The dual nature of a great "Find"

[Access]

OK, so I just did the largest and most back breaking "Toy Find" of my toy buying career, Honestly, I feel I'm only half done, but during this I couldn't help but feel some sort of strange emotion regarding it.

The situation was I got a call from the family of this person who had died 5 years earlier. They were hoarders. To make a long story short, the house was absolutely floor to ceiling "Stuff", in addition to that they managed to get a full size 18 wheeler trailer into their back yard, a 55ft model! It also was jam packed with stuff. I feel I've only got about half of what toys could be had, as this person bought TONS of toys and just stored them in this trailer, but it filled 2 pickup trucks and a 12ft trailer as I left! My wife about disowned me as I pulled into the driveway.

The emotions were elation at finding such a surreal find, but also disgust that someone could live this way, also sadness that they bought these things that were designed to bring joy to people and then stored them away for no one to see.
I also felt weird that here this person had seemingly "collected/hoarded" all this stuff for a reason, but here I am, a stranger rooting through literally tons of stuff after you have been dead for years. Was this what the person had envisioned for their efforts?

I also took plenty of pictures, as I felt no one could believe such a crazy find like this, but after looking at them they looked like a landfill and not a "Treasure room", and I don't even want others to see them as It makes me look like a bum digging trough trash (although, it was all 'boxed' stuff and NOT trash)

To field the next barrage of questions, I'll start by saying that most of the stuff I found would not interest the majority here. Mostly late 80s through mid 90s toys. No Boxed, mint condition removable cowl batmans, etc. but still tons of very hip toys.

Anyone ever have a similar mix of emotion when doing a Toy buy?

[Saroyan]

Congrats on the big toy find! that sounds like fun- at least getting to go through the stuff.

At least you recognized your mixed feelings. It sounds like a good time to examine why you (we) buy toys- or ask what the person bought toys for. My guess is that the thrill or joy was in buying and having them.

I started with Hot Wheels first and slipped into other collecting as well- but Hot Wheels are easy to find and inexpensive. There are always people posting pictures on the Hot Wheels club board of multiples of one car- sometimes 20 of the same car- which often leads others to ask why they feel the need to hoard every single blue Mustang they found that day? Others will jump in to defend with the retort that "it's his money he can do whatever he wants with it" (flame on). I have to talk myself down sometimes when I come across a car I really like but I know I already have 2 or 3 of.

I had some similar feelings cleaning out my grandmother's desk after she died. We found drawers stuffed with old birthday cards and some letters to or from friends- all stuff that was meaningful enough to my grandmother to keep - though I seriously doubt she ever looked at them. But now that she was gone...well...the stuff didn't have the same hold over my sister and me- so we tossed it- havn't missed any of it either!

I imagine if I died suddenly today, my wife would probably just throw my toys and figures out- despite their value- monetary or otherwise- they sure don't mean the same thing to her as they do to me!!

The big question is- what are we doing with all the "stuff" in our life? Does it bring enjoyment like my Deltof cabinet full of Big Jim every time I look at it? Or is it just stuff taking up space like all the things I don't have room for that are in my closet.

[Splitty]

First, jealous. That's an incredible find, and 80s & 90s toys are not to be discounted. There's some really awesome toys from that era! But yeah, I've felt weird sometimes buying stuff, usually at estate sales and whatnot.


I have a mom with hoarder tendencies, and watching the hoarder show I've been able to excitedly spot the same habits and thought patterns in them as my mom. Not all hoarders are the same, of course, but quite a few have the same characteristics.

For one, it's the excitement and the joy of buying or finding and item that perks up an otherwise dull life. But also there's this feeling of needing to 'save' or 'rescue' an item for others to use in the future (usually meant for family members though). In this way they think they're helping people, but the disconnect is they're actually not as it's all just rotting away in waste.

So of course, not knowing this hoarder at all, you can at least rationale that they may have been happy that the stuff they worked so hard to rescue is going somewhere really appreciated and will be used properly. You could tell yourself that, and it might actually be true!

[Access]

Thanks for the responses....actually that's kinda how I felt, that if they were around at least I would be impressed by the collection and how it was compiled!

It's been 4 days now, and I'm still not through everything I got. Today I uncovered a huge trove of unopened Power rangers stuff, sealed. I never watched the show, but it looks like a ripoff of Voltron! The megazords are pretty cool looking!

[huedell]

CASH IN BRUTHA!

Okay... just kiddin'---it's cool that people in our situations actually have hearts connected to the idea of toys.

A lot of times, our ilk either sees money or sees only selfish benefits from the "play toy" entity.

Saying "Kudos on having a soul." seems sarcastic in print... but I sincerely think it's cool that you're emotionally affected by the idea of what toys mean in this world. Admittedly, I say this because I relate to your feelings... but, who knows if there's any value in this specific mindset at all.

Now, if I was arguing a case for that mindset in a court of law, I could use the Mego Museum community's origins and its long history as proof that there IS some value to this mindset... and on a personal note, I can also look at my avatar, and that pic says a thousand words in this context too. 40 years later, I'm just as excited about toys as ever... maybe moreso..... this can't be a unique feeling among middle-aged gents and ladies

Cheers to the poignancy of play things!

[ScottA]

Get as much as you can. I'd love to see what there is.

[alex]

Yeah and post those pics, would love to see them, was it only toys she "hoarded" ?

[Den82]

I wouldn't feel so sad. Hoarding is a mental disease and now you got that stuff out of there and saved it from rotting away.

I have a wanted ad and I've gotten a few calls and the situations I saw were tough. The worst was buying a small collection of mostly loose stuff (vintage He-Man and Thundercats and a MOTUC figure). Very small, but the guy seemed like he was willing to just sell it for anything because he sounded very desperate. Upon entering the apartment, I saw his wife with bottle feeding their baby and she too looked she was hoping like hell I would buy them. I got them cheap, but I still kinda overpaid a bit. They were in dire straights as far as money, had a baby and it was clear this guy build up a small little collection and now had to sell it.

THAT was hard to see.

Another time this lady was so desperate to sell me an Atari. Which I usually do not buy. So much so that she and her husband were willing to drive out to me a few towns away. I bought it, because I can tell these people needed cash. They didn't look like druggies either (I can usually tell who they are).

[HapSlash]

While I can't say that I've ever really been a toy buyer, outside my own collection. I have given a lot of thought about what will happen to everything after I'm gone. My original plan was to leave everything to my little brother. I don't have any kids, and he was the only one I could think of who would understand what it all means to me. But, when he passed away recently, it made me have to think about it again. It's funny what we hold onto... things that others might consider garbage, can have so many cherished memories attached to them. Having these simple physical objects to hold can help you relive those moments. So, if there was anything that would mean something to the people I know, I'd like for them to keep it. But if not, I'd rather see it all go to people who would truly appreciate it. Maybe help someone finish their collections, and perhaps help them remember the memories that are important to them.


And, I wouldn't feel too sad for the toys. While it is possible that they may have gone to a child who would have loved them, they may have just as easily went to a child that wanted nothing more than to set 'em on fire. You can't know. Odds are though, if the kid didn't get that particular toy, he probably got a different one. And speaking from experience, at least 80% of the toys I loved as a kid, were the ones I didn't asked for. But now, at least it can be set back into the wild... maybe find someone who will truly appreciate it. Someone who didn't get to have it as a kid, or to replaced a cherished toy lost to the ravages of time.

And if you think about it... all of these mint carded toys we value so much now, are all ones that were kept from the hands of kids. They were hoarded, in one fashion or another, which has allowed them to be there for us now. That's where everything of age comes from. Someone saw value in keeping it, when others might not have. A lot of our expensive antiques today were considered cheap trash at one point. But someone held onto them while others tossed them, making them rare now. Just one part of the puzzle that makes all this possible.