Lunch with Eric Garcetti

KCET's charity auction this week on eBay included lunch with incoming president of the city council Eric Garcetti. Billed as "a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get your viewpoint heard," bidders were told to "prepare to talk politics with Eric Garcetti with this certificate valid for lunch for two at City Hall or Hollywood location." The winner at $77 was Mary Cummins, president of the animal rescue group Animal Advocates. She really wanted this lunch, apparently, bidding against herself three times before swooping in on the final day to go a dollar over the last offer. (Cummins advises me that her bids were against reserve bids, which aren't shown in the final eBay tally.) Cummins own eBay profile says "I rehabilitate squirrels, skunks, opossums and chipmunks for release back to the wild."