26 Oct
1998
26 Oct
'98
4:23 a.m.
I've taken the position that I'm going to deliberately ignore the
snipers. I usually bid on the first day listed. I ask myself, "What
is the maximum I'm _really_ willing to pay for this?" and that's what
I bid. I get outbid on the last day (I don't track it more closely
than that) fairly often, but it means that the high bidder is paying
more than I would, and I can't argue with that. As often as not, when
I'm outbid, my disappointment is tinged with relief: "Did I really
bid _that_ much? What was I thinking of?"
On the whole, I find it liberating to just bid my maximum and let the
chips fall where they may.
Dav Vandenbroucke
Economist
U.S. Dept. HUD
david_a._vandenbroucke(a)hud.gov