I got started in the hobby after working a short stint as a casino dealer. I have had a coin collection for many years and still collect to a small degree, but casino chips and other casino memorabilia seem to resonate with me more. I have been a gambler since I could legally enter a casino so being able to get my hands on dice or chips from places I have never been to was attractive. I started collecting very sparingly and then found the club after Jim Follis posted some great threads over at www.chiptalk.com. I enjoy learning the histories of the different establishments and about different places around the world, this serves the purpose and lets me learn about places a little more in depth than currency collecting previous did. Hopefully I can remove "student" from my job status soon and be able to collect to a greater degree and be a little more involved.