If it hasn’t done so already, it will happen today: convention fatigue starts to set in. I am a little bit like a kid sitting up late waiting for something big to happen, like the visit of Santa Claus, or the arrival of a new year. When will I drop off?

American Numismatic Association conventions are jam packed with things to do and people to see. My day starts early to get to an 8 a.m. breakfast for the Numismatic Ambassadors. This is a special group of men and women who have distinguished themselves as hobby volunteers through the years. They have done this so often and so well that they have been recognized with Numismatic News Ambassador Awards, something created in 1974 and given ever since.

It is a pleasure to see Ambassadors each year, to find out what is going on with their home clubs and to see the great pride they take in their achievements and the achievements of their peers in making coin collecting the best hobby it can be. They make a special group.

A special group of another kind ends my day. The Numismatic Literary Guild holds its annual bash. This event has been famous for its program of humor that often delays the presentation of its writing awards into the wee hours of the morning.

This year the bash starts an hour earlier at 8:30 p.m. Perhaps the dreaded convention fatigue will be postponed for another day. I can only hope so.

As the U.S. Congress recessed over the weekend and its member were hightailing it back to their homes across the nation, collectors were in the process of leaving their homes to gather in convention in Milwaukee, Wis., for the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money.

The convention will provide a great opportunity for me to ask questions about actions the Congress has taken or is about to take. The U.S. Mint director Ed Moy is expected to be present on Thursday and Friday and I can’t wait to be able to ask him what a new proposal means to the compositions of U.S. coinage.

Legislation was introduced in both houses of Congress authorizing the Treasury Secretary to change the compositions of all circulating U.S. coins. This comes in response to the rising prices of metals used in them, especially for cents and nickels.

I spoke to Mr. Moy about this matter just after he had taken office last year and he put me off by saying that he owed the President his first and best judgment and then only after that would he be able to provide some answers.

This new legislation seems to  open the door to that year-old question again, so let’s see what he will have to say. Whta do you think our coins will be made of in the future?

No matter what the answer, it looks like we will have another interesting collecting year ahead of us as the autumn collecting season gets under way.

Remember the “Tastes Great” vs. “Less Filling” beer commercials on television? I often recall them as I head to the American Numismatic Association convention. This year it is in Milwaukee, Wis., and I am driving.

I will be on the road just after this is posted and the crazy nature of the event sinks in. No, I am not referring to the recent board election. I am simply referring to the almost overwhelming nature of ANA conventions. They have gotten too big and too successful.

That sounds weird, but it is true. No matter what I choose to do at almost any given time during the event, the decision will keep me from participating in something else of equal importance.

Then the inevitable questions arise: why did the editor of Numismatic News think this or that not important enough to attend personally? That is not a spot I enjoy being put in.

If I had my druthers, I would be everywhere. Unfortunately, that statement is as silly as it is true. I have to make judgment calls. What do I need to cover to put into Numismatic News? What events do I have to be present for to be the news maker rather than the note taker?

Who is it important to meet at this convention? Can I see him or her at another event during the week?

No matter what I choose, I will miss something important. If you don’t see me, help me out. Let me know what I missed. Don’t rub it in – at least not too much.

When I was 12 or 13 I found myself late getting home for supper one late autumn day. I was running. My parents frowned on being tardy. I decided to cut through a backyard. Once off the street it was pitch black. I couldn’t see anything.

But did I stop? Oh, no. I was young and in a hurry. My foot caught a wire fence. I don’t know if it was around a bush or part of a garden perimeter fence. Whatever it was, I went flying. Fortunately for me, my bad judgment didn’t lead to anything more severe than a tumble. Kids are young and resilient and tumbles don’t amount to much.

But I know I could have hit a tree or a wall or something else that is very hard. The outcome of my story would have been different.

New collectors can be like that young kid I was. They are so anxious to get to buying all the exciting coins they are reading about that they skip the critical things like knowing how to tell a fake coin from genuine, or knowing how to grade.

I have the sixth edition of the Official American Numismatic Association Grading Standards for United States Coins on my desk. It is 350 pages. Every new collector should read the current edition. How many actually do? My guess is not too many.

Sure, grading can be picked up from friends. It can be learned at coin club meetings or seminars. However, it is learned, it is not a five-minute, “I’m in a hurry” process.

In recognition of this tendency to cut corners, the hobby has come up with phrases like, “Know your coins or know your dealer.” There is truth in the phrase, but a collector that does not learn how to grade properly is like a kid running in the dark. Somewhere along the way, he is going to trip.

Where he lands and how he reacts to the spill is the critical event in every collector’s life. Resolving to slow down and learn makes for a lifelong collector. Blaming the hobby for the spill makes for disgruntled ex-collectors.

However, the hobby is like life. Every collector won’t really confront the kind of hobbyist he is until he takes that tumble. How did you react, or how will you react?

I made it home for supper. I never ran in the dark again.

That coin collecting has had a merry run these last 10 years or so is obvious to everyone. Why this occurred has elicited many opinions.

I had a call from a reporter from U.S. Today on Tuesday. He was doing a story about coins. He wanted to know why they were so hot. I cited the obvious suspects as reasons. I didn’t say anything that would startle. Then I went back to work on Numismatic News. The mental wheels kept turning.

One of the stories this week is about Silvano DeGenova and a new gallery he will open in September in Newport Beach, Calif. The new gallery is going to be about 13,000 square feet. That is an amazingly large size, especially when I compare it to the tiny coin shops I grew up with.

Then it dawned on me. Perhaps a contributing factor to the growing appeal of coin collecting is something I will call “California cool.”

The phrase may date me, but the meaning should be clear. There are a lot of coin businesses in California. They are run by individuals of my generation. They have done it in a way that has attracted big dollars from outside investors.

There is a cachet to being a coin collector now. We aren’t nerds anymore. Collectors are now successful business men and women who want to declare that they have climbed the summit of American business. The flags they want to unfurl are 1913 Liberty Head nickels, one of which is now owned by a Californian, and an 1894-S dime that just switched owners and coasts, making its way to Manhattan.

These are not investors of the 1980s type that sought to make mutual funds out of coins. Not at all. Now it is all about the pride of ownership, the prestige, the “wow” factor. Having the coin is the end in itself. This is a true collector motivation and one that can have staying power.

I will never own a 1913 Liberty Head nickel, but I have held one in my hand. I will never own a 1894-S dime. I’ve not ever seen one up close, but I would like to.

California dealers have helped achieve this new level of prestige. They were not alone in this achievement, but it was their way of doing things that seems to be the pattern to be copied.

Well done, California. California cool is a much better reason to buy a coin than Wall Street could give us.

The Thomas Jefferson dollar will make its debut Aug. 15 at the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.

This will put the third President of the United States under the microscope as Numismatic News readers look for elements and events in his life to comment on.

I have already prepared myself by reading another biography of the man. It should be interesting. Readers have shown a great fondness for history and discussing the strengths and weaknesses of America’s Presidents. Admittedly, we have only gone through the first two as far as the coins are concerned, and nearly all the commentary was directed to John Adams after I offered my opinion of him in a "Class of ’63" column.

This tendency to comment will likely be fueled by the manner in which the Mint introduces the coin. Jefferson re-enactors will quiz the public at the Memorial about Jefferson and will reward correct answers with free Jefferson dollars. I like the idea. I hope it is well received.

One question I am sure they will not ask is what cabinet secretary was the first one to oversee the U.S. Mint. Numismatic News readers know it was Jefferson in his role as secretary of State.

I hope a few readers can make their way to the Memorial on that date and test their historical knowledge. It should be great fun. If you happen to be one of them, let me know how you do. Let me know what the question was. Comment on a future blog, or send me an e-mail at david.harper@fwpubs.com. Good luck.