So, like, uh...where you guys been?

We didn't quit our days jobs.

If you asked us why we've been away for so long, that would be the answer. As anyone who's ever started a business knows, it often takes shape before nine, after five, in fits and starts whenever one can squeeze in a few minutes between soccer practices, root canals and home-owners association board meetings (which often feel like root canals). Our vision for Auction Talk Radio, one aspect of which is this website, remained vibrant, even after we took off the rose-colored glasses so as not to look unnecessarily goofy around the water cooler. We've known, in that way that a little investigation turns a gut-level belief into a mantra of metaphysical certitude ("there's no place like home") that the genesis of our idea MUST be right. How can there NOT be room on the nation's airwaves for a radio show about the macro-trend that might best, though rather imprecisely, be termed "the auction culture?"

Name a topic and somebody's got a talk show about it. News, sports, politics, business, personal finance, fitness, dieting, cooking, sex, love, relationships, animals/pets, addiction, hobbies, movies, entertainment, music, technology, cars and...well, the list goes on ad infinitum. Not only are all of these topics covered, but most are covered by myriad shows offered locally and syndicated nationally. Some are first-rate, others not so much and they are available on commercial radio, public radio and even satellite radio. Yet there is not a single show of (in our humble estimation) serious merit covering the lifestyle demographic David Nissanoff calls "the temporary ownership society."

"Sure," the skeptics tossed back at us, "a lot of people do the eBay thing and all, but are there really enough talking points to fill, say, two hours of air time every week?" With literally thousands of titles returned when one searches terms such as "eBay" or "auctions" on Amazon, an answer in the affirmative is implied. To really nail it down, though, the point can be illuminated when one considers that some topic of discussion on the various talk radio show formats we listed above would be right at home on a show like Auction Talk Radio.

Politics? Sure: "EBay's retiring chief may run for California governor." Not to mention proposed or pending Internet auction sales taxes, a topic that would dovetail well on a show about personal finance and small business entrepreneurship. Speaking of which, we wrote and spoke in our podcasts about the the controversial and very heated dispute between a number of drop-off store chains and their franchisees, many of whom made claims of fraud and deceit against companies like i-Sold It.

Sports? As we covered in a number of our ATR podcasts, bogus "collectibles" and forged "autographs" are almost as much a blight on the sporting landscape as Bill Belichick's hoodies. How do you know if your Sidney Crosby game-used and signed puck with "genuine" COA ever came within a blade's width of a blue line, much less the hands of Sid the Kid? And God help you if you really do have one. Who'll believe you? Meanwhile, eBay purchased online ticket reseller StubHub last year, providing a new venue for the sale of tickets to sporting events and rock concerts, which brings us to the topic of music and, among things, the sale of pirated CDs - a matter of intellectual property protection that will have to be addressed by political leaders, especially those in states in which entertainment is a vital component of their economies, like California, which brings is back to Gov. Whitman.

"Yeah, but that's too broad," came the responses from some. "Radio today is all about niches and finely-targeted demographic cells. Would somebody into buying movie memorabilia give a rat's butt about the hush-hush settlement between disgruntled franchise investors and a high-flying consignment chain?"

Our answer is a resounding "yes!" Sports talk radio provides a good illustration.

In recent days, sports radio talking points have including the NFL scouting combine, headline-grabbing NBA trades, stunning late-season college hoops runs by Xavier and Memphis, Tiger dispatching Lefty once again, congressional hearings about steroids in baseball, Dale Junior's debut for Hendrick at the Daytona 500, and "Spygate."

No mention of the Red Sox, but do you suppose die hard Bosox fans listen in when Jim Rome discusses the Ducks' chances of repeating as NHL champs? Sure they do. Maybe not all of them do, of course, but the point is that sports fans want to hear about sports. Even a die hard member of Red Sox Nation wants to talk about the Shaq-to-Phoenix trade, and probably has an opinion about it.

So we think it will be with Auction Talk Radio. No, not every collector of Lladro is going to listen intently to a discussion about some new portal for selling militaria, but our experience is that what interests a great many in the "auction culture" is not just information about the stuff they collect and sell; they also want to learn about what others collect, buy, sell and trade along with strategies for turning a stash into cash.

This means talking about eBay, of course, though we envision Auction Talk Radio being anything but an eBay show. As today's headlines make clear, rivals are looking to turn disgruntled eBayers into their customers. Meanwhile, auction houses like Bonham & Butterfields are always making news while some are asking what new postal rates will do to an already shaky e-conomy.

We are convinced that it is more than past time for a show like Auction Talk Radio to become a reality. Trying to convince various media gatekeepers has been another story. This challenge, combined with the demands of the "real" world, has had us away for a while. Yet we are gratified to see that you have not been away. Our hit count and input from visitors has remained regular and strong - from all over the world. It might sound trite to say it, but we are touched.

We've gone on too long here. In a post forthcoming in the next day or so, we'll wrap up this report and offer a bit more about what we envision as we move forward. For now, here's hoping this finds you warm, cozy and comfy - like you were wearing a Patriots hoodie.