Let’s make a running start in 2011

So many thoughts are going through my mind on this, the first business day of 2011.

Gold and silver completed the year at record levels and at roughly nice round prices, too, at over $1,400 and over $30, respectively.

Where do we go from here? I will be reading many e-mails this morning to see what readers think. They are responding to last week’s poll question about whether it is time to cash in their silver profits.

Since gold and silver usually move in tandem, the answer on the one should provide a strong case for the other’s direction.

The People’s Choice Award online voting has concluded and the winner will be announced shortly.

My trip to the World Money Fair is now just three weeks away. I look forward to it and the opportunity to present the Coin of the Year Awards, including People’s Choice, to the winners who will be assembled there.

Naturally, the 5-ounce America the Beautiful coins will once again be on my radar. How quickly will they be fully distributed by the Mint’s Authorized Purchasers and what sort of secondary market pricing pattern will emerge are just two questions that can be asked.

What sort of business climate will emerge in numismatics generally? We’ll get a good sense of that later this week at the Florida United Numismatists convention in Tampa.

But the primary thought in my mind is that 2011 will provide all of us collectors with many new opportunities. I can hardly wait. This hobby has dominated my life and I do not expect that to change.

Let’s get going.