Greetings friends and members of STS. It is I, that infamous fish-fanatic that collected sea life, birds, and prehistoric animals rigorously from 2003 until about 2014.
Well, I thought I would give a brief update on my whereabouts and the status of my collection.
I know I've posted many "Where am I now?" threads, and the like. None, however, show how much I've changed like this one will.
At the end of 2014, I put my collecting hobby on hold to begin saving for a trip to Sweden. This is to visit my best friend, who lives in Kiruna. Almost two years have passed since I began saving, and my interests have slightly shifted.
While I have reached my target goal to afford the hefty airfare, some medical expenses in the family and a new internship have caused me to set this trip aside for 2018.
My aspiration to meet my best friend aside, I haven't collected for ages. I lost interest in collecting fish primarily because of how difficult it was tracking down everything I wanted. Moreover, it was becoming expensive and shelf-space was running out. Another factor to my loss of interest could be the disappointing "toobs" that have come out in the last 2-3 years. Nothing new, nothing interesting. For me, the most interesting figures right now are the dragon sets for 2017. These I might consider getting, but I'm not so sure yet.
In April 2015, we had carpet replaced and furniture was moved around to accommodate this. I took my collection down because bookshelves were being moved. Since that day, I haven't put my collection back up. Back in October when I repainted and refurbished my room, the collection was finally taken to the basement.
I have thought about selling my collection many times to STS members. However, I worry about the regret that may follow. For now, I don't think I want to sell the collection. If I ever do come to that point, STS members will be the first to know. ESPECIALLY because I want my collection to go to people who will love and appreciate those figures just as I did. I still do value my collection, but it just doesn't take priority like it use to. The result of this was inactivity on the forum.
Now, for that internship I mentioned and my current passions.
Much like Tylosaurus, I'm an avid aviation geek and have been for a long time. Concorde has always been my favorite, and has held a special place in my heart for the last 7 years. That airplane has truly touched my life.
Last December I set up a Facebook, not for any particular reason that I can recall. I just set it up. Of course, when you make a Facebook, you follow pages you like and join groups. I joined four Concorde groups and liked the biggest Concorde page at 20,000+ likes.
Within a few months, I had become acquainted with several Concorde engineers and pilots, as well as cabin crew who spent their careers flying supersonic and passing out caviar.
In addition, I have been running a very popular Instagram page for two years. "Aviation Nation," has accumulated 33,000 followers. Eventually I started a website and Instagram based entirely on Concorde and supersonic airliners. The Instagram for Concorde, known as "Speedbird Concorde," has acquired 16,000 followers. This has become my hobby.
Back in September, I applied at an aerospace company local to me that's building a supersonic airliner like Concorde. Since then, I've been working as an intern for them in marketing and other things. We recently had a reveal event for our demonstrator aircraft, and flew some Concorde pilots out to be a part of it. I achieved one of my bucket-list items, which was fantastic.
The most recent form of collecting I've taken up is the very occasional Concorde model, which is expensive, but fewer of them are needed to complete my collection. I only need three more Concorde models, two of which are easy to get and another that may take some time.
Right now, I'm still too attached to my collection, and even have a slight temptation to pick up those Safari dragons. If I ever get the urge to sell my collection, I'll post a thread letting everyone know. Then I suppose I'll go from there. But for now, it's not on the table.
I hope everyone has been well. Anything new with the forum?
Best regards, Emma.
If anyone is interested in my website and Instagrams, here they are. There is also a link to a project I've been in cooperation with.
http://aviationnation.wixsite.com/speedbirdconcorde
http://projectconcorde.wixsite.com/projectconcorde
http://instagram.com/aviation.nation
http://instagram.com/speedbird.concorde