No, not y’all. There would be no point to this blog post if my Bandita pals and our BB’s weren’t here. Just, uh avert your eyes now and again.What prompted this little bit of paranoia and inspired the topic of this post was my collection of Precious Moments figurines.
Yes, those sweet, cute, lovely little collectibles that I went hog wild as a new nurse, still living at home with expendable income and bought. I have, oh about a hundred of them. At the time that I bought them they “spoke to me”. Some saying that made sense such as “There is a Light at the End of the Tunnel” or “His Eye is On the Sparrow”. Others I bought just because they were “pretty” or represented something special to me such as a nurse figurine or the little girl playing in sand that resembled my blonde, blue eyed goddaughter. And of course, what collector worth her salt wouldn’t have the complete Nativity scene in porcelain?
But now they’re getting on my nerves.
They’ve been perched over my computer desk for too long. Those beady little eyes are STARING at me! Morning, noon and night. Just like Eddie the dog from one of my favorite episodes of “Frazier”. He keeps staring at Frazier causing him to blurt “Stop staring at me!” LOL.
So it’s time for them to go, to leave, get packed away until I can figure out how to sell them at profit on eBay.
Well, hoping to make money on collectibles is one way of justifying obsession with little clay people….or thimbles…or stuffed animals…..or Mickey Mouse…or spoons... You get the picture. I’ve only managed to make a deal with one of my little people. I sold a “Sugar Town” original signpost for $125. Paid $10 for it. That was over ten years ago.
Some articles I’ve read propose that collecting is a way to expand our social lives, to fill a void, to give us a sense of control. In a way, I can see where that might be the case but there is also just the fun of hunting down that elusive item, coveting a piece of history or snagging a deal on a rare find. Really, you’d have to have fun to travel thousands of miles as some do to visit flea markets searching for 1960’s lunch boxes. This is all well and good.
But then you have to DUST them.Sometimes the things people collect will surprise you. My brother collects Mickey Sorcerer Fantasia items. Figurines, pictures, clocks. I’ve known my brother for years :-) and to find out he really liked this piece of Disney magic surprised me. And I’ll admit to having been an accomplice to his addiction by buying pieces for Christmas and birthdays. I'm such an enabler.
Remember Beanie Babies? Raise your hand if you were one of the ones who stood in line for hours at the card store, surfed the net for deals or wrestled a mother of two to the ground for the last Beanie duck. Reminded me a lot of the original Cabbage Patch kids furor. Yes, I confess it here and now. After searching for months for a Cabbage Patch doll for above mentioned goddaughter, then age 3, I found one at a fireworks store outside of Nashville. Sat with that blonde, pigtailed doll on my lap all the way home and then….then I kept it for myself! She's still appalled that I did that. (It's mine, mine, mine bwhahahahaha)
Ahem.
I’m pretty much past all of this obsessiveness now, hence the recent cleaning out of clutter. Oh, I’ll keep a few of the Beanie Babies critters standing sentinal over my computer....
Is that goat STARING at me?
What about you? What do you collect? What is the strangest thing you or someone you know has collected? Tell me and a lucky poster will win a $10 Borders gift card…you can add it to your collection :-)
143 comments:
Here birdy...
I sure hope this bird knows a thing or two about International Business. That way he can help me with my final today. Or he can entertain the hamster.
I am not a *stuff* person. I think it's from growing up in a house with lots of stuff. Books are my only real obsession. Though I have a pretty good collection of brass candle holders. Especially those ones with the little handle for your finger that look like something Ben Franklin would have carried around.
I've been purging in the last few years (moving half way cross country will do that to you) and yet I still have more stuff than my little apartment can hold.
I wonder what I might have around here I can put on eBay. I bet this GR would fetch a good penny. LOL!
Oh, and Joanie, my sister started buying my mother those Precious Moments figurines for every holiday you can think of. She has quite a few now though not as many as you. I'm afraid I'm the bad daughter. She's lucky if she gets a card from me. *g*
Congrats on collecting the rooster, Terrio!
I have a sister-in-law that collects dolls, Barbie paraphenalia, and beanie babies. They are all over the house. I can't imagine how she sleeps with all those eyes watching her.
I've collected music boxes and carousel related stuff. My mother had a collection of souvenir spoons that I brought back here after her death. I couldn't throw them out - too many memories there. I checked ebay and saw that some of those spoons (not necessarily mine) were listed for $100. Whoa! So instead of disposing of them - I bought a spoon case, hung it up on my dining room wall and now add to my mother's collection whenever I go out of town.
Can't wait to pick up a San Francisco spoon next month!
Well, Terrio, I am pretty sure the GR knows a lot about "international" as he is always winging his way between the States and Oz. Now the only business he knows anything about is probably "monkey business!" Good luck on the final! Uhm ... Shouldn't you be studying instead of entertaining a playboy, commando, chocoholic, alcoholic scrap of poultry? I'm just saying ...
My late father started buying my Mom the Holiday Barbies the first year they came out. He bought one very year and after he passed away my brother took up the torch, so to speak. She has them on the tops of the bookshelves in the den in her house. If you want to watch the big television in the most comfortable room in the house you have to do so surrounded by these big chested, tiny waisted empty headed babes in evening gowns. Sounds like a night Almack's, doesn't it? Or a redneck prom.
I collect books. Mostly historical romance books, although some really good contemporaries grace that section of my library. (In case you are wondering my library actually covers the walls of my entire house!)
I have a nice collection of frogs, most with crowns on their heads - no princes yet.
I collect postcards too and I have them all bound in nice albums. Some are framed and sitting in my writing studio. One that comes to mind is the one LaCampbell sent me from Chatsworth - the Valhalla of grand country homes.
Oh and I have a tea cup collection that I started after the Avon FanLit event. I buy myself a English bone china teacup for each final in a writing contest. My Mom bought the one for my Golden Heart - a Royal Doulton, no less! Nothing like LaCampbell's Royal Doulton. Get her to tell you about it as I am too green with envy to do so!
None of my collections have started staring at me yet. When they do you'll be the first to know!! You'll hear me screaming from Alabama.
Hmm. I really need to talk to Mom about the 2001 Holiday Barbie. She just has an evil look in her eye.
Hi terrio,
Congrats, Do you think your Hamster will like some choc-coated popcorn!
My daughter gave me a digital camera 2 christmas's' (?) ago, and since then I can't seem to delete any photos!(except for the blurry ones)
I'm collecting them... they don't get dusty though! Just fill up the Hdd's (3 of)
and I make copies on dvd too and What if !!! my PC dies...er dash...have to make another copy!
Cheers Carol
Great post, Joan. I didn't know you were a collector of such varied items.
Ah, the bugaboo about collectibles is the dusting and cleaning of them, which can be a horrendous chore. I think I mentioned collecting bookmarks. And I also collect pitchers. When we travel anywhere I like to bring back one from that country.
Congrats on the birdy Terrio!
I am definitely a collector. I love to collect BOOKS (my husband just can't understand why I keep books I've already read!). I also collect Christmas ornaments, teapots, Precious Moments figurines, Willow Tree figurines, and angels. I also collect family photos and momentoes in photo albums and scrapbooks.
Congrats on the GR! Hopefully he isn't too tired after yesterday!
I collect cat (big and small cats)and hologram stamps, cookbooks and recipes, dictionaries, Love is stuff, some comics and I put anything that interests me (pictures, quotes etc.) to my scrapbooks. And as I've started to knit and crotchet again, books that have something to do with that (and which are for beginners, more or less) interest me, too.
i do have disney stamps collect
But I don't throw anything away. There's always someone who might collect the stuff and I can always trade or sell the stuff that is useless for me. I have some Winnie-the-Pooh stuff, some stuff from Malta (fridge magnet, small ceramic bell etc.), cards, phonecards, pins, all kinds of stamps which I don't collect... The other day I did trade some plastic beads for yarn and now I have traded all those coverflats and bookmarks, too.
Hi Joanie T! What a fab post! I just laughed at thinking of you looking up from one of your lovely Romans to find all those beady little eyes staring at you.
I found some lovely porcelain cream jugs in England when I was there last and I mean to make them the base of a collection. I haven't actually bought any more yet, but I'm working on it!
All through school, people used to give me small ornamental animals. I didn't really like them but because I had them on a shelf, people just kept giving me more, so I ended up with a collection without even wanting it, really.
I went to an auction once where the owner was supposed to have collected antiques. A friend looked down his nose and said 'this isn't a collection, it's an accumulation'. I think that pretty much sums up my animals:)
Terrio, best of luck in your finals!
Congrats on the GR, Terrio! And good luck on that final. As Pam/Louisa says, he may be international but "monkey business" is the only one he's likely to know about. :-)
Joanie, I had to LOL about the Cabbage Patch doll! Remember Transformers? I drove all over town one Christmas trying to find one for my son.
I used to collect thimbles because most places we visited had them in the cheesy gift shops and they were easy to bring home. I have quite a collection that I never look at any more.
I also used to always bring home post cards too, and stick them up in my office. It got to the point where I had two entire walls covered. People who worked on other floors of the building would walk by and stick their heads in my office just to see them. Thank goodness my office mate had a good sense of humor! Don't even know where they are now, so I doubt I'll make a fortune selling them on Ebay anytime soon. :-P
OMG you did NOT keep that doll for yourself, did you? OMG LOLOL baaaad baaad girl.
LOLOL, okay, I confess. We collected beanie babies. My oldest did it to "fund her college plans" hahaha and my youngest kept them because she loves animals.
I do collect unicorns and dragons and magical figurines myself.
ooops- forgot to say: WHOHOOOOOOOO Terrio!!!! 'grats on snagging that birdy :-D
I used to collect dolls, but I lost a good portion of them in a move, so I decided that was a little too expensive anyways. I do collect books, especially old ones, though I only have a few. My daughter collects anime-related trading cards, though she never trades - she likes them all!
Congrats Terrio on the GR and good luck in the finals
I have a varied collection of different things but nothing really with eyes I am addicted to collecting romance books can't help myself I love them I have four bookshelves full so I really need another one, I collect elephants pottery crockery what ever although i don't have that many I also have a collection of spoons although they are away in a bag somewhere now not on display anymore I also have some very nice snow globes and of course I love coverflats and bookmarks and postcards from authors I have a lovely collection of these now and treasure them.
I also have royal doulton china cup saucer and plate sets one of them was brought out to comemerate the birth of Princess Margaret and has love birds on it this was my husbands grandmothers and was given to me after she passed away.
So as you can see I tend to be a horder of all types of interesting things and everything has a memory so I don't like to part with them.
Joan I hope you have better luck than I do parting with your collectiables and I hope you make a profit great post.
Have Fun
Helen
I remember Beanie Babies! My kids collected them and they had me going all over the place looking for them. I am not a collector because of all the dusting you mentioned. Even without attempting to collect anything we still accumulate an awful lot of stuff.
Ah, yes, my daughter (same one who collects anime cards) still has a huge bin of beanie babies in her closet. Thankfully, she never got into the whole Webkins fad - she thinks they're "creepy"!
Oh, you had to go and pick on a topic this lurker couldn't resist.
I collect dog figurines. I hunt garage sales for the really unique ones.
But the weirdest fetish I've ever seen was a barbed wire collection. Who knew there were so many ways to twist barbed wire?
My husband collects animal skulls. Is that unusual enough? If not, there's another kind of bone he collects -- see below.
When we moved into our last house, which had a fireplace, he was putting them on the mantle. One daughter said, "What do normal people put on their fireplaces?" We said, "Skulls. There are some weird people out there who put bric-a-brac on display, or family photos, but they're nuts."
And another type of bone he collects comes from a specific portion of a male mammal's anatomy. (We've got 2 from walruses. Nearly 2 feet long).
Let me point out that we both have biology backgrounds. He was a biology professor and I ran education programs for the Zoological Society, so none of this seemed too far off the wall.
Our daughter hated frogs, so we ended up collecting some of those, too.
I remember Beanie Babies -- never owned one. I remember Cabbage Patch dolls. Gave each of my daughters ONE. And Star Wars action figures. As a child, I collected horse figurines.
Well I used to collect stamps. Animal ones--there is a name for that, but I can't recall. I have stamps from over 150 countries--almost all of 'em, eh? Thanks to a friend in South Africa who collected a ton from that continent.
Then there is my small collection of vintage corsets, some custom made and modern, some from the 30's/40's. But can it be called a collection when there are less than a dozen? My eyes are always open to finding more.
Can't forget the books. I have a couple thousand of those around the house--of the fiction and reference variety.
Tawny, I lurve dragons! I have one on the back of my neck and I want another to cover the middle of my back--up the spine. Er, I lurve body art, having kids put the tatts on hold till I'm older :)
Besides my books, I used to collect Unicorns and Angels. When I moved to this house though there is no where to put them. They are still in the boxes I packed them in for the move. You just can't go from a 4 bedroom-two bath house to a two bedroom-one bath and keep everything visible. I had to sell my dining room furniture because you couldn't get around the table in this house. The china closet (where the angels and unicorns lived) went with the table, it never even made it into the house. Now I collect dust....LOL
Ack! Terrio! Step away from the eBay with our boy....slowly, slowly...
Donna, I know the feeling attached to inheriting a special collection. My Mom was into refrigerator magnets. When she passed, my brother continued the effort. He's ALMOST completed the 50 states.
She also has a collection of salt and pepper shakers....which we can't find in the clutter of her basement. But I have seen some PRETTY astounding secondary prices for those. Oh, and also porcelain planters in the form of elegant ladies heads. I KNOW they are there...somewhere. Major value those...
Hmm. I really need to talk to Mom about the 2001 Holiday Barbie. She just has an evil look in her eye.
LOL, Louisa. See, I think that whole inanimate deal is a fallacy.
Remember CHUCKIE????
I think the china cups sound so sweet and cool and....you drink tea from them! Or champagne...or margharitas, or sangria or mead..
Well, you get the picture.
Carol, I hear you about not wanting to delete the pics. Even though I've printed them out and downloaded to my computer. It just seems WRONG....
Jo, yeah the care and maintainece of these memories can get onerous.
But hey, I'm sensing a theme here....spoons, cups, pitchers.....
I feel a tea party coming on!
Cheri, I confess to a brief foray into Cherished Teddies...again little eyes staring at me. Though I confess that my CT Nativity is the cutest. I mean Baby Jesus as a little cub? LOL
Minna, I too have collection of cookbooks my most prized being a 15 volume set from Southern Living.
I did, however, purge those several years ago. It wasn't likely I was ever going to cook like Julia Child though I LOVED reading how to.
And cool on the knitting. I recently took that back up to knit afghans for all the expectant mamas at work. I've done three and have three more to go.
My wrists hurt.
Gasp, Terrio! You can't put the GR up for auction! What if somebody from KFC got him? Or Paula Deen? Nooo! Step away from the fryer!
Hee hee.
I'm not a collector, except of research books. I LURVE me some good history books. Now, my family tried to turn me into a collector. Everytime you express an interest--it becomes a collection because they all buy you stuff to match it.
For example. I wanted flowers on my wedding cake instead of fancy decorations, but my mom and dh's insisted that we had to have something on top besides flowers. I never liked the little plastic bride and groom, so I chose the Precious Moments figure of a bride and groom kneeling, lighting a unity candle.
Sigh. Immediate collection as family members started to buy them for every holiday. I lasted about a year before I announced to everyone that I DID NOT WANT COLLECT PRECIOUS MOMENTS! So, I'm left with about 7 of them, stuck in a drawer. Just last month I told my dh to look on ebay and find out how much we could get for them!
kim, really who can resist the lure of ANY Disney stuff?
Both bro and I went through an initial frenzy when they started the Disney pins phenomena years ago. Stood in line, went to WDW and watched the "official" traders barter and trade in kiosks. Makes your head swim to think about it...
But if I could...just...nab....that...
vintage Donald Duck
I collect books. I have way over a thousand. I'm running out of places to put them. lol. The whole floor of my closet is covered with books. I have three bookshelves full of books. Most of them I have read and are on my keeper shelf. I used to collect disny movies classics and beanie babies. My nieces and nephew are starting to collect webkinz.
An accumalation, Christine? It still is a gathering of specific, related objects that may (or may not) mean something to people.
Antiques, to me, are in a far different category than collections of popular culture and/or objects.
I suspect he was just plain jealous that you had tiny animals and all he had was some moldy ancient shield....
AC, the friend who went with me to Ireland bought postcards and then at the end of each day journaled about what we'd done and added the cards.
They didn't sell any with white knuckled Yank drivers screaming as a monster truck barreled around a hedge row curve.
You also mentioned Monkey Business. Yesterday, I discharged a patient who had had a knee replacement. She had brought her "collection" of monkeys with her. About 6 out of 16 she said she had at home. She had them dressed up i.e. a biker monkey, a stripper monkey and a doctor monkey. AND evidently ran continuing scenarios with them including that the doctor monkey was into drinking Jack Daniels (which she had a tiny bottle of). And you could tell very quickly, that you could not tease and/or be lighthearted about the animals. She had this look in her eye saying "Don't you make fun of my monkey"
Ok, I'm thinking we didn't give her enough of the RIGHT medicine.
Yes. Yes Tawny I did keep that doll. But I had you, don't you see. My OTHER Cabbage Patch doll Humphrey needed a friend.
I actually was able to pose the two in free standing poses as if they were walking across my carpet.
And I did let Lauren PLAY with them...
Hmmm....now they are stuffed down in a box in my closet.
During the height of the Beanie Baby craze I did buy the Princess Di one. And source of funding, huh?
Maybe I could sell it and get some GAS money!
margay, I think some collectible dolls are beautiful and if I had space for display...
No! Stop it Joan! Dust! Remember dust!
Helen, of the Precious Moments I mentioned there is one storage container full that I will keep no matter what. One in particular.
My father passed away in May. For my birthday the April before, my parents gave me a PM called "Sending you Love from Above" It is a figure of an angel kneeling on a cloud in heaven throwing down hearts.
Premonition? (heart clench)
maureen, I have figured out one way to dust the little darlings...that pressurized air you get for your keyboard. Watch out Girl with Puppies...BLAST>
Margay, aren't those Webkinz Beanie Baby look a likes? Those little stuffed animals that are in all the stores? I think some of them are cute....not THAT cute that I want to collect them, but cute enough to buy gobs of for my firends two little girls.
I am so bad.
maria,
barbed wire is, um, unique. So are collections of chewed gum.
The dog figurines sound sweet.
Oh. My. God. Terry!
Congrats, you had my mouth dropping open. (Walrus? 2 feet long?)
And great set up. Don't spill that you are BIOLOGISTS until the end!
Gives a whole nother meaning to bone collector...
tiffany, Donna would love to see your collection of corsets. Ask her about her special PINK one :-)
As to the location for your new dragon tattoo I would give you the same cautionary advice I gave a young girl that used to work with me.
She wanted one of those spotted lizards crawling down the small of her back. I reminded her that now...at age 21...it would look great. But as the years go by....10, 20, 30 that cute little lizard could sag into a komodo dragon...
I'm actually trying to work up the nerve to get a small tattoo on my hip. But it has to mean something to me....
No, not a Precious Moments!
Dianna, angels were big for me too about 10 years ago.
Precious Moments makes LOTS of angels...and unicorns...and unicorns as angels.
It's a vicious cycle.
Deb, good luck on selling at a profit. I've discovered that unless they are very old and retired pieces they aren't in much demand.
Though I do have a Member's Only piece that you really, really want....Really.
Amy,
Bro expanded into the Disney Movies too. He buys one whenever they are reissued and do NOT even consider opening it to WATCH it. Brings down the value he says...
Still waiting for him to sell some of the suckers and take me out to dinner, LOL
I tried to collect Coca Cola things, it can get pricy though, so only did some items, so wnet to just decorative stuff.
Joan, I was afraid I'd come across as TOO Weird if I didn't admit to the biologist part up front, at least here.
Google "oosik" or "baculum".
Remember - walrus males have to servie harems of maybe 100+ females in a short period of time. They need a little help. (Or a 'big' help, as it turns out). You should see guests' reactions as they stroke this interesting piece on our entry table and then ask what it is.
And man is the only (I think) primate that doesn't have a bone there.
LOL. Yes my father would have to agree with the cautionary on tatts, he hates mine, and nearly had an apoplectic fit after he saw my first one--there were a string of curse words and some banging of cupboards if I remember correctly. At pretty much 30 I think I can make a life long commitment to a tatt! I do have two, albeit on the smaller side. LOL And the bat on my belly made it through two pregnancies. :) I've always wanted many-meanlingful-tatts.
http://chalmersphotography.com/v-web/gallery/Pregnancy/SIDE_BELLY_jpg
Not sure that will come through. But I'm a big fan of body art, since I'm allergic to all piercings (including the ears--so sad) ;-)
And I hope Donna comes along and shares :) I did corset train in my late teens, early twenties, I was a tight-lacer, but not since the kids! LOL You gain some inchage around the waist after babes.
I have too many questions to ask here, terry, LOL.
You're talking to the girl who couldn't stomach dissecting a worm in high school biology. And who, being a city girl, was flabbergasted while driving through thoroughbred country in Lexington, KY and seeing a stallion "unfurl" so to speak. The gasp could have been heard to Oz
Though...I do subscribe to National Geographic.
Hey, Joan -- too bad I can't post pictures on this blog, but when we were in South Africa, we got a great photo of a "five-legged" elephant. He could scratch his belly with it.
Hmmm.. maybe there is a way; I'll give it a shot.
try this
Otherwise, check my blog for last Dec. 3rd's post
Joan, I think you're right. They are similar to the beanie babies. That was bad enough - I don't need another craze taking its place. oh, wait, there is all that anime stuff - the manga, the cards, the figurines...oh, forget it, I'm still shelling out the coins for someone's obsession!
Whoa....
margay,
Well, as long as your making your kids happy.
But obsessions, er, I mean acquiring of things that catch our fancy can run into the bucks. I shudder to think what the total cost of my early life interest cost me. Suffice to say, if I had that money back now I'd not be so concerned about gas prices.
Hehe, I think I could put a down payment on a house - or at least a nice new car! Heck, I could probably buy the car in cash.
I collect dolphins, I have so many now that people have given me as birthday and Christmas presents. I finally had to tell everyone to stop because it started to get way out of control.
What a fun conversation. Especially once Terry O got involved. LOL! And I clicked on the pic. Whoa is right.
No worries about the GR. He's just happy to finally nod off since the hamster ran on her wheel all night and kept him up. Oh, and I think he picked up this really cool accent yesterday. He didn't sound like this the last time I had him. LOL!
About the final, I take online classes and it's all open book. No studying. I'm too lazy and lack too much memory to take classes the old fashioned way.
My sister collects anything Tigger and when I was there in April, I was drying my hair when I felt like I was being watched. Turning to my left I found about a dozen stuffed Tigger dolls staring at me. It was downright creepy.
Forgot about the Webkinz. Yep, we have those in the house thanks to my daughter. Her friends at school had them so she had to too. I thought we'd buy just one. NOOOOO. I think she's up to 12 and I even have one of my own. But it was a cute little elephant and I couldn't resist. I love elephants. Terry's picture not withstanding. LOL!
Books and bears. Aside from that, I'm just a clutter collector, but those aren't really marketable, you know? ;) And we don't collect valuable bears or anything--we used bears to commemorate some of the big milestones in our couple/family history, so they're special to us, but likely not to the rest of the world ;)
Congrats on collecting the GR today, Terrio!!
Yup, Margay I hear ya.
I'm hoping just to get back what I paid at some point. I would take that money and go places. Maybe visit our friends down in Oz. MAYBE I could get enough money for a first class seat so I could lay back for the 18 hours.
Maybe donkey's will fly.
(sigh)
tetewa my goddaughter (after years of therapy over the Cabbage Patch incident) loves dolphins too! She doesn't have a HUGE collection but the ones she does are very special to her.
Oooooo, Terrio. Tiggers kind of tie in the whole Disney phenomena WITH the "Stop Staring at me" of PM.
The talk about Webkinz reminds me that I, ahem, do have three tiny Beanie Babies in my car...a polar bear, a puppy and a squirrel. They HAVE to stay down in my console or the car doesn't drive right :-)
Yes, despite my dusting aversion to my current collection, flchen some are near and dear. I have a goat like the one on the orignal post. Given to me wearing a tiny gold crown on the eve of my GH ceremony.
terry, that is SOME elephant. Wow.
I can't say I've ever been a collector, but I sure am enjoying the image of Joanie being stalked by her big-eyed dolls!
To be fair about the Webkinz, they have the link with the online play that the Beanie Babies did not. My daughter goes on the comp and takes care of them, plays games, learns stuff in the Kinzville Academy and she even gets to decorate their rooms. The all have their own bedrooms and then we have a garden, a living room and a bathroom. Does this sound insane yet? LOL!
My grandmother collected angel figurines. Unfortunately, she started getting them each time she or my grandfather went into the hospital so they didn't have the most positive backgrounds. She kept them in a large shadow box that was gorgeous and I hope to one day find another at a flea market or estate sale so I can have one just like it. I'm afraid I don't know where hers ended up as my aunt and cousins raided everything they could get their hands on.
It started out not so bad, these minature statuettes. They looked all innocent, playful.
But every once in a while, I'd look up at say, the June Calender girl and wonder if she didn't look a bit smug.
Oh, and now PM and Disney are COMBINING into morphed figurines.
Aghhhhhhhh....
I used to collect pigs and then they got to running me out of the kitchen. Now I collect thimbles from different places. They are small and don't take up much space. I also collect autographed books. These do take up space but I love them.
I've heard of people collecting antique yardsticks, and antique potato mashers.
Me, I collect pithy quotes. They're ideal; low cost (if in book form) or free (if captured 'wild'), take very little storage space, resistant to breakage, need no dusting....
A specimen from my collection:
'I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying.' Woody Allen
Joan, you crack me up! I'm right there with you on that plane to Oz, though. Hey, my daughter wants to go there some day...I see possibilities!
virgnia,
I went through a "pig phase" when I acheived an Orthopaedic Nurse Certification. The intials were "ONC" which I chose to pronounce "oink" and there you go.
As a matter of fact, I have a tiny, tiny pewter pig angel watching me now.
Angels. Pigs. Statuettes.
IT'S A CONSPIRACTY I TELL YA!
LOL, m.
That's a great quote and I like the sentiment behind it!
Hmm...
I don't collect anything. And if I did, it wouldn't be a collection because each fits a sub-functional niche, right?
Nope.
Not a collector.
Nuh uh. Not me.
I used to collect Sailormoon cards and bookmarks.
Great blog, Joan! While I don't consider myself a collector of anything, my husband would argue that I sure do collect stuff -- scrapbooking materials and romance books!
Joan, my mother collects thimbles. She probably has 200 or more of them, mostly odd ones or ones from places she or family members have visited.
My dad collects shot glasses. Yep, shot glasses. Need I remind you that I (and my parents) are located in the heart of Dixie??!!??! I think at last count he had over 400. Twice a year my mother takes them all down, washes and dries them, and puts them all back up. Oh, and she has to dust the glass shelves too!
Joan, some of my cookbooks are in electronic form. And I obviously don't try every recipe, but they give me new ideas.
Hey, Terri! Way to go on the chook! Actually I'm beginning to wish P226 would catch him! He's getting a bit uppity after all these visits to people who treat him like a king! And good luck for the exam!
Joan, what an interesting post. I find people's stuff fascinating. I must say I'm not methodical enough to be a real 'collector' of anything. I've got a lot of bits and pieces but they don't form a collection, if you know what I mean. I did collect stamps when I was in primary school and I started a program collection when I was struck with the acting bug. Actually, among those is a real treasure - Laurence Olivier and Vivienne Leigh toured Australia in the 1950s and my well-travelled aunt who I've blogged about elsewhere went to see a couple of the productions and passed on the programs to me. Now, those really ARE special! Like a few others here, I definitely collect books. And once I get an author I like, I have a complete works fetish and set out to get everything they've ever written.
Actually, my mum loved china, especially fine English china (you and she would have got on like a house on fire, Louisa!). And she passed on the bug to me. If I had lots of disposable cash and once I'd paid for my travel bug, I think I'd collect nice china.
I'm making an afghan at the moment; it's a good way to get rid of those small ball of yarn.
The only problem is... I don't have enough yarn!
And the yarn I've got now is not quite as thick as the yarn I have used for the quilt, so I'm turning that yarn into gloves. Hmm...
I wonder if I could trade...
Maria, now you've spoken, you're cursed to speak again! Bwahahahahaha! Although in the lair, curses tend to involve cabana boys and margaritas, so it's not all bad!
Scariest collection? A lady I worked for collected china clowns. Eeeek, scary! I used to hate going to her house because all these big, scary, orange-haired, white-faced men used to stare at me from the shelves. Seriously creepy!
Joan, laughed at the lizard to komodo dragon thing. It's like the eagle that turns into the grey jumbo jet with age!
Actually another seriously creepy collection - someone I worked with had kept every toenail clipping he'd ever had. He had jars of these repulsive yellowing things. Ugh! We had one of those guess whose secret games at work and that was his. I could never look him in the eye again. It was all just too revolting.
M, loved the quote!
Terry, still crosseyed at the walrus stuff. Although probably not as crosseyed as a girl walrus!
Several of my friends collect the Precious Moments figurines. They're super expensive. I've been collecting stamps since I was little. I've now started collecting bookmarks, especially those from authors. I also have a mini action figure collection. My dad is an avid coin collector. My brother used to collect comic books. My aunt collects perfume bottles. I guess we're a boring bunch. I can't think of anyone who has a strange collection.
You asked for it -- kind of:
Strange things have been done in the Midnight Sun,
and the story books are full---
But the strangest tale concerns the male,
magnificent walrus bull!
I know it's rude, quite common and crude,
Perhaps it is grossly unkind;
But with first glance at least, this bewhiskered beast,
is as ugly in front as behind.
Look once again, take a second look -- then
you'll see he's not ugly or vile --
There's a hint of a grin, in that blubbery chin --
and the eyes have a shy secret smile.
How can this be, this clandestine glee
that exudes from the walrus like music?
He knows, there inside, beneath blubber and hide
lies a splendid contrivance -- the Oosik!
"Oosik" you say -- and quite well you may,
I'll explain if you keep it between us;
In the simplest truth, though rather uncouth
"Oosik" is, in fact, his penis!
Now the size alone of this walrus bone,
would indeed arouse envious thinking --
It is also a fact, documented and backed,
There is never a softening or shrinking!
This, then, is why the smile is so sly,
the walrus is rightfully proud.
Though the climate is frigid, the walrus is rigid,
Pray, why, is not man so endowed?
Added to this, is a smile you might miss ---
Though the bull is entitled to bow --
The one to out-smile our bull by a mile
is the satisfied walrus cow!
(Anonymous)
I'm a big buffy the vampire slayer fan and sad to say I collect buffy action figures. I also collect books and comic books. My husband collects transformers. I love to collect stuff and sometimes find my homeover run with things. My kids always tell me I could open up my own library with my collect of books.
Anna, eeeewwwwww!!! The china clowns sound seriously scary, and why would anyone collect toenail clippings?? Yuck!
Joan I wouldn't part with those either.
I would love you to make enough money for a trip to OZ we could all have a great party
Loved the picture of the elephant.
There are some wonderful collectors here.
Have Fun
Helen
Hey there terrio, congrats on the GR snag!
Joanie, let me help you pack up those nick-nacks, honey, living in TX has given me a whole new appreciation for fewer things to dust!
Collecting huh?
Well, looking at my office the first thing that comes to mind is BOOKS. I have one nearly 7 foot tall bookcase filled with research and keep books. I could easily fill three more with the keeper books in the bins hidden in my office closet. (shhhh, don't tell hubby). Then there's the four medium-sized TBR piles on the filing cabinet and the corner of my desk. (I'm working on it, really I am!)
As far as non-book collections? Hmmm I've seemed to have started a Willow Tree statue collection. You know the one's of the faceless mothers, little angles or families all carved out of willow trees? It started when a patient gave me one as a thank you for delivering her baby. (Yep one of those I caught and the doc was home in bed.) Since then, either other nurses or patients have given me one. I have 7 now. The last was a Christmas present from Jo Davis. It's a beautiful angel holding a small toddler. That one sits on the hutch over my desk.
My parents are avid Blue Ridge Pottery collectors. Mom and my sister hunt this special pottery at flea markets and estate sales all over Ohio. Now the reason is two-fold. 1) Blue Ridge Pottery was made and hand-painted in their home town of Erwin, TN from the turn of the century til about the mid-60's. My mother's sister and several of my dad's sisters were painters at the factory. 2) The stuff can be worth a lot of money to other collectors. My aunt has an antique store back in Erwin and they specialize in selling the stuff. Every fall, Mom and Dad cart a trunk full of their finds down there and sell them on consignment in my aunt's store.
I personally have two entire sets of Blue Ridge my mom's given me. And we use it as the everyday china. But I have four pieces (a sucer, a miniature cream and sugar bowl, and a pitcher) that would all be worth something if I sold them. But then, I like having that piece of my family history about.
You know, when it comes to collecting photos and scrap books, I sometimes wonder if that's not the mother or wife's extra job? (Not like we don't have enough of them.) But aren't we sort of the historians? The ones who keep the memories and the stories, the ones who can look at the pictures and identify who all those people looking like statues are?
Funny thing, my mother recently sent me a collection of family photos from the 1800's through the 1970's. My kids thought it was odd, but Mom is nearing cough80cough. So I'm thinking she wanted those to be in another historian's hands.
Hmmm...must call Mom.
I collected Beanie Babies along with dh; we have totes after totes of them and some Buddies.
I collect porcelain dolls, small and big.
I collect crystal items, angels of every description, Willow Tree figurines.
I just can't bear to part with any!!!
I collect books and just love being surrounded with these comforting tomes.
I also have a collection of boxes, cute boxes of all sizes which are unique and used for keeping mementoes.
I enjoyed the post today. Interesting to read about the diverse collections people enjoy.
My collection consists of treasures of the different countries that I have visited, whether it is a small item or just a postcard. I consider them important.
Terrio, congrats on nabbing the GR! Good luck on your final, but don't count on the GR for any sort of help. He's just a distraction!
I've enjoyed hearing about everyone's collections. Bones? Teddies? Spoons? The funniest is Christine's collection that people decided she needed. My mother has received many, many pigs over the years. This was not something she set out to collect, but a fondness for Miss Piggy went awry...
My younger sister inherited a souvenir spoon collection from her grandmother-in-law. I admit to having added to this collection she never wanted. *mwahaha*
My husband had a few shot glasses when we married. We have taken to picking up shot glasses from all our vacations. Now, others have added to it. My older sister (Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu). My youngest daughter (Hard Rock Cafe Sydney). The collection keeps growing...and gathering dust. What to do?
And I am totally outing DEB MARLOWE. No collection, Deb? What about those nutcrackers???
OK, Terry, I can now add a poem about a walrus's wedding tackle to my collection of the weird and wonderful! Snork!
Suz,love your story about Blue Ridge Pottery and the family connection.
Happy to say the final is done. Thank goodness. And everyone was right, the GR wasn't much help at all. Unfortunately, BWOK was not an option in the multiple choice.
Love the poem! But that toe nail thing totally grossed me out. LOL! That's just NASTY!
I remembered another collection in the house. My daughter collects those little jewel boxes that look like tiny animal statues or something but they open in the middle. I'm sure there's a name for them but I don't know what it is. She has everything from a lare Christmas tree that plays music to a tiny bumble bee. There's probably more than a dozen on her dresser.
Now, p226 I find it hard to believe you don't collect something...ummmmm...like weapons? Perhaps guns?
And while each gun would be functional, surely there are some unique ones acquired that filled that one little "don't really need it but God it's cool" niche?
jennybrat. What are Sailormoon cards?
buffie, within my PM collection I had 10 PM thimbles. They are cute and cool at the same time. Such delicate artistry at such a small scale.
My brother's adopted son collects shot glasses. I routinely receive an order for one whenever I go someplace new.
minna, I know what you mean about the scraps of yarn.
I ALWAYS overestimate the amount needed. I'm using a very, very, very soft baby yarn for these. I've done two variegated, 1 baby yellow and am on the blue for the twin baby boy. Two more girls to go after this.
I need Motrin.
Oh, Anna how HORRIBLE about the clowns.
I may have mentioned it before but I dislike clowns immensely. Not only do they STARE at you but they plot...I know they do. You truly cannot trust what is going on behind that painted on smile.
And ewwwwwwwwwwwwww on the toenail clippings. Ew. Ew. Ew. and Ew.
That dude has some serious mental issues.
Excuse me while I go take some Phenergan.
jane, the PM are nice and the investment hopefully will pan out someday.
And remember the conspiracy theory I mentioned earlier?
Well, I just returned from my church picnic. And there...right out in plain sight...they were raffling off a PM basket! Coincidence? I think NOT!
terry odell that is the funniest thing I've read in a long while, LOL.
In her youth, our Kristen dressed up as a walrus. A lady walrus....
I'm sensing a new stanza to this poem. Kristen?
rebekah, I'd heard that buffy the vampire slayer was huge in the collecting world. Just action figures or other stuff?
Forgive me I've forgotten who mentioned collecting Coca Cola items. That is a HUGE collectors community. HUGE.
Several of ya'll have mentioned your books as your collections. See, I don't consider all the books I have as a collection...they are an extension of me...part of me. Weird, huh?
Suz, I echo the cool vibe from the Blue Ridge Pottery.
We have some locally famous pottery here called Louisville Stoneware. Iconic pieces and patterns that are coveted by local folk.
And those Willow Tree figures are cool. They say volumes with simple poses.
And they don't have eyes. Bonus.
Now, p226 I find it hard to believe you don't collect something...ummmmm...like weapons? Perhaps guns?
My wife says I'm in denial about it. But I maintain that each has it's own little functional niche. That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it....
ruth, your box collection sounds cool. I LOVE minature things. Tiny boxes, figures (reference pewter pig angel).
petite, I think collecting memories of wonderful trips is fun. Helps you hold onto the magic of the trips. What is the most unique piece you've brought home?
LOL, p226...I'd agree with your wife.
How many guns? I mean how many would a guy need on a functional basis day by day? Two? Three?
Any variations of a gun style? Any that you just take out and say to your friends "Isn't this cool???"
Come on....
Tiffany, Corsets! how fantastic!
That brought back memories of my Nana's corsets, she had about 3!...the ugliest pink contraptions, about 18inches long with sort of ...gosh It would have been whalebone (urk) strips sewn into it; and about 100 hooks and eyes all the way down. I never saw her in it, so I don't know if the corset did up in the front or back!
It certainly was not an object the likes of which Madonna might wear on stage... more like a back brace now! Thanks for pushing my recall button.
Cheers Carol
ps...Ain't nature grand!
Ah, and another marine mammal post. Does anyone know what the 'whalebone' strips in those corsets were actually made of?
P226, Not even guns! a military man!
Lessee...
Summer carry. Winter carry. Deep concealment carry (backup gun). Uh, hunting shotgun. Home defense shotgun. Close combat rifle. The wife's close combat rifle. Intermediate range combat rifle. Long range precision semi-auto. Long range precision bolt-action. Long range deer gun. Medium range deer gun. Rainy day deer gun. Old military surplus plinker. Rodent blaster. Supercharged rodent blaster. Military surplus communist plinker-rifle. Rimfire semi-auto pistol (for live-fire training/practice on the cheap).. uh... Hand cannon revolver... little plinker revolver....
I think that's most of 'em. BUT THEY ALL SERVE THEIR OWN SPECIAL PURPOSE.
I swear.
Really.
It's not a "collection."
p226 - you're right, that's NOT a collection.
That's an arsenal!
Hello to all, Congratulations, Terrio, on the GR!
I collect a variety of things: Beanie Babies, cookbooks, Cook-Off Awards, sports memorabilia, esp. the Houston Rockets and Comets, turtles, eagles, angels and religious items, carousel horses, celebrity items, & LOTS OF BOOKS!
Most unusual items: Kenta cloth
jacket worn on Sesame Street,
Sarah Brightman's ballet slippers,
Replica of Houston Astrodome,
Portion of the Houston Rocket's
playing floor autographed by Coach
Rudy T., 2000/Millennium Cabbage
Patch Kid, Nolan Ryan player card
showing him tossing a football,not
a baseball, and a US flag which
was flown over the US Capitol
Building.
Pat Cochran
:(
I didn't even list the wife's guns.
Nor the thousands of rounds of ammo. :(
*sniffle*
It's not a collection.
Terry, I think it was baleen which I'm pretty sure was actually a whale's teeth that they used to filter out plankton. Does anyone know any more?
Joan, I don't really consider my books a collection. As you say, they're an extension of who you are.
P226, De Nile ain't just a river!
Get out! They make guns specifically to hunt deer in the RAIN????
pat, Wow! I bet it takes a while to get all those dusted!
Sounds like you have some great sports memorabilia. Cool.
Awww, p226...now don't sniffle.
Here, use my official Beanie Babies at the Circus embrodiered hanky....
I have to agree with p226. Things one simply has a lot of but uses doesn't say 'collection' to me. "Collections" are things on display that gather dust.
Anna, you're right, although the baleen isn't really 'teeth' stuff. It's made out of the same thing as hair and fingernails, and the whales use it to filter feed. Different species can be identified by their baleen. And yes, we have some types in our collection as well, Including a plate from a bowhead whale that hangs on one wall of our living room. (It's probably about 10-12 feet long with feathery strands hanging down, and most people think it's a part of a tree)
For the rest of today's lesson, there are 2 kinds of whales. Toothed whales and baleen whales. Most are of the baleen variety.
Hey, thanks, Terry! I've had a WHALE of a time on today's post - groan!
I've had fun, too, Anna, and everyone.
And I have a very interesting article on whale sex written by a friend who's both a writer and a large whale biologist. (That is to say, he studies large whales. He's only slightly larger than average size himself).
If anyone wants it, email me.
Terry, I'm beginning to wonder about your interest in blubbery creatures and their sex lives! I think you need a hobby. Joan has a collection of china ornaments you can take over, I'm reliably informed! Just stay away from the CLOWNS!!!!
Anna, I'm married to a marine mammalogist, and spent a decade working for an international society made of of people who studied the critters, so some of it rubbed off.
And dh is out of town -- what more can I say?
I collect Betty Boop and birdhouse collectables.
Get out! They make guns specifically to hunt deer in the RAIN????
Nawwww. It's just one that I don't care if it gets all muddy and grimy and soaked. Not that rain/mud would hurt the my "good" deer rifle. I just tend to baby that one a little. I just try to keep it out of mud, slime, rain, ice, etc...
Joan,
I eliminate most of the dusting by using barrister-style cabinets to
store/display my items!
p226, I had a feeling that meek
little "nuh uh, not me" was concealing a little something or
other!
Pat Cochran
I just try to keep it out of mud, slime, rain, ice, etc...
To keep it nice? For your, uh "non" collection?
*BEG*
crystal, Betty Boop is one of those classic collectibles. She's enjoyed a great resurgence in the last decade.
And I could use some birdhouses. I'm surrounded by robins who INSIST on doing their business on my mail box post...Ugh.
Did anyone ever explain Sailor Moon?
Sailor Moon is a character which
originated in Japanese anime-style
manga(comics). She is one of a team of magical girls. They can be found in manga, on TV, in a musical theatre production, video games, toys and action figures.
My eldest granddaughter's interest in Japan and Japanese Studies
began with Sailor Moon.
Pat Cochran
To keep it nice? For your, uh "non" collection?
Yup. Right. *g*
I find what people collect fascinating. I did an article for the magazine I used to work for on this very topic. I tried to go for the unusual, and I interviewed people who collected everything from Snoopy stuff to, I kid you not, old-timey outhouses! I've had various collections through the years, but nothing rivals all the books in my house. I do, however, have several Bearfoots black bear figurines. I also collect figurines of every lighthouse I visit. Okay, so I only have three so far, but I think more than two is a collection. :)
Oh, my husband has a lot of baseball and basketball cards and comics, all still in the wrappers. Anyone want to buy them? Seriously. :)
p226 - that isn't really a collection or an arsenal. It is the normal compliment for a company of rednecks consisting of Pa, Ma, Junior, Jethro, Sally Fae, Susie Mae and the young uns. There was a fire recently in a mobile home a few miles from me. Fortunately nobody was at home because the fire department could not get close enough to put the fire out. Ammo kept going off for about six hours!
I also must confess I have several Barbies too. I've thought about getting rid of them, but there are so many for sale on eBay that it's not worth listing them.
Along the lines of my response to Toenail collections, I have to say regarding OUTHOUSES.....
Ew.
Thanks for joining us today. We've collected a fantastic group of buds that keep our blog fun!
Gosh, I hope I don't have walrus dreams tonight... :~0
Joan,
Oh my goodness, what a topic. Growing up, my mom worked in a gift shop for a while, so you can just imagine. I used to collect erasers, and unique pencils in elementary school. (They're actually out there.) That and stamps, and stickers. I'm a pack rat, so it's best for me to not get started collecting things. In high school I collected bottles of a particular type of drink and crystals - figurines, or geometric shapes. Now, I think I only "collect" books. ;)
I have my rubber duckies. :) Probably started because I rather love Ernie from Sesame Street, and he has a rubber duckie. In fact, my first was Ernie's rubber duckie. . . in the end, the collection only goes back a few or so years, when I was in college. :)
Lois
louisa said:
p226 - that isn't really a collection or an arsenal. It is the normal compliment for a company of rednecks consisting of Pa, Ma, Junior, Jethro, Sally Fae, Susie Mae and the young uns.
Hmmm. Since my collection of firearms is bigger than P226's, I guess that stereotype gets me too then ;0)
Gosh, I hope I get to be Daisy Mae, or at least get her figure!
We also collect firearms. At least, my husband collects them. Mine are more specific and for particular uses, like P226's. That's the only collection I'll allow in the house though.
My husband used to collect EVERYTHING. Old milk bottles, autographs, celebrity photos, National Geographic magazines, Smithsonian magazines.....AAAAGGHHHHHHHH!
And books. Of course, we both are book fiends.
Eventually you just run out of room! Some of it is still in our garage and I'm trying to weed it out and get rid of it a little at a time. The goal, a few years ago, became "it has to be functional--useful--for more than just sitting there to be looked at and dusted--or it's outa here."
People offer me/give me figurines and stuff as gifts now and then. I refuse them if its an offer--or gently re-gift them if I can get away with it.
Joanie, I SO relate to this blog and to those who've said they are not "stuff" people. I have this little quote above my computer--it says Thank God for the things that I do not own. Attributed to St. Teresa of Avila.
The firearms can stay because they're valuable and have a use. The rest of it--it's outa here.
Trish said:
I find what people collect fascinating
Me too, Trish.
Outhouses? Wow. They must have a big yard? As a former landscape designer, I admit that I'd have to see how that one was..uh...handled....aesthetically?
I agree--and so does Christopher Lowell--more than two of something is a collection. (grin)
Oh, I guess I collect wine too. I forgot about that. But by its very nature, the wine will eventually get un-collected as I drink it. And it all fits into one nice old primitive cabinet. Well...most of it....(digs toe in dirt with a guilty blush)
Ooooo, Cassondra, Maybe I could start collecting Sangria!
Sailormoon is a popular Japanese manga/anime that I liked when I was young. I didn't have a precise system for collecting the cards. I just bought any that caught my fancy and that were within my budget.
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