When I first started birding, in 1976, I acquired Birds of North America, a Golden Field Guide by Chandler Robbins, et al. For the first 10 years of my birding "career," it was my go-to guide and I studiously noted the date and place for my first sighting of each species.
As I became more experienced, I upgraded to "higher quality" and more up-to-date field guides, most of which I have since misplaced (i.e. lost). Dusting off my original guide, I found that it is full of my personal history, documenting where I was at any given time over that decade. Of course, it also harbors memorable sighting data and, more than any other book I own, is rewardingly nostalgic.
Only veteran birders will appreciate this old man's ramble but I strongly recommend that amateur birders (of whatever age) engage in the same habit of documentation. You will be glad you did later in life.
