Genetic Collecting

My mother was a pack rat.  She collected every little knick knack, odd object or kitsch art piece that interested her.  She stored things in no particular order--in today's terms she would what be considered a hoarder.

I collect, but there is a method to my madness.  I am an organized collector.  I'm not so obsessive that I catalog and itemize each piece in my collection, but I do know what I have.

As the editor and writer of Comics Corner and then Collectors' Corner over the last 20 years I've received review samples too numerous to count.  I have in my home a 'man cave' where I display many of my collectibles.  My garage holds at least twice as much as my room.

I started out collecting comic books as a kid, branched off into toys and now I collect everything from trading cards to DVDs.

Collecting is a disease-albeit an affliction with affection.  I love collecting.  Mind you, I never let my collecting get out of hand.  Bills come first, necessities filled second and then a small part of my budget goes to collecting-mostly comic books. 

I visit comic book shops, prowl book stores, visit toy shops, drop into game stores and,when traveling, look around in antique stores.  I'm also not a big spender.  I prefer to look for cheap hidden treasures.  I don't care for E-bay, I'm too much of a tire kicker, meaning I like to see and hold what I'm considering buying before I purchase it.  Old fashioned?  Probably.  But, I've never been burnt or ripped off either.

Things have slowed down considerably since the economy went south: review samples are dwindling, cash is tight and most companies have pulled back on the amount of merchandise they produce.

Comic books and books are making the transition to digital, toy manufacturers are targeting collectors (and jacking up their prices), game companies turn out a fraction of the product they once did as do trading card manufacturers, anime and manga have slowed to a trickle, model makers prefer quality over quantity and DVD sales are making way for downloads.

Things are definitely changing.  For the good?  I'm not so sure.  I plan on sticking in there as long as possible.  As long as there are yard sales to frequent, stores to visit and 'treasures' as yet unfound out there, I will continue to collect.