Momentary Lapse of Judgment

One reason I love Ebay is that you can find amazing stuff there for just a fraction of its original price.

Imagine my exhilaration when I chanced upon this top, going for a mere 5 pounds!

It's current season Topshop. It also retails for 45 pounds.

My heart was racing. 5 pounds for something that would otherwise cost me 45?!?!?

Also, the bidding was ending soon- 1 day to be exact, and NO ONE ELSE HAD BID ON IT!

I hurriedly keyed in a maximum price of 10. For E-bay illiterates, this is the maximum price you're willing to bid. The price will stay at 5 pounds unless someone else bids higher. If this happens, the price will follow the highest bid.

Today, two hours before the bidding was due to end, I apprehensively logged on to Ebay. The price for the top had climbed to 10 pounds.

I heaved a sigh of relief. I was still the highest bidder... and 10 pounds was still a reasonable price to pay.

However, as I clicked refresh, the amount changed before my very eyes!! Someone else had DARED to outbid me! I entered a higher amount of 15 pounds. Awesome... I was the highest bidder again.

10 minutes later, I received an e-mail from Ebay. The same person who had outbid me had topped my bid yet again!

I told myself to calm down. The trick to Ebay is that you do not put in a higher bid until it is nearing the close of the sale. Otherwise, these crazy girls will just sky-rocket the price by trying to outbid whatever high price you put down. Then the top becomes not worth the money anyway.

So I patiently waited, and waited... and waited. (With a lot of refreshing in between, just to see if anyone else bid. :p)

Two minutes before the sale closed, I put down a bid for 25 pounds. Triumph! I was the highest bidder once more! Victory was mi.........

A short lived celebration it was. The other bidder had topped my price in a matter of seconds! That was when my competitive drive kicked in- I saw red. It no longer was I-should-bid-for-the-top-because-it's-so-cheap. Instead, it became I-MUST-HAVE-IT-HOW-DARE-YOU-FIGHT-WITH-ME-FOR-SOMETHING-I-SAW-FIRST?!@?#!

I did some quick mental calculations and raised the bid to 30. The other buyer raised it to 35. The Ebay clock was ticking... 35 more seconds! Gritting my teeth, I put down 37 pounds. And won! The sale ended, and I won the top!

I rejoiced for a few seconds before I realised I had just paid 37 pounds for a top which was on sale for 45 pounds... for which I get 15% off as a student.

Stupid Ebay. -_-