Originally posted on MySpace on June 14, 2007.Up to this point, when it comes to eBay, I thought I had seen it all. After getting the John Ondrasik art piece, my eBay activities continued at a frenzied pace. There were still a lot of Five For Fighting items to be gotten. But, I was totally unprepared for what awaited me a couple months later. I was doing my usual search for treasures when I came across a Five For Fighting fan's dream...John Ondrasik's personal guitar. A major charity auction campaign in behalf of the organization Musicians On Call made available a number of celebrity-related items, and John graciously donated one of his own guitars to help raise money for this wonderful cause.
Musicians On Call is a program that brings music to patients in healthcare clinics in the New York/Philadelphia area. Their aim is to facilitate healing through the power of music. In addition to the live performances, their CD Pharmacies program provides CDs and players to patients all across the country so they can listen to music in their beds.
The eBay description of the item stated that it was a John Ondrasik played and signed Gibson guitar. It also said that the guitar was used on tour from 2001-2003, and that John wrote Something About You on it. There were a couple of photos included of the guitar...it was beautiful. There was no question I would be bidding on it. The opening minimum bid: $300. One interesting aspect of the whole thing was it would be a live auction...something I hadn't yet experienced on eBay. I proceeded to submit a rather large absentee bid, since I wouldn't actually be present at the live auction, but did plan to monitor things from the sidelines. The bidding period was 10 days, so I waited to see if there were any other interested bidders. Six days later, there was a bite. The bidder, a newbie, no less, tried to wrest the prize away from me, but was stymied by my superior bid. I wouldn't know what the challenge bid was until the day of the live auction. That day finally arrived four days later, with no additional eBay bids.
The John Ondrasik guitar was Lot #40 on auction day...that meant 39 other items ahead of it. I watched as one by one, the items went up for bid. The action was brisk, with bids coming from the floor...those present at the auction house in New York City...and from eBay bidders, too. It didn't take more than a minute for each item to sell. Then, it was time for Lot #40, and I watched as the opening bid...my bid...appeared. $1050...which meant the newbie bid $1000, and the eBay system kicked in with my counterbid. As I sat on the edge of my seat, bidding for the guitar opened, and I waited...and waited. Nothing! Thirty seconds later, it was over...there were no other bids, and the guitar was mine! I couldn't believe it!
After the adrenaline rush subsided, I gathered my thoughts, and decided to send John an email to tell him who got his guitar. The next day, John read my email, and sent me one of his short, but sweet replies...cool! Now, came the wait until delivery of my treasured guitar. I contacted the auction house, and got the number for a Musicians On Call contact. The nice gal I spoke to confirmed that indeed, it was a beautiful guitar, and even said she would try to ship it first in line before all the other auction items...sweet!
Ten days later, the guitar arrived at my front door. I eagerly opened the shipping box, and pulled out a well-worn, hard side Gibson guitar case. I carefully, almost reverently, opened the case, revealing the guitar within. I noticed immediately that it was less than perfect, but not because it had been John's touring guitar for a few years. The truss rod cover was missing, and even worse, the guitar had actually been broken at the neck, but expertly repaired. But, no matter...I didn't buy something that I planned to sell. I bought a John Ondrasik original...something to keep forever and ever! I lifted the guitar out of its case, and just admired its beauty. It was a Gibson L-140, which I later discovered is not readily available for sale. It seems that people who purchase an L-140 tend to hang on to it. It's also possible that not a lot of them were made.
I did a Google search to get some details on my guitar, since it came without any paperwork. The Gibson L-140 was manufactured in Bozeman, Montana. A concert series small-body acoustic electric guitar, it has a rosewood body, Sitka spruce top, mahogany neck, ebony fingerboard and bridge, mother-of-pearl angel wings inlays, abalone rosette, tortoise pickguard, gold tuners and Fishman electronic pickup. Since the guitar had a label with a serial number inside the body, I decided to contact the company to find out the manufacture date. I got an immediate response from Gibson customer service...the guitar was made in May 2001. I did a little further research, and realized that a slight error had been made in the eBay item description for the guitar. John couldn't have written Something About You on this guitar...the America Town album that includes this song was released in September 2000. I know, a technicality, and not a big deal...John just got his guitars mixed up. In addition, John toured with this guitar well into late 2004...so, he really must have liked using it!
A few days later, I emailed John to let him know the guitar was now in my possession. I asked him how the guitar got broken, and if there was anything else he could tell me about it. Well, when John responded to my email, there was no explanation for the guitar damage, but he did say that it had seen most cities in America. I'm very, very proud to have something of John's that has been seen and heard by so many of his fans. But, the guitar has only revealed its magic in the hands of its magician. It's now officially retired, but should John want to give it life one more time...
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