As a child, I collected rocks. I could sit for hours in the driveway searching for unique shapes, colors, textures. As an adult, I have a much smaller rock collection. I also search for tiny seashells on our annual beach trip.
I don’t know if I would call it a collection, but I have pizza boxes (they are the perfect size and many loca pizza joints will give them to you if you ask) full of my kids’ art work and writings. I keep saying I want to digitize all of it and then get rid of it. My mom is a big time collector of things (borderline hoarder?), to an unhealthy point. Years ago when I realized this, I began culling my possessions and creating a “life of less.”
Pizza boxes is a new one to me! Never thought of using them before. One thing that I'm trying to hang onto and use is Finish Powerball containers. They're 7" by 8" and 4" deep so there's a lot of wasted space to them if one just threw them into the recycling bin so I keep trying to find uses for them - at least 4 unused so far!
I’m curating ghosts and memories in my old childhood farmhouse this summer, through my ancestors’ various collections. Books, musical instruments, antiques, manuscripts, sketches, journals. It’s a lot.
Apart from a handful of vintage sewing machines who needed good homes, I mainly collect stories. 40 year old man runs around the neighbourhood dressed as Spider-Man at night? Into the notebook it goes. Brother’s best friend saw a ghost while driving? Let’s tuck that tale into a safe place. Ball lightning hovered over your bath? No worries Sir, I’ll take good care of that story.
The collection may never see the light of day, but that’s ok. It gives me endless amounts of entertainment and a pantry full of tidbits. I have freeze dried stories, canned stories, pickled stories. Wouldn’t want to run out, you know.
As a kid, I would collect things like coins and stamps. It helped that I had inherited quite voluminous collections of both from my parents. My additions were, thus barely visible.
I started collected records a while back but had to cut back on buying for budgeting reasons. Gonna buy more records come autumn though. I love how having a physical record adds another layer to the experience (as I attach the time and place I purchased it, who I was with, how I found it, and so on to the record). You can browse my humble collection here - https://www.discogs.com/user/tuxunefo.
I started collecting video game figures in high school, mainly Nintendo's amiibo figures for Smash Bros, but my family ended up moving around so much when I was in college that I put a pause to it due to the extra effort it required for each move, and haven't really gotten back into it. I still have my collection on display in my room. I've recently dug out my family's old stash of legos to try and make the display more interesting, make little scenes instead of just having them all lined up.
Aug 24, 2022·edited Aug 24, 2022Liked by Mark Dykeman
As a child I collected ducks: real ones as pets, plus figurines, pictures, mugs, pens, tea towels, pencil tins, stickers, books, bags - anything with a duck. Ducks are the BEST, because they smile. Ever noticed?
Three decades on from my childhood, having accumulated far too much stuff in my time on this planet so far - I mean stuff in general: things, possessions, y'know - I'm now working hard to reset my sights on collecting memories and experiences instead.
I just wonder how it is that stationery and books persist in slipping through the radar..... #shhhh
My younger self of duck-keeping and duck-stuff-collecting age would tell you that they most certainly do. Have a look at the side view of the next duck you come across. It'll be smiling, I promise!
There are things I want to collect that I used to collect as a child, but I have not had the time to invest in another hobby. I would like to start collecting Garbage Pail Kids and M.U.S.C.L.E. men, and I do have some comic books that are old that have meaning.
I’ve collected all sorts of things: CDs, trading cards, toy cars, books (still do). This summer I started playing disc golf and I am slightly addicted. It’s a blast! My disc collection is up to eight. They are all slightly different and serve different purposes (driver, mid-range, putter). I’ve gone a bit overboard, but it’s an incredibly inexpensive hobby. Most courses are free to play at.
I've collected comic books since I was 8 years old. I've sold my initial collection, but still collect certain titles. I also used to collect T.V. Guides, but threw them away when they got to be too much (this was before eBay ).
I collected several of the items on your list at one time or another. I suppose my most ongoing collection is CDs, although with Spotify, that has tapered off substantially. I just purchase a CD of which I would like to experience more fully on my home stereo. While I do have some valuable ones, there is no real direction to my collection.
Gosh, it's been years since I've bought a CD player... the only place I would really listen to them now is in my car and it's not like I do a lot of driving these days!
Things I collected / am collecting: Bookmarks (inheriting a collection from my grandfather); Snoopy memorabilia; pictures of sticker graffiti uptown (started an Instagram account - @stuckonsj - to share it).
- Records (mostly jazz but also slowly working on the rock/grunge I listened to as a high school/university student)
- Books in general, but poetry books in particular (I have 1000+, hundreds of them signed) or books about poetry
- I'm slowly collecting an archive of things published in or about New Brunswick (literary magazines, chapbooks, and ephemera like newsletters, posters. Heck I'd even take copies of The New Brunswick Reader or Salon)
- I used to collect comic books and trading cards but would love to find a home for most of these for a bargain price! Need to add any more comic books to your collection, Mark?
- My study is a graveyard of things I started to collect but gave up because I wanted to focus elsewhere (see above) or it was too costly... (lapel pins, postcards, autographed pucks, autographed 8x10s of Conn Smyth trophy winners, omg I'm starting to sound like a hoarder...)
How does it inform my learning, thinking, and creativity? Well, if I'm too tired to be creative, I can make lists of things (say a bibliography of a certain writer, a checklist of copies of The Cormorant (a lit. journal published at UNB-SJ in he 80s and 90s) or a list of John Coltrane records) which engages my research skills that can come in handy for writing.
I've collected various things throughout the years: postcards, mugs, books, matchbooks, pig-themed kitchen stuff. But, alas, I've downsized and most went to Goodwill. I now collect Christmas ornaments from places I visit/travel to. Funny...I haven't put up a tree in years because I spend the holidays with my kids in Florida. But, I'm a collector at heart, they don't take up much space, and now I'm inspired to do a tree this year...Thanks Mark!
Great subject Mark! Look at all the responses. Here's my list:
When I was a kid, I collected baseball and football trading cards. I don't have them anymore. I gave them away. It was fun to collect them because I always watched those two sports.
I used to collect NASCAR cards. I don't collect those anymore. I think I still have some boxed away. It was fun and I sent some of the cards to the driver's team shops to get them autographed. The fastest was Richard Petty. I sent it out on a Monday and by Thursday it was in my mailbox autographed.
I use to collect NASCAR diecast cars. It was exciting when I was getting them. I tried to sell my collection but I couldn't find a buyer. Eventually, I had to just give them away. It was a shame because there was a lot of cost in it. I did keep a few that I got autographed by one of my favorite drivers.
I used to collect diecast police cars. I had about 40 of them. They were mostly 1/43 scale. Some were 1/64 scale and a couple were 1/18 scale. Still have a few in my collection. I don't collect them anymore. There's no place to put them. I traded most of my collection for police patches.
I used to collect police pins. Have a few left. Sold or traded the rest away.
Patches – 263 police patches, 41 Fire Patches, and 5 Military patches.
I really enjoyed collecting them. I took a hiatus during Covid. I have all info in a spreadsheet with what it is, when I got it, who I got it from, etc. I traded police patches with a lot of nice people, not just officers but civilians as well. I like finding the histories behind the patches. Sometimes I find out who designed them and why certain parts of the patches were created. It's all very interesting. I also liked interacting with the fire departments. I will definitely get back into trading again sometime. I still need some patches for my collection.
Business Cards / Info Cards - I got many business cards from officers all across the U.S. And I received info cards from fire departments too.
I’ve never had much of the “collector gene” (as opposed to my uncle, who has a house full of vintage Mickey Mouse and Coca Cola memorabilia). In my youth I tried to collect various things- from stamps to Hard Rock Cafe pins from all over the world. Now, I collect art pottery (made by a specific company) and my husband and I collect plein air paintings of California landscapes. Being surrounded by art and beauty is calming for my mind, I find (I take mental breaks from work by looking at one of the paintings near my desk). I also need to call my books a collection, since this summer I really formalized my random assortment of books into a personal library. I’ve been “procuring” books for shelves we recently had installed in my office area, I got an embosser to stamp them all with “From the Library of”, and I even catalog them on an app now. When I was a kid I thought I might become a librarian, so playing library at home has been a joy for me.
As a child, I collected rocks. I could sit for hours in the driveway searching for unique shapes, colors, textures. As an adult, I have a much smaller rock collection. I also search for tiny seashells on our annual beach trip.
I don’t know if I would call it a collection, but I have pizza boxes (they are the perfect size and many loca pizza joints will give them to you if you ask) full of my kids’ art work and writings. I keep saying I want to digitize all of it and then get rid of it. My mom is a big time collector of things (borderline hoarder?), to an unhealthy point. Years ago when I realized this, I began culling my possessions and creating a “life of less.”
Pizza boxes is a new one to me! Never thought of using them before. One thing that I'm trying to hang onto and use is Finish Powerball containers. They're 7" by 8" and 4" deep so there's a lot of wasted space to them if one just threw them into the recycling bin so I keep trying to find uses for them - at least 4 unused so far!
I’m curating ghosts and memories in my old childhood farmhouse this summer, through my ancestors’ various collections. Books, musical instruments, antiques, manuscripts, sketches, journals. It’s a lot.
Getting chills!
Apart from a handful of vintage sewing machines who needed good homes, I mainly collect stories. 40 year old man runs around the neighbourhood dressed as Spider-Man at night? Into the notebook it goes. Brother’s best friend saw a ghost while driving? Let’s tuck that tale into a safe place. Ball lightning hovered over your bath? No worries Sir, I’ll take good care of that story.
The collection may never see the light of day, but that’s ok. It gives me endless amounts of entertainment and a pantry full of tidbits. I have freeze dried stories, canned stories, pickled stories. Wouldn’t want to run out, you know.
Almost sounds like a Neil Gaiman novel!
As a kid, I would collect things like coins and stamps. It helped that I had inherited quite voluminous collections of both from my parents. My additions were, thus barely visible.
I started collected records a while back but had to cut back on buying for budgeting reasons. Gonna buy more records come autumn though. I love how having a physical record adds another layer to the experience (as I attach the time and place I purchased it, who I was with, how I found it, and so on to the record). You can browse my humble collection here - https://www.discogs.com/user/tuxunefo.
Nice!
I started collecting video game figures in high school, mainly Nintendo's amiibo figures for Smash Bros, but my family ended up moving around so much when I was in college that I put a pause to it due to the extra effort it required for each move, and haven't really gotten back into it. I still have my collection on display in my room. I've recently dug out my family's old stash of legos to try and make the display more interesting, make little scenes instead of just having them all lined up.
Never too old for Lego.
As a child I collected ducks: real ones as pets, plus figurines, pictures, mugs, pens, tea towels, pencil tins, stickers, books, bags - anything with a duck. Ducks are the BEST, because they smile. Ever noticed?
Three decades on from my childhood, having accumulated far too much stuff in my time on this planet so far - I mean stuff in general: things, possessions, y'know - I'm now working hard to reset my sights on collecting memories and experiences instead.
I just wonder how it is that stationery and books persist in slipping through the radar..... #shhhh
Ducks smile? Interesting!
My younger self of duck-keeping and duck-stuff-collecting age would tell you that they most certainly do. Have a look at the side view of the next duck you come across. It'll be smiling, I promise!
:D
There are things I want to collect that I used to collect as a child, but I have not had the time to invest in another hobby. I would like to start collecting Garbage Pail Kids and M.U.S.C.L.E. men, and I do have some comic books that are old that have meaning.
I’ve collected all sorts of things: CDs, trading cards, toy cars, books (still do). This summer I started playing disc golf and I am slightly addicted. It’s a blast! My disc collection is up to eight. They are all slightly different and serve different purposes (driver, mid-range, putter). I’ve gone a bit overboard, but it’s an incredibly inexpensive hobby. Most courses are free to play at.
I know very little about disc golf, this is interesting!
I've collected comic books since I was 8 years old. I've sold my initial collection, but still collect certain titles. I also used to collect T.V. Guides, but threw them away when they got to be too much (this was before eBay ).
I used to buy and sell trading cards a bit on eBay but I wouldn't try it now, too much hassle. It was fun at the time!
I collected several of the items on your list at one time or another. I suppose my most ongoing collection is CDs, although with Spotify, that has tapered off substantially. I just purchase a CD of which I would like to experience more fully on my home stereo. While I do have some valuable ones, there is no real direction to my collection.
Gosh, it's been years since I've bought a CD player... the only place I would really listen to them now is in my car and it's not like I do a lot of driving these days!
I'm old fashioned that way. I still have a cassette player and tapes. I like to listen (critical listening) to music. It's a form of therapy for me.
Things I collected / am collecting: Bookmarks (inheriting a collection from my grandfather); Snoopy memorabilia; pictures of sticker graffiti uptown (started an Instagram account - @stuckonsj - to share it).
Interesting, I don't know many people who collect bookmarks!
I collect too many things!
- Records (mostly jazz but also slowly working on the rock/grunge I listened to as a high school/university student)
- Books in general, but poetry books in particular (I have 1000+, hundreds of them signed) or books about poetry
- I'm slowly collecting an archive of things published in or about New Brunswick (literary magazines, chapbooks, and ephemera like newsletters, posters. Heck I'd even take copies of The New Brunswick Reader or Salon)
- I used to collect comic books and trading cards but would love to find a home for most of these for a bargain price! Need to add any more comic books to your collection, Mark?
- My study is a graveyard of things I started to collect but gave up because I wanted to focus elsewhere (see above) or it was too costly... (lapel pins, postcards, autographed pucks, autographed 8x10s of Conn Smyth trophy winners, omg I'm starting to sound like a hoarder...)
How does it inform my learning, thinking, and creativity? Well, if I'm too tired to be creative, I can make lists of things (say a bibliography of a certain writer, a checklist of copies of The Cormorant (a lit. journal published at UNB-SJ in he 80s and 90s) or a list of John Coltrane records) which engages my research skills that can come in handy for writing.
Thanks Ian but I don't think I can handle more comics at the moment...
I've got some really old Spiderman... lol. I am curious what ones you collected...
mainly DC: a lot of Legion of Super-Heroes, Green Lantern, Flash, Superman and the New Teen Titans, plus others.
I've collected various things throughout the years: postcards, mugs, books, matchbooks, pig-themed kitchen stuff. But, alas, I've downsized and most went to Goodwill. I now collect Christmas ornaments from places I visit/travel to. Funny...I haven't put up a tree in years because I spend the holidays with my kids in Florida. But, I'm a collector at heart, they don't take up much space, and now I'm inspired to do a tree this year...Thanks Mark!
Good luck with that!
Great subject Mark! Look at all the responses. Here's my list:
When I was a kid, I collected baseball and football trading cards. I don't have them anymore. I gave them away. It was fun to collect them because I always watched those two sports.
I used to collect NASCAR cards. I don't collect those anymore. I think I still have some boxed away. It was fun and I sent some of the cards to the driver's team shops to get them autographed. The fastest was Richard Petty. I sent it out on a Monday and by Thursday it was in my mailbox autographed.
I use to collect NASCAR diecast cars. It was exciting when I was getting them. I tried to sell my collection but I couldn't find a buyer. Eventually, I had to just give them away. It was a shame because there was a lot of cost in it. I did keep a few that I got autographed by one of my favorite drivers.
I used to collect diecast police cars. I had about 40 of them. They were mostly 1/43 scale. Some were 1/64 scale and a couple were 1/18 scale. Still have a few in my collection. I don't collect them anymore. There's no place to put them. I traded most of my collection for police patches.
I used to collect police pins. Have a few left. Sold or traded the rest away.
Patches – 263 police patches, 41 Fire Patches, and 5 Military patches.
I really enjoyed collecting them. I took a hiatus during Covid. I have all info in a spreadsheet with what it is, when I got it, who I got it from, etc. I traded police patches with a lot of nice people, not just officers but civilians as well. I like finding the histories behind the patches. Sometimes I find out who designed them and why certain parts of the patches were created. It's all very interesting. I also liked interacting with the fire departments. I will definitely get back into trading again sometime. I still need some patches for my collection.
Business Cards / Info Cards - I got many business cards from officers all across the U.S. And I received info cards from fire departments too.
I’ve never had much of the “collector gene” (as opposed to my uncle, who has a house full of vintage Mickey Mouse and Coca Cola memorabilia). In my youth I tried to collect various things- from stamps to Hard Rock Cafe pins from all over the world. Now, I collect art pottery (made by a specific company) and my husband and I collect plein air paintings of California landscapes. Being surrounded by art and beauty is calming for my mind, I find (I take mental breaks from work by looking at one of the paintings near my desk). I also need to call my books a collection, since this summer I really formalized my random assortment of books into a personal library. I’ve been “procuring” books for shelves we recently had installed in my office area, I got an embosser to stamp them all with “From the Library of”, and I even catalog them on an app now. When I was a kid I thought I might become a librarian, so playing library at home has been a joy for me.
Love the idea of the embosser!
They also make great gifts!
Would love to know which app! I'm currently trying out Cooper Books.
It’s called BookBuddy. I got it several years ago, but wasn’t good at keeping up with it. Hopefully, this time will stick!