I've Got It Bad

I sold my McTavish a few months ago. I thought it was the best board in the world . . . until I got on the Tyler. Then it was all over. I actually prefer the ride of a single fin to that of a 2+1 set-up. The three fin thing is a bit too squirrely for me. So, anyway, I sell that board and the money is burning a hole in my pocket. I knew I had to put that money on another board or else watch it disappear into the black hole that is this family's bills. I gave thought to buying another, shorter Tyler. But then I couldn't justify spending the money (that I didn't even have) and I didn't see the point in having a shorter longboard. I looked into a Buttons retro board. I finally settled on the Machado single fin. I can surf it on bigger days, days when I'm not afraid to go out yet know that I'll be doomed to failure on the log. The funniest thing was trying to decide what size to get. Nick at ZJ's was leaning toward something in the range of 6'6". I'm sure the look I gave him said, "Are you out of your @#!#$ mind? That's three feet shorter than the board I'm on!" Eventually, it was agreed that the 7'0" would be the best length for me. I think I ordered it in January. Well, now it's March and I want to see a new surfboard in this house! I'm tired of waiting. I've managed to put aside much of the money needed to pay off the balance owed on the board. And what did I do last week? Almost spent that money on a board I saw on eBay. Am I out of my mind? Do you know what kind of self-restraint I had to exercise to keep from buying that board? I ended up being the highest bidder. However, I hadn't met the reserve. I was relieved . . . until the next day when I got a second chance offer from the seller. It offered me the board for the price I'd bid, even though my bid was below the reserve. Shit! Will the temptations ever cease? According to the offer, I had 24 hours to accept. I actually suffered over this decision. I loved the board, but wondered about the price. I mean, if I had bid less would I have been offered the board at a lower price? Would the seller put the board back on the auction block, thus allowing me to limit my bids and hope that 1) no one else bettered my bids and 2) the seller made another second chance offer for a lower price? Well, with five minutes to go on the offer, I sat here right where I am now. What to do? What to do? I'm proud to say that I let the board go. Of course, I've vacillated between kicking myself for passing up the offer and congratulating myself for waiting for the board I've ordered. One of the guys at my break, upon hearing how many boards I've gone through in the short time I've been surfing, shook his head and told me, "You're fucked. You've got it bad." Yep, I do.