Today is Saturday, the last day of the Whitman Coins and Currency Show. It’s appropriate to mention that Whitman has taken the lead in crafting its shows to be user-friendly, not only to dealers such as yourself, but to the public.

There is no waiting in long lines for registration, no clumsy paperwork, no bureaucracy. I still remember the zzz show, okay, I won’t mention the name(!), where dealer lines were one to two hours long just to get a badge—never mind that I and other dealers had been attending the show for years. Whitman pioneered the new era of efficiency, and to the extent that we have been copied by other shows, all the better for everyone!

There are amenities galore. The food service is not just the standard fare, but has been selected by Whitman to provide appetizing items, ranging from tasty salads to custom-crafted sandwiches (my hot chicken sandwich for lunch was delicious), to various prepared meats, sauces, and the like. Although you might not realize it, this does not come automatically—it requires planning.

On Thursday afternoon I saw my first real, live honest-to-goodness 2009 Lincoln “penny” with the log cabin reverse. The Treasury missed a real opportunity in not making these widely available everywhere. It is sort of hard to imagine that one cannot go to a bank and say, “I’d like a bag” (or a roll, or a handful of single coins) and get them!

On the plus side of the equation, when eventually these are available, along with the two other new reverse designs, they are bound to create a lot of interest for the public. We are all fortunate that the U.S. Mint has so many programs. While not many people can afford to get platinum coins, and I am not still quite sure if a “reverse Proof” is a good idea, we all dearly love the statehood quarters and welcome the new quarters for territories and possessions as they become available.

From what I’ve gathered in walking around the bourse and also saying “hi” to people at the Stack’s bourse table, business is “okay” across the hobby. Not great, not spectacular, but okay.

Not many businesses can say that today in March 2009! Actually there have been some “hot tickets” in recent sales—ranging from Admiral Vernon medals (do you know what they are?) to Buffalo nickels to Matte Proof coins. Overall the “buzz” has been good.

Hopefully, you have had a good show to this point. As the event winds down, you can contemplate the next Baltimore Show, in June. See you there! Oops, I mean right here! Same city, same nice people.