Do you guys ever feel this way?

[brannon86]

I know alot of you collect Megos, and other toys from the past, ans I do to a little, probably not like alot of you, but I have a few things. Anyway, I was wondering, when you look at those toys now(probably the ones when you had when you were a kid,not the same ones, but replacements, or mayby the same ones for some of you) how d oyou feel? I mean, as adults, we look at things differently now. When I look at the few toys I collected, I think they are cool, and remember when I had them, but its not the same. I dont know what to do with them, but keep them on display or in a box, or sell them, or what ever. When I look at them, I see them thru a 41 year olds eyes.....Its wierd, but reality.....

[RG]

I see my collection as a window into my past and it takes me back to the good ol' days. I feel almost the same joy looking at my items today, just as much as I did buying them off the pegs at retail.

When I look them as a "true adult" I see them as mini treasures that I hunt and my display is like my trophy room

[brannon86]

Feel

Yes, that makes sense. I feel good also when I look at that stuff, but sometimes I catch myself wanting to play with my adventure people in the bath tub, Ha, then I catch myself, and wonder what the HELL is wrong with me. Im a 41 year old man for crying out loud. Im not a kid anymore....

[Sweep Secondhand]

I have always felt like my vintage toy collecting hobby was a way of recapturing my childhood - a time that I really enjoyed. By doing this as an adult I can fine tune the results so that I replace the things I enjoyed and add in the things I never got but wanted or never knew existed. I also enjoy restoring old figures to displayable condition again. I feel like I am returning something to the world that can give people some happy memories. There are a lot of expensive, non-productive, and in some cases destructive, hobbies that countless people take part in every day. I can't put a 41 year old adult down for playing with toys in the bathtub when he could be drinking, doing drugs, gambling or watching porn! Consider it a form of regessive psychotherapy to cleanse your overburdened concious from everyday stress.

[toys2cool]

I'm with Russ,it takes me back to that point in time when I had that toy..I wish I could just sit down and play with them but at 27 that would be a little strange,so I can't wait to have kids so i can sit down and play and use the excuse that I was playing with my kid

[jayihdz]

I buy the toys because I never had them as a kid, my family did not have the money to spend in this kind of stuff. We got less expensive toys, clothes or candy for holidays or birthdays.

[EMCE Hammer]

The ones that I still have from my childhood are the ones that really take me back. Some days they make me smile, some I get a little bummed when I think of the friends I've lost track of or the family members who got them for me who have passed away. Either way, I like to stare at my display sometimes and just chill.

[HardyGirl]

Sometimes I think of myself as a 9 year old in a 41 year old body. I could use the excuse that I'm a teacher and can play w/ my kids, but I don't have to. I have a lot of stress in my life, and the more I have to contend w/, the more I need to regress. My toys are an escape. Some of them remind me of when I was a kid, but I didn't have all of these back then. And whether I'm babysitting, or not, sometimes, I'll just go in my toyroom, close the door and start playing. I don't smoke, drink, do drugs, date, go clubbing or any of those other things, so this is my vice. It's a good way to blow off some steam.

[Bo8a_Fett]

Looking at my toys brings back memories of playing with my brothers and simpler happier times...toys i've accumilated that I didn't have as a kid give me mixed feelings ...yes it was fun chasing them down and getting them but they arn't as important to me as the ones that bring those memories flooding back.

[Airdave817]

I only have a couple of vintage figures, but I can't look at them with adult eyes. They may not get the workout or see the action they used to, but they still take me back to good times. They're a moment frozen in time. It's a great way to relax. Better than trying to figure out if it's Ben or Michael in the casket.

[VintageMike]

It's multi-layerd for me.

I have a few of my childhood itmes and holding any of those in my hands, memories come flooding back and I feel like I'm eight again.

Then there are items I used to have or a freind had are replacements.
I still have the fond memories but the feeling isn't there the same way it is for the "originals".

Then there is the stuff I wanted but never had. That's a meeting of past & present. Like i when I finally got a Green Goblin. Sure, I'm not going to lay with it now, but I still had that that "finally!' feeling when I got it.

Then there are the items I was barely saw/or was aware of back then and as an adult collector are just cool to have. Supergals would probably be in that category.

[huedell]

I can't put a 41 year old adult down for playing with toys in the bathtub when he could be drinking, doing drugs, gambling or watching porn!

If the "toy collecting" could feasibly take the place of that stuff above---I'd be a whole
different person--- but----no

Anyways----I collect the toys I do because I like owning them and displaying them

They remind me---of me---and I revel in that.

Simple answer---but you couldn't get much closer to the truth

[nvmbrsdoom5]

There are a lot of expensive, non-productive, and in some cases destructive, hobbies that countless people take part in every day. I can't put a 41 year old adult down for playing with toys in the bathtub when he could be drinking, doing drugs, gambling or watching porn! Consider it a form of regessive psychotherapy to cleanse your overburdened concious from everyday stress.

I basically agree with the above sentiment. People have often looked at me like I'm nuts because I spend my time and money on "kiddie toys". But I look at them like they're crazy when they spend their time and money on drugs and booze, so we're even really. At least my hobby isn't really hurting myself or anyone else. If you want to play with your Adventure People in the tub once in a while, then so what, go for it I mean unless you start getting too carried away with it and forgetting that you're not really 9 years old and have other true responsibilities in your life, then I don't see any harm in it. But whatever.

The toys I have don't give me the same feelings or mean the same things to me now as they did when I was a kid, but they allow me to at least remember some of that happiness and reminisce about the fun times they brought me. And the stuff is just fun to hunt for and to look at. Some people are turned on by looking at expensive paintings or statues....I get off seeing a minty carded Green Arrow on the wall, looks beautiful to me *shrug*

[grayhank]

Well I sort of play with mine, not the same as I played with them as a kid though. I like to take one of my sets of Little People off the shelf and I just set up all the pieces and move them around - maybe take a few pictures and I'm done. At the same time I'm also doing a mental inventory of "do I have all the pieces", "are they all in perfect shape", "maybe I need to replace a particular piece because it could be better".

But it's funny that the bathtub was mentioned. As a kid I loved playing with my Little People in the tub. I would bring entire buildings in there with me. But what I didn't know then was that when you play with wooden toys in water they tend to swell up. I remember trying to get my little wooden people into their cars afterwards and for some reason they wouldn't fit. I didn't understand why so I tried to cut the bodies down to make them fit, actually destroying several pieces in the process. At least now, if I'm going to go into the tub with them I'll make sure I bring the "plastic" ones.

[SlipperyLilSuckers]

We all have our child selves inside us, it's perfectly natural and also healthy to play. Sad that society tries to make us feel bad about it. I prefer to be true to myself than what someone else thinks of me.