I waited until the auction was over to post, so obviously I was not promoting it (and in fact all my auctions had ended).
I was not mocking Mel, just poking fun at him, because what I said was absurd on the face of it, as no one could know this would happen. If he is somehow offended by my joke, he should let me know, and I will publicly apologize.
If you notice, I have stayed out of this, except to say that if you guys want to delete the thread you should do so. I post about my auctions in the For Sale thread the day they are closing, and that's it.
As to getting paid, this was not two "nuts" bidding to insane levels. There was a third bidder at the very end, and all three are advanced collectors who recognize how rare this piece is, and I have no doubt I could sell two additional examples to the underbidders, if they could be found. What was unusual about this auction was not the final price, but the very eBay way it was conducted, with all three laying in the weeds, waiting for the very end to bid.
Bruce
