but I had a rather busy weekend, which was capped off with a 'for real', "I'm stuck in London and need money to get home" drama! (I'll have to post on that in a nother thread!)

But to your point, I do not have a problem dealing with non-members, and in fact, all of my contests conducted here on TheChipBoard (a non-Club Sponsored areana) are inclusive of members and non-members alike, in the interests of commraderie and harmony throughout the chip collecting community. While I certainly do hope that anyone and everyone would be inteterested in joining the , it is in no way a requirement, pre-requisite or expectation by me to have membership screen whether or not I will enter into a transaction with another collector.

And yes, there are some factors that will make me hesitant to enter into a transaction, lack of Club membership has no bearing. However, I would not be fully honest if I did not say that dealing with a member does give me a quicker acceptance to engage in a transaction, I would also have to say that conducting a paying transaction through PayPal also gives me the same comfort level.

In any event, just because dealing with members can be viewed as an attribute, it does NOT mean that dealing with non-members should be viewed as a detriment! Generally speaking, "collectors are collectors" and most have a genuine interest and excitement for the hobby and bring their morals, ethics and thought-processes to the hobby, just as non-members. And just as there are a few non-members that are unscrupulous, there are also some members that are of the same mindset, meaning that "membership" alone, is NOT the qualifier.

I will always promote membership, but also understand that it is NOT for every collector. To me, that diversity may tend to promote an open-mindedness of the hobby in-general. Good post Chuck!

Jim Follis

LM 3872-53