About the Traffic Light Collector and his Collection


	About the Webmaster/Collector/Geek/Whatever

Everyone has some sort of "thing" that they're in to. Some people collect coins, some people collect stamps. I know someone who collected Beanie Babies, but I kind of think that was a fad. Other people collect books or salt & pepper shakers or old computers. I collect traffic lights.

For as long as I can remember, I've had a fascination with traffic lights. I wanted one so badly. I etched them into furniture (ask my parents about the redwood patio furniture), I permanently inked them into wood (ask my parents about the basement stairs), I drew them on paper, I molded them out of clay, I folded them from cardboard, I tried every conceivable way to "build" a traffic light.

My father built a traffic light night light for me when I was about 3 years old. It was a "fixed four-way" constructed of 1/4-inch particle board with round holes cut out for the lights. It used red, yellow, and green gels stuck to the insides for the lenses and was lit by two night lights taped to the top and bottom of the inside with duck tape. Two extension cords, which powered the lights, ran down the chain from which it hung from the ceiling. I manually changed the phase of the light by plugging/unplugging the extension cords. Guess when I got my first taste of 120 volts running through my fingers.

Finally, while at the Chester Flea Market, a vendor had one sitting out for sale. My jaw just about hit the dirt. At the end of the day my Dad haggled the guy down from $80 to $45. It came connected to a home-made controller box that had a rotating disc inside with roller switches that allowed the signal to run through a normal sequence. It wasn't perfect, but it worked. After owning this signal for about 10 years or so, gravity took its toll on it when it tipped over and hit the concrete floor, smashing the red lens. This was before ebay, so I had no clue where to get a replacement. I sold it at our next garage sale for $30. Sigh.

Years later, and thaks to ebay, my enthusiasm re-emerged with hard-to-find, rare, and odd-ball signals of all sorts popping up from basements and attics all over the world. My collection continues to grow, much to the shagrin of my wife, but she knows I enjoy it and lovingly tolerates my hobby, however odd it is.

If you have any questions about my collection or would like to offer some insight or expertise about one of my signals I welcome your words. If you'd like to be linked to from my site, let me know. Feel free to contact me at info@MyTrafficLights.com