How "Social" Is Collecting For You?

[ScottA]

We've got to get together brother..I have the same issues..lol

Any time.

[Johnny]

It's fun when you realize there are others out there who get "that feeling" when they acquire a long sought after toy. Most of my non-collector friends find the amount of things I collect a little crazy. It is nice to be around people who "get it" sometimes.

[starsky]

i'm a closet toy collector but now that i have kids, it gives me an excuse

[livnxxxl]

The MM is basically the socializing place for me when it comes to sharing info with others about collectibles. I do not have any friends outside the MM that are into collecting all the different collectibles that I collect. My gf collects Barbies and Coca Cola. I am pretty much on my own as it pertains to collecting Mego's. And I actually kind of like it that way. I don't have to decide who gets what when we find it that way. One friend I have is into cars so he took a little liking to my HW collection back in 1995. I gave my friend a set of 1995 HW's series cars NOT the Treasure Hunts. He is a cool guy, but he is NOT that cool to get a set of my 1995 Treasure Hunts. He ended up selling the cars not long after I gave them to him. Hey, it was cool. After all I gave them to him, and they were his to do what he wished. He just was not what I call a serious die had collector that I hoped that he eventually would be. He would rather put his money into his real car and that is ok with me to as I have real cars as well. Another friend of mine used to go to the stores with me at all hours of the night helping me rummage through cases of Hot Wheels and whatever else that was hot to collect at the time. He was even cool enough to bring me back a whole LARGE black trash bag full of Hot Wheels while away on his honey moon. He left Missouri and went to Florida for his honey moon. I must admit that it was a very BIG surprise for me as I would have never expected him to do anything like that especially while on his honey moon of all things. He told me that he and his wife stopped at a lot of stores on their way to Florida. He is a really good friend. We had a lot of fun. That is until he became married/buried (ahh what's the difference). (insert whip cracking noise here) LOL! It was really funny when I look back because I can remember him telling me that his then fiance was super cool with him being out with his friends doing whatever he wants to do at all hours of the night. My how things change. LOL!! He is still a cool guy and she is a great gal. He has kids and has a lot of responsibilities now on his plate. I still see him every once in a blue moon. We talk and reminisce about the good old days. All is good with our friend ship still. I won't hold his wife giving him a curfew against him. hahahaha LOL!!!

God! I love the single life. Girl-friends with benefits rule!

[vulcan2074]

God! I love the single life. Girl-friends with benefits rule!

Man O Man do I Agree. Best Post Ever
Sammy

[palitoy]

It's probably bigger than I give it credit. When I started collecting in the 80s I'd rack up big phone bills just talking to other collectors because they were other collectors and few and far between. I still remember talking to Mark Huckabone until 2 am about girls we liked in high school.

I've made the odd local friend who collected stuff (mostly comics) and of course my own wife but this place kind of changed collecting for me more than I probably am aware. Before Scott started the Museum, I had no real outlet to share or network. I was a pretty private dude.

Now checking in here is a daily habit because I consider many here friends that I wish lived closer.

Sometimes the obligations of this place give me a little too much grief and i consider going to "walk the earth" so to speak but without sounding schmaltzy, it's the camaraderie built over this decade and a half that keeps me logging in.

[palitoy]

We encourage/enable each other.

Oh man, I can't deny that. Hanging around other collectors gives you weird ideas.

[Mikey]

When Mego Museum forums first opened its doors it coincided with ebay's prime.

To me, that was the best time in collecting EVER.

Look up serendipity in the dictionary -- the definition is Mego Museum 2001/02 and ebay

The Museum is fantastic and better then ever today, but I still have good nostaglia for the old days when it was all new and a bit rough around the edges

[palitoy]

I'm not as nostalgic for that period, I'd have handled things a lot differently.

[Gorn Captain]

These days, you're the only friends I have...

Sob! Sob!

Goodbye, cruel world!
(sound of me impaling myself on my Darth Maul action figure)

[Gorn Captain]

To me, being able to share the hobby is very important.
I don't want to hide in the basement.
I want to compare notes, talk about sculpting and articulation. Likes and dislikes.

To me, every day that I can share my toy room with someone, is a great day.
But you don't often find kindred souls these days.
I wish I lived near a couple of you guys!

Hey, who has a spare room I can live in?

[Mikey]

I'm not as nostalgic for that period, I'd have handled things a lot differently.

You must have been crazy overloaded doing this all by youself back then.
The only other Museum dude here was Joe, and Joe used to go MIA for months at a time back then

[goldenryan]

i think the forum and museum is great for collectors let's face it there are not many people who can understand why you would pay $50 for a loose mr. fantastic and only maybe 3 or 4 who would understand why someone would pay $900 for a empty shipping box

[clemso]

When Mego Museum forums first opened its doors it coincided with ebay's prime.

To me, that was the best time in collecting EVER.

Look up serendipity in the dictionary -- the definition is Mego Museum 2001/02 and ebay

The Museum is fantastic and better then ever today, but I still have good nostaglia for the old days when it was all new and a bit rough around the edges

You've got that right. When i first joined (actually I think it was mego yahoogroup a little earlier than 2001, but most of you guys were on that) someone had just put a really sharp Green Goblin moc (+ Lizard moc) on ebay. I have not seen a GG moc one ever since. Talk about missed opportunity.

Clem

[Joe90]

Before the Museum when I was collecting from the mid 80's all the way to 2001, I basically had no collecting social action whatsoever.

I started my adult phase of collecting in 1988, and I had a very small circle up here. One of the guys was a bit of a sheister, and was always hounding me to trade him my favourite pieces. He got a few non-favourite pieces from me for cheap and then sold them off for big bucks down south. I didn't pay much for the pieces in the first place, so easy come easy go, but I dropped him from my circle as soon as I discovered he was a user.

I have found the internet has been a big boon to my collecting: the social nature of the WWW's global village has brought me some good friends who have nurtured and mentored my hobby. I have learned a lot and made some good deals. It's funny because a lot of the interactions on the internet are one sided: it's like being in a crowded room with someone, listening to them talk, but because there are so many others listening and responding with the same questions, there is often no reason to say anything.