This is my very first attempt at blogging, so bear with me until I get used to it. Some of you have already heard of me through my posts or the logo design, and I have met several of you through direct messaging. What I'm going to attempt to do here is give a bit of insight as to who I am now, have been in the past, what motivates/disgusts me and how this is all woven into my collecting habits. Please do not share what you see/read with Mental Health professionals as I would rather not take that kind of a vacation.

I was born in the '50's and am a child of the '60's; heavily influenced by the "British Invasion". Have been a musician since I was 7- guitar and cittern. Radically political since I became a "card carrying" member of a decidedly red political party in 1972 (yep, still a member). Joined the Navy anyway- they didn't buy my political affiliation and gave me a secret clearance (I look like a Conservative Republican, I'm told). Stayed with that until my luck ran out in Beirut, 1983. Went back to college and got a degree in Commercial Art/Photography and worked in that field until 1999 when, through a list of sordid mishaps and bad luck, I began work with the State (Virginia) and am currently a Sergeant in a maximum security prison for... women.

I left Virginia the first time in 1959; swore I'd never come back to live. After circumnavigating the globe around 5 times, I returned to Virginia, to live, in 1988. Bad decision. But, you are where you are, so here I am in the middle of nowhere in the "rocker" between Charlottesville and Richmond, in a very old, decrepit house with my wife, my dog, a huge bunch of cats that passing cars continue to "drop off", a red-tailed hawk, a peregrine falcon, several possums, black snakes and copperheads and whatever else wanders onto my 8.95 acres- and no, I don't hunt, so I wind up feeding them.

Now that everyone has some idea of where I'm coming from, I'll be making entries from time to time to keep all up to speed. I will post new acquisitions in my galleries, saving this area for those side images that give an insight into the where, when or how. So, until the next entry, take care...

Oooops, it's still the 2nd and I have a little more to write, so I've chosen to edit this and add more. Got a new piece today... the mail has slowed a bit since last week when I was "preparing for a hurricane and got an earthquake"- actually got both, the earthquake being quite unusual for this area (especially a 5.8)- lost my chimney completely due to the initial and following aftershocks which continue. The hurricane was pretty much a non-event where I am; some rain and a little wind. Never lost power... when we lose power we lose everything; water, toilet, phone. Not good. Anyway, I digress... the piece I received is a "Merits of the People's Militia" medal (Czechoslovakia) with ribbon bar in a padded, light blue case. A very nice piece from a dealer in Israel at an outstanding price. I always enjoy doing business with this gentleman. Tomorrow I hope to photograph it and begin my Czechoslovakian gallery- I have managed to collect several pieces geared around, for the most part, organizations of the internal ministry.

Hmmmm, brings me to a last bit- "what do I collect?". I collect orders, medals, badges and documents from the Communist era of the USSR, Mongolia, the DDR (a lot of this appears on Megan's site), Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary. I also have a small collection of Cuban badges, a few Mao buttons, some items from Poland and some from Czechoslovakia. I have a pretty good collection of Communist Party of the Russian Federation medals (in the Gallery section- have a look), a nearly complete collection from the unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (Pridnestrovie) also in the Gallery section and a few Umalatova medals (who doesn't). Oh yeah, I've also got a pretty good collection of Sons of Confederate Veterans and Military Order of the Stars and Bars items that were given to me over the years. I think I mentioned it all.

This is the final entry today, I promise.