Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. The year has flown by quickly, with lots of good things in numismatics, perhaps a sheltered cove from a lot of the rest of the world. Certainly, the panorama of financial things in the United States and the world is unprecedented in our time.

Amidst all of this, numismatics has held a fairly steady course. Nearly all purchases are made by collectors who are not leveraged, are not working on borrowed funds, but who simply put discretionary income into items they like -whether it be a type set of gold coins, a silver "owl" from ancient Athens, a $5 note from Connecticut, or a Hard Times token.

However, neither numismatics nor anything is immune from larger happenings in the financial world. Here is hoping that 2009 will find good leadership in Washington and a sense of good feeling among citizens of America and abroad. Perhaps it will give us the opportunity to come together, something we all need.

In the meantime, the approval by Congress of an eleven-year program for quarter dollars featuring National Parks bodes well for our hobby, as do the continuing programs for other quarters (such as territories), the Presidential dollars, and the new reverses for Lincoln cents. The U.S. Mint with its multi-billion dollar revenues and large advertising budget helps us all. The parade of new products, and I don't want to omit commemoratives and bullion coins, is in great contrast to the situation a generation ago when each year the Mint turned out Lincoln cents, Jefferson nickels, Roosevelt dimes, Washington quarters, and Kennedy halves, but not much else.

Coming up soon is our Orlando Sale prefacing the Florida United Numismatists Convention in the same city. A lot of beautiful coins will be offered, and the sale is certain to be a great beginning to the New Year. In the following week, in New York City, we have our Golden Horn Collection Sale of ancient and foreign coins, followed by our traditional Americana Sale (see separate announcement), a great lineup. Check these events on the Internet as they are posted, and also in our printed catalogues as you receive them.

My Notes would not be complete without urging you to buy some books! Today I saw a report that the most successful retailer in America in terms of last year's customers coming back this year was Wal-Mart, and second in a long list was Books-A-Million (associated with Anderson Press, parent company of Whitman Publishing LLC). In another report, this one in the New York Times, a survey showed that out of 134 leading retailers, customers found Barnes & Noble to be the nicest place to shop!

This must mean that books are even more widely appreciated than I imagine. A great place to buy numismatic books is here on our website. Every title is discounted, and every book is guaranteed to please you. Perhaps if you had bought a copy of the best-selling title, The Expert's Guide to Collecting and Investing in Rare Coins two years ago, and then went out and carefully bought $10,000 worth of coins, you'd have done a bit better than if you had spent in on Wall Street! The rest of your life starts today as you read this. Buy a copy. You'll enjoy it. Of all the books I've written for Whitman, this is one that perhaps brings in the most letters from readers. Let me know what you think!

Here's wishing you the very best for the coming week.

Best Wishes,