Sunday, June 2, 2013 — I thought I better write an update in my blog before people began 
to wonder a). If my interest in keys had evaporated, b). I had been physically incapacitated and unable to post, or c). my XYL put her foot down and insisted I do something more productive with my time and money. Thankfully, none of those are true!
As I may have mentioned in an earlier post, my XYL is undergoing cancer treatment at this time, and I have — for many reasons — felt it necessary to shift priorities. One of those priorities is indeed money due to both the loss of her income and the high costs of healthcare. It is hard to feel good about spending money on eBay when the hospital bills are piling up.
As you might imagine, I have been watching keys on eBay just as I always have; there have been some sweet deals that I have passed up, regrettably. But there will always be more keys on eBay, and for this key fanatic, the hunt is a big part of the enjoyment.
I did not make it to Dayton this year for the reasons listed above. I don’t need another 100th Anniversary Vibroplex Original, but I still plan to buy one a “Knoxville” 100th Anniversary bug and outfit it with a jeweled movement at the factory. Speaking of 100th Anniversary Vibroplex bugs, I have one on display at my main operating position. I have it carefully tucked under a shelf to protect it from the rigors of a busy shack.
My hamming of late — for a variety of reasons listed above (and more) — has been mostly net operations. I’m not complaining, but I really miss working CW. The main daily driver bug is a Speedex Model 500. The model 500 is just a very attractive and unusual looking bug. It is my belief they typically will run a little slower than Vibroplex bugs, but I have a homebrew tamer I use when needed, so that’s just an observation.
FUTURE PLANNING. While looking over my blog this weekend, I realized I have a LOT of bugs that I have never photographed and documented. I’m going to set up a place to shoot my keys and start my attempt to catalog them all.
I also need to update my list of Vibroplex and non-Vibroplex keys I own now. I have added quite a few to the collection, and frankly, I’m unable to give an accurate count of just how many keys I own. They are stuck everywhere in my shack/office. Just here on the office side of the room, my computer desk is home to a bunch of keys: An Albright-licensed ATOZ Electric Novelty Company “Improved Vibroplex” bug in as-found condition; a Cedar Rapid bug in original box; a mint McElroy P-500; a dog-ugly homebrew key I bought for nothing (and worth every penny of it!); a 1938B Mac Key; and three or four Vibroplex keys of various vintages pushed to the back of my monitor stand — and that doesn’t count the dozens elsewhere in the room. My wife says I’m a bug hoarder, and its hard to argue with that.
With that cheery thought I’ll close … perhaps I can start cataloging my keys with the ones on my office desk, eh?