Okay, I'm going to make you guys think about this question!

[MeanLaureen]

I want everyone to pick 5 pins in their collection that mean something special to them. By special I don't mean because it's worth a truckload of $$ or because it has your favorite character. I mean special because it brings back memories for you. Maybe a special person traded it to you. Maybe it brings back memories of a special time. Maybe it was the pin that started the whole addiction. Tell us about these pins and why they are special.

Now I'm off to think of my 5

 

[GotAnyPins]

You want us to use our brains.....this will hurt, but I will go and reflect and do my bestest...

Donna

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

Laureen's probably going to get mean on me because I'm going first with this and I may end up picking some of the same ones she does.

The WDW 4th of July 2000 Fife and Drum pin, LE and individually numbered #1106. Our wedding anniversary is November 6 (11/06), and when the pin was released we tried and tried and tried to trade for this pin (our first holy grail). We were in WDW for the Artist Choice weekends in September that year and a board member, Fran (and for the life of me, I can not remember her DIS name ... Disneypinlover? Lauri, help!!), saw us at one of the signings and called us over. She told us she had something for us that she thinks we've been looking for. She really played it up, handed us a pin, and it was the #1106 pin. We offered her ANYTHING on our lanyards or in our books but she said it was a gift and wouldn't take anything in trade.

The AK Bas-relief pin -- the one that got us started on pin trading.

My CTT -- not because it's a CTT but because I got it on my birthday surrounded by my wife and friends, which made it extra special.

The Star Wars weekends 2001 logo pin -- now really, how cool is this pin???? R2-D2 projecting a hologram of Sorcerer Mickey? That's a crossover usually seen with the fantasy pins.

 

[NHMickey]

Hmmm 5 pins...

My Flubber Pin!!! Here is why... Ya had to be thereThe great flubber chase...

My DIS pin... Cause of who made it and why... I wear it with pride.

My 1986 CM christmas pin... Just because of the story of how I got it and why I needed it.

My DEC POM from 2000... It was an adventure with some great friends... Flew down for a pin... And cemented some great friendships...

My 2 CTTs I got from Jim Matthews and the 2 I got from Scoop and the 2 I got from other managers (sorry I can't remeber their names).... These are one. As they are the same pins but mean a lot to me...


Great thread Lauri!!!!

 

[buggin']

Hmm....lemme think about this.

1) Annual Pass pin from EPCOT 2ºoº
This is just a really nice pin, can still remember getting it & meeting some great pin traders

2) Flubber (have to agree with Nat on that one!)
Never will anyone that was there that day ever forget Flubber!

3) Darth Vader Star Wars Weekends 2ºoº pin
Its Star Wars, need I say more?

4) Mickey, Herbie, Hard Rock Cafe fantasy pin
Its just too cute!

5) Disneyland Star Tours Anniversary pin (from last year)
Given to me by a very good friend. (thanx Ed!)

Buggin'
Amber

 

[SueEllen]

This is a bit tough.

Okay, first is my 25th anniversay pin. It was my first and was a MUST have.

My Magic Delivery pins 98, 99, and 2000 (trip memories)

The Happy New Year pin from 1999/2000 (the one that was not released for New Year's, but later)

My CM Steamboat Willie pin.

 

[cathy1140]

I have several pins but the 5 that are special are

My first pin that I trade on the board is #1 100 years Dream.

Vacation Club Mickey head flag pin in memory of Sept. 11, 2001. This pin was give to my by a Winston-Salem, NC Police officer that came to NYC to volunteer and we became great friends.

MY DL princess series that Karinmac help me complete and she's the greatest

Maine state pin from mainepinpal

Cinderella Carriage from DisCritter who is one of my many trader friends.

There are plenty more pins that are special to me.

Cathy

 

[KathiWithAnI]

h,mmmmm

My Memorial Day 2001 beause Lauri and Matt got it for me

My Teddy Bear and DOll pin(s) because Sue Ellen always remembers me and asked if I need that year's pin

The gold Wedding Album pin from 2001-- it was released the week-end of mine and Rick's 10th wedding anniversary and we were down there and able to get it ourselves!

My Friendship Day pin from Jeanie ( Fantasmickey)

amd my CM service pins
( just got my DOnald this month )


and I CAN NOT leave out The 2000 Olympic Pin that Jonie and her mom got for Rick-- he was on the Olympic computer support team for IBM and they got the pin, wrapped it up and brought it to a VA pin meet and we surprised Rick with it there!

Kathi

 

[Doctor P]

Mine will change as there are some that I want for sentimental reasons, but don't yet have. However, for now, my sentimental top 5 are: the Mr. Toad's Wild Ride retro attraction pin from Disneyland (my last real memory of my grandmother outside a hospital bed is riding this ride with me in the late 1960's), Carousel of Progress retro attraction pin from DL (CoP has been a part of my life since I saw ift first athe New York World's Fair), WDW New Year's Eve 2001 (we spent NYE at Epcot as a family), my DVC member pin (old version--the first Disney pin anybody ever GAVE me [thanks, Towncrier]), and my Pirates of the Caribbean memorable scenes set (I saw PoC within a year of it opening and it was the first E ride I ever went on--I will always have memories of my dad on PoC at both DL and WDW).

 

[jojo_ct]

This is sooooo hard as the others have reminded me of so many wonderful memories.

1. The DL 40th Anniversary Carousel of Progress because it has had a special place in my family's memory since the Worlds Fair. (Thanks again Kathie!)

2. The Gold Jail Scene. PoC was my family's favorite ride at DL when we went in 1969. I forget how many times we rode it.

3. My 1994 Teddy Bear and Doll pin. Because a dear friend bought it on ebay, just to surprise me.

4. The DL 2000 Gold Shield. My first attempts to get this pin brought me deep into shark infested waters. My eventual trade reminded me of why this hobby is so special.

5. The DVC Mickey Head. Because this is what pin friendships are all about. Thank you Peggie!

Cynthia

 

[MeanLaureen]

okay.. here are my 5

I have to agree with Matthew on some of them..

The Fife and Drum pin that Fran surprised us with.. that is an amazing testament on how wonderul this hobby and the people involved can be

The Bas Relief AK pin - the pin that started it all for us (Although Matt didn't mention that I picked it out! LOL)

My 2001 CTT - not because the pin is "rare" or "cute". It's the meaning behind this pin and why I received it. It was during the big Epcot pin event last August. Matthew and I and AZJazzyj and his DW Trina were standing in line with about 500 other people waiting to purchase our pins we were picked for on our RSP. We saw Scoop standing at the edge of the line and waved and yelled hi. Scoop called for Jeff and I to come over to where he was standing. In the booming voice that only Scoop has and could never be imitated he asked for everyone's attention. He said something about heat and the lines making people grumpy and how when they are in a bad mood they should remember the smiles that they see on Jeff and Lauri's faces when I award them with Continuing the Tradition pins! OMG.. we were SHOCKED! To receive the pin during such a big event, and by Scoop no less, and to receive it with someone as wonderful as Jeff (who deserved it SO much more than I did - he WAS the GPA)... how could this pin not be special to me. You know what though.. without the meaning behind it, it's just a hunk of metal.. with a special meaning behind it, it becomes a treasure.

Any of our Donald/Huey Dewey Louie/Scrooge pins - because I know how happy they make Matthew. If I ever lost interest in this hobby for myself I think I would still find a lot of joy in collecting pins that I know he would like.

I'm going to lump another group together here because I can't just single out one pin and they are all special for the same reason. Jeff and I send a lot of pins back and forth to each other.. for no reason. Just because we know the other person would like them. It could be a simple rack pin or something as awesome as the signed Cinderella's Coach pin or the incredible pin he gave me for Christmas! Just knowing that someone saw that pin, thought of you, and sent it to you makes them special.

Amazing how these little pieces of metal can be so special to you, isn't it?

 

[LynniethePooh]

I have been thinking on this one for 2 days!!!!!

So many stories, so little space! But here goes........

My first pin I bought at the park all by myself......February 2000 WDW POM.......LOVE IT!

The first pin GIVEN to me, just because, by Shirley 38........McDs Cruise Pin

Smilie Face Pooh from Japan #1855......given to me at a pin meet by Daber......just cause he saw it and thought of me!

Old Dixie Landing pin #860 Given to me by a guy I bought ebay pins from back in 2000......just because he liked me!

Last is a 'group'. February 2000 in AK with the inlaws. They bought me an AK lanyard and the four 'retired' AK animal pins.....the giraffe, elephant,lion and zebra and then the 2000 number pins ........it is a wonderful souvenir and my first 'series' of pins!

 

[shirley 38]

Ok I have to go a different way on this one. I am not going to name the pins that I received that were special.
I would like to name pins that I have traded to people. These were pins that were special to these people

One I remember being on e-mail with Linda from New York tring to get the Blue Castle Dangle pin for Nat. The funny thing about this was we were both trying to get the same pin for him.

Second has to be for Tinkerbell's son Dean. I gave my WDW PTP to another person to trade with Dean. He had not idea what was going on. I am sure some of you remember this.

Third has to be going to disney in May of 2000 and bringing back, I Kid you not, at least a hundred pins for people. And I will never forget looking for a pin of Roger Rabbit in a cab. I actually found it.

Fourth was watching John trade with children if you can call it that. He is still giving away pins. Just sent some to a girl in Canada that we met on the cruise.

Fifth is to all the people who have helped me in acquiring our collections. Thank you.

 

[Duckfan]

first of all I have to say that I typed up this really nice longgggg story about my pins and why they were my favorites and then,,,, the server was busy and the whole thing got lost in never never cyberland. I hate typing it all again so it is days later before I even want to try but here is goes
I cheat. I mean only a little but well, several of my pins are sets not just a pin but here it goes.

1. Tokyo Disney 15th anniversary. It is a four pin set but I love Mickey as the jester and the bright colors on the pins. The interesting thing about this set is it is also like my whole collection of pins. One of them I traded off a cast lanyard, one I got trading with a wonderful person off this board ( thanks Shirley), one I got from a pin pics trade and the last I bought off ebay.

2. My Tea for Two pin. I also collect Mary Englebreit stuff so disney pins with ME is like too cool.

3. My hard earned and very lucky to get DL Princess dangles. I started collecting these because as a new collector, I kept getting interested in le and hard to find pins. I saw this set and thought, okay I will try for more rack pins and these are rack pins.....lol, ha these are harder to get than many le pins which just goes to show that there is no hard and fast rule on the value of pins. The only thing that saved me was an Idaho pin (thanks James)

4. My Happy Holidays 99 pin. I think that Donald is so cute on this pin and I thank the nicest trader in the pin lines in December (at least waiting for over an hour for the disneystore to open had some advantages) who traded me for this one and my great sebastian one too.

5. Memorial Day Donald. I guess this still counts as my pin although dh stole it from me almost as soon as I got it for his small 7 pin set. It is a great looking pin and I have to say I also love it because it helped develope my pinfriendship with ep. (Thanks Robyn for everything).

 

[karinmac]

I had to think about this for awhile.

1/DS Utah state pin sent to me by AZJazzy Jeff as a trade. I told him to pick 2 pins in return for the 2 I sent. He must have heard me gasp when I opened the package 300 miles away! Jeff, you are special in my heart.

2/The DL New Orleans Jester pin it was the last one I needed for the set of 1998 attraction pins that started the obsession.

3/1998 NFFC Rocket Rods pin,my HG that was another man's trader, took 3 yrs find.

4/PInPIc #17, a pin that was a logo that I saw and had to have as a pin long before it was made.It still makes me smile.

5/the other state pins that my friends so graciously helped me with. I look at everyone and think of you.

 

[3kids4me]

My favorites are the ones that were just given to my kids without anything being asked in return. It still makes me cry everytime I think about it (yes, I'm a little emotional). I want to thank Peggie, Leslie and Mario, and Renee for giving my kids special pins that they will always treasure and never trade, and Daber and Raul for giving my son his very first traders down in DisneyWorld. Your kindness and generosity rubbed off on my son, who gave a new boy at the CT pin meet a pin with which to start his collection, and who recently gave his sister his prized Black Cauldron pin so that she could trade for something she really liked.

This hobby has done nothing but good for our family, and I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

 

[mermie]

But just the opposite. My favorite pins have to be those that I have given to newbie traders (or just cute little kids) who promptly flung their arms about my neck and told me that I made their entire vacation even more special. I have no clue who they were, but I hope they enjoyed them...at least for a while before they traded them away.

 

[olbear]

It's taken me 5 days to think about this question. And I know that there are alot more than 5 pins that are special. Not because of the pin itself, but how we got it. So here goes...

1) My most favorite is the CTT's we were given by Super Trader Mike and Scoop Sanderson. Like others have said, it's not so much the pin, but the person who gave them to me. These two guys have also done some wonderful trades with me as well, but mostly have just become very special friends.

2) My second choice is soooo close to being my first choice, that I'd have to say they tie!!
Anyway, it is the Yacht and Beach Club, Honeymoon and Anniversary pins. You see for hubby and I, Disney truely is "magic"!! We met there on a singles trip with our church, and married 10 months later, and honeymooned at WDW. We have done LOTS of "mini-honeymoons" since then. Last year for our 17 year anniversary we went again. We were told by a nice CM to go and introduce ourselves to Captain Bob and share our "love story" with him. We did, and he then asked us to wait 5 minutes in lobby. We did, and he came back and gave me a half dozen roses, and he then presented us with both the honeymoon and anniversary pins from that resort!! Needless to say, we were so excited! And they are special and so is Captain Bob!

3) My third is the three piece puzzle set of Pooh from WDW. They are the pins that started us on this journey of pins and friendships. Hubby saw them on the racks late April of 2001, and said these are cute, let's buy them. We were off!!!

4) My fourth choice would be the "AP" Wet Paint that we got from Super Trader Mike. I had managed to get my three Holy Grail Pooh pins, and hubby just for fun, wanted to acquire a Wet Paint. Well, we went to the friday meet at the contemporary. Mike was wearing the AP wet paint on his collar. That meant it wasn't for trade, just to show off. Hubby Fred asked him about trading it. Of course we never thougt Mike would seriously consider it. But he did, and we did an easy trade for it. It just made hubby's day!! It was the night before the MGM pin event. So the next day hubby wore it on HIS collar to show it off! He was so tickled to have it. Thanks Mike!

5) hmmmmmm thinking, thinking....I guess it would be pin #101 of the Millinium pin series from the Disney Store in 2000. This is the FRIST pin I traded for at the EPCOT event last year and it was with non-other than Holland,(alias-Scoop). I was standing in line to get some newly purchased pins autographed. Holland asked me which ones I had. And we traded. This is special for two reasons. It is the pin that started me on my love for Walt pins, and also because it was my first trade with Holland who has become so very special. Of course "Scoop" is pretty special as well!! LOL!!!

So there you have it. As most have said, it's not about the pins, it's about the relationships that have blossemed because of them.

Many blessings,
Winnie