May 28, 2005

1) Brian said (on 05/28/05 at 09:40 AM):

If this were an episode of Law and Order, E.S. would have you autograph a dozen copies of Gay Haiku and then violently murder you, thus causing their value to skyrocket.

2) brian w said (on 05/28/05 at 10:36 AM):

One thing I always found interesting about Antiques Roadshow is that in the US version, the appraiser tells the person how much the item would be worth if they wanted to sell it, while in the UK version they tell the owner the item's value for the purposes of properly insuring it.

It's kind of telling, init?

3) Jess said (on 05/28/05 at 11:20 AM):

You're such a character. :)

I liked the show when the guy brought an Indian (er, "Native American") blanket that didn't look like much and turned out to be worth a bazillion dollars (I think that was the exact word the appraiser used--bazillion). It looked like something one would find draped over the back of a dusty couch somewhere in Oklahoma, but it turned out to be quite rare. In a case like that--life-changing money--it's gone. A few hundred bucks? Nah. Love wins out. A few hundred thousand? That's when I say to the air, "I love you and miss you, honey," and hand it over to the nearest auctioneer.

4) i. bendito said (on 05/28/05 at 07:38 PM):

Looks like E.S.' mama didn't raise no fool.

5) chris said (on 05/29/05 at 01:43 AM):

i'm trying to resolve this romanticism in ES and the $$ greed in Faustus with the incident over the wedding plans. Hard to believe ES is the same man who just watned to tell your friends about the wedding instead of engraved invites.

this is what us psychologists call cognitive disonance. this is what Tylenol calls a marketing opportunity.

6) Faustus, M.D. said (on 05/29/05 at 06:24 AM):

Brian: As you know, I have already had a similar thought, albeit without the Antiques Roadshow angle. But your version is much more elegant.

brian w: I have never seen the UK version. How many people do you suspect actually go on to insure their tchotchkes, and how many to sell them?

Jess: Yes, the Navajo-blanket episode was the best. And you are a man after my own heart.

i. bendito: It looks like that, doesn't it? And yet . . .

eliot: Thank you. You understand why I had to remove the evidence. I have always loved you, too.

chris: What do you think Tylenol is paying me for?

7) James said (on 05/29/05 at 01:31 PM):

Tchotchke?

Unsettling enough, my mother just left me a message telling me about some creepy toy she had as a child that she thinks may be worth something. If, after this, I check my e-mail and find a third reference to the Antiques Roadshow within a five minute timespan, the universe may implode.

8) birdfarm said (on 05/29/05 at 02:55 PM):

I snagged a houseful of moldering antiques when my parents moved out of their house into an "assisted living" apartment. I thought these items would help me remember Granny/Mom/Dad/my childhood, but now they just remind me of recent parties where people spilled things on them.

My conclusion: old photos are the best way to remember people and times long gone; old chairs are the best way to finance exotic foreign travel.

9) Mike said (on 05/29/05 at 07:50 PM):

This is totally OT, but I enjoy rereading entries like "Faustus Attends an Orgy" and "Faustus is Filmed in a Pornographic Movie" now that I have a face to go with them. Not that I didn't enjoy reading them the first time, mind you... never mind.

10) Book Worm said (on 05/30/05 at 10:22 PM):

A word of caution about "Antiques Roadshow" and other "reality" shows: editing. Those 60 minutes have been shorn of their dull spots -- which makes them so much more interesting than my life or yours.

It even happens on the news: http://www.onthemedia.org/transcripts/transcripts_123104_curtain.html

11) Brian, the 646 Guy said (on 05/31/05 at 11:23 AM):

I saw that same episode! What about that butt ugly jug that woman had that was worth $50,000 or something like that???

Actually the best one ever was this one woman who had bought this table at a yard sale for like $35 and turned out that it was worth about $200,000. Then they showed her selling it at auction for over $500,000. Made me sick.

12) farmboyz said (on 06/ 1/05 at 07:08 AM):

C and I have had the exact same conversation. I know that if I die first, my entire depression glass collection will go out with the trash. If he goes first, his entire CD collection will be tossed by me. The stranger or neighbor who gets to the curb before the trashman will be delirious with good fortune. Romanticism overcome by limited space.

13) Forgotten Bliss said (on 06/ 1/05 at 04:59 PM):

Sounds like something I would say, that "Priceless item" would be gone in an instant.