I'm not quite sure when the collecting bug bit me; I don't recall being overly interested in collecting toys as a child, but then again, we didn't have too many, and the family toy budget was limited to whatever I could find at Salvation Army.
When I discovered comic books on my local depanneur spinner rack, a lightbulb flashed in my young brain, and I've collected stuff ever since.
I remember tracking down issues to ensure I had a run (a sequence of numbers without interruption), even if I wasn't particularly keen on the stories or art. Over time, I became more discriminating with my comic book tastes, culminating in my current love of 1950s issues. I love landing a vintage comic book on Ebay for a tiny price, such is the simple joy of the frugal collector!
During the sports card explosion of the early 1990s, I spent most of my allowance on Baseball and Hockey card packs. Once packs became too expensive for my taste, I dropped the hobby. I've become hooked again on Hockey cards over the last few years on account of the promise of autograph and jersey inserts that pop up in rare packs. Of course, I focus on $0.99 packs at Toys R Us, which keeps my spending under control.
I'm not sure what the appeal of collecting is for me; opening a hockey pack and finding a rare card of a favorite player is quite thrilling. Maybe collecting is about trying to capture moments of time, since there's a memory behind each piece of cardboard. Collecting gives me a warm feeling, and I can see myself continuing to build my collections!
A lot of it is simple nostalgia, I think, but there's also the appreciation of a kind of story that appeals to us individually. A modern comics fan won't have the same sensibility as a Silver / Bronze Age fan...take it from me!
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