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A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

geocaching signature items

Getting back into the pathtag game with my 2014 edition

June 25, 2014

I haven’t had a pathtag made in a few years.

For those of you who aren’t geocachers, pathtags are affordable, coin-like tokens people use to trade or as signature items. I’ve had several made over the years and have many in my personal collection.

The original concept.

The original concept.

But it’s been a while — mainly as an affordability thing — since I had some made. So, I made it my quest to look to have one made.

The reality is, though, that despite being able to work with Photoshop quite well, and that I can envision things, I just can’t really design tags well. OK, I can do basic things… but I wanted something more.

At the recent ASP Geobash, I was talking with Chris Mackey, who I’ve known for a few years in the geocaching world. He is, in my eyes, one of the most amazing coin designers out there (I actually have a print of one of his designs, as well as the matching coin) and I would love for him to design me a coin. Alas, right now, my funds aren’t that deep. However, he also does pathtags, so I enlisted his help for my newest one.

The tag look, before a tweak or two.

The tag look, before a tweak or two.

His work is amazing.

He captured what I wanted for this one. I had bigger ideas, but he pointed out how hard it can be to do ones like I had wanted.

So he worked with me to come up with something more simple and, honestly, better.

I’d like to point out that Chris is extremely affordable when it comes to pathtag designs and he works with you to make sure you have exactly what you want. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Chris if you are looking for pathtag design and I know I’ll be using him again in the future for more designs.

There’s only a tweak or two remaining. Once done, I’ll get the final work from him and submit and then the process of creating my pathtag will be underway. I believe it takes about six weeks or so, at which time I’ll have them in hand and ready to trade or hand out or place in some caches.

And I can’t wait.

One note about me and pathtags, however. I won’t trade for anything and everything online. I like personal tags and I like to meet people. So I will do some trades online, but they will be slim as I am only going to get 100 tags made.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Filed Under: Geocaching, My world, Pathtags Tagged With: caching, caching pathtags, geocaching, geocaching pathtags, geocaching signature items, pathtags, signature items

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Collectible Closeup: Jan. 15

January 15, 2014

I’m not a big trader when it comes to geocaching.

For those who don’t know, one aspect of geocaching is “take something, leave something.” In larger caches, there is often swag, usually little trinkets, where people will take something and leave something.

I don’t like carrying things around too much, so I don’t usually trade.

There is one thing, however, I love trading for — signature items. These are things individual cachers make to show they’ve been at a cache. It can vary — heavily — what the item is.

I’ve gone through several different things, including custom wood coins, pencils and other things.

This week’s edition of this post shows one of the wooden coins I’ve used in the past. I have a large collection of sig items I’ve traded my own for, so I hope people have enjoyed them!

Front.

Front.

Back.

Back.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Filed Under: Collectible Closeup, Geocaching, My world Tagged With: caching, caching items., collectible closeup, collecting, geocaching, geocaching sig items, geocaching signature items, sig items, signature items

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Collectible Closeup: Oct. 16

October 16, 2013

Welcome back to my weekly feature on collectibles — things I collect.

This week, I’ll be sharing something in geocaching — Pathtags. I have a pretty big collection of these, including a few I’ve had made.

Basically, Pathtags are another sort of signature item, but leaning more toward a geocoin. There is a trackable number, but it’s for all of the same tags. If you get a certain tag, the number is the same as all of the others. But you still log it on the Pathtags site, and there’s a map so the owner (and public, if he or she chooses to make it available) can see where the tags have gone.

Unlike most geocoins, however, Pathtags are something you keep and don’t have to move on.

The cool part about these, too, is the hole in the tag, so you can essentially turn it into a keychain, if you so choose.

The tag I am sharing with you today is one I made for 2010, shortly before my trip to Ireland. I had a goal to make at least one tag a year, but I just haven’t had the funds for it. This is one of the last ones I’ve made. I look forward to the day I can make them again as Pathtags are a highly traded item.

The tag I made for 2010, shortly before heading to Ireland.

I will share more pathtags down the line, whether mine of some of the favorites I have traded for. It’s truly amazing what some people have done with these tags, and I’ll be showing off some of the cooler ones I’ve collected.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Filed Under: Collectible Closeup, Collecting, Geocaching, My world Tagged With: caching, caching items., collectible closeup, collecting, geocaching, geocaching signature item, geocaching signature items, pathtag, pathtags, signature item

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Collectible Closeup: Oct. 9

October 9, 2013

Welcome back to my weekly feature on collectibles — things I collect.

This week, I’ll be sharing a signature item from geocaching. For those who don’t know much about geocaching, some cachers like to create personal signature items. Think of them as calling cards of sorts.

They can be anything — from wood coins, to cards, to something way more creative.

I collect signature items. When I find them in a cache, I’ll trade one of my signature items for the one I am trading. I’ve had several over the years, from wood coins to personalized pencils (my current one). I’m working on my next sig item, too.

So this week, I’ll be sharing a signature item.

This one comes via Mike, AKA Wardrums, a cacher from the Utica area. He caches in our area a lot as he’s originally from the area. He works in a business where he can print things often, so he has a lot of different things he drops.

The one here is one of his normal drops, a dog tag. It’s a cool design and he packages them in small Ziplock bags to keep them dry and clean. Very cool stuff. I have a bunch of Mike’s sig items, so others might show up in this spot some other time, too.

A signature item from Wardrums.

I’ll have more signature items down the line in this spot. Keep a watch each Wednesday as I show off more from my collections!

Do you collect things? If so, let me know. I’m thinking about making this a weekly linkup, too, if others want to do a Collectible Closeup of sort. I don’t want to do it if people aren’t into it, though!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Filed Under: Collectible Closeup, Collecting, Geocaching, My world Tagged With: caching, caching items., collectible closeup, collecting, geocaching, geocaching signature item, geocaching signature items, signature item, wardrums

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Is collecting still a good hobby?

April 14, 2011

I’m curious.

In the age of the Internet and everything else, it doesn’t seem like a lot of people collect things anymore. When I was a kid, I collected a lot of different things. Of course, a lot of those things didn’t stick so I soon grew bored with the items.

But, as an adult, I have a few things I enjoy collecting.

That being said, it seems like a lot of people don’t collect much — well, at least people I know.

I once worked with someone who was still into collecting stamps (something I did when I was younger). I love stamps. It’s one reason I really like postcrossing as you get to see some wild stamps from around the world.

But the new U.S. stamps seem like they would be a bore to collect because they are the self-sticking kind.

Coins were neat. I did that before. But now, I only have one coin and I keep it in my wallet. When my dad died four years ago, one of my friends came to the calling hour and handed me a dime in a coin holder. The date of the coin was 1937 — the year my father was born. That is the one coin that really means something to me and I keep it with me as I walk through life.

But what do kids collect? Anything?

Adults?

I still collect baseball cards. But it’s so much different than when I was a kid. When I was younger, we’d get an allowance and go to Maxwell’s Gas Station and buy a couple of packs for 25 cents each. We’d chew the gum, then see what cards we got. We’d play flip or trade or whatever. But the cards were so cheap and affordable.

Then it became a business.

Card shows. e-Bay. Online sellers. Many card companies. Individual rights. Exclusive contracts.

The card industry has taken off. Though packs can be found at an affordable $1.99 at places like Wal-Mart or Target, many packs go upwards of 5-10 bucks. There are boxes of cards that sell for hundreds and hundreds of dollars.

My collection is based on personal things — usually authentic autographs or game-used cards of players I’ve covered in my newspaper career or players from the Philadelphia Phillies.

I do still like to open packs sometimes, but it’s expensive. And if you don’t get a “hit” (game-used, autograph etc.), you’re almost disappointed.

The funny part is, I’m not sure I could even tell you my favorite card. It might be my Mike Schmidt autographed card. Or my Robin Roberts auto card. I have autos of most of the current Phillies, as well as many game-used cards. I love getting auto cards of the players I covered when they were in the minors. By the time they get the authentic cards, they are usually several years past Oneonta, so it’s always neat to get one when they’ve climbed the ladder.

I also have a Jenny Finch autographed card, which is really sweet!

The only other thing I really collect is geocaching signature items. I like to trade for mine when I find them in caches and I keep them stored in an ammo can. Eventually, I’m going to take photos of each one — as well as each of my personal geocoins and pathtags — and make them into a coffee table book for myself. I consider pathtags and geocoins that I collect part of this broad topic of “signature items.”

I do keep the postcards I receive from Postcrossing, but it’s not really collecting.

That’s it though.

How about you guys? Collect anything? How did you get into it? Any story behind it?

Or if you have kids, do they collect anything? Most kids I see don’t collect anymore. I know I’ve seen some at card shows with their parents, but are the kids really collecting or are their parents?

I know there are still things to collect, but is it something that is kind of slowly starting to disappear?

I’d like to hear what some of you have to say. I hope there are some cool collectors out there with some cool items. For those who do collect — what’s your favorite item?

Hopefully collecting isn’t a dying hobby. I look forward to seeing what you all might collect!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com.

Filed Under: Baseball cards, Collecting, Geocaching, My world Tagged With: baseball cards, cards, coins, collect, collecting, collections, geocaching signature items, signature items, stamps

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She was so still for this photo. Make sure you f She was so still for this photo. 

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Harper is counting down to Santa Paws! You know, Harper is counting down to Santa Paws! 

You know, of course, Santa Paws travels with Santa Clause, making sure to find treats and toys for all the good little doggies! (We know they are all deserving, right?) So, Harper put out some milk for the big guy, carrots for Rudolph and the reindeer, and special cookies for Santa Paws! She is ready! 

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One of the best parts about having Harper as my be One of the best parts about having Harper as my best friend… ❤️
Couldn't resist stopping on the way to work to sna Couldn't resist stopping on the way to work to snap this shot. The colors in the sky were fantastic and the scene was nice looking (though, to be fair, I drove by what I think would have been a better scene -- the valley and hills full of snow etc.)

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The best of times??? 🤪🤪🤪 The best of times??? 🤪🤪🤪
Just a break on our morning walk … #goldenretri Just a break on our morning walk …

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Tired. Tired.
Harper is ready for tonight! Let’s go Phillies! Harper is ready for tonight! Let’s go Phillies! 

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I look at her and sometimes still can’t believe I look at her and sometimes still can’t believe I have her. It’s been a year and four months and she makes me smile and laugh more each day. It’s amazing how much a dog changes your look on life, and how much joy they can bring. 

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I’ve recently realized how many photos I have to I’ve recently realized how many photos I have to post here, as well as on Harper’s (@harper_dublin) account). So, as I start to transfer photos, I’ll try and catch up. So photos coming could be from all seasons and who knows when. 🤣

This one is recent from the courthouse square in Delhi. We had some pretty good fall colors this year. 

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From a few weeks ago. I was trying to get Harper t From a few weeks ago. I was trying to get Harper to put her paws on the bridge and looked out, but she was more content jumping on me and looking up. I do love the way she seems to be looking at me.
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Couldn’t resist a quick stop this morning with t Couldn’t resist a quick stop this morning with the fog and frost settled in. 

Hamden Covered Bridge 

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Harper’s friend Lucy is around this weekend! #g Harper’s friend Lucy is around this weekend!

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So… @harper_dublin wants to know why she can’t So… @harper_dublin wants to know why she can’t have @mallons_homemade_sticky_buns.
This is why we can’t have nice things. Saw this This is why we can’t have nice things. Saw this on me morning walk Friday with Harper. Likely some college kids, but also as chance at local hooligans. I had Harper so not a lot I could do, but I managed to get the cart off the chair. (See second photo) This was in a local park.
Harper is ready for #nationalfetchday on October 1 Harper is ready for #nationalfetchday on October 15! @chuckitfetchgames 

Should be fun! @discgolfdarren @harmm23
Starting to feel like fall! #fall #nature #autum Starting to feel like fall! 

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P.J. Harmer

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A video looking at my first year and a half of owning a golden retriever, my first dog. It's had its ups and downs, but I've truly loved the ride and look forward to the future. 

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When these boxes come, there usually some excitement. But this one ... is the ultimate unboxing! 

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I hate being in front of the camera, but also realize sometimes it's not the worst thing in the world. So, I'm getting better with it. Week 4's theme was all about us and having us in front of the camera, so I tried to come up with a creative way to do it. 

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