Entry One: A Large Brass Crab

Behold, the first object in my appartment to make its public debut! (Sorry about image quality. I'm taking these things with my phone camera because I do not own any other form of camera.) This is a brass crab about six or seven inches across. The arms are attached on pivots so they rotate a little bit, and the top of the head hinges up to reveal an ashtray inside. I assume you're supposed to rest the cigarette in the crab's pincers to make it look like it is smoking. It is currently holding a UV penlight in its right claw and there is an eight sided trapezohedral Flourite crystal inside because I didn't have any other place to put it.

I've had this crab for longer than most of the things I'll wind up putting on this page. I'm not sure as to the exact date that I aquired the brass crab, but I'd estimate that I've had it since late elementary school. That puts its addition to the collection at around 1992-1993 maybe. I found it in the basement of my Grandmother's old house while we were helping her move out. My Grandfather died long before I was born, but he was apparantly a prolific smoker as well as a double amputee, and this was his favorite ashtray. I will probably never take up smoking myself, but this little guy almost makes me wish I would.