Eb and Flo

Today I will share with you the story of Eb and Flo, my two featherweight sewing machines. This is a story I have not shared with anyone besides my husband, as it is a tad embarrassing to me. And I probably wouldn't have told him either if I hadn't been forced to due to circumstaces beyond my control.
I had been watching e-bay featherweight auctions for several weeks. I had done a bit of research and alot of comparisons of machines and prices, as well as what accessories were included. But I had never bought or sold anything on e-bay before so I was a bit hesitant to bid.
When I finally got up the nerve to bid, I lost out repeatedly. It was not that I was underbidding, so much as it was people sniping the bid in the final seconds of the auctions.
I was getting really frustrated with the whole process when I decided to try something different. I put bids on two different machines. As luck would have it, I was the winning bidder on the machine that ended earliest. I was very excited about the prospect of receiving my very own black 221 featherweight. So carried away was I that I forgot about the second machine that I still had a bid on. Until I got the e-mail notifying me that I was the winning bidder of a lovely white 221 featherweight sewing machine. OOPS. Who would have thought it was possible? It had never occurred to me that I would win both bids.
Fortunately, I had enough money to cover the cost of the second machine. There was no way I was going to back out on my bid just because I made a rookie error in judgment. I would simply test both machines and see which one I liked better. Then I would be able to re-sell the one I didn't want and nobody would have to know what a stupid thing I did. Right?
The black 221(nicknamed Eb for his ebony color) arrived first. It stitched like a dream and was in nice shape. I would certainly be happy to give it a new home. Flo, the white machine, took a little detour while in the mail. She was shipped in a liquor box through the US postal service. For those of you who don't know, you can't send alcohol through the mail. And the box containing my white 221 was being held at a post office in Grand Rapids due to the labeling on the box. Someone from the post office actually phoned my home to inquire about what was in the package. So I had to explain to them that it was a sewing machine that I bought on e-bay. And then they lectured me about using boxes with alcohol labeling in the mail. Even after I explained to them that I had nothing to do with the way it was packaged, as I was the receipient and not the sender of the package.
And of course my hubby, who had already seen the black machine, was sitting right there next to me listening to all this. And that is why I had to admit to him how stupid I was and how I ended up with two machines instead of one. When I confessed how much I spent for the two machines, he was pleasantly surprised and said I could keep them both if I wanted to. And so I did. :) And that is why I am the happy owner of two lovely little machines.