My first auction

Today I went to an art auction.  I'd never been to one before, though I do remember that scene in NORTH BY NORTHWEST. (The one where the spies are closing in on Cary Grant, and he saves himself by making ridiculous bids and turning himself into a spectacle at a high-class art auction.)

Lindsay, who organizes my Philosophy Walk Meetup, organized this auction at the Gladstone Hotel, where they were selling off framed photographic prints for her charity So Kids Can See.  That's an organization that gives Third World children early eye examinations to correct conditions that can lead to blindness. (You can find more info at sokidscansee.org .)

The bidding for items at the live auction started at $150, so I just bought a $60 item in the silent auction.  It's a photograph of a doorway in an old fort in India, taken by Lindsay herself. (I like doorway pictures.) I'm feeling guilty about spending even that much money, but it is close to Christmas time.

Once again, I'm running short.  I could mention that I finished the book 50 MATHEMATICAL IDEAS YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW, and started reading 50 PHYSICS IDEAS....  I've now learned about Mach's principle:  mass in one place influences inertia in another.