Anyone heard from "Just Having Fun" JHF? He was in Thailand I believe

clackamas

Anyone heard from "Just Having Fun" JHF? He was in Thailand I believe

Bochiman

I believe he was having some medical work done on his eyes/vision.
Hope he is OK (both regarding his medical work being done and the recent tsunami)...he seemed pretty damn cool in the registry set forum.

MacCrimmon

He also had occasional business in the Phillipines....hopefully, he was on high ground.

rkfish

man......I sure hope he was on high ground if he's there after seeing the devastating destruction !!

cladking

I believe he's near Bangkok.

Bochiman

Man...the guy has some nice sets.
I, like Clackamas, was born in 1968 and have a reg set for the birthyear. JHF has top pop for the nickels there, in his Jefferson set, and probably more top pops in other sets that we could use in our 1968 set

Like I said, reading his posts, he was pretty cool on the board and I wish him the best.
May be awhile before he is able to get online if he is over there right now...even if he is ok. I bet their communications infrastructure took a heck of a beating.

MFH

JHF has one of the finest sets of SLQ's in existance. I for one hope he's okay. I'm hoping to meet him one of these days.

wondercoin

I corresponded with him tonight and, happily, I did not hear anything to cause concern.

I closed a deal with "MS68" from our boards (Dave Schweitz) last week to acquire the "infamous" 1919(s) SLQ in PCGS-MS67FH for JHF and I noticed he just upgraded the SLQ collection to include that incredible coin. Congratulations on that major acquisition - the set just got even better!

Wondercoin

Justhavingfun

Thank you all for your concern. Much, much appreciated!

Actually, I was scheduled to be right in path of the tsunami's but was saved by one of those funny quirks of fate.

Phukett is my staff's favorite resort island in the world, and I had planned to take them down there to get away for a few days to celebrate the winter solestice/Christmas/Chanukah/new year. We usually rent a house down on the west shore of the island (which is the side that got battered) and relax on the beach all day and barbecue all night. They're wonderful cooks, among other things. If you ever visit me in Bangkok, Jilaporn's restaurant (as we call the meals in the apartment) is the best 5 star restaurant in this immense city.

Anyway, here's the scoop -- the reason I changed plans this time: The southernmost 3 provinces of Thailand were an independent sultanate up until the early 1900s. They remain predominantly Muslim. I'm sure you haven't read about it in the US newspapers, but when the Thai government sent soldiers to Iraq, the Muslims down south were p_ssed. A strong separatist movement developed. Every day, and I mean "every" quite literally, another few innocent Buddhists get shot and killed. Nasty stuff.

Well Phuket isn't part of those three provinces and while it's only a few hundred miles away, that's far enough that there's been no separatist violence there. So I figured that Phuket was safe and a month ago planned the trip. But shortly afterwards, the separatists said they were going to start bombing resorts in Phuket.

That was my cue. All I needed, eh? So I canceled the trip and rescheduled for Hua Hin, which is much further north, the finest beach I've ever seen anywhere in the world, and best of all, in the Gulf of Siam, separated from the Andaman Sea (where the tsunami's raged) by about 200 miles of mountains.

So I was totally safe. Didn't even feel the earthquake and didn't know about the tsunami's until a colleague told me about it.

And that's the true story of how Thailand's Muslim separatist movement saved the life of my staff (5 Thai women) and this American.

Warm regards from the beach at Hua Hin, where I am ...


Just Having Fun

cosmicdebris

Fate is such a weird thing. Good to hear you are ok.

Proof

JHF, thanks for posting and relieving my fears. I was thinking of you and since we have never met, I did not e-mail you, like I wanted to. I just had a ' feeling ' you were ok and am happy you are actually enjoying yourself today.

Best Wishes,
Paul

thebeav

WOW !!
What a story !! Glad you're OK ....

Paul

marcmoish

amazing providence - wow is right -

cladking

Jeeze, maybe I should have been concerned. It's good to see you're still just having fun.

ajaan

Glad to hear you are safe. Having lived in Thailand for 5 years, I have been to both Phuket and Hua Hin and I agree, Hua Hin is as nice as Phuket.

Sunnywood

JHF, great that you're OK !!!! Rumor has it that you were inside studying coins while your staff of five women were out prancing around in sexy bathing suits on the beach Now that is the sign of a truly obsessed collector !!!

Best,
Sunnywood

MFH

Glad to hear that you're safe and sound and " Just Having Fun " at a beach resort.

Congratulations on acquiring the imfamous 1919-S in 67FH ( heard that it was back in a PCGS holder ).

Justhavingfun

Dear Sunnywood

Actually, the gals were SHOPPING for their "sexy bathing suits" (their phrase, not mine) while I was doing a partial physical inventory of my coins. They tried their bathing suits out today, while I was inside (looking at coins). One of them apparently got 4 phone calls already. I get to see them in their "sexy bathing suits" tomorrow morning.

Dear Bochiman

Thank you for your well wishes. My eyes are almost all better now. The only remaining traces of a nightmarish illness are extreme photosensitivity and the need for new eyeglasses.


Dear MFH

Thank you, too, Mike. Actually, I think there might be someone else out there with a better collection, i.e., one that would score higher. But when you toss in the pattern and
all the fascinating Standing Liberty error coins I've collected, I doubt anyone has a more INTERESTING collection.

And that's one of the reasons I don't like the Registry set system -- it rewards neither beauty nor interest -- just numbers.


Dear Cosmic Debris, thebeav, Proof, and Marcmoish

Yes, fate is often weird, like this. John O'Hara wrote a great book about fate called "Appointment in Samarra" (which, yes, is one of the hot spots in Iraq). If you're interested, it may still be in print. It was a very famous (and good) book in its day.

And thank you all for your well wishes. The newspapers were filled with amazing pictures of the results of the tsunami: a boat in a tree. A car on top of a house. And total devastation in Ko Phi Phi. More than 70,000 dead. What a shame.


Thank you cladking:
And I've heard some great schtuff about your clads and would love to see them sometime.


Dear Ajaan:

To me, I prefer the calm waters of the Gulf of Siam (Hua Hin) to the Phukett's rougher waters. I'm sure when I was 40 years younger, I would have chosen things the other way
round.

But more important to me, Hua Hin is calm little burg about the size of New Rochelle. Nothing every happens there. I can come here and go to sleep. Not as easy on a big, energetic island like Phuket swarming with red-light districts and hookers.

Come to think of it, 40 years ago, I probably would have again chosen things the other way around, and aimed for Phuket.

Enjoy!


Just Having Fun

Analyst

His Shield Nickels are being offered tonight.

Stack's-Bowers Rarities Night at Baltimore Coin Expo

The JHF Collection of SLQs was offered in the Aug. 2012 Rarities Night event:

The Aug. 2012 ANA Rarities Night, Part 2: Auction Results for Quarters

Has JHF become a legend?