My new addiction

About two months ago, Donna and I just happened to come along an auction that was going on in a business. We stopped in to see what was up and I was immediately hooked. The people, the buzz of the auctioneer....Man, it was too much fun!

I was able to pick up a HUGE barrel fan at this sale for 100.00....Once I was able to buy something, I REALLY knew I was hooked!

I got the website for the auction company and started to follow their auctions and I have been going to one about every two weeks or so. I went to my second one and was able to pick up some art from an artist we like, Dalhart Windberg. Donna and I were able to meet this artist a few years ago and he is an AMAZING painter....Have been wanting some of his stuff for a few years.

The next auction I went to, I was able to pick up some silver mercury dimes and some old half dollars and was also able to get a cool stacking tool box I have wanted for a while....I have had a TON of fun at these things!

About a year or so ago, an old friend came to visit me and stay the weekend. It was FREEZING cold outside and we like to sit out on the front porch and watch the deer, just chill out, and have some drinks... But this weekend, it was bitter cold!

Felipe showed up and he said

"I brought my smudge pot"

and I had never heard of a smudge pot.....

We went to his truck, unloaded this thing from the back and I was clueless as to what this thing was or how it worked.

He explained that you fill it with diesel, open the flue in it, drop a flaming piece of paper down the up-tube and WAH-LAH, this thing lights and puts off some amazing heat. I was stunned!!

He explained that these were used in the fruit orchards to keep the frost off of the fruit when the freezes would come. They would light these in the rows of trees and they generate so much heat, the fruit is saved from the frost.

Now not only are these things very cool heater, they are WAY cool to watch and listen to.

Because of their design, the air flows through them in a way that it causes the flame to roll up the tube. On the tube are holes all the way around it where you can see the flame shoot out of it and it makes a wop, wop, wop noise (kinda like a fan) as the fuel burns. Then, when they get really hot, the metal of the stove pipe starts to glow.

Man, these things are AWESOME for outside parties in the mountains, on the beach and even on my front porch in the Hill Country. After seeing Felipe's smudge pot, I knew I had to have one. The two things his was missing was the rack it sits on and one of the breather tubes, but it was still wayyyyy cool!!

So I started to hunt for them. I found them on ebay for 100+ dollars and just didn't want to pay that much for one....It wasn't long before the cool-ness wore off and I wasn't interested in buying one anymore....

Yesterday Donna and I went to an auction, we got there early to look around and this auction was set at an old airplane hanger and home where people lived and gave flying lessons....There was crap EVERYWHERE!!!

As we walked around, I saw a couple of things I wanted and then we went to one of the out buildings....An old trailer that was sitting on the ground and it was PACKED full of crap....Wires, maybe 100 oil pans from airplane motors, jugs for airplane motors, wire, insulation....juts packed FULL of crap....Then I saw it... in the back of the trailer, in the middle of all this CRAP, there it was.....A friggin smudge pot, buried in all that crap!!

I pointed it out to Donna and went into the belly of the beast of junk to look at it. It was in perfect condition! Had the rack, all the parts....the top....I HAD TO HAVE IT!!

I called Felipe to see how much was too much for this pot and he told me I could be safe at 50.00 but one of his was 100.00...Donna snapped a picture to send for a text and caught me in it looking at the smudge pot..

We stood there for a while and watched people go through all the junk in that trailer and NO ONE gave that smudge pot a second look.... People were like me when I first saw it, they had NO CLUE!!

Well, the auction went on and it was dragging along....There was SOOOOOO much crap at this place and not too much I wanted. I went up to one of the auctioneers and asked...

"Hey man, I cant be here all day and I was wondering....If I grab a piece out of that old shed and put it out here, will you guys auction it off and give me a chance at it?"

"Sure thing, go get it!"

So I drug it out, got it in front of the auctioneer, they described it briefly, and then we were off....

"Do I hear five dollars....five dollars....anyone give me five dollars....?"

My hand went up....

"ten...do I hear ten??? Thank you....15.....do I hear 15....15.dollars....????"

My hand went up....

Now 20...20....20...do I have 20.... thank you.....25....25....25..."

My hand went up...

"30....do I have 30....30 dollars....do I have 30..... Thank you....now 35....35....35...???"

My hand went up....

40....do I have 40....40 dollars....do i have 40 Dollars??? Are we all done here??? 40 dollars??? 35 going once, 35 going twice......SOLD, number 56, for 35.00!!"

BAM, it was mine!!

GOOD LORD I AM ADDICTED!!

Luckily, I have been pretty good about not impulse buying and coming home with a ton of CRAP!! I mean I see people buying old animal furs and old laundry hampers...boxes of old plastic cups....just JUNK...If i ever get to that point, I am going to have to give this all up!!

So I think its pretty cool that I have the pictures of the first smudge pot I ever saw and that made me want one....Then the picture of me finding one....and then a picture of me using my new toy....Pretty cool how it all came together!! Cant wait to have it for a party or get together and have pictures of people all around it enjoying the warmth, the flames and the soothing sound it makes as it burns.....

SCORE!!!!!!!!!!!