The Early Bird Gets the Worm or The Long, Sad Story of My Obsession with a Pottery Barn Light Fixture

Very rarely do I willingly buy something for the house from places like Pottery Barn or Crate and Barrel. For one, when I need something new for the house, be it furniture, decor, etc. my first instinct is always craigslist. And, I don't know who likes overpaying for middle of the road quality, but I don't.

Anyway, I do often look through the Pottery Barn catalogs that end up in my mail box. Hey, they have some great designers working for them - and it's a good place to get ideas. Well, while browsing through the summer catalog last year I FELL IN LOVE with one of their chandeliers. It was an outdoor chandelier, but I wanted it for my (indoor) dining room. I even called Pottery Barn to make sure it could be used indoors. It could. But I didn't order it. Why? Because I could not justify the$300+ price. And so I waited. I waited for Fall and the inevitable clearance sales that would come with it. The chandelier was indeed put on clearance and I ordered it online. Then, in the final stages of online ordering, I learned it was SOLD OUT?!?! Why does Pottery Barn DO this? Why do they leave sold out items up on their website? Is it to taunt us? To mock us for being frugal and waiting? I just don't know.

Well, to add insult to injury, the chandelier was NOT brought back this year. Discontinued. Done. Never to be had. I checked ebay for that mother every day with no luck - except for a particularly painful day when someone had, indeed, listed the chandelier for sale. Pick-up only. In Atlanta. To this day I check ebay whenever I remember. There is no chandelier in my dining room. Am I in denial? Probably. But, if anyone has seen this chandelier (or one like it, but apparently they don't exist) for sale somewhere, PLEASE CONTACT ME: