Don't really have an entry here... and didn't yesterday either.

Right now, I'm just killing time before an ebay auction ends.

Yes, I'm a spiker.

That dreaded subspecies of ebay buyer that waits until the last minute (or second) to throw their bids out with the rest. The subspecies of bidder that is generally despised by all others because, by god, it works!

Took me about four losing auctions to figure out spiking. Almost every auction I have won since then has been by spiking.

"Spiking" is a good thing in volleyball, so I am not offended by the label here.

With unreliable internet service, I used to spike about three minutes before the auction close. With service improved, I now shoot for about 1:30 before close. And sometimes even later.

I've been outspiked within the last five seconds.

In theory, spiking should not work. In a universe of logical beings, it would not work.

But we're dealing with humans here.

In a logical world, all interested buyers would submit their highest willing bid, and the highest would win. But not with people. With their first bids, most folks are either a) hoping for a bargain, or b) bidding with their conscience. But once they lose, they suddenly panic and abandon either their bargain sense or their conscience. And start throwing in higher and higher bids. Creeping up in price, rather than making the big, final leap to their maximum bid.

Spiking works because you intercept that process, claiming the item before they can systematically raise their offers to their true maximum. If they just bid their true maximum to begin with, the system would be entirely fair.

Somebody else just spiked it at 2:30. Too soon!

I spiked at 1:51 to go. My bid was almost twice the current price. I want this.

For the wife, not for me.

And it's mine, for now. And at the minimum jump over the previous bid. And we finally broke the reserve price.

Hey, my feedback is up by two! Gonna have to check that out later.

56 seconds left... still mine.

44 seconds left... still mine.

Somebody spiked it at 22 seconds... too little. It's still mine.

9 seconds. Still mine. I mentally count down from three, and then assume the usual six seconds of delay in processing.

Hit Reload.

Final check. Auction has ended.

It's mine. Or actually hers.

And 37 percent less than my maximum. I'm happy.

We're talking an overseas auction, so no PayPal. And shipping that will be half the purchase price. But you can't buy that item here, and she will know where it came from. I just have to keep it a secret until an appropriate gift-giving event comes along. Our Anniversary is next on the calendar.

Now I kicked her and the boys off the internet so I could spike this auction, so they will ask about it. What do I claim I bought? Do I lie and say I lost? Or claim it was Magic cards (most of what I buy on ebay)?

And I'm gonna have to get onto the family's email inbox before she does to hide the ebay messages that identify this auction.