Newbie is putting lightly!

[Watsonking]

Good morning all. As a kid, I'm 30 now, I had a Gilbert microscope. I'd spend hours sucking water out of local ponds, finding mushrooms etc. All to see in my scope.
Couple days ago, while consignment shop hunting, I purchased a Bristoline, Bristolscope, model # 3003. She's in perfect condition and I am elated with my new toy.
My history, avid bird watcher, professional fly fisherman/guide/fly designer. Spent most of my life as a mechanical engineering test tech. Materials stress, strain etc. Hobby wise, last ten years studying and collecting the flora of the late Triassic, early Jurassic Newark Super Group deposits. Live in West Chester Pa. Two kids. Daughter in Advertising/Marketing. My son is a DaVinci surgical robot clinical sales specialist. Back to the point!
So I bought some slides, cover slips and stains. In the last couple days I've found the awe of the microscopic world is still within me. I started with a fly wing, unbelievable. In that few days, stained cheek skin cells (with the bacteria), human blood cells and my favorite, various pond and creek water samples. Oh man I still can't believe this scope. Volvox, Paramecium, diatoms (I really love those) Algae, etc. I spent 15 minutes this morning watching a worm like creature, eating on vegetation, his metabolic rate was so fast I could watch his dinner travel thru his gut to be expelled out. Unbelievable. After looking at many posts on this forum, looks like I need to get a suitable camera setup. Please bare my amateurish questions as I delve into this most fascinating hobby. I'm gonna go look at something right now! Yahhoo!

[DrPhoxinus]

Welcome Watsonking,

Ah the joy of discovery.

I had a little Monolux as a kid. Got to be expert in doing hay infusions. Mom would poke her finger when asked to give her son some RBCs to look at. Saw blue stentors and hydra.
Got hospitalized when something from a swamp got me.

Sometimes I took a bus home from College and it would go by the Whittier hotel, mentioned in North by Northwest.

The marquee would often have profound sayings.

“He who is afraid to ask questions is ashamed of learning”

“Nothing is obvious to the uninformed “

The wealth of knowledge in this forum is remarkable.
The people here have helped me many times, most being those kids with the Gilbert microscopes.

Welcome and Enjoy from a kid whose happiness was a bigger Gilbert chemistry set



Gerard

[Phill Brown]

Thanks for rehoming the stray microscope,a worthy cause.
Some say without pictures it didn't happen,phone cameras are well suited to the task.

[AJHope]

Ah my kind of people, I love to see the excitement and wonder whenever it is about us people discovering and enjoying the natural world.

I say: good purchase and ENJOY!

[mikemarotta]

Good morning all. As a kid, I'm 30 now, I had a Gilbert microscope. I'd spend hours ...

Welcome. Allow me to say that at 30 you are still a kid. My daughter is old enough to be your mother. That being as it may, we are all kept young by exploring new horizons.

Like you (and probably the vast majority here), I had a microscope at age 10 and by 13 had figured out how to use a camera with it. I got much farther with that than with my telescope. I cannot think of a single memorable view from ages 10-15. I had no mentors or tutors. With the microscope first,working indoors during the day is easier than working outdoors in the dark. Probably more to the point, I had neighbors who were doctors. We lived close to a hospital and many of the renters in the neighborhood were young interns and residents.I got labware from some and when I was 13, the technicians went on strike and I was allowed to come in an cut open mice for an immunology project.

Anyway, I am here to learn more before buying an (adult) instrument of my own.

Best Regards,
Mike M.

[charlie g]

Welcome to forum. Wow, you are 30yrs of age and two of your dear children are adults and in working life, congradulations on this too! charlie g, fingerlakes/US