The Thrill of The Snipe

I sit here now before this keyboard, basking in the afterglow of a successful hunt.
For you see I have just won an auction at ebay that I have been stalking for the past six days.

When I was a novice ebayer I used to go and blindly bid on my chosen items.
Gleefully, having the winning bid right up until the last moment, when a phantom bidder would suddenly swoop down and scoop my prize away from me. Even as I pitifully cried "Noooooooooo"
so loudly that my husband would leap from his recliner,
and rush into the room to see what evil had befell his Darling.

Then I wised up.
For you see, I learned that there was a name for what was happening to me.
I was being "Sniped"
Oh yes, you can visit the Help forums of ebay and read all about it.
Some folks have it down to an art form.

Desperate, I enlisted the help of a dear friend and seasoned Sniper herself who
advised me on how to hone my skills in order to bag my prey.

She taught me how to be patient. To watch and wait.
And never reveal my bid until the last possible moment.
And to only hit confirm after it was far too late for another bidder to come from behind.

Now I know how those sweaty, panting guys sitting in their tricked-out bass boats
feel, as they are reeling in their catch on the fishing and hunting channel.

I am not always successful.
I still am "out-sniped" on occasion.
Then I find consolation by telling myself that the other buyer paid far too much.

But not today.;-)