I met a gentleman some years ago via the old rec-collecting-stamps discussion board. I had recently inherited my wife's grandfather's accumulation and I had found a few nice things where I had some duplication. This fellow had decided he was interested in classic US material and was having a good time accumulating things via auction. But, he wasn't terribly careful about his bids and had come up with some extras of certain items - such as the 1847 5 cent stamp (Scott #1).
We worked out a trade where I got his pen canceled 1847 and I traded him a $2 Columbian that I was lucky enough to have a duplicate of (no, there were no other $ Columbians in the accumulation). He insisted that he got the better end of the deal. And, I suppose he did. But, I wasn't too worried about it since I had acquired an item I'd always wanted without spending any of my own money (so to speak). We corresponded semi-frequently and I found Wayne Leonard to be a pleasant and positive individual who was enjoying exploring the hobby.
Sadly, it wasn't too long before he let me know that he was suffering from throat cancer and he was going to have to divest himself of his collection. Frankly, I only heard the first part and he had to repeat the second part. As he put it, he wanted to offer me his better copy at his buying price. And, he would let me pay in whatever way I was able.
In the end, he let me set terms to pay for both his Scott 1 and 2 over an extended period of time. Pretty much shot the stamp budget for a couple of years at that time. But, I wasn't going to get a better opportunity any time soon to buy them. And, these copies meant more to me than what they were.
It was more about who they were from.
Now, these stamps reside on their own page in my collection. When I view them, I think of the kind man with the pleasant voice who was respectful and honest.
I suspect several people on this board will have Bill Weiss stories. I had only a few instants where I had cause to be in touch with Bill, but they were always positive and I always came away feeling that he heard me when I talked to him. Bill sent me a note some years back that he had a cover I really should bid on in his auctions because it would be a fabulous addition. At that time, I wasn't sure if I could afford anything "fabulous" but I was grateful to receive the notice and I put what was an obnormally large (for me) bid on this item. I was completely shocked and very pleased to receive the notice that I had landed it at a couple of ticks below my maximum bid.
And, here it is - one of my favorite items in my 24 cent postal history exhibit. And, I do remember Bill when I look at it.
I am realizing, now that Sheryll and Anne have put this topic up, that there are many items in my collections that have ties to people I know or have known. And, I find that I like it. I hope others will share similar things.
Rob
Last one from me. I think.
I mentioned my wife's grandfather. He was proud of his German heritage and had significant German material that I was tasked with going through after his death. Some of it I sold on behalf of his spouse and some I inherited. One item I held onto is below. I always had some idea about the German zeppelins, but I didn't really do much research on it until last Winter.
Bill Zenk was gracious in sharing what he had with me and having his, and his wife, Sylvia's, approval went a ways towards helping me integrate into the family. I remember that he gave me a box of used US stamps one day and told me I could take what I wanted out of it. I found some used Columbian stamps (1ct-15ct) and was absolutely floored. I remember asking him more than once if he was serious. The highest catalog item in my collection at the time was the 10 cent National Parks stamp. It amused and, I think, pleased him to see my genuine excitement in going through that box.
Tammy and I have maintained a Germany collection in his honor.
Thanks for the topic.
Rob
Well, let's get started. Sorry to hear about Sarge. Maybe sneeky can confirm. There is nothing on the web that I could find.
I didn't have much to do with Bill Weiss but as others elsewhere have said, he was one for ethics. I appreciated his zeal and the work he put in to make eBay a safer venue.
as_is and t.nitpicker disappeared from eBay's records, as did (gasp!) elizabeth*r .
Also struck out of the database were evicon, fillatellick and jnluff.
Probably just as well, as they were troublemakers...
Rob - beautiful page and great stories!
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I present to you once again the Ed Druce Tribute Cover. This well-known Australian philatelist passed away sudddenly less than 24 houors after had sent him the link to it on eBay for his "Tonga - the Philatelically Sticky Period" exhibit.
I bought it in memory of him, as he was a mentor and treated me like an exhibitor before I had anything worthy of exhibiting. He believed I could do it!
And... he was responsible for my coming to the chat board in the way that I did. But that is another story...
This cover resides in my Greetings to America, by Letter display, under the letter T.
I see Bill Weiss’s name mentioned here a couple times. After a cursory internet check I saw that he retired in August of this year from expertizing...then found that he died in November.
Bob Lodge was born exactly ten years (minus one day) from me. He arrived in the world on October 6, 1940. He sure kept his wits and humor about him until the very end, posting on the old chatboard I think two days before he died.
Anyway, the single most glaring reason for the “missing in action” is—eBay. First they disabled using one’s email address for a user ID, then they brought in the Church Lady to tut-tut and yank away from the chatboard anything she thought was vulgar (such as “the pen is mightier than the sword”—she wasn’t very bright). Then they kept monkeying with the board until they did away with it altogether, and saddled everyone with the current fragmented diaspora of commentary. It’s too much of a pain in the neck to follow ten thousand different discussions, each of which has to be opened, then rearranged so it can be read coherently. This is the reason I rarely if ever visit these boards, except for when the gemina imperatrices Anne/Sheryll host their delightful monthly Users’ Club meeting. I don’t always contribute, but I always read them all the way through.
In other news, sold the item below a couple months ago only to have the buyer go deadbeat on me, so have listed it again.
If it doesn’t sell this time I will leave it for my heirs to fight over—
