Long overdue update coming soon

It's been more than a hot second since my last post and I do apologize for that. A combination of factors unfortunately have made my ability to update rather limited -

 1) my workload as manager of one of the largest supermarket seafood departments in Columbus means long hours and often overtime.

2) My health. I have liver disease that will likely require a liver transplant in the next few months.  While my condition is stable, I am on the transplant candidate list. One major side affect that has been a problem for me is fatigue which, combined with my heavy work schedule, leaves me with no real energy to do much after work.  The good news is that I still can work and the doctors expect me to make a full recovery once I do have the surgery.

3) The next nation I am posting is Benin. Now the process I have been using is first create a database in my copy of stamp mates for the complete country with catalog numbers by Scott, michel and the coorrsponding "national" specialized catalog - in the case of independent Francophone Africa this is Yvert. If you have ever looked at independent Benin in a catalog you know that there are hundreds of provisional overprints and surcharges on older stamps. Collating the listings in Scott to the equivalent Minkus and Yvert numbers...if they exist...was a major challenge that took me a good 2 weeks to finish.

But that work is now done and I am now laying out the vario pages. If all goes as planned I will have a new post for Benin-Dahomey this weekend.