Stuff
I have, in times past, written about how I am partially defined by my stuff (insert reference to 10 year old LJ entry I was too lazy to look up despite having downloaded my entire LJ and saved it as a pdf in 2010). Consequently, I have a lot of stuff, even for someone in my position, who lives alone and supports a family living elsewhere.
My latest stuff-drive has been comic books. I discovered the ability to rebuy parts of my childhood about 5 minutes after I discovered ebay back in 1998. I haven't bought or sold anything on ebay in almost 7 years, but there's plenty of other sources for my latest addiction, including--happily--real shops. I have been to a half-dozen comic shops this year. I'm hoping to make it a dozen before the year is over, even though I have completed the 3 series that motivated me last year to start recollecting in earnest, and I know I'm never going to own the complete run of most of the rest of what I am collecting. (In an unrelated note, if anyone wants to drop $2k on Adventure #247 for me, I would be eternally grateful.)
Because most of my stuff is thematic in some way, it makes paring it down something of a challenge. Thinking about de-stuffing has been on my mind since visiting my parents a couple of weeks ago. My Mom decided it was time to clean out Dad's office, and started selling and giving away his stuff. I was sent home with a few things, some of which I've always wanted, some of which surprised me, and at least two items I had to step up and not just ask but argue for (which is entirely reflective of my Mom's assuming everyone is going to want what she does). But, I am grateful and happy for having some of my Dad's stuff to now call mine, even if it is happening sooner than I thought.
In the meantime, I have looked around at my other stuff. I used to say that if I have not read, looked at, or used something in 2 or 3 years, I could probably do without it. But there is only so many times you can reread the same book before doing that becomes a chore (I'm not there yet with the Hitch Hiker's Guide, but I think the next read through may do it). And having collections that I more or less rotate through working on mean that I have boxes of coins, posters, papers, books, pictures, slide rules and other stuff, and now comic books that I have not touched or looked at in quite some time. So, naturally, I have found myself looking through boxes and pulling books off of shelves, remembering when and why I acquired these things. The nostalgia and memories are nice. The stuff is still, mostly, cool. And the feelings about having so much of it are still not completely resolved.
My latest stuff-drive has been comic books. I discovered the ability to rebuy parts of my childhood about 5 minutes after I discovered ebay back in 1998. I haven't bought or sold anything on ebay in almost 7 years, but there's plenty of other sources for my latest addiction, including--happily--real shops. I have been to a half-dozen comic shops this year. I'm hoping to make it a dozen before the year is over, even though I have completed the 3 series that motivated me last year to start recollecting in earnest, and I know I'm never going to own the complete run of most of the rest of what I am collecting. (In an unrelated note, if anyone wants to drop $2k on Adventure #247 for me, I would be eternally grateful.)
Because most of my stuff is thematic in some way, it makes paring it down something of a challenge. Thinking about de-stuffing has been on my mind since visiting my parents a couple of weeks ago. My Mom decided it was time to clean out Dad's office, and started selling and giving away his stuff. I was sent home with a few things, some of which I've always wanted, some of which surprised me, and at least two items I had to step up and not just ask but argue for (which is entirely reflective of my Mom's assuming everyone is going to want what she does). But, I am grateful and happy for having some of my Dad's stuff to now call mine, even if it is happening sooner than I thought.
In the meantime, I have looked around at my other stuff. I used to say that if I have not read, looked at, or used something in 2 or 3 years, I could probably do without it. But there is only so many times you can reread the same book before doing that becomes a chore (I'm not there yet with the Hitch Hiker's Guide, but I think the next read through may do it). And having collections that I more or less rotate through working on mean that I have boxes of coins, posters, papers, books, pictures, slide rules and other stuff, and now comic books that I have not touched or looked at in quite some time. So, naturally, I have found myself looking through boxes and pulling books off of shelves, remembering when and why I acquired these things. The nostalgia and memories are nice. The stuff is still, mostly, cool. And the feelings about having so much of it are still not completely resolved.