On Saturday, hubby and I ventured to Clyde's Restaurant for the "irregular" meeting of the Diogenes Club of Washington, DC. Fans of Sherlock Holmes know the fictional detective often found his brother, Mycroft, at the Diogenes Club. From its Facebook page (link),
A scion society of the Baker Street Irregulars for current and past employees of any agency, department, or branch of government be it local, state, federal, or foreign, including members of the Armed Forces and diplomats. We meet upon an "Irregular" schedule in the Washington, DC Metro area. Based on a roundtable model, Diogenes Club combines a refined clubby atmosphere, an erudite speakers symposium, fine dining experience.
Jeremy Brett (right) stars as Sherlock Holmes in
THE ADVENTURE OF THE DANCING MEN.
S. Brent Morris is an American author who writes on Freemasonry. He is a Master Mason, a 33° Scottish Rite Mason, and currently the editor of The Scottish Rite Journal, a publication of the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite Southern Jurisdiction.
Morris has served as Executive of the Cryptologic Mathematician Program at the National Security Agency and as U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in the area of computer security.
We sat with two couples - the couple to our right, Dennis and Mary, are also a retired Air Force family. Dave attended Purdue University several years before my husband. Plus they lived on Maui when Dave was assigned to the Air Force observatory on Haleakula (for more pictures from Haleakula, check out my travel blog at this link).
Our other table mates were Brian and Rebecca. Rebecca shared that she taught English in a small Japanese village. My husband served in Japan so we shared memories of the Japanese culture. Brian and Rebecca then chatted about their jobs as rare book dealers. I replied, "All I know about rare books I learned from the History Channel's PAWN STARS (link). Set in Las Vegas, the pawn store is operated the Harrison family, leading to drama between the grandfather, father, and son. When they receive a rare book, they often call an expert named Rebecca to give them an evaluation."
Rebecca was that Rebecca. I almost fell out of my chair. From the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop website (link),
Rebecca Romney’s background is in Linguistics, Classical Studies and Philosophy. Languages are one of her chief passions: she speaks three (English, French, Japanese) and reads in six (add Ancient Greek, Latin, Old English). She can recite poems in each. She currently works as an independent book expert and appraiser.
Let me say Rebecca looks great on the show ... but she is gorgeous in person! She was kind to answer our questions about rare books ... and allow me to gush over her reality star status. Rebecca even expressed an interest to learn more about rare books in the romance industry.
1. Have you met a reality star? Do you have a favorite reality show? Have you visited a pawn shop? Do you have any "rare" books?
I enjoy PAWN STARS and STORAGE WARS - I am curious what people collect and what objects they think are valuable. I have not visited a pawn store yet - I am tempted to visit the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop, as featured on the show, when I next visit Las Vegas. As I shared with Rebecca, I have several hardcover books published in the late 1800s, including Emerson's poems, but the books themselves are in fair condition.
2. Comments are open through Sunday, April 30, 10 pm in Baltimore.
3. I will be offline from Monday, May 1 - Sunday, May 7.
4. I'll post the winner on Sunday, May 8.
Mahalo,
Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City
2. Comments are open through Sunday, April 30, 10 pm in Baltimore.
3. I will be offline from Monday, May 1 - Sunday, May 7.
4. I'll post the winner on Sunday, May 8.
Mahalo,
Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City
Leighton Hall in Lancashire served as the
film location for DANCING MEN.
leightonhall.co.uk
