Hello everyone!
Since I'm a relatively new member to the KoTCT, I thought I had best come and introduce myself.
My name is Tracy Thompson, and I have resided in San Antonio Texas for the past ten years. I've always lived in Texas, and as much as I want to see the other parts of the world, Texas will always be home for me.
I began collecting coins when I was a wee little kitten. My Mom and Dad would go shopping at the mall, and my favourite part of the trip was on the way out. We'd stop at this tiny little bookstore, and on the magazine rack they would have paper envelopes with coins from foreign countries. I loved inspecting each and every one. Some of them were made of aluminum, and in my childhood silliness I never did believe they were real money. After all, my coins weren't that light!
After proving my interest wasn't as fleeting as most seven year olds, Mom and Dad broke out the coins they had saved for years. My Grandmothers bank full of mercury dimes and Franklin halves, my mothers gallon of wheat pennies. We all sat down at the table and went through them, sorting them by years and mints, and then finally putting them into the old Whitman push-in folders.
My coin collecting dwindled during High School and College, simply because we moved from a major Metropolitan area, to a small rural town setting where foreign coins were ... well, foreign. I still pulled anything interesting that came through circulation, and saved it accordingly.
I graduated from college with a Bachelor's Degree in Science, Geology. Lack of work experience kept me in the Restaurant industry for employment, which kept me in interesting coins and notes for a long time. Eventually employment led me south again, to San Antonio. Here, I rediscovered my passion for collecting coins, and several excellent shops and dealers in coins.
Employment opportunity knocked, and I jumped. Out of the restaurant industry at last, I now build Toyota Tundra Pickup trucks for Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Texas. My income has more than doubled, and my budget for coins has grown. I'm making up some for past years of famine, with a feast of sorts. :D
My absolute favourites are the Australian coins. Predecimal and Decimal both, I collect them. I've gotten quite a selection of these, surprisingly. Other collections include Russian Imperial, Canadian cents, and Japanese coins. I'm doing my best to get a coin from every country, but I'm down to the really hard, scarce, and expensive countries. Only recently I've begun to become interested in foreign currency ontop of the coinage.
I am always happy to trade coins! It's sometimes difficult for me to get to the post office, so my promptness sometimes suffers, but it's a matter of honour for me to mail out payment or coins in return. They will get there, one way or the other.
As for the Kitty part, that's a long standing identity I developed for use on the internet. I've been a part of an online game where writing was the main engine for creativity, but the average member was under the age of 18. I found it was harder for them to become 'affectionate' with a Kitty, whereas human females are targetted for less than savory activity. I do adore cats, and have a lovely, grumpy old white Persian named Stolichnaya. He's my baby, as we have no children yet.
And now, if anyone is still awake out there in the audience, are there any questions, comments, etc? :D
Funny how your cat has the name Stolichnaya :o But if I name cat after favourite Russian beverage it would be Nastoika.
^^; We named the iguana Midori.
(http://a421.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/109/l_efc67b68b073e987e46f41697cb79754.jpg)
All my cats have Russian names, Vika, Sergechka, and Katyusha. Kids name them after friends they know in UA from before we come to the USA
Hi Miss Kitty.
Glad you made it across the moat safely.
Got your goodies off this AM, 2 hours before I found another $2.00 2007 in my change. I'll put it aside for you.
regards,
Ps, you write very nicely.
Thank you muckeye. :D
I'll be looking for the package to arrive sometime next week then, eagerly! Thank you so much for sending those out. Hopefully I'll be all caught up in my decimal collections when it gets here! I'm so excited!
And of course, if there's ever anything I can do for you, you have but to ask.
nice to see ya here kitty!!
Great to see you here ElleKitty. Welcome. :)
Great that you made it here kitty before the drawbridge is raised.
I thought all the world was seeking Geology specialists to find gold like yesterday
But unfortunately the remaining gold seems to be in very unhopitable places
But I was told it is like triple pay for as long as you can stand it
There isn't a whole lot of gold to be found here in Texas... and I've never had the money to go anywhere else to seek my fortune as a Gold Seeking Geologist.
Maybe because I spend it on coins as soon as I get it. o.0
Welcome Kitty ;D
Sorry so late in saying so, have been busy closing one of my stores, a big job which should be done tomorrow finally.
madspec
Kitty, you should come to Western Australia for a couple of years, we are screaming for people in anything to do with mining. We are having a huge boom at the moment and it is expected to last maybe 30 years. I think you would start on about $100,000-$150,000 as a geologist.
See this list of jobs.... http://www.seek.com.au/jobsearch/index.ascx?DateRange=31&catlocation=1010&stateselected=true&catarea=2812&catarea=2836&catarea=2835&Keywords=geologist&searchfrom=quick
You can buy a lot of coins for that.
Wow. You make such a great argument, and moving to Australia would be a dream come true. I'd prefer the NSW area though.. and it's been so long since I have had anything to do with geology that I can barely remember my rock types! I love my job with Toyota though. Maybe in time, I can get myself settled, go back to school and get a Masters degree, and then explore this avenue a little better in the future. :D
Welcome, Tracy ;D
I know you're enjoying this place already!
After having returned from the perils of a sixteenth century village overrun with pirates (And at least one Stormtrooper. Can someone tell me what Star Wars has to do with the Renaissance? sheesh.) I thought I would, at long last, share a picture of meself here on the forums. I'm pretty proud of my costume, and I really enjoyed wearing it inspite of the heat and humidity. Things were fine, unless we spent more than thirty seconds in the sweltering confines of the shops. Where it was breezy, the temperature was bearable even in that heavy coat and hat.
(http://a178.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/87/l_9b7e58b27e08e5d2384479e5d09a6809.jpg)
And then there is this one. I'm stretched out playing Trivial Pursuit at a friends house, and his kitty promptly decides that I would make a great Kitty Couch. I'm being laughed at in this photo, because for some reasons, cats like to sit on my backside. My own kitty does this. I haven't got the foggiest clue why.
(http://a564.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/33/l_693762581ad482911c11f8cd9fcaea93.jpg)
Thanks Tracey, you look just like I imagined.
Bonzer beaut.
regards,
Great photo's kitty.
Lovely photos, Kitty.
It's nice to put a picture to the name.
With such a vast coin collection, I imagined you to be a lot older.
Dear Tracy:
Wonderful Photos. Glad to see you and your coins. Keep it up.
Have you visited India?? A sub-continent. Land of different history, culture, languages, foods and what not good people.
My home town www.metturdam.com
saw many American Peace Corps Vollunteers, Russian Engineers, Austrian Engineer from Wagner Biro, Vienna, American Engineers from B.F.Good Rich Co., Ohio, Italian Engineers from Mantecatani of Milano, during 1960's
So you are most welcome to visit India.
Kindest regards, Madam
Ever yours
George
muckeye, you're making me blush! Thank you.
bm1947, thank you as well.
triggersmob, I'm older than I look, though yes, still rather young. 35 years, 25 of them collecting coins. It's only been in the past three or so years that I've started collecting coins that are actually "worth" something, other than my love of them.
George, thank you, also. :) I have not been to India, in fact I've never left the US, except for a brief walk into Mexico many years ago. Thank you for the invitation, however. I'm sure I won't be visiting you any time soon, as most of my extra money is spent on coins. ;)
Dear Tracy:
Thanks for your kind message. Now a days, the Air Fare..Hotels are cheap. Many Travel companies offer 'Travel Now & Pay Latter'
I was invited by German Pen Friend of 27 years to Germany. She will spare all costs of mine. Since I am alone, I am unable to make a trip.
Well! If you visit here, you can find more and more interesting coins too...even though the memories, beautiful places you visited, TAJ MAHAL, will always be in your memoy...more than coins.
Kind regards
Sincerely
George
American Peace Corps Volluntters lived in this town during early 1960s when facilities were not availble.
That picture reminds me of a cat we used to have. It would jump on my father's back when he was bent over planting seeds and weeding the garden. Then it would push his hat off. Why, I have no idea. Maybe it just wanted a piggyback.