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From: John S.
Remote Name: 66.211.221.65
Date: 11/10/2007
Time: 08:47:44 PM
Hello, I started collecting steins when I was 18. My father got me involved after he noticed me admiring his collection and gave me a brand new but very nice contemporary Thewalt for my birthday that year. I was hooked and the rest is history. That was 20 years ago. I guess that I am technically middle-aged now but I would certainly not consider myself old; most of my friends are in their early thirties. With the advent of the internet and ebay I started seriously collecting Mettlachs for the first time in 2000. Ebay and the internet has revolutionized stein collecting as far as I'm concerned, because I could have spent a 1000 years looking at antique shops and household sales in my area and never have had the opportunity to buy the steins available on the internet. I have many different steins in my collection. Brand new Thewalt and Corona characters rest comfortably next to 100+ year old Mettlachs. I love all etched turn of the century steins, too; not just Mettlach. Hauber and Reuther, Marzi and Remy as well as J.W. Remy. The only prerequisite for me is that my steins must be made in Germany. I guess you would call me a traditionalist. My biggest criticism of SCI is this: There are no conventions or chapters in my area (I live in NW PA.) I would join SCI in a heartbeat if there were activities in my area. Getting together with fellow collectors of all ages, talking about our hobby, sharing stories about our collections, making new friends and drinking Dinkelacker and St. Pauli Girl, to me, would be an enormous amount of fun! I considered going to the 2007 convention in Louisville, KY but it would have been just too hard given my work schedule and personal obligations. So please consider having something in this area. There are many others like me out there, I'm sure, who would love to participate and get involved if we could. Thank You! and "Ein Prosit und zu Grosse Freud!" (to your Health and Great Joy!) John S.