[SpeakEasy]

So I guess its time to admit that I just might be a chip junkie.

First trip to Las Vegas was in 1996 to celebrate a family wedding anniversary. I am naturally a collector (life-long comic book collector), and I thought it would be neat to collect some Vegas casino chips. From my winnings at various casinos, I pocketed three $1 chips and one $5 chip. The collection was started.

Since that first trip, I have been to Vegas at least once each year, and during a few years I made several extended trips related to business. I continued to collect casino chips, and now have a large-ish collection of $1 and $5 chips. I've picked up chips from riverboat casinos here and there, and family is on notice to help me add to the collection.

Some have puzzled at the collection. "You have several hundred dollars in casino chips. How will you ever get your money back? Did you actually pay for these?"

"I don't plan to get my money back -- they're a collection. And I did pay for them, technically, but almost entirely from winnings. I just pocket some chips when I am up."

Been playing home poker games with a group of friends for about a decade. Year before last, I picked up a set of 500 "Desert Palace" denom chips. I've since learned that these are the dreaded (for some) 11.5 gram chips with metal inserts. They are perfect for the home games, and everyone really likes them. I've even upgraded to add some higher denominations for the tournaments that are the hit of the party.

I've been reading and posting on 2+2 for some time. I just recently stumbled across the chip discussions in the "Home Game" forum, and now this board. Of course, now I'm itchin' to buy a set of Paulson James Bond chips, or some of the Pharaoh chips with the group buy. My Desert Palace chips do sound a little too metallic...

Curious how others got started collecting, and if others here focus primarily on poker chips or casino chips. Most of the posts here seem to be related to poker chip sets, but I haven't read all that much yet. I think I am going to end up collecting both...