Jane Austen would love the internet - or maybe not??

Over the years, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice was one of my favorite books - this gentle, romantic social comedy is perhaps not quite so gentle as it seemed to me on my first reading it as a young teenager. In fact, the book pulls no punches as it explores the customs and foibles of the top echelons of society - so it worked well then as a critique of the society of the day. How much - or how little - has changed today?? Perhaps less than we like to admit. I am sure Jane Austen would be amazed at the quick, effective global reach of the internet. I like to imagine that she would have belonged to Facebook and Blogger - maybe also selling her works as eBooks on Clickbank .

I love the BBC's adaptations of Jane Austen's works. Because these adaptations are mostly faithful to the original writings, they make a great way to study the sharpness of Austen's social commentary and to compare it to society today.

Movie trailer - collectible

Just a quick note to say that movie trailers are also quite collectible - you could easily set up a BANS store using this as a niche - maybe even make smaller niche stores out of it. For example, here's one auction for a Marilyn Monroe movie trailer .... one way to own a little bit of movie history without shelling out a whole lot of money for a complete movie.

Save fuel - convert your car to run on water???

Can you believe that your car might run on water instead of gas?

Whether you're trying to save money on gas or just help the environment by cleaning your vehicle's emissions, converting your car to run on hydrogen (as a supplement to gasoline) provides the lowest-cost, safest, and most rewarding solution. The technology to run cars on HHO (derived from water) is proven, but the information to do so is usually expensive and hard to find. Plus, it's difficult to know which information to trust!

Well you have just found the best guide on the net! That's right we are really Water Hybrid Drivers & Owners so we know our product inside and out!

Get the MOST COMPLETE Guide Here

It's a Wonderful Life - Movie with James Stewart

I keep being stunned at the stuff I find on eBay

I was just checking on the progress of the auction for a copy of the film "The Wizard of Oz" - it sold for $1,000 - when I came across a copy of the famous "It's a Wonderful Life" which starred

• James Stewart,
  
• Donna Reed,
  
• Lionel Barrymore,
  
• Thomas Mitchell,
  
• Henry Travers,
  
• Beulah Bondi,
  
• Frank Faylen,
  
• Ward Bond,
  
• Gloria Grahame, and
  
• Todd Karns

It's A Wonderful Life

1946

B&W Film

16mm

So far, this auction has reached $260 - I wonder where it will end up??

Wizard of Oz

Aargh - I guess I'm a collector at heart - here, up for sale, is an original film version of the Wizard of Oz

We're off to see the Wizard!!! Yes, it is true. Up for auction here is a beautiful print of the original, 1939 timeless MGM classic: THE WIZARD OF OZ. This print seems to be straight from the studio, with all original leaders, heads, and tails intact. The color is almost perfect, as is the black and white, except for the color part of Reel 3 which has begun to fade. There are few scratches, and nothing is missing from this film.

.... I'd just love to own this. I'm a real Judy Garland fan - I love her voice. ......

Stained glass - bargain??

This piece of stained glass is apparently Victorian - it was recovered from a mausoleum - and has an inscription on it "In Memory of Donald Ferguson" - which may restrict its resale value. However, what I like about it is the richness of the colors in the glass used - and, having lived in a house which had stained glass panels beside the front door, I can just imagine this piece (or some of the others for sale) embellishing a home. It seems like great value for money, considering the cost of having something similar commissioned today.

I love homes with personality - and stained glass certainly adds that.

I live about 6 miles from the Loch Lomond Golf Championship Course

This Fordson Tractor (being auctioned just now on eBay.co.uk) is just what will be needed today for anyone parking to see the Loch Lomond Scottish Open Golf Championship. The weather is truly testing - wild winds, overnight torrential downpour - and, although slightly better at the moment, it looks as if there's more rain due anytime. The car parking for the match is going to be ... er, soft!

Mind you, the tractor featured needs a little more work before it's going to be fit to pull anything out of a bog.

I'm a farmer's daughter - and, although it's 30 years since our farm was sold, I get really nostalgic for the sight, sound and smell of a tractor at work. This shot of an old Fergusson in a farm yard is reminiscent of work at home when Dad would come in weary after a day's ploughing.

The auction itself shows how not to sell on eBay - the seller has put a poor title on the auction, which will probably not be found if searching for Fergusson tractors, the description could be much better as well - so, at present, the tractor looks like a bargain to me. I hope he does well.

I could live with this one

I amn't sure I could live with the picture of Abraham Lincoln which I featured in my previous post. However, I could happily live with this one - a landscape signed by Birger Sandzen. I love the earthy tones.

My quirky nature, though, means that I just love this pen and ink drawing by Ervine Metzl

It needs no words to make me smile - and I could look at this for a long time without becoming weary.

Happy 4th July, folks

This picture of Abraham Lincoln is being sold, right now, on eBay - it's not overly expensive either.

Anyway, I thought it was worth a mention, especially as today's July 4th. Most appropriate.

Hope you folks have a great day.

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P.S. On a completely different topic, I came across a handbook for an Avro Lancaster Bomber on eBay UK - wow, that is slightly surreal - imagine having enough of them left around to make it worth while publishing a repair manual.

Jack Vettriano Original - The White Basque

I just love it - I can't afford to own it, but this auction for a Jack Vettriano original -

JACK VETTRIANO- 'THE WHITE BASQUE'- 1994, OIL on CANVAS

Stunning, sexy, and utterly classic - early mature-period Jack Vettriano from 1994.

Jack's evocative style at its best.... the cinematic narrative...the

eternal sexual tension between men and women.

has me drooling! The current owner bought the Vettriano from an art gallery in Dunkeld, Perthshire when Vettriano was beginning to come to public notice. I am already jealous of the new owner of this amazing pic - the auction has several days yet to run, but the picture could be yours for £32,000 - and could be an amazing investment.

Jack Vettriano

Vettriano's Biography states:

Born in Fife, Scotland in 1951, Jack Vettriano left school at sixteen to become a mining engineer. For his twenty-first birthday, a girlfriend gave him a set of watercolour paints and, from then on, he spent much of his spare time teaching himself to paint.

In 1989, he submitted two paintings to the Royal Scottish Academy's annual exhibition; both were accepted and sold on the first day. The following year, an equally enthusiastic reaction greeted the three paintings, which he entered for the prestigious Summer Exhibition at London's Royal Academy and his new life as an artist began from that point on.

Over the last twenty years, interest in Vettriano's work has grown consistently. There have been sell-out solo exhibitions in Edinburgh, London, Hong Kong and New York.

Although he is a controversial figure, Vettriano is still favoured by the establishment - his portrait of Zara Phillips, daughter of HRH The Princess Royal, was commissioned for a charity auction in aid of Sport Relief.





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