANYBODY that has a Dream.... I've said it and I'll say it again (maybe a little different this time) If the SauCY SIKES family can figure out a way to make a livin' - MOvin' to & LIVIN' in little ole' Round Top, TEXAS - with a population of 84 people - than that should be enough PROOF for anybody that you CAN do what YOU wanna do, WHERE you wanna do it!! Most people HAVE to move to metroplexes for work & the Junk Gypsies get to live in a little piece of HEAVEN that I call home.

Alli, Kacie, & Myself!

I'm not sayin' it happens overnight.... Remember... IT'S ALL ABOUT THE JOURNEY! I feel BLESSED to be able to partake in the RoWdY, FUN-filled Shenanigans of Junk Prom & witness the growth of something that started out as a big ole dream of a couple of really cool cats!

We look like EASTER! (My new friend Lindsey, Shannon, & Myself)

The pics in this blog post are from this past Spring Junk Prom the Thursday before Easter. If you are hopin' to make the next one and need some help figurin' out what kinda duds to where check out some of my other blogs:
Special December JUNK PROM!!!
Shootin' Commercials, Catchin' Bids, & a Little JG Prom Thrown in There Too!
The Baddest, Raddest, Mamma Jammas of the Antique Fair

Me & my LONG time friend Crystal in the JG tent!

We were able to get the "men-folk" to come along this time! You can see I couldn't get the Hubby to dress up, but he had a GREAT time!

This pic's a little dark, but here I am with MORE friends & our blinking red HGTV Junk Gypsy Necklaces!
(Lindsey, April, Ali, Myself, Kaysie, & Dayna)

I feel like I've been slackin' a bit in the blogging world, BUT there are LOTS of exciting things that I'll be sharing with you over the next few months, so BUCK UP BABY & get ready for the ride! Until next time...

-Heather Kaspar
Auctioneer TDLR LIC#17037

ELCO General Consignment Auction THIS Saturday!

Come on out for the General Consignment Auction in Odem THIS Saturday! There's a little bit of somethin' for everyone.... Antique cars, Rolexes, guns, knives, coins, old paper $$, china, pottery, glassware, jewelry, vintage beer &  Coca-Cola signs and I'm sure somethin' to suit your fancy!

Go to the ELCO website for more information & how to register - website! AUCTION starts at 10AM. If you can't be there physically & you see something you'd like to have....give'm a call & bid LIVE on the phone OR see what else you guys may be able to work out. Check out some of the pics below. I hope to see ya'll there!!

How cool is this?! Seriously....

1964 Corvair Convertible: IT RUNS!! & has new parts to go with it!

1978 Rochell Craft Jet Boat, 460 V8

2002 Harley with only 3800 miles!

3 piece set of handpainted oriental vases

Confederate War Bond  interest Jan. 1865

Signed by George Foreman

Mille-fleur Necklace and Bracelet Set

Come one, come all! Get ready to throw your hands up & have a ball!!! Until next time....Buck Up Baby!!!
-Heather Kaspar
TDLR LIC#17037

Church Auction THIS Saturday!!

HELLO Everyone!!! There is a church auction THIS Saturday for Grace United Methodist Church in Annaville, TX! There are LOTS of items in very good shape, such as: appliances, electronics, pews, chairs, tables, furniture, sound equipment, toys, decorations, and signs. Be sure to check out the pics!

Portable Stage

Over 40 MATCHING church pews in great condition!

Projector...

Stove & Vent Hood

St. Francis Garden Statue. 

Desk

This is a no reserve auction which means - EVERYTHING GOES!! All proceeds benefit the church!! Auction opens @ 8AM & starts @ 10AM. Items can be viewed online OR Friday 9-5. Be sure to check out the gallery online for more pics. The link is above. Hope to see you!!

Thankful Thursday: My Journals

Today, I am thankful for my journals. They give me a place to unload my thoughts on topics that no one else would understand. It is also a place where I can document life events, current events, and my thoughts & reactions towards them.

Here is one of my prettiest journals. 

I am also thankful for them because they remind me of where I've been, what I have done, and how I have handled different situations. They tell my story.

Here is one I've started and never finished. I'm sure I have a few more like that in boxes :).

I have stuff in there about family, friends, unforgetable memories, disagreements, WORK, frustrations, my emotions, horses, dreams, goals, you name it....it's probably in there. 

This one was really cool. It helped me reflect on my friendships & made me acknowledge a good  & bad part of my day.

If you don't journal, think about starting. Just think....your GREAT - great Grand kids could read them one day and you may be able to help them, without even meeting them! It's also a GREAT way to clear your mind.

This is my current one. 

BUCK UP BABY!! Go write down what you're THANKFUL for today!!!! God Bless!!