There's something particular about being a McElroy enthusiast in Italy.
In the United States, there's a community. There are collectors, builders, restorers, conventions. There's Vent Haven in Kentucky with original figures on display. There's a Facebook group where people who truly understand these figures talk to each other. There's Greg Claassen in Kansas, Tyler Ellis at Dapper Dummies, Chance Wolf at Wolf's Magic.
Here in
Tuscany, there's me.
I don't say
this to complain. Isolation has its advantages — you develop your own
solutions, you trust your hands more than you trust instructions, you build a
relationship with the craft that's entirely your own.
But there
are moments when you finish a mechanical assembly, something clicks perfectly
into place, the floating eyes move exactly as they should — and you have no one
to show it to. No one who would understand what it took to get there.
That's part
of why I'm writing this blog. And part of why I've been reaching out to the
American community lately.
If you're
reading this from the other side of the Atlantic — hello. I'd love to hear from
you.
Alessio
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