The Next Best Book Club discussion

I love collecting things. Do you guys (besides books) :)?

Currently I collect TTM (through the mail) autographs from baseball players. I had been doing it for almost a year, and then my entire collection got lost last May so I just started up again.

AND I collect Richard Nixon stuff (yes, THAT Richard Nixon). For a while I've been fascinated with him so a few weeks ago I bought some of his campaign pins from a shop, and then went to ebay for stuff and I havent been able to stop.

I got a shiny new gold pin in the mail that says RN 72 and has a daimond in between the R&N...I am wicked happy.

Well, She'Davia, do books counts?
I dont mean super old, first edition, expensive ones... I just mean. well. books?

hee hee

Eh, unless its super old, first edition ones, or all the books for specific authors...then no...books dont count (at least not for this group, because just about everyone here collects books).

oh darn.

I don't anymore, but used to collect gargoyles. I have one in every room of my house and there is a 200 pound one in my front rose garden.

Now, I simply collect dust bunnies throughout my house. They keep the gargoyles company.

Stacie...I love gargoyles, I always wanted to collect them, but they aren't really the type of thing you can keep in an apartment.

I used to collect eggs, I haven't gotten any recently...I saw this beautiful Faberge Egg in Harrods once and I loved it so much, but I could not afford 12000 pounds for an egg the size of my thumb nail. After that I started collecting eggs.

They're all hand made, I have some from africa, india, Ukraine, and one glass one made right in my home province. The trouble with collections is you need a place to put them and after you have kids, some how a space that used to seem really big is now really really teeny tiny...lol

I used to collect porcelain dolls when I was a kid. Then I put them all away for when I had a little girl. I now have three boys.

Then I collected precious moments. I had a wonderful expensive collection of over 35 pieces, which my wonderful boys have managed to break...all but 4.

So, now I collect glue, tape, string, spackle, paint, sandpaper and other things that could repair the damages my boys do to my home.

Oh...and I collect pretty journals. I forgot about them. I haven't bought a new one in so long I forgot that they sit nicely put out of reach of my boys.

We collect lighthouses. But here is the kicker. We have to see it first.Before we had kids, my husband and I were lighthouse seekers I guess you could say, and when we would travel to a place that had a lighthouse, we would try and make time to go see it.
We have seen a bunch in Maine and North and South Carolina.

I also have a small bookmark collection. But not anything to really brag about.

Kellie ~ When my Nana was alive she collected lighthouses too. She also had to see them first as well. Her collection is in my parents basement. I really should look through it. She had some amazing pieces.

Boxes (comes in handy now I have so many pills to take), and glass figurines. I also love paperweights and perfume bottles.

I collect owls and angels. I have quite a few more owls than angels, but I have been collecting owls a lot longer than angels. I have collected owls since I was about 20 years-old. I have been collecting angels since I was around 40. Well then, I guess I should have a lot more owls than angels, huh? However, I sold almost all of both in an apartment sale I had while I was manic. I am not supposed to do anything money-wise when I am manic. I usually do, and I end up in trouble financially, spiritually, materially, and everything in between. Oh well, I am starting over. I have a few of each right now, but not nearly what I once had.

I collect Cheetahs, Crows, tarot decks, faeries and shoes... Well the last one is more of an addiction....

With me its Pens(nice ones not Bics), Coffee mugs,and Watches , at one time I had enough watches to wear a different one, each day for 2 weeks, which of course would mean 14 watches.

Hey Ken.
Do you have a warehouse for all of your collections?
Geesh! That sounds like a lot of stuff! Where do you keep your clothes and food?

LOL...Kellie I was thinking the same thing!

Yes but you rattled off so many collections.
I didn't think you could possibly fit all of that in your house!
It sounds wonderful though.
I love my "stuff".

You are so right Ken.
I'm just teasing you...
When I read your 1st message I had to laugh. You just went on and on and on...
We have an attic and try very hard not to load it up with stuff.
It's very easy to accumulate if you have space to put it in.

That is going to happen to my husband!
His mother has so much stuff in her house, it's a fire hazard!!

I collect James Michener first editions and Barry Goldwater campaign pins.

She'Davia -- I love baseball, too. Who are some of the autographs you've gotten?

Since I just started back up again, my only success so far has been Gary Bell. But before my collection was lost I had:

Alan Trammell
Larry Bowa
Dick Williams - signed my card, a post card, and wrote back answering my question on how it felt for him to manage the 1967 Red Sox.
Bobby Doerr - on a ball
John Smoltz
Bobby Meachem
Bob James
Gary Hancock
Greg Brock
Mike Torrez - The guy who gave up Bucky "effing" Dent's homerun in 78
Art Howell
Barry Bonnell
Rick Honeycutt
David Murphy
Jim Thome - but I think he uses a ghost signer so it really doesnt count

and some others. Those were just TTM. But I had tons more of regular card autographs.

I use to collect baseball cards. I have so many rookie cards it's not even funny. Go ahead name a few well known baseball players in the late 80's early 90's. I may have them. :D

Actually from the late 80's to early 2000's

My book obsession has led me to an interesting collection that I have. I have pictures and figurines of people or animals reading books. I didn't even set out to do it intentionally.....I just looked around one day and saw a theme. I love it!

Ken, have you ever heard of The House on the Rock? It is this amazing house that this guy (I can remember his name) built into a rock. The house itself if amazing...there is an infinity room, chairs carved out of the rock - just gorgeous. But, what made me think of it is your massive collections. The architect that built it was also a major collector. Each room houses a different collection - Tiffany lamps, dolls, etc. Off of the actual house is a warehouse where there is a carousel and if I remember correctly (it has been many years) a big whale.

When I read your list, that is what I imagine.

The House on the Rock is located in WI, just down the road from Frank Lloyd Wright's house. Pretty amazing stuff.

Stacie/Ken- we visited the House on the Rock when we were driving from Wisconsin to Iowa a couple months ago. I was stunned that one man could have amassed so many different collections of curiosities in his lifetime. It reminded me of a less creepy version of the Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum.

Snow Globes (this from a girl who hates snow).

I collect Danish Christmas plates made by Bing & Grondahl (B&G). I have every plate since the year we got married. (16) I also collect from deptartment 56 The little snow babies, and the Merry Makers. (These are the bald headed little monks.) I also collect piggy banks. Not 100's, but I'd say, maybe between 4-10 of each thing.
It's fun!

Okay I have to pipe in. I collect a lot. Pictures, I scrap book. Quilt, I have tons of fabric! Quilts ect! Little Tea Sets. Books of course. Antique books. Christmas decorations.

I really need to cut back however.

Oddly enough, I used to collect just about any old thing that was paper, including autograph books, old newspapers, graduation announcements, mourning letters, etc. These things just used to call to me for some reason, and when I was a teenager they were cheap buys. When the internet came into being, I was able to return a few of the personal items to family members, mostly through posts on genealogy message boards.

I don’t actively collect anything much anymore, except for books. For a while I liked figurines, until I realized I had to dust them. I have scattered collections of Precious Moments, Cherished Teddies, and male angels. Although some of the male angels are from the Roman Seraphim collection, I have the entire set of the Angelo del Ponte Collection. These were crafted after the angels adorning the Ponte Sant'Angelo in Rome, and I love them. Of books, my only real collection is by Eric Sloane, an artist and author of illustrated books on Colonial daily life and early Americana. I have four of his books, including a first edition of “Diary of an Early American Boy”.

Sheep, used to be bears ...

Dylan, I still have many of the baseball cards I collected in the early 70's.

Pete Rose
Astros
Johnny Bench
Rod Carew

...and many others. One of these days I'll have to dig them out.

Unfortunately, many of my team checklist cards have been checked off, so I'm sure that lessens their value.

Oh, one more thing I collect, I forgot because I just started not too long ago and only have 2, but you have to start somewhere: old baseball gloves.

Patrick collects pewter Fairies,well any kind of fairy actually (hey he married me ya know) Makes it really easy on his b'day and Christmas.

Scott: I would get along great with Patrick, I left out my fairies. I have all sorts of cute little fairies around my little teasets. I even have some cute teasets that are fairies. I love Mary Cecil Barkers Fairies (flower & tree fairies).

My daughter got me the cutest fairy last year for Christmas at Gamers World. You may want to hit them they have really neat fairies. He might like the Lady Cottington's Fairy books. Just a little help from a fellow fairy lover!

Congrats on the Marriage!

Ken , I love clean House, but its amazing how they could have soo much stuff. I am an organization freak so I would go insane with stuff out of place...lol

I collect the Willow Tree angels. I think they are sooo beautiful, because an angel could be anyone for you, that is why they do not have faces.

I had a mini shoe collection, already inherited by my daughter. I love black and white photography too. Ohh and of course my tripping over books all over the place collection...lol

Logan, wasn't the Infinity Room a trip? It kind of freaked me out a little bit! Well, I am afraid of heights a little bit...it has something to do with plummeting to my death that gets me. :)

Thanks Emilee You should look for the Fairy Diva Collection where you are they are all plaster hand painted originals, no 2 are alike. Parick has one that is riding on a soap bubble, one that is reclining against the wall, and my favorite is in a red an dblack dress and has a ladybug on her butt. About Fairy books , there is a book I bought for him with pictures of fairy houses that he loves, someone once told me to get him The Book of Pressed Fairies once , and I looked at it , its allfull of pictures of smooched fairies. He would have had a heart attack if I had gotten him that. :)

I laughed so hard when I read the Book of Pressed Fairies! Such a fantastically conceived book!

Stacie, the Infinity Room blew my mind- almost literally. I was suffering from one of the worst hangovers of my life thanks to my uncle-in-law's moonshine and the Infinity Room flipped my perspective something fierce. It really did look like the room was going on into infinity.

Scott thanks for the suggestions. I want to find the lady bug. That is my daughter's nickname & I got her hooked on fairies. At first I was a bit saddend by the pressed fairies but it is absolutely funny just as Logan said. But if you think Patrick would be devasted don't do it. Read the book it will help!

I collect giraffe items and books about giraffes and crystals and various rocks used for healing or just good vibes. I also love Clean House and I agree with Leppaluoto about displaying their stuff nicely. What is the Infinity Room,please?

Besides books, I collect....ta da! Peacocks! Don't tell anyone--it's my last name, so kind of obvious choice for collecting. Actually people started giving me peacock related stuff first. Now I look for it on my own.

I also like to collect pretty shiny stuff--glass, costume jewelry, etc. And I collect fabric. I don't do jewelry so much any more since my house was burgled, but I cannot go into a fabric shop without getting some pretty fabric. But I don't sew a lot. Go figure...It just keeps accumulating. I have to have a closet devoted entirely to it. I even have a velour fabric with a peacock feathers print. I use it for a Christmas tree skirt which is decorated with, you guessed it, peacocks! :)

So maybe I should send you my peacock book mark .....NOT patrick would kill me.

Let's see, I collect frogs (stuffed animals, figurines, etc.), Disney lithographs that come with their pre-release DVDs, and Disney snowglobes, and neat Nightmare Before Christmas items (snowglobes, martini glasses, cocktail plates), and my husband collects shot glasses (I help him find neat ones).

Bluedaizy....

Mrs. Peacock, in the ballroom with the leadpipe....

I collect tigers (not real ones obviously, although I would LOVE that!). My tiger obsession started after reading Life of Pi. I have loads of stuffed tigers of all shapes and sizes and they sit on top of my big bookcase in my library.

I also collect journals (most are not written in, I just like to look at them and buy different ones). I think that obsession stems from my book one though.

Ken, your house sounds like Aladins cave.

Scott, you are such a tease! And Kellie, I can tell you are a Clue fan, too. :)

I collect frogs. Not the real live breathing ones, but figurines, mugs, boxes, notebooks, anything with frogs on them. (Hi Melissa!)

(Amazingly, there's quite a number of us 'frog-people' out there. I was in Perth Australia a few years back and was paying for some teeny tiny frogs when the lady manning the cash machine took one look at me with a twinkle in her eye and said, "ohhh, one of THOSE frog-people are we?". So you see, I don't think I'm alone. Or weird.)


But, mostly they're in boxes in the store under the stairs. Had kids. Frogs had to make way. But friends and relatives still bring back frog-souvenirs - it's a good feeling to know that when they bought the frog, they had ME in mind; not like when they're just buying a stack of t-shirts to give away en-masse when they get home! :)

I collect anything to do with The Wizard of Oz (film and books) and anything related to Judy Garland. My favorite film and entertainer

We collect playing cards from our vacations destinations. We started that on our honeymoon which was Jamaica. Unfortunately, we would let our kids play with them so we don't have a full deck anymore :( We also collect golf balls from vacation sights also. That collection just happened. I noticed that we were getting golf balls from wherever so we got a shadow box for them. We also collect Dept. 56 Christmas houses. MY biggest collection is Santa Clauses. My fav one is a Waterford one & it's even signed by the artist. Hubby gave me that one. I even have Santa ornaments. I love my Santas. Hubby & I collected stamps as teens so we still have those. Hubby still collects coins. So, his family sometimes gives him coins at Christmas.