I must agree with Mr. Gupta!!  You would think that in a Maritime
province such as Nova Scotia, plenty of people would be interested in
collecting things from the sea.  Well, lots of folks collect colored
beach-glass to put in jars, but so far as i know, there is only ONE
"international" Conchologist presently active in the province, not
counting myself, ie. - and she lives 6 hours away and is married
anyway...  So, for me also, the List is a truly wonderful invention -
and i view it now not just as a large collection of potential customers
:), but as a TRUE community, - far more than a bunch of neighbours, who
often don't even know each other!!  Of course, the 80/20 rule applies
here (ie, 80% of the talking is done by 20% of the people!), but many
others drop by from time to time, and the list does indeed feel like a
real Community, with a capital C.

Thawing out again in the white/wet North,
Ross.

Ashish Gupta Wrote:

Over the last 10-15 years and before the
age of
the Net, I have always felt like a lonely conchologist because I
have never
found any other collectors in India and corresponding with
collectors abroad
via airmail was a one-to-one interaction and time consuming. Conch-L
has
really changed that. I feel like I belong to a family now, and that
I can
share my thoughts, ideas, with other people and almost instanteously
receive
feedback.