Treasure Hunt from Creators Syndicate

Pennies From Heaven … Or The Battle Front for 01/03/2008

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

As the New Year begins with talk of the continued housing credit crunch and consumer debt, I'm all but forced to think back about seemingly worthless money. Of course, our money's never been worthless, but some expressions would make you believe it was. "Not worth a plugged nickel," "Just one thin dime" and "Put in your two-cents worth" all make small coins seem in ...

Updated: Thu Jan 03, 2008

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A Few Collectible "Predictions" for 2008 for 01/10/2008

Thu, 10 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

I'm not sure what the New Year has in store. Who does? OK, there are some who religiously adhere to soothsayers such as Nostradamus. I don't. His predictions tend to lean toward the bleak with prophesies of plagues, eruptions and Armageddon. Plus, Nostradamus's writings are so cryptic that any of them could be interpreted to mean either the onset of the war in Iraq or the making of the film &qu ...

Updated: Thu Jan 10, 2008

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2008 Commemoratives Prove Bald is Beautiful for 01/17/2008

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

You may have heard the one about the guy camping in the woods who was caught by game warden cooking up a Spotted Owl he'd shot. When taken to court, the judge asked, "Don't you know the Spotted Owl is seriously endangered?" The guy responded, "I'm sorry. I was just really hungry and didn't have anything else to eat." Taking pity, the judge forgave him. Before letting him go, ...

Updated: Thu Jan 17, 2008

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Post Offices Now Overrun With Rats for 01/24/2008

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

If you or someone you know is pregnant … be prepared. The child will be a rat. Anyone who turns 12 this year is also a rat. You may consider me a jackass for saying that, but technically I'm a monkey, at least according to the year I was born.

These animal connotations stem from the Chinese astrological lunar calendar. That system is based on 12 animals. Legend has it that all the ...

Updated: Thu Jan 24, 2008

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New Coin Is OK … I Mean, It's Great! for 01/31/2008

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Until I was married, I didn't realize the state of Oklahoma had a self-image problem. My wife has since made that abundantly clear. It came to light one evening after she had put on a dress. She asked how I thought she looked. I said, "You look fine." Major mistake.

She said "fine" was like saying she just looked "OK" which actually meant lousy. That's when ...

Updated: Thu Jan 31, 2008

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Compared to Platinum, Gold Looks Kinda Dull for 02/07/2008

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

As good as gold. The gold standard. Pot of gold. Heart of gold.

All those axioms sound pretty good if not downright invaluable. They have even more impact when the price of gold soars to more than $900 an ounce. Fact is, gold has been coveted since the beginning of time. It certainly played prominently in the Bible, where it's mentioned on a regular basis. Throughout history, gold has be ...

Updated: Thu Feb 07, 2008

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Gold at $4,000 An Ounce? It Happened Last Month for 02/14/2008

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

When I was in grade school, a young girl in my class would spend recess and lunch hours walking the grounds of a large nearby park, staring at the ground. She regularly returned to class with a handful of items she'd found to show the teacher. We all considered her a tad odd.

One day, she found was what looked like a diamond ring. Convinced it was from a Cracker Jack box, we all laughed. ...

Updated: Thu Feb 14, 2008

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Fascinating History Isn't Always Black and White for 02/21/2008

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Say you were a soldier in a POW camp. You escape and make it to freedom. Do you go back to rescue others or stay put? Obviously, few would risk their freedom. Now, let's up the stakes. You're an imprisoned Jew in Nazi Germany or Poland. You escape to freedom and become a wanted fugitive by the Nazis. They've distributed your description and put a price on your head of one million dollars. Do yo ...

Updated: Thu Feb 21, 2008

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Readers Always on the Hunt for Riches for 02/28/2008

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Reader interest in all types of collectibles continues to soar. Time to answer a few questions.

Dear Peter: You often write about rare and valuable collectibles that people find, such as the recent "Boot of Cortez" gold nugget and rare coins or stamps. Stories about these discoveries often show up in the press. I'm curious just how hard is it to find these treasures. Any sugges ...

Updated: Thu Feb 28, 2008

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Once Upon a Time, Elections Made Us Feel Good for 03/06/2008

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Nine months can be a long time. Anyone who's given birth can attest to that. It's even more interminable during an election year. Nine months. That's how long until November. Yet, the election pains have just begun. Hillary accuses Barack of plagiarism. Barack fires back, charging Hillary with a "smear campaign." Allegations are made that McCain had an "affair" with a female ...

Updated: Thu Mar 06, 2008

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Money for Nothing? Not Very Often, But Sometimes for 03/13/2008

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Maybe you've seen something like it. A classified ad reads, "For sale: One box of paperclips — $5,000. With purchase come two FREE Super Bowl tickets. NO CHARGE!" Wink — I get it. In areas where ticket scalping is illegal, people tried that as a way around the law.

We all understand the value is in the tickets and not the paperclips. And, nothing's free. Why then do ...

Updated: Thu Mar 13, 2008

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Convoluted Politics and Postage Means Big Bucks for 03/20/2008

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Money, religion and politics — three topics purported to be taboo in polite conversation. If that's true, then during an election year, either courtesy goes out the window or no one speaks. Yet we know we speak. "Who are you voting for?" "Is your candidate rumored to be a Muslim, a Christian?" "How much money has he or she raised — $50 million this month?&qu ...

Updated: Thu Mar 20, 2008

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Is This a Gold Rush or a Gold Harvest? for 03/27/2008

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Farmers don't talk about how much land they own. I suppose that's understandable. Because so much of their net worth is tied up in acreage, they often say they're "land rich and cash poor." My wife's family farms, so I hear stuff like that a lot. They are pretty happy, however, about how they got however much land they do own.

They were lucky to have reaped some rewards of the ...

Updated: Thu Mar 27, 2008

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When It Comes to Value … Condition Is Key for 04/01/2008

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Who doesn't appreciate something that's nice? Of course, there's nice, and then there's "nice."

Let's say you admire a nice home. General appearances suggest it's perfect. The asking price is $500,000, and you're willing to seal the deal. Then, an inspection uncovers a cracked foundation. Suddenly, that price may be way high. The same might be true for a nice Persian rug. The $ ...

Updated: Tue Apr 01, 2008

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New Mexico Proves To Be Anything But "New" for 04/10/2008

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

If there are geographic roots for adages, New Mexico should be the source for "What's old is new again." It's one of the newest of our 50 states (admitted to the Union in 1912, it's number 47) but was technically here long before any other. Fittingly, the newest U.S. coin reflects a hint of that history.

In 1850 — well before it was a state — the New Mexico territor ...

Updated: Thu Apr 10, 2008

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8-Year-Old Uncovered Treasure That Fell From The Sky for 04/17/2008

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

News reports released last week announced that "U.S airlines' performance in 2007 was the worst in almost 20 years." I can't recall specific flights I took in the 1980s, but based on several recent less-than-enjoyable trips I won't argue with that.

Northwest Airlines was listed among the three worst big carriers for flight delays. That may be true, but, in fairness, every so of ...

Updated: Thu Apr 17, 2008

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Heads, You Win. Tails, You're Rich. for 04/24/2008

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

The next time you're in the checkout aisle at a store, take a look at people in line paying cash. I'll wager you'll see that most people don't take the time to see what they're dong. Without exception, they pull paper money from their billfold and toss change on the counter. Other than checking the denominations they don't give coins a second glance. Why should they? After all, a penny's a penn ...

Updated: Thu Apr 24, 2008

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Five Honored for Keeping Us Current for 05/01/2008

Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Man landing on the moon; the assassination of JFK; the fall of Saigon; the twin towers collapse in New York. Each event has one thing in common. When they occurred, people around the world dropped whatever they were doing and turned on a television or radio to learn what was happening.

Even in the age of the Internet, when breaking news takes place, we depend on network news programs and ...

Updated: Thu May 01, 2008

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Collector Price & Value Can Be Two Different Things for 05/08/2008

Thu, 08 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700

From the legions of mail order shopping catalogs arriving daily I'm tempted to confuse this spring with the month or so before Christmas. So many have piled up that our kitchen table is now officially a potential fire hazard.

The thing is, many are interesting to glance through. Packaging and presentation are part of sales, but I especially enjoy the descriptions. How the catalog writers ...

Updated: Thu May 08, 2008

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New Stamp Confirms Frank Did It His Way for 05/15/2008

Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700

In the entertainment industry, the defining moment of having truly "made it" is when you're known but just one name. The thing is, names such as Elvis, Cher or Oprah aren't the kind pulled from a baby book. They're … different. I suppose lumping Santa into that category might be a stretch.

Before those, there was a common name that became self-defining — Frank. He had oth ...

Updated: Thu May 15, 2008

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