Thanks for the Cards

I'm not at home to receive them, but thanks for all the X-Mas and Bday cards that make it to my place while I'm away on the boat.

I'd personally like to thank Vlad and Carol Kononov from Tripp, SD for the great card with a silver Mercury Dime attached on the inside. Very thoughtful!

Also, thanks go out to The Arsenaults up in Maine. Great card and I was very surprised by the wheat penny. Pleasure working with you at FMDF!

Sorry pic is so bad, but it's a cell phone pic from back home.

Holidays How-Do

Just a friendly Holiday Greeting to all my readers and other interested parties. Here I am at my desk on the M/V Ocean Odyssey, where I'll be all through the holidays. So since I won't be there to wish you all the appropriate well wishes, this goes out to you. My parents, Grandad, Aunt and Brother in TX... Grandparents, Cousin, Aunt and Uncle in VA... Aunt, Uncle and Cousin in DC... friends all over the US, mostly in the North East (NH, CT, MA), Northwest (WA), and my local VA people. Also to new friends recently added to the XMAS card list our in South Dakota and also up in Maine.

The best to all of you!

Trip to TX

Figured I'd update any and everyone on how the trip to TX went. Simply put, it was a great time... but I'll get more specific than that.

At 6am on Nov. 20th, Ash and I caught started the journey. By 1045a we had landed in Dallas/Ft. Worth. My parents picked us up and off to Uncle Julio's for some fine Mexican cuisine in Ft. Worth. It was pretty yummy, very fresh tasting. A little pricey as far as I'm concerned for Mexican food, but it was good.

After that we drove down by where the new Cowboy's stadium is STILL under construction... and then made our way home... to Granbury.

The next morning we woke up late, and then headed over to the beach at Lake Granbury to get in some MD time. You can see my post from Nov 26th for more info on that.
It was really just to waste time while waiting for the 2:30p showing of the new Disney Pixar movie, Bolt. Which, if you have the opportunity to see, was pretty sweet. Rhino the Hamster makes the movie!



After filling up on popcorn, candy and soda... it was time to make it back home. My Dad was off to the DFW area to watch High School footballs playoffs, so we just went home and fizzled out. The plan was to hit up CiCi's Pizza after for food, but the movie snacks had canceled those plans. After recovering a few hours later, we were hungry. And much to my surprise, my mom shuttled us over to Hammond's BBQ in Glen Rose. MY FAVORITE #1 BBQ place EVER! Nothing like brisket perfection, fried okra, and drinks out of a mason jar!

The next morning, Saturday I believe, we all woke up early and made it to a local diner called The Firehouse. Their country fried steak and eggs is the only place that rivals IHOPs version in my opinion. Anyhow, it was our yummy breakfast before heading out to Arlington and spending the majority of the day at Six Flags Over Texas.

We had a great time at Six Flags. Since we were there when it opened we were able to ride pretty much every roller coaster in just a few short hours. We met some cartoon characters, had a half decent lunch, and bought a supergirl cape, haha.







We left the park about an hour and a half before it closed. After riding all the coasters and wandering around, didn't see much use in staying just to stay. So since I guess we had time to kill on the way home, my dad took us by the Ft. Worth Stock Yards... were sadly, there was no cattle to see. But it was neat walking around the shops and stuff.



The next day was a lazy day. We drove over to Cleburne and had lunch with my Grandad. It was good seeing him. Twice in one year is a new record for me.

Monday morning, we started our 3.4-4 hour journey down to San Antonio. It was a long, boring ride. Nothing exciting to report on the way down. We stayed at the Drury Plaza Hotel which has a River Walk entrance. It was a nice place. Room was big, had WiFi (which I used to download a few movies, hehe) and they gave 3 complimentary cocktails for each person per day. What's not to like!? We spent the rest of the day checking out The Alamo, the River Walk, Ripley's Odditorium and Louis Tusaud's Wax Mueseum. We also made the rounds at the River Center Mall.







Our last full day in TX and we were headed off to Austin, the state capitol. We spent about an hour at the capitol building, where we got lots of neat pics. Then made it north to Round Rock near the Dell Diamond baseball field to eat a BBQ place my buddy Shane, who lives in Austin, recommended. I rated it maybe #3 on my list.





And there you have it. That was pretty much our trip to TX. Can't wait to do it again in a few months, maybe when it's baseball season again. Hope you all enjoyed the story and pics!

Turkey Day Swingin'

Ahhh Thanksgiving... not really one of my favorite holidays, but whatever. The morning started off hectic, running around trying to get milk and garlic before heading of to the g/f's parents house so she could make the mashed potatoes before it was time to eat. In all that mess, I took the time out to swing the MD in the front and back yard.

Right outta the gate a found a few pieces of trash and a '44 Wheat penny. I was pretty stoked at that point. Not even 5 minutes later I got a signal on my X30 that was jumping around between +32 and +40... so honestly, I was thinking I found some silver. But when I dug up the item, about 4 inches down... to my surprise it looked like a button. But not just any button. I've been doing this long enough now to recognize an older military button... it was just trying to find out how old.

As you can see from the image below, the front of the button shows an eagle with an anchor, and 13 stars. What you can't see on the back, is that it reads, Benedict & Coe... which was what the Waterbury Co (known to make old military buttons) was known as from 1829-1832. And the style matches that of an 1830s Federal Navy Button. Amazing!!!!



Other than this great find, I found 2 more Wheats, a '44 and a '52, along with a bunch of clad.

After that, it was off to my uncle Dan's for TDAY #2.

TX Huntin', Nov 21, 23 & 25

I was able to get a good 3-4 hours of MD'ing in over 3 days of my week long trip to TX. I had been in contact with a guy by the name of Aaron Mclain of Granbury, TX's Parks and Rec Dept. about detecting in the town. And he graciously replied, short and sweet:

"I can only speak for the city parks and city athletic fields. We do not allow digging in the city parks. It can create uneven playing surfaces and hazards for others. You can visit the city beach and use the detector in that area and dig holes as long as they are covered back up. unfortunately, most of the Brazos River shoreline is privately owned and access is limited."

That being said, I took it upon my first day there to hit up the towns' beach upon the man-made Lake Granbury. Sadly, there wasn't much to be found there, only 4 coins... but hey, apparently the beach has only been there a few months. That same day I found a few more odds an ends, 30-06 brass casings, 4 more coins... and old iron tool pieces in my parents front yard. Nothing exciting.


Two days later I decided to try my luck in the area right next to my parents where I know there used to be a trailer that had been rented out. It's no longer there, but surely the people that lived there left something? The finds there were meager at best. A few coins, 40oz bottle tops, pull tabs, and lots of trash.


My last day of hunting ended up being a night hunt. We didn't get back from Austin until the sun was setting, so I grabbed a flashlight and made the most of it. All these finds were in the front yard and side yard. I'm glad I stuck at it, 'cuz I pulled a '41 wheat! WOO!

11/17 Parking Lot, Trantwood + ES Chapel

After dinner last night I had the itch. All this rain over the past week has really made hunting conditions ideal. As I was gathering my equipment I realized I couldn't find my flashlight. And well, hunting at night w/o one is next to impossible. First stop, Wal*Mart!

But as I got to my truck I thought to myself, I'll swing the MD right here in the grassy spot behind my truck in the parking lot here at the apartments. Granted, no light, but I'll see what happens. A few minutes later, I had pulled 10 coins... 9 memorials and a nickel. Pinpointers are so awesome

I made it out to the Wal*Mart that was on the way to the spot I wanted to hunt. Picked up a great light, very small, VERY bright, and a set of warm, finger-tipless gloves.

When I made it out to my destination, a school I had raided the TL's months before, it was cold. Probably about 40F if not colder, but with the gloves and my hoodie, plenty warm. The parking lot was packed, so I decided to hit up the field on the far side of the school next to the road. It has a baseball diamond and sees plenty of action. About an hour in I was getting a few hits here and there, but mostly trash. On the backstretch heading back to the truck I pulled a corroded wheat and a smashed up .925 ring! That would be ring #4, but only the first that is not junk. I didn't know it was silver until I got home, but sure was hoping while I was out in the field It's beat up pretty bad... any tips on banging it out?

I was about to head home when I remembered a friend and I were out this way a week or so ago and spotted a TL behind my grandparents church. So I drove the mile or so over to it and unloaded. Again, parking lot full, but everyone was leaving. I walked towards the back where the TL was and eff, the whole TL is fenced in, with the only access from inside the church There were a bunch of picnic tables around and a makeshift stone alter nestled off in the brush, so I hit that up and pulled a few more coins and this button of which I know nothing about.

Anyway, that was my night, probably about 2 hours of diggin. $1.09 in coins total.

11/16 @ Tallwood, New Area

I'm not sure how much I'm liking this winter time digging. Come 5pm its just about too dark to hunt without a flashlight.

Just a lazy day, had some errands to run, decided to take out the X30 to my trusty school spot. I did however hit up an area I've never swung before, and it showed with all the trash. The two deepest digs, were about an inch past the hand guard on the Lesche... and both were cans

No coins of note, but did dig a neat little key that has a Lion on the front, a cut wire lock, and a wierd gear looking thingie.

$0.61 @ 11 coins.

World Coin Update: THANKS!

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone. So far, from everyone here who was generous enough to send me coins, as well as a few other acquisitions... I've grown to a rather large collection of coins from 47 different countries!

Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahamas
Barbados
Belgium
Bolivia
Brazil
Bulgaria
Canada
Costa Rica
Czechoslovakia
Denmark
Dominican Republic
East Caribbean States
Fiji
France
Germany-FEDREP
Great Britian
Greece
Guatemala
Hong Kong
Iraq
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Kenya
Latvia
Luxembourg
Malaysia
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Norway
Portugal
Russia
Singapore
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Arab Emerites
Venezuela

11/9 Back @ Tallwood

I had about 45 minutes to kill today whilst waiting for the g/f's brother and sister in law to make it over to pic up an old 80s era bunk bed set that has just been sitting in the closet for the better part of two years.So I figured what the hey, house is clean, I'm gonna hit up my trusty school.

So in those roughly 45 minutes, I dug 20 holes and pulled 20 coins... and honestly, no kidding, NO TRASH! I went back to an area of the school that has already brought me 100+ memorials and a few other coins. This time around I ran the X30 with the sens all the way up. Glad I did!

Again, mostly memorials, but I did score a 1929 Wheatie in great condition (unlike my four others that are severely corroded) as well as a BI-CEN Quarter. I haven't seen much of them lately. I know most are probably in private collections now, but I remember in the 80s these things were all over the place.

World Coin Update

I first want to thank two good fellas over at FMDF for informing me about the Krause Standard Catalogs for World Coins. Unlike in the US where one book, the Red Book can pretty much cover it all, coins worldwide need many volumes. Tom and Rudy, thanks!

I don't have any old foreign coins, nor am I seeking them, but I have plenty of contemporary pieces, so I decided to get the two volumes spanning 1900 to present.

Anybody interested in these books, Barnes & Noble and other book stores should have them in stock, or just try eBay where I was able to get both books new, for $13 less than I could at B&N with my Member discount.

I would now like to thank a few people who have been gracious enough to help in my quest for expanding my World Coin collection of low denomination issues. Many have even sent, or pledged items without wanting anything in return, and to that I can not be more humbled.

Mark from Idaho
Scott from Massachusetts
Kris from Indiana
Craig from Connecticut
Justin from Texas
Jim from New Jersey
Alan from England
Mike from Virginia
Joe from Ohio
Per from Norway

Thanks guys! From whatever you guys send off, and from the few low priced auctions from eBay, I hope to have a pretty neat collection.

I'll update everyone of the results when they come in!