Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. I hope you've had a nice week and will also have a nice week to come. Numismatics is as active as ever. We can all be thankful that we are immersed in what many have called the world's greatest hobby.

Of course, neither we nor any other group is immune to the world swirling around us, and who would have guessed that stocks of many leading banks and brokerages have become fractions of their former worth. Unlike numismatics, there is no safety net for stocks, no backup. As I write these notes Citicorp, which traded at about $30 within the past year, is now at less than $4. If you had bought 1,000 shares for $30,000, they would now be worth $4,000.

In numismatics, if a coin, say a scarce large cent, or gem Morgan dollar, or rare pattern, that cost $30,000 a year ago could be bought for $4,000 now, the line to buy it would be a block long! "Nothing I own went down yesterday!" a numismatist recently said.

Today I received a nice letter from Ray Williams, president of the Colonial Coin Collectors Club, about the Gala the American Numismatic Society held recently to honor Harvey Stack, co-chairman of our company, and active in the profession since 1947 (or earlier, considering that when he was a kid he essentially grew up in the business, established in New York City in 1933).

"Everyone had a fun time and the food was awesome! Diane and I were invited to sit at Roger Siboni's table, which was filled with colonial coin collectors. Syd Martin [editor of the C4 Newsletter] flew up from Florida and was held up due to flight delays. He missed the beginning but was there in time for the main part of the dinner (the steak). Harvey seemed to have a good time and enjoyed the attention being the guest of honor.

Ute [Ute Wartenberg, director of the ANS] and Roger did well at the podium. With my contacts with Ute, she seems to be the perfect public image for ANS. She is upbeat, positive about the hobby, respects all areas of numismatics and has fun. I would imagine that the business person in her can (must) be stern with the operational running of ANS. But there are other people in the hobby that look like they just sucked on a lemon! What a fortunate sequence of events the past decade for ANS, due to Don Partrick, ANS moved into some prime Manhattan real estate. It was not an ideal building but the building was a good investment as it was sold for a good profit right at the top of the real estate market -good timing on the part of Roger S and the trustees. Now they're in a beautiful location that they are renting.…"

All of this reminds me that the social side of numismatics is very important. While we all enjoy reading coin books in a comfy armchair, or e-mailing or otherwise bidding in distant auctions, and ordering things through the mail (it always brightens a day to get a package of coins!), it is still fun and very worthwhile to go to coin club and association meetings, attend conventions, and visit dealers and attend auctions in person.

If your travels bring you to New York City, by all means go to 123 West 57th Street, not far from either Fifth Avenue or Times Square, and stop by to say "hello."

See you next week!

Best Wishes,