Patent first, profit later.

It's amazing the things you discover when you chat to people.



Today I learned that the most financially successful invention to date is the ring pull. Well, well...
I was chatting to a man [We'll call him Fred]whose job it is to protect the ideas and inventions of Scotland's innovators. He is approached by an average of six people a week convinced that their idea is the Next Big Thing.
Fred told me that only around 10 % of ideas ever come to anything but his job is very interesting. The youngest successful inventor he has dealt with was 12 years old and the oldest 84 so clearly there's time for me to devise some genius improvement to an existing invention or create something utterly new!


I'd also had a chat [yes, I do chat a lot - I hold my hands up to that] with a lady who spends her free time collecting pegs. Yes, you read that right. Pegs.
Pegs that you hang washing out with? Yes, those pegs.

Now, in my ignorance, I didn't think there were too many different types/styles of pegs around but - No! Since I spoke to her I've done a little audit of my own and there's quite a range of style and design. I'm not sure what she plans to do with her collection - presently numbering 40+ apparently - but she assures me it is a useful past time and she enjoys it. Each to their own. You'd never catch me collecting anything obscure or trivial.



For a while I collected books about Alphonse Mucha and Ladybird Well Loved Tales [WLT to those in the know] category 606D, matt finish of course. None of your glossy rubbish. Two separate collections you understand, not a Mucha /WLT combo although frankly were something like that to exist I may well self combust with excitement.



I haven't acquired anything recently but now I'm itching to visit to ebay. I think His Nibs card may be about to take a dent or two.