Getting Crotchetty...

You never knew you could, until now ...

Personally, I prefer macrame for my magnets.

The fridge is bare

If I have neglected to post here on No Fridge Too Big for a while, it is only because my attentions have been diverted by constructing Harry McFry Investgates.

Readers of this blog can be assured, however, that it is only a matter of time before a Harry McFry fridge magnet is issued.

On such a momentous occasion, you can be sure you will be the first to know.

On My Bedside Table

Next to the tattered copy of last month's What Fridge Magnet Monthly, the most thumbed item on my bedside table at the moment is this fine novella by an emerging author from New Hampshire, USA. No mention of fridge magnets yet, but it can only be a matter of time...

Catch Harry McFry Investigates while it's still hot.

Attack of the Killer Fridge Magnets!

Anyone who has ever had a fridge magnet fall off their fridge and onto their foot could probably attest that they can be very dangerous items if not handled correctly. Despite their rounded edges, many people have reported experiencing a 'slight tap' in such circumstances.

Meanwhile, alarming news has reached us of more serious consequences of fridge magnet ownership. This article from the BBC tells it all, and readers are advised to think extremely carefully before wearing any fridge magnet as an item of jewelry. Although the scare is only linked to a particular type of magnet (and not the kind used in the manufacture of magnets flogged by The Fridge Magnet Magnate), it may be a wise precaution to refrain from hugging your fridge.

It's been a while...

What can I say? You know how it is - you start a blog, full of good intentions, planning to post witty asides about the wonderful world of fridge magnets, and then somehow life overtakes you.

Anyway, life certainly overtook Shawn McDowell, whose mighty collection of 4,000 fridge magnets was up for auction earlier this year, for the very reasonable sum of $15,000. Some people might think that's a lot of money for a bunch of fridge magnets, but for those of us 'in the business' we figure that $3.75 a pop is not a bad deal, all round.

Anyone who missed Shawn's auction is more than welcome to contact me, and I'll see if I can't come up with a similar offer for you. I might even be able to shave a few dollars off the total, if you speak to me nicely!

The world finally wakes up to a blog about fridge magnets

It's a solitary life writing a blog about fridge magnets. Not a single comment from anyone to any of my posts. Views of my profile barely registering on the radar. It's enough to make a man think that no one's really interested in discussing the finer points of fridge magnetry.

But at last, news from a satisfied buyer, who has kindly name-checked 'No Fridge Too Big' on his own blog. And a very fine blog it is too! When Mrs Fridge is next in need of a t-shirt, I know where I'm heading.

Whatever next?

Digital fridge magnets that can communicate intelligently with each other - even over huge distances? It could only come out of Australia where, let's face it, the fridges are probably bigger, the distances are probably greater, and as for the grammar...

There was nowt like that in the '30's!

Fridge Problem Sorted: Situation As Normal

We finally took delivery of our new fridge last Thursday. The ceremonial stripping of the fridge magnets from the old one, and their re-installation on the new one, took place around 7pm on Thursday evening, with few observers.

Meanwhile, it seems even Scottish towns are getting in on the act ... although the choice of words is a bit limited!

Private Buyers

It's always nice when people approach me to buy items directly - apart from saving on ebay listing and sale fees, I get to 'virtually meet' people from all over the world. Most recently, I heard from someone who had recorded a great song, working with one of Bob Dylan's session musicians - really interesting e-mails!

The other wonderful thing is to receive e-mails that say "Can I have two Dylan's, a Sophia Loren and a William S Burroughs, please?". Now that would be a dinner party I'd pay to go to!

My wife broke our freezer...

Well, there's no blaming Kris Kristofferson this time. Seems my wife's overuse of a clothes dryer in the vicinity of our Zanussi has finally taken it's toll on the beloved fridge freezer. A non-working fridge is a crisis of such proportion that I was interrupted by a phone call at work to be told the news.

There's nothing to be done now except buy a new one - its 5 years old and it seems to me that these days we don't really buy electrical goods, we only rent them for a few years, with the rental paid up front.

Hey, at least we'll be able to have another Fridge Opening Party! The Zanussi was distinguished by being officially opened by a peer of the realm, and some day I'll dig out the photo to prove it.

Kris Kristofferson Broke My Record

All good things must come to an end. But you hardly expect that benign old rocker, Kris Kristofferson to be the cause of it. The last week proved to be a interesting one on ebay for me - 70 consecutive auction items sold without a single 'no sale' - that was, until no one bid on my KK magnet.

Ah well - Freedom's just another word for nothing lasts forever! And at least Kris has given me another record to try to break...

Sadly, No Major Sales to Report

The lack of a blog entry for a day or two may have tempted some readers into thinking that The Fridge Magnet Magnate was one of the four companies identified by Canadian government auditors as having received some $2.8 million 'for fridge magnets and lapel pins' (UK readers can relax - it's only £1.3 million). That works out at just under 32,000 Charles Bukowski fridge magnets on my slide rule.

The money was (or wasn't) allegedly spent by politicians in Labrador and Newfoundland, according to a CBC news report.

Fridge Magnet Inflation Hits New High!

As a vendor of fridge magnets on ebay, it pays to keep an eye on competitors. Particularly the scatalogical ones. An American buyer obviously saw something here that he just had to have!
Way to go!

Show your fridge you care

At last, a way to liven up your e-mails with this jazzy little fridge magnet message sender.

England fail in World Cup bid: Englishman wins fridge magnet

Lucky winners of a caption competition to commemorate England's rubbishy bid to win the World Cup, hosted by family history chatboard, Rootschat, were offered a fridge magnet as the main prize. That's alright then.

What's under your fridge magnet today?

The humble fridge magnet. Consider for a moment the tales of human endeavour, misery, happiness and mundanity that lie beneath it.

An invitation to a wedding; a reminder not to miss little Billy's sports day.

The question is, what's your fridge magnet holding up?

Stop! Thief!

Remember the days when you were... oooh... maybe 5 years old? A big white fridge in front of you and a pile of little plastic magnetic letters to play with?

You were just about to complete a word when little Billy Johnson, your next door neighbour and so-called 'friend' came along and swiped a crucial letter you needed.

Recreate the angst here.

The Great BBC Fridge Magnet Challenge

Jon Manel, BBC Radio 4's 'man at the pitchside' at the World Cup, laid down a challenge to his listeners to tell him 'Who invented the fridge magnet?'

Without a definitive response, Jon's gauntlet still lies on the floor.

There's a free magnet available for anyone who can supply the answer.

(Jon's diary - which references fridge magnets throughout! - can be found here.)

And don't you go rushing off to Wikipedia for the answer - the boys at Wiki don't know!

New range of "quite interesting" magnets available on ebay

The Fridge Magnet Magnate is proud to announce his range of 'quite interesting' fridge magnets, available for sale on ebay.

These include the popular "My other fridge is a SMEG" magnet, which has appeared on fridges the world over since its launch at MagnetExpo '05 in Stockholm in November last year.

Fridge magnets just got ironic!

Search my shop here, but if you can't find what you're looking for, just let me know!

Remember - no fridge is too big!

A new dawn for white goods!

Fridges the world over, unite! You have nothing to lose but bare, white space!

Welcome to the Fridge Magnet Magnate's Blog - a place to share and discuss your views about fridge magnets in the safety and security of a public forum potentially readable by millions of people (in my dreams!).