absent.canadian

… that this safe is entirely safe.

Meet Matilda – my new safe.  ”New” is used a bit loosely here; Matilda is probably the better part of a century old, give or take.  She made the hike from Virginia to North Carolina this morning and is now resting gently in my living room.

And why are old safes so cool?  I’m not entirely sure.  It might be the little wheels on the bottom, or the 4″ thick door, or the well-worn brass handle on the front.  It may be the “secrets” that it could tell if it could talk.  Or it might be the fact that it weighs almost as much as the upright piano sitting next to it, despite being a fraction of the size.

Matilda was made by The Wehrle Company in Newark, Ohio.  I actually don’t know much else about her; some safes have their owners’ names painted on them, but Matilda received a rather indignant coat of spraypaint at some point in her past.  I’m still deciding whether to let her patina show, or whether to restore her to her original safekeeping splendor.

But either way, she’s going to make a fantastic conversation piece in my living room.

No, not that kind of anniversary, silly.

Today is my 10th eBay anniversary.

On October 4th, 1999, I found a wonderful old book on eBay; a copy of Margaret Atwood’s “The Journals of Susanna Moodie”.  It was a book I had been looking for at length, and I hurriedly filled out the application to become an eBay member when I saw its pages gazing out at me from the funny little auction website.

Zoom ahead 10 years.  I’ve bought everything eBay–including a motorcycle, a computer, school books, antique pens, kitchen knives, car parts, and even a palmistry reading (yes, I can be an occasional sucker for these things).  In the early days I bought money orders at the post office; that evolved into my long-standing love with PayPal.  And I also sell now; some of my long-time readers may recall my profitable divestment of most of my film cameras in 2005, courtesy of eBay.

In fact, it’s gotten to the point that I will often do the bulk of my shopping on eBay.  The savings are often substantial, and I never have to deal with the hassles of busy stores, salespeople–not to mention the realities of substantial depreciation.

Thanks, eBay.  I know things haven’t always been perfect, but you’ve come through more than enough for this user.