"I probably won't stay long; I'm not gonna bid on anything."
Yesterday I went to the 16th annual Lobster Fest held by Gerry Hyland, Mount Vernon district supervisor. For those of you who don't get down in the weeds of local politics, Fairfax County is governed by a board of supervisors, who are elected, like a school board. Gerry Hyland is the supervisor for the district I live in, which is heavily democratic. He's held the office since 1988.
The Lobster Fest is held outdoors at a local farm. For a $35 ticket (it's a fund-raiser, after all) you get a lobster, a ladle of mussels, corn-on-the-cob, chowder, and a brownie. A plastic cup of beer can be purchased for $1. I didn't eat anything in the morning, being busy all morning, so I had an empty stomach and was hungry when I arrived at the Lobster Fest in the afternoon. So, buying a beer probably wasn't the best thing to do, right off. But I did, then had a 2nd cup of beer after finishing my lobster, and was enjoying myself quite a bit, therefore, when the auction began.
The auction is just like a charity auction: local artisans and businesses donate goods and services and what-have-you. Prices vary all over the place. It's good strategy, serving alcohol at these things. A couple of glasses of wine or beer and people will pull out their wallets. Still, you don't expect to see many high-rollers among a gathering of democrats. I'd been to these things before, but I'd never bid on anything. Yesterday I sat through the auctioning off of the first 23 items without raising my hand to bid. The 24th item was a breakfast or lunch with our congressman, Jim Moran. I thought Mike might get a kick out of having a meal in the congressional dining room, so I bid on it, but I dropped out when someone in the back raised the bid to four hundred bucks.
So I thought, oh well, it was fun to bid, anyway, and I sat through half a dozen more sales. Then the most expensive item on the list came up: a week at a condo on the beach in Ocean City, any week in June or July except the week of July 4th. The minimum bid was $1200. Nobody bid on it. The auctioneer was trying hard, but nobody bid. and nobody bid. and nobody bid. and I thought: $1200 for a week on the beach in Ocean City? Mike would love to host a "beach week" in Ocean City for a bunch of his friends. It could be a graduation present. So when it seemed like the auctioneer might give up, $1200? $1200? Come on people! Ocean view! Sleeps 8! I held my program in the air. He pointed at me: THANK YOU!! he yelled into the microphone. Going once! Going twice! SOLD for $1200! It was exciting, and although I probably wouldn't have done it if I hadn't had two cups of beer, I don't regret it. Mike thinks it's awesome. I knew he'd love it.
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