Yep, yep, what he said.
Welcome back David, you have been sorely missed.

Mark

David Beierl wrote:

> Jim, value isn't always measured in dollars.  Some folks prefer to
> have the cake; others to eat it.  Neither one is wrong, but
> collectors as a class don't seem to quite understand that it's *they*
> who are eccentric, not the users.  Actually in a very real sense
> they're perverse: they pay great sums for perfect slices of extremely
> old cake, specifically for the purpose of not eating it.

>
> ...............  Likewise, the notion that a valuable and beautiful piece
> of antique furniture only retains its value if it remains ugly and
> worn-out is, um, perverse, and dishonors the memory of the original
> craftsman who built it to be *used* and who also dressed it in beauty
> to be enjoyed in the solid present and maintained in good order for
> the future -- not neglected to become ramshackle and then cherished
> at huge expense as a symbol to focus the worship of its own former
> splendor.   Eeuuugghhh...it makes my teeth itch. .............
>