siem
**Member** 
Inactive
Posts: 29 
What I collect: Pacific Islands, Baltic states, Netherlands and much more
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Post by siem on Jul 18, 2017 13:37:27 GMT
Hi all, Today I was told this forum existed and I thought I'd take a look so here I am.  Let me tell you all a bit about myself. I have been collecting stamps since I was a little boy, so that would be close to 40 years now. After the usual break I picked up the collection when I found out about stamp trading via the internet (anybody remember the Stamp Trader List?) and since then things got a little out of control. The collection grew exponentially, I started to collect more countries and now I have a pretty advanced collection, although most of the really special and expensive stamps are still missing for most countries I collect. So what's in my collection? Of course the Netherlands and its colonies, Belgium, Great Britain, most Scandinavian countries, Greece, Egypt, Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Africa, some South American countries, Nepal and recently I started to work on the Pacific Islands. I probably forgot a few countries, but never mind. I try to increase my collection by trading and by selling some of my surplus stamps, using the profit to buy stamps for the collection (and other stamps to resell) At this moment I am in some sort of forced break, because we moved to a new, larger home a few weeks ago and most of my spare time is now dedicated to painting, wallpapering and installing furniture etc. We (besides me it's my wife, three children, one dog, four chickens, seven guinea pigs and two goldfish) now live in Sint Maarten, a small rural village of 1,000 inhabitants about 60 kms north of Amsterdam. Unfortunately the stamp room does not have the highest priority. Besides that, it is also the room that needs the most work. So I hope that in a few weeks time I can put all the albums on the book shelves and have some evenings with the stamps again. Until then, I will have to be content with talking about stamps  My other big hobby is rock music. Not playing it (I wish I could play an instrument, but I have tried and proved to have not much talent for it), but listening to it. Unfortunately my musical taste is rather different than that of the rest of the family, so my enjoyment of my favorite music is normally a solitary joy... Jan-Simon |
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Anping
Departed
Rest in Peace
Posts: 533
What I collect: Hong Kong, Aden & States & odd stuff I like.
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Post by Anping on Jul 18, 2017 14:01:03 GMT
Unfortunately my musical taste is rather different than that of the rest of the family, so my enjoyment of my favorite music is normally a solitary joy... Jan-Simon Welcome Jan-Simon. You're not the only one. Not only the music but the stamps too! |
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tomiseksj
Moderator 
Woodbridge, Virginia, USA
Posts: 6,265
What I collect: Worldwide stamps/covers, Cinderellas, Ohio Prepaid Sales Tax Receipts, U.S. WWII Ration ephemera
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Post by tomiseksj on Jul 18, 2017 15:15:38 GMT
Jan-Simon ( siem ), Welcome to our Forum. I imaging that if one can't work with stamps, talking about them is the next best thing.  I've adjusted your membership status so you are now able to join in any of the discussions taking place on the forum or start some of your own. We all like to look at stamps so when you get a break from your household chores please post some of your favorites. I just looked at your website and noticed that the want lists I checked both stopped at 2001 -- is that your collecting cut-off date or have other responsibilities kept you from adding more recent wants? I hope you enjoy your time with us and actively participate. If anything seems confusing, just ask and someone will be along to help. |
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,654
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Jul 18, 2017 18:00:47 GMT
Jan-Simon, welcome to TSF! I have just been in Europe for the past 4 weeks on a business trip, and I had been hoping to get to The Netherlands during that time, but my appointment there never materialized. So, I am just back in the US today, having spent most of the time in Germany and France. Good luck with getting your new house in order, and we all look forward to seeing some of your treasures when you get the stamp room set up. Best Regards, Chris (aka Beryllium Guy) |
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siem
**Member**
Inactive
Posts: 29
What I collect: Pacific Islands, Baltic states, Netherlands and much more
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Post by siem on Jul 18, 2017 19:00:43 GMT
A quick reply about the wantlists. I made them descriptive because I exchanged with European collectors as well as Americans and noone uses the same catalogue... when I made these there were no children so I had much more time. Besides that, my Michel catalogues were pretty old.
When I got the website up and running, I founs it easier and less time consuming to cross off the stamps I acquired then add all the recent stamps I missed.
So that's the rwason. No cut off date, just a lack of time.
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zipper
Member 
Posts: 2,649
What I collect: Classic GB, QV, France Ceres/Napoleon, Classic U.S., Cinderella & Poster Stamps
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Post by zipper on Jul 18, 2017 19:38:32 GMT
Welcome to the World's Greatest stamp forum.
This will soon be your favorite site -- the guys here know everything about philately.
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Doe
Departed
Posts: 234 
What I collect: Chicago Baseball & Lou Gehrig covers, Mars Exploration covers, Zeppelins & Manned Stratospheric Balloons , Anti-Fascism, Classic China (thru A31), Hong Kong (thru A25)
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Post by Doe on Jul 18, 2017 21:07:31 GMT
Welcome to the forum Jan-Simon.
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Mick
Member
Site Supporter
Posts: 931
What I collect: Mostly covers and postmarks. Also miscellaneous paper ephemera.
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Post by Mick on Jul 19, 2017 1:30:45 GMT
Hi Siem. Welcome to the forum.
You share a name with one of my favorite soccer players - Siem De Jong of Newcastle United. But I imagine that this is a relatively common Dutch name. Oh, and I think that there are a few other rock aficionados on this forum, so you won't be alone.
Groete van Portland af! (Ek kan nie Niederlands praat nie, maar miskien is my Afrikaans verstaanbaar.)
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siem
**Member**
Inactive
Posts: 29
What I collect: Pacific Islands, Baltic states, Netherlands and much more
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Post by siem on Jul 19, 2017 7:10:41 GMT
Hi Mick,
How did a Portland Oregon guy become a Newcastle United fan? They will be playing Premier League again next season, let's wait and see how they fare. Siem de Jong played for PSV Eindhoven last year, just as his brother Luuk. I believe he still has a contract with Newcastle, so perhaps he'll return to Newcastle in the Premier League.
Siem is my nickname, full first name is Jan-Simon. Both Jan and Simon used to be very common names, but both are no longer in the list of most popular names given to boys. There are trends in first names, like you can almost predict that someone named Dennis (like Bergkamp ;-) ) must be between 30 and 45 years old. I am from the last batch of children named Jan (and Simon in my case) (born in 1969).
Afrikaans is 'n bietjie soos Nederlands van 300 jaar gelede. Ons verstaan dit goed, maar kan dit nie praat nie.
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siem
**Member**
Inactive
Posts: 29
What I collect: Pacific Islands, Baltic states, Netherlands and much more
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Post by siem on Jul 19, 2017 7:13:56 GMT
I have just been in Europe for the past 4 weeks on a business trip, and I had been hoping to get to The Netherlands during that time, but my appointment there never materialized. So, I am just back in the US today, having spent most of the time in Germany and France. 4 weeks on a business trip? Wow, the longest business trip I have been on was a week. Once to Russia, and once to the USA (Chicago area). Where exactly did you go in Germany and France? Was it all work, or did you combine it with a short holiday? I used to have an American colleague at my previous job and when he came over to the head office in the Netherlands he always took a few days extra for sight seeing when the work part was done. |
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firstfrog2013
Member
Posts: 3,276
What I collect: BNA Liberia St Pierre U.S. Bolivia Turkey
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Post by firstfrog2013 on Jul 19, 2017 12:04:03 GMT
Welcome siem. I hope you find time soon to get back to stamps.I too am in the midst of large jobs both for work and for wife.I am also preparing for my next show and spending what ever time I have in music room.Stamps seem to be moving to winter months this year.
If you ever find time I'd love to see scans from your collection.WELCOME !!
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,654
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Jul 19, 2017 12:09:14 GMT
I have just been in Europe for the past 4 weeks on a business trip, and I had been hoping to get to The Netherlands during that time, but my appointment there never materialized. So, I am just back in the US today, having spent most of the time in Germany and France. 4 weeks on a business trip? Wow, the longest business trip I have been on was a week. Once to Russia, and once to the USA (Chicago area). Where exactly did you go in Germany and France? Was it all work, or did you combine it with a short holiday? I used to have an American colleague at my previous job and when he came over to the head office in the Netherlands he always took a few days extra for sight seeing when the work part was done. Jan-Simon, you are quite right that 4 weeks seems to be a very long business trip. In fact, this was the longest business trip I have taken in more than 30 years of working. Until just a few months ago, I worked for a corporation, and I travelled internationally as part of my job there. It was my practice for most trips to be 8-10 days in duration, and never more than 2 weeks that I can remember. Now I am working as an independent consultant, so the situation is different. I got a consulting contract with a German national laboratory to work on some research projects over the next year, so I went to the lab to sign the contract and complete the first project on the list. If you are interested, you can read more about it here: www.linkedin.com/pulse/be4fusion-now-working-kit-germany-chris-dornI spent most of my time in Germany in the Karlsruhe area, which is in the southwestern part of Germany, near to the border with France and the French region of Alsace. Karlsruhe is a good-size city in its own right, but the nearest larger cities are Stuttgart and Frankfurt am Main.  I did have some leisure time while I was there, and I went with friends to a wine region called the Pfalz, to do some wine tasting and sample the local foods. I flew into and out of the big international airport in Frankfurt, which is about a 90-minute drive north and a slightly east from Karlsruhe. Frankfurt is inexplicably missing from this map which I have posted, but it was otherwise the best map I could find for simplicity but giving a good idea of the location of Karlsruhe. I also attended a conference in France, which was held at a remote location about an hour's drive from Aix-en-Provence, which is in the southeastern part of France. The nearest major French city there was Marseille. |
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siem
**Member**
Inactive
Posts: 29
What I collect: Pacific Islands, Baltic states, Netherlands and much more
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Post by siem on Jul 19, 2017 12:22:52 GMT
oh wow, you're involved in the nuclear fusion program. That's cool. I have done my master thesis at ECN in the Netherlands, nowadays called NRG. It was a study about inherent safety in nuclear fission reactors. Long time ago already...
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,654
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Jul 19, 2017 13:11:06 GMT
oh wow, you're involved in the nuclear fusion program. That's cool. I have done my master thesis at ECN in the Netherlands, nowadays called NRG. It was a study about inherent safety in nuclear fission reactors. Long time ago already... Yes, I am a materials engineer involved in specialty materials for fusion applications, among other things. I am also familiar with NRG, and have visited the facility in Petten some years ago. They have a fission test reactor on site there called HFR (High Flux Reactor), which uses beryllium reflector elements in its core, and I was involved in a project to refurbish the reactor just a few years ago.... |
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siem
**Member**
Inactive
Posts: 29
What I collect: Pacific Islands, Baltic states, Netherlands and much more
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Post by siem on Jul 19, 2017 13:14:39 GMT
In that case you were just 5 kms from where I live now :-)
There are a number of issues with the HFR at the moment. It seems to be at the end of its life cycle, but there is no clarity about a possible replacement. If it closes, a lot of hospitals will lose the isotopes they use in radiology.
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Jerry B
Departed
Rest in Peace
Marietta, Georgia USA
Posts: 1,485
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Post by Jerry B on Jul 19, 2017 17:27:46 GMT
Hi Jan-Simon
Welcome to a great Forum.
Jerry B
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Mick
Member
Site Supporter
Posts: 931
What I collect: Mostly covers and postmarks. Also miscellaneous paper ephemera.
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Post by Mick on Jul 20, 2017 1:40:41 GMT
Hi Mick, How did a Portland Oregon guy become a Newcastle United fan? They will be playing Premier League again next season, let's wait and see how they fare. Siem de Jong played for PSV Eindhoven last year, just as his brother Luuk. I believe he still has a contract with Newcastle, so perhaps he'll return to Newcastle in the Premier League. Oh, it is a long family tradition. My mother and father both come from the Newcastle area, and were both ardent supporters. The rest of the family continued the tradition, even when they moved to South Africa. For me, even though Portland has a fine team, it would feel like treason to support anyone other than Newcastle United. Howay the lads! |
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Beryllium Guy
Moderator
Posts: 5,654
What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Jul 20, 2017 9:26:18 GMT
In that case you were just 5 kms from where I live now :-) There are a number of issues with the HFR at the moment. It seems to be at the end of its life cycle, but there is no clarity about a possible replacement. If it closes, a lot of hospitals will lose the isotopes they use in radiology. Well, it's a small world then, isn't it, Jan-Simon? I have been to The Netherlands on business travel many times over the years, most frequently going to Eindhoven, when I used to call on one of the Philips facilities there. Yes, the HFR is nearing the end of its life, but there is a follow-on reactor envisioned, which will be called PALLAS. I have also been involved with the planning and design of that machine. You can read more about it here: www.pallasreactor.com/?lang=en |
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