Ahhh time just keeps on moving!! In this age of digital out reach even a hobby which appears to be so anti - tech needs to keep up. With this in mind we continue to develop and promote from new avenues... We recently updated our Facebook page, updated our Twitter, started this blog and this week we are looking to update our video library!!
Personally I find it amazing that there are so many tools out there to not only help spread the word of any topic one can think of, but also to learn from and gather information. I guess in order to appreciate this statement one should take into account who I am... Granted I am still young (37), but i do recall that no one ever thought a cell phone could be smaller than a brick or that computers were for anyone other than the extremely wealthy (of which I have never been nor do i ever intend to be). I found stamp collecting on a whim actually a little over a year ago and have steam rolled right on in. Please allow me to elaborate....
I have had many hobbies and passions over the years (tattooing, fishing, fish keeping, playing electric bass guitar, and poker to name a few) but I find that in order to keep my mind occupied and be able to afford the hobby I need something inexpensive and fun. So thinking back to my youth I recalled someone having sent me some mint stamps and telling me not to use them.. Hmmm, perhaps they were on to something and considering my love of history i would look into the idea of stamp collecting further.
After a search I found a stamp collecting forum (having been a member of forums before I was familiar with the idea) and joined right up. Unfortunately the experience was not the most comfortable and the tone was a bit .... shall we just say that one day you are family the next an out cast if you shared a different view... Not my kind of place to say the least. so me being me I joined 4 more and decided to start my own... Oh i should mention that at this point i had only been collecting for 1-2 months.. Yeah I am that guy.
Now almost a full year later my Family and I continue to grow as collectors and true hobbyists. That's right not the investment type of collector at all. We have met with some of the greatest people in the hobby form the casual collector to the die hard investment type and I have to say we love them all. Everyone we encounter is eager to share their knowledge and offer tips while respecting other peoples points of view on the subject. I find peace in the idea that there are still real people out there who can talk about a subject and not become defensive when speaking from varying sides.

Stranger still is how this wonderful hobby has brought some common ground to my family and opened communication in our household even more.

Thanks for reading and happy stamping,
Bear