Coins From Russia With Love

About a month ago I posted about my coin collection and how I love the stories and history associated with the random coins I've collected since I was a kid. It was around that time that I came across a bunch of old Soviet and Russian coins on eBay and bought them.  Over a month later this package from a small town in Russia arrived. 

Inside a light blue envelope there was a cardboard plank sealed with packing tape.  It read 'Coins from Russia with Love!'. Included with this was a postcard from the town in central Russia, which pictured a giant old church and a small note about the coins.

It was kind of like receiving mail from an old friend or family member.  I've never ordered anything on eBay that was sent in such a personable way.

 

Beneath the first cover of cardboard, there was another layer where the coins were hidden in carved out rows. When I opened them, the coins were clearly laid out, but wrapped again in a clear layer of saran wrap.

The coins I purchased were a random mix of Soviet kopecks from the late sixties up until the late eighties, as well as random modern Russian coins from '91 onward.

My favorite pieces were these 3 '10 Ruble' coins from 1991. This was the year the Soviet Union collapsed, and these coins feature an image of the Kremlin. These two tone metal coins are also similar to Canadian toonies, or $2 coins here.

I've always been fascinated by Cold War history and so I love how something like this made the connection tangible.  The package from Russia wasn't just an everyday order either, and I found myself savoring the experience of opening it (hell, I photographed it as I went along!).  

Through some clever wrapping, a postcard, and some personal messages, the impact was more than just the history of some coins.  With just that small amount of personality attached, I got my own unique story to share along with them.

Non-Hipster Hipster

To be honest, I've never considered myself a hipster - at least it never seemed that way by comparison.  The connotation actually suggests a form of loathing to me.  The kind of person who would shun you if they saw you buy your groceries at Walmart or remove a song they liked from their iPod the minute they heard it on a popular radio station.

Then I thought about my traits.  I'm a former film student, current video editor and photographer, living in a loft apartment, who blogs, who fills walls with inspiration boards and make-shift posters, who over the last 6 months has stocked his fridge with increasingly more obscure brands of beer, and as of yesterday, a guy who redesigned a blog header featuring himself with stereotypical film-hipster glasses that have no practical purpose.  Oh yeah, I went there.

You won't find me shunning the mainstream however.  You also won't often hear me say that I don't like something because I think too many people already like it either.   

The few things that bother me about the mainstream are often easily applied to the things that bother me about most things in general.  No matter what social classification, it's a lifestyle built on distaste that I dislike (uh oh, double negative).  I just don't want to hear about a life defined by the ways it's been segregated, I want to hear about how amazing it is because of the things you've embraced.  

Originality shouldn't exclude others from sharing experiences, it should be defined by how unique your perspective, reaction, etc. is within those everyday occurrences.  This should be unshakable, and your passions shouldn't waver at the first sign of criticism.  If someone else liking or disliking something completely alters your perception of that thing, maybe you never really cared that much about it in the first place. 

Hipsters can be too far into the alternative to recognize that they're still a product of a mass culture, and likewise, the overly mainstream person is neglecting to see that most ideas evolve from far more obscure places than Hollywood.

I've created a paradox with my non-hipster, hipster critiques.  But what's clear to me now is that it's easy to become what you thought you were avoiding - or at least share some part of it.  We're all posers to some extent though, and that's a good thing. It means we're continually borrowing inspiration and finding ways to cycle through cultural influences. Then again, maybe I'm just a dickhead.

Jeeves and the Jaguar

Several months in the making, Jeeves and the Jaguar officially launches today!  The new site centres around my XJ8, featuring original photography, vintage print ads, stories behind the car, and general pop culture.  It's all pretty tongue and cheek, but it should be a lot of fun.  I'm hoping to document my travels from behind the wheel this summer.  Be sure to follow the new site and add it to your feeds!

Click on over to view JeevesandtheJaguar.com!