Do you collect shit stuff?
I am a collector. Not a capital 'C' Collector with millions of dollars of original great masters' art on my walls or a super garage with sexy muscle-cars or restored Model T's.
There is, however, lots of lower-case collectibles in my home. As I wander through the rooms, I wonder if some of those items are worthy of the time it takes to dust them (or the guilt and shame of not dusting them).
Largest collection: Books. There are books galore. Over-stuffed shelves of big books and thick books, small books and skinny books in every room of the house. Okay, not the kitchen but there are a heap of books in the pantry which makes up for not hanging out in the kitchen! Some books are on their sides, resting on tables or chests. There are books in boxes and in cases. There are many gorgeous coffee table books with glorious photos, yet, we have no coffee tables to display them on.
We have my metaphysical books, highlighted paragraphs, observations and comments written in the margins. We have my husband's collection of books about weather, wind, clouds, barometric pressure and extreme weather phenomenon. He is also an amateur astronomer, so there are books about skies, stars, comets, galaxies, the universe. Hmm, he is really a man about the sky in all it's forms. He is also a hang glider pilot, so guess what other books we have more than we need? Being a professional photographer, he is also the one responsible for the large assortment of coffee table books and all books photographic in nature.
Frank also has every Catholic book ever printed including seven or eight bibles. Please, if we ever meet in person, don't ask him about his leather bound, lignin-free, titanium dioxide enhanced, Douay Rheims Bible! (Side note: Beware bringing up the 'justified by works vs faith subject! The man knows his stuff!)
I have nursing school medical books from 1977; could probably toss those out. The baby just pulled out a third grade math book, that had a sheet of homework with my little sister's name on it, folded inside. She hasn't been in school for at least three decades! Hell, if I keep it a couple of more years, maybe it will be worth something!
I have a huge collection of crystals and stones, even a petrified dinosaur bone! One of my amethyst's weighs upwards to 30 pounds. Can you imagine all the points that need to be individually dusted?
Hat pins! Yes, I have a nice little collection of hat pins, all very old. Though I never gave hat pins a single thought in my whole life (not worth remembering), I inherited the hat pins and can't imagine letting them go. Well, that's not completely true. If I could pay off my mortgage with the sale of those little pretties they would be gone in a flash of cash!
I do collect original art, but no one famous.
I have three sets of china. One for everyday, one for when there is more of us than 'everyday', and the one that is brought out for Christmas, Thanksgiving and that my grandchildren will fight over when I die. It will go a little like:
"Who wants Nana's Spanish Lace china?"
"Not me!"
"Not me!"
"You should take it! She would have wanted you to have it!"
"No! NO! You can't make me!"
Glad I'm choosing cremation; I would hate to roll over in my grave because of a china debate!
So! What goes? What stays?
Do you collect? Do you collect intentionally or do you discover you've collected stuff unconsciously or unwittingly? What is your favorite stuff?
If you could collect anything in the world and money was no object, what would be on your shelves, garage, walls or safety deposit box?
I am a collector. Not a capital 'C' Collector with millions of dollars of original great masters' art on my walls or a super garage with sexy muscle-cars or restored Model T's.
There is, however, lots of lower-case collectibles in my home. As I wander through the rooms, I wonder if some of those items are worthy of the time it takes to dust them (or the guilt and shame of not dusting them).
Largest collection: Books. There are books galore. Over-stuffed shelves of big books and thick books, small books and skinny books in every room of the house. Okay, not the kitchen but there are a heap of books in the pantry which makes up for not hanging out in the kitchen! Some books are on their sides, resting on tables or chests. There are books in boxes and in cases. There are many gorgeous coffee table books with glorious photos, yet, we have no coffee tables to display them on.
We have my metaphysical books, highlighted paragraphs, observations and comments written in the margins. We have my husband's collection of books about weather, wind, clouds, barometric pressure and extreme weather phenomenon. He is also an amateur astronomer, so there are books about skies, stars, comets, galaxies, the universe. Hmm, he is really a man about the sky in all it's forms. He is also a hang glider pilot, so guess what other books we have more than we need? Being a professional photographer, he is also the one responsible for the large assortment of coffee table books and all books photographic in nature.
Frank also has every Catholic book ever printed including seven or eight bibles. Please, if we ever meet in person, don't ask him about his leather bound, lignin-free, titanium dioxide enhanced, Douay Rheims Bible! (Side note: Beware bringing up the 'justified by works vs faith subject! The man knows his stuff!)
I have nursing school medical books from 1977; could probably toss those out. The baby just pulled out a third grade math book, that had a sheet of homework with my little sister's name on it, folded inside. She hasn't been in school for at least three decades! Hell, if I keep it a couple of more years, maybe it will be worth something!
I have a huge collection of crystals and stones, even a petrified dinosaur bone! One of my amethyst's weighs upwards to 30 pounds. Can you imagine all the points that need to be individually dusted?
Hat pins! Yes, I have a nice little collection of hat pins, all very old. Though I never gave hat pins a single thought in my whole life (not worth remembering), I inherited the hat pins and can't imagine letting them go. Well, that's not completely true. If I could pay off my mortgage with the sale of those little pretties they would be gone in a flash of cash!
I do collect original art, but no one famous.
I have three sets of china. One for everyday, one for when there is more of us than 'everyday', and the one that is brought out for Christmas, Thanksgiving and that my grandchildren will fight over when I die. It will go a little like:
"Who wants Nana's Spanish Lace china?"
"Not me!"
"Not me!"
"You should take it! She would have wanted you to have it!"
"No! NO! You can't make me!"
Glad I'm choosing cremation; I would hate to roll over in my grave because of a china debate!
So! What goes? What stays?
Do you collect? Do you collect intentionally or do you discover you've collected stuff unconsciously or unwittingly? What is your favorite stuff?
If you could collect anything in the world and money was no object, what would be on your shelves, garage, walls or safety deposit box?
I'm a minimalist and too much stuff in the house pushes me over the edge. However...I'm also an avid reader. Sooo...I have a lo of books, although I do get rid of tons of them regularly. Somehow, though, more find their way into the house :) I also collect shot glasses from every place I visit. Those don't take up too much space, so the minimalist in me doesn't freak out :)
ReplyDeleteMartha, Too late for me, I'm already over the edge! I drastically need to purge and have been doing a little at a time. I have two of my great-grandmother's shot glasses. Love 'em but never use them (anymore!).
DeleteI only collect things that don't take up too much space and don't require much dusting. These criteria work wonders on keeping junk down in my home. I also have a big chunk of amethyst (still much smaller than yours though!) but I never dust it. I run it under the kitchen tap when it gets dusty and then just let it air dry. Easy peasy!
ReplyDeleteIt's weird how 'just one more' starts accumulating and all-of-a-sudden takes up too much room. I never knew that two little smoky quartz wands would turn into 50 pounds of rocks. Maybe I should keep my amethyst outside and just hose it down!
DeleteI have downsized after my husband passed away and then downsized again in the few moves I made in the south with my X. Then when I moved in with Ray, I downsized even more. I'm loving the simplicity of not having the "stuff" that was important to me another lifetime ago. That being said, if I had money...definitely original paintings by anyone that I like and I'd have a 69 Camaro Z-28 and a 69 Jaguar XKE Convertible. Oh yeah!
ReplyDeleteSometimes I don't think I can downsize enough but, like you, I would definitely collect more original art. I agree with collecting a car or two! I'd want a 67 Chevelle SS and a 1941 Chevy Woodie Wagon!
DeleteBooks came to mind first. Yeah, books.
ReplyDeleteWant some of mine?
Delete