Woody & Chloe's Made from Scratch

Fri, 09/18/2015 - 9:25am — Diane Dyer

Beech Tree News will publish a chapter each week of Woody and Chloe's New Adventure "Made from Scratch". Collect all ten chapters and at the end of the series you will have your very own Woody book! Also, make sure you log on to www.kypress.com or www.thewoodybooks.com and listen to Woody read the story!

Chapter 1
“Talk about being a lucky dog! I’ve never seen such a gigantic yard sale, Chloe!” I told my sister, happy that Mom told us we could walk around the neighborhood as long as we stayed on the sidewalk and didn’t cross the street. Three houses down, we saw cars parked everywhere, men admiring farm equipment, children playing with toys, and women oohing and aahing at sparkling jewelry.
“It’s not a yard sale, fella’,” a sweet voice said, after hearing my comment to Chloe.
“Pardon me, ma’am?” I asked the tiny woman who was wearing a flowery dress.
“It’s not a yard sale,” she repeated, smiling.
“It’s not?” Chloe replied.
“It’s an auction.” After pinching our cheeks and telling us we were cute, she explained. “An auction is a way of selling items by taking bids. The person who bids highest price gets to purchase the item. I’m bidding on that beautiful antique sewing machine. If I’m the highest bidder, I’m going to clap and holler like nobody’s business! You cuties should look around. Something might strike your fancy.”
“I have a few dollars,” I said as I stuck my paw in my pocket. “Besides, we’ve worked hard this week, speaking in schools across Kentucky. We should enjoy our day off,” I said, trying to persuade Chloe to stay. Chloe’s birthday was coming up in a few weeks and I secretly hoped I could find her something really special.
“Okay, Woody, but we can’t stay long or Mom and Dad will worry.”
“Ma’am,” I asked, “how do we bid?”
“First, register and get a number at the front table. Then browse around. If you see something you want, when the auctioneer starts the bidding on that item, hold your number up. The person who bids highest wins. Then pay the gentleman at the back table and collect your item.”
“Who is the auctioneer?” Chloe asked.
“See the man standing under the maple tree holding a clipboard?” she asked, pointing to an older gentleman wearing dark jeans, a western shirt, and cowboy boots that looked like snakes. “That’s the auctioneer.”
Chloe and I meandered around. There was no way we could see everything since they were auctioning off an entire house and storage building and all the contents of both. We saw old bottles, roller skates, a grandfather clock, and even a red car with the top down.
The auctioneer stepped on a platform and addressed the crowd. “Our first item up for bid is a 1983 Kenwright freezer in excellent condition. We’ll start the bidding at fifty dollars. Do I have fifty? I have fifty. Do I have fifty one? Going once, going twice. Sold to the lady in the burgundy dress.”
When the auctioneer began speaking, Chloe and I couldn’t believe our ears. He spoke so fast. At first I thought he was speaking a foreign language. We loved listening to him rattle off the items and the bids. After he said “going once, going twice,” he would take a wooden hammer and bang it on the podium and yell, “Sold!” We watched him sell the freezer, a toolbox full of tools, a set of golf clubs and a beautiful locket. I would have bought the locket for Chloe but the bidding was too high.
“We should go, Woody,” Chloe said, looking at her pretty pink watch.
“Okay, but maybe the next item is the sewing machine. I’d love to watch our new friend win!”
“Alright,” Chloe agreed, “but just one more.”
“Our next item for bid is this vintage disco ball,” the auctioneer announced. “It’s a 15 inch mirror ball. Purchase this and you’ll be the most popular house in town. Let’s start the bidding at one-ten. Do I have one-ten?”
My heart pounded. “Chloe! I have some money in my pocket. We have to buy this!”
“I’ve never heard of a disco ball, Woody.”
“I bet it’s a fast soccer ball with a mirror,” I answered. “I can’t wait to play fetch with it.”
“Do I have one-fifty?” I raised my paw. Since I was shorter than everyone, I had to stand on my hind legs and jump several times. Finally the auctioneer noticed. “One-fifty from the black and tan wiener dog with the ears flopping up and down,” he said, making everyone laugh. “One-fifty going once, going twice. Sold to the dachshund in the blue collar.”
Chloe and I hugged. Secretly I thought about giving Chloe the disco ball for her upcoming birthday.
“Great job! Let’s pay and roll it home!”
I dug through my pocket and found one dollar, four dimes, one nickel, and five pennies.
After signing a paper stating I understood all sales were final, I handed the cashier $1.50.
“Sir, it’s one hundred and fifty dollars, not one dollar and fifty cents,” she said.
Chloe gasped. I’d been in lots of pickles over the years, but this pickle took the cake!