eBay Users' Stamp Club Meeting 28-30 Dec "What are you up to now? Current collecting interests"

[sheryll*net]

 *** eBay Users’ Stamp Club ***

Please join us on this thread for our monthly meeting on "What are you up to now? Current collecting interests". The meeting is officially open any time today 28 Dec to midnight on Sunday 30 Dec. Thanks to rfaux for suggesting the topic.

Wwe will also take time out to remember iomoon, ioloonie and ultraplinian who passed away earlier this month. You may wish to post on this thread, or add to this thread -

https://community.ebay.com/t5/The-Stamp-Board/iomoon/gpm-p/29225451

There will also be an eBay ID check-in. Please come down briefly from the balcony and let us know what you're up to.

Sheryll in OR and Anne in NJ

[billsey]

I haven't been putting nearly as much effort into my collecting for the last year or so, focusing more on DIY embedded electronic systems (like CNC), 3D printers and recoving from the accident. I have done a little work on my USA collection. I picked up a couple of modern mint collections and replaced most of the 1930-1990 range that I'd gotten up to high school. In the process I ended up with a bunch of FDCs and plate blocks for the 1952 Civil Engineers centenary, so I've been looking for commercial uses and missing FDC cachets in order to try and turn it from another binder to an exhibit. I also upgraded the 24 cent 1869 pictorial and got my second Zeppelin, just have to afford a $2.60 and they'll be done. I have partial collections waiting for more energy in Venezuela, Poland, Spain, Cuba and Iran. I'd like to get a lot more complete on the early Iran forgeries, since they're so much easier to find than the genuine. 🙂

[jaywild]

Sheryll...

These clues are the Times of London type, the answers usually a concatenation of more than one idea, involving deep knowledge of many types, not the least of which are Latin and Greek.  I am used to the New York Times Saturday puzzle style of clueing, which relies on oblique, misleading hints or single words that tend to lead off into the weeds, all of which produce answers that even a person with only a moderate education should be familiar with.

Here's a typical New York Times clue:  "Twist and shout?" (8)

[rfaux]

Hello all!

jaywild - so, are you doing a lot with the German inflation era right now?  I dabbled it briefly.  But, frankly, I only dabbled because I managed to pick up a big lot of German postal history that spanned that period.  Didn't get anything super nice, but had some fun with it.

Sheryll - always good to see you finding new items for New Hebrides.  I know so little about that area, you can get away with showing me the same thing three to ten times and just tell me about it all over again.  🙂

greenwave4u - I thought that was you on the Postal History - Covers and Stationery group (Facebook).  I'm still not sure how active I will be in that group myself.

malolo - You have just given me incentive to go to Omaha this year.  Since I live in Iowa, I should have gone before now.  Do they still have frames open you think?

billsey - I can probably send you a batch of Persia/Iran forgeries... You are right, it is easier to find the fakes.

All - I realized I didn't show something I was currently working on.

[rfaux]

 The system has been activing oddly tonight.  so, I might not do much more here.  I did find a scan of an inflation era item I have.  Muscatine is about 1.5 hour drive to our South and East.

Rob

[rfaux]

I've only got a few covers from Persia, but it helps with the authenticity to get a common cover if you can find one.  Makes comparison so much easier. 

R

[rfaux]

Roger,

Here is one of my most recent Swiss pick-ups.  It was a sneaky good item since it is franked with the 10 centime/rappen blue.  Border mail rate to Chiavenna, Italy.

Rob

[jaywild]

Bücherzettel

Below is a German inflation item that occupies a very tiny niche in the rate regulations.  Drücksache was printed matter mail, usually advertising or invoices, statements etc., sent at a much reduced rate.  The content had to be printed, however 5 written words were allowed per piece.  In the case of Bücherzettel, which were sent out as postcards with a reply card attached, were exempt from this 5 word limit.

The recipient of a Bücherzettel card was supposed to indicate what he wished to order, then fold the card the other way, stamp it and send the order back to the bookseller.

Not sure how this was supposed to work on foreign mail, since (in this case) it would be Swiss postal laws which determined to what class of mail the returned, folded-over card belonged.  In any event, it was never returned.

[sheryll*net]

Jaywild - this clue couldn't get more American. But I'm not sure recluse is the  right word.

Childish description of recluse? (7)

[abt1950]

Hi all,

I’m impressed with all that everyone has been up to.  I’ve been doing very little philatelically.  My stamp desk is buried in rubble, as that room has become a de facto storage area.  

I’ve been dealing with a lot of life changes, as a few of you know.    My husband died 18 months ago.  The Offspring, whom I used to talk about on the old threaded board, is now in his second year of med school.  He’s getting married in May.

eventually I’ll get back to stamps.  I’m finding myself less interested in Egypt and Luxembourg.  I’ve reached the limits of what I can easily get and what I want is out of my price range.  There are a few Egyptian essays I would love to get my hands on, but for the same cost I can buy lots of cheaper thrills.  So I’m looking more toward worldwide collecting again.  Malta, Austria, and Greece are calling to me.  I’ve been picking up occasional lots of very modern  Japanese kiloware, just for the fun of it.  I’ve also been cruising eBay for cheap but recent specialty catalogs.  I see more flyspecking in my future. 

[sheryll*net]

Rob, a short set of 7 of those went for 235 pounds earlier this year. There are 3 more on the market but I don't have 165 euros lying around. I have them all in blocks but I think the are  different printings. Having the one will help with commparison.

[sheryll*net]

Childish description of recluse? (7)

Decided Io had it right after all. No one got the answer, which was DAHOMEY.

Rob - those  1907 essays  were rejected by the British as they lacked the word CONDOMINIUM.

Anne et al = good to see you posting!

[sheryll*net]

Speaking of essays, there are some Military Franchise beauties coming up. In the unaffordable realm, costing one and a half "twist and shouts" as a starting price. And another sheet went by at 600 euros earlier in the month.

[billsey]

Rob, I'd love whatever Persian forgeries you can send my way, I expect I'll need quite a few of them before I settle into finding missing versions. 🙂 Let me know if you no longer have my address and I'll PM you with it (I  think they let us PM here don't they?).

Anne, I expect if you get started on Greece you will find it ever more complex and interesting than either Egypt or Luxembourg. 🙂 Be sure you get one of the specialty catalogs, I've found the Hellas to be easy enough to work with and a few years ago it was quite inexpensive to purchase new from Karamitsos.

[jaywild]

Sheryll...

I would never have gotten DAHOMEY in a donkey's life.  "Homey" doesn't equate with recluse very well.  Homey is a term of youth meaning "homeboy", or close neighborhood friend.

Very clever my dear to extract the cash from my clue... 

[antonius-ra]

Greetings to all my old friends.  I am still about collecting the world and attempting to get the few remaining affordable stamps I need for most countries.  3 countries that I have somewhat been focusing on are Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain.  Just today I added a beautiful XF unused 1840 G.B. 1 cent Mulready envelope. All three are close to reaching the "brick wall".

The First of my searches each week continue to be South and Central America where most countries are getting quite respectable. Peru has become my favorite country for the area as well as becoming one of my favorite countries of the world followed closely by Uruguay.

I've also enhanced my 19th century U.S. collection by upgrading several stamps from used to mint and a few used that I needed.

All in all it's been pretty slow as most of what I need are of high value or rarely seen.  However each stamp I add is a new treasure and seen as progress.

Hope you all see progresss in your collecting areas in the new year!