Quitting/putting collecting on pause

[Ru1977]

@Damien

 

[Damien]

I really can not put emphasis on how much shit I have. I am spilling into an office and the attic. I should post pictures.

To get rid of everything is so daunting that it paralyzes me from even listing it. Especially because finding every piece and part is literally impossible. It stresses me out.

Not to be judgemental, but that does seem like a pretty good indicator that you went too far at some point. And the only way out of it is to force yourself to immediately refine what you need/want to add to your collection, and to just do the hard thing and get rid of the stuff you don't need/want as fast as possible. The longer it all sits, the harder it's going to get, and the more will build up on top of it because having all that will not allow you to really properly decide what you even should be buying going forward.

All in my opinion, obviously.

 

[GrumpyMatt]

I really can not put emphasis on how much shit I have. I am spilling into an office and the attic. I should post pictures.

To get rid of everything is so daunting that it paralyzes me from even listing it. Especially because finding every piece and part is literally impossible. It stresses me out.

I know exactly that overwhelming sense you're experiencing. It's hard to know where to start with so much stuff.

It helped me to focus by dumping one area of my collecting at a time. Mezco, for instance, I got it all ot it together (a smaller subset than say Marvel Legends, so easier to handle) and pared it down to like 3 or 4 things I absolutely wanted to keep and sold the rest. I recently grabbed all the Neca Pacific Rim stuff (turns out I didn't want to keep much of that) and threw that up on eBay at once.

I've also been going by the storage bin on occasion. Just grab one and start sorting stuff out that I don't want/need. I also sort out any stray pieces that I find and put them in a "parts box" I can easily reference. (I thought I did a good job keeping Marvel Legend pieces together but in 20+ years of collecting, I constantly find stray accessories where I wouldn't think they'd be. Star Wars, too ...)

In my case, taking it in small increments initially just made it easier and less stressful. If you just do a little bit every day or two, it adds up quick. It also adds up financially too. In my case, with a lot of stuff to sell, I wasn't worried about making top dollar and I could list at "friendlier" prices, still bring in a good chunk of change and sell things off quicker.

And start keeping an eye out for shelf stocking at Walmart and Target when you're there and grab boxes, particularly in the health and beauty or electronics section. Those little boxes come in so damn handy when shipping loose figures.

 

[RicksNerdLife]

Just to give you an example of what's going on here.

This is currently my nerd den, where I display most of my stuff.

And yes, I have very old cheap shelves from my college days. I even have trouble letting THOSE go and upgrading.

But regardless, in these pictures, you can see that there is stuff sitting on the ground, so much so that there are things toppled over in the shelves that it's such a pain in the ass to get to that they stay laying down. The shelves need dusted, but...again, would need to get to them.

I have so much that things are just mixed in with different properties and thrown on random shelves.

All of the above is a fucking problem. We've reached it being almost hoarder issues.

And I keep telling myself that when we move, I'll get a bigger nerd cave, so all of these things will find a space. But...why? Fucking WHY? Look at all of this. Think of the nightmare of trying to move THIS.

And again, this isn't covering what's in my attic, in the closet around the corner of the TMNT arcade, and what's in my office. This isn't including all of the comic books, too.

https://imgur.com/WYqnxg2

https://imgur.com/4PQxQIa

https://imgur.com/a/HTzlyg5

https://imgur.com/a/u9fFZuR

 

[Damien]

We've reached it being almost hoarder issues.

I was gonna say.

I mean, you've got a lot of cool stuff. But do you even get to ENJOY it all? At what point is it like "I haven't seen this figure in 10 years because it's behind other figures in a shelf I can barely see to begin with?"

But I mean, it sounds like you already know a chunk of this stuff needs to go. The problem is making yourself do it. But you've gotta. We've probably all experienced the fantasy of 'I'll just buy a bigger house.' The reality of that is, as you said - why? Forget the money, as it sounds like you can afford it. It's just.. litearlly - buy a bigger house just to store the toys that you don't have time to look at and enjoy properly anyway?
I guarantee you two things: the first is that a bigger house wouldn't solve the problem, as it just creates a larger space for you to overfill, and the second is that if you already can't keep up with dusting and organizing what you have, a bigger nerd area will amplify, not alleviate, that problem.

For the love of your sanity, start making some hard decisions and live a happier life for it.

 

[TheGillMan]

I think I'm going to start spending an hour a week going through tubs & shelves and figuring out what I want to get rid of. Just separating out the dead weight until I have a big enough tub to take to a shop and unload it. I don't have the patience for eBay or any of that...I just know I need to tighten up the collection some, and this will help me feel better about the things I AM keeping. It will probably take me quite a while to get to a place where I have weeded out enough to feel good about it, but this way I'll actually be doing SOMETHING. If I keep putting it off for when I actually have the time to do it all, I'll never do it at all.

 

[Ru1977]

It's like the Warren's relic room in Conjuring only scarier!

 

[RicksNerdLife]

It's like the Warren's relic room in Conjuring only scarier!

You have no idea. Lol

 

[yojoebro82]

My main thing that causes me stress is the super hero stuff, the Marvel and the DC. I have them in 8 large boxes, I have room to display a fraction of it. They are all "good" versions of the characters, i can't decide what to display so i don't. I've thought about giving it to my wife and telling her to pick out one Hulk, one Cap, one Iron Man, one Superman, etc. and I'll unload the rest. The deciding what stays is tough.

 

[SalemCrow]

I really can not put emphasis on how much shit I have. I am spilling into an office and the attic. I should post pictures.

To get rid of everything is so daunting that it paralyzes me from even listing it. Especially because finding every piece and part is literally impossible. It stresses me out.

I am in a much bigger situation, and I've finally admitted to myself it's a bit of a hoarding issue that am trying to cull now. I haven't had a problem clearing things out before. I did 2 straight community yard sales at a local community college years ago, but since Covid, they haven't done it. I tried a small local toy show another year, but with the cost of the table and renting the truck to bring all the stuff there, it wasn't really worth the hassle once I tallied what I actually brought home.

I think I mentioned in my initial post that I basically have 2 10x10 storage units that are filled with mainly my toys and other assorted items.
I've been taking the last month and a half to try and sort out some things to sell.

I've also been buying a lot of the photo storage bins that Micheal's sells to more fully organize collections of figures. I've moved all but a few SWB figures I want to keep into a few bins, and have most of my Joe collection in the same containers.

I've already donated some lesser toys, and have 2 more bags ready to get dropped off, and I've got 2 bags and a paper box of items to sell, I just need to figure out how/where I am going to sell them. I need to photograph them either way, but that's an intimidating prospect I don't look forward to.

Then I realized I have a bit of an issue my late father in law did, where he kept things that were broken or missing parts, with the vague notion of "fixing" them. I'm not doing that, but I DID realize I have a few boxes of random USB or computer cables I don't know if I have the actual components for. I NEED to go through those and toss all of the junk that doesn't belong to something I have that works, and toss what's missing pieces or is no longer functional.

 

[Damien]

One thing I'm really good about is that I would rather go online and buy a new cable than have ten cables in a box that I 'might' need one day.

 

[TheRealSmallville]

I have room to display a fraction of it. i can't decide what to display so i don't.

Oh man, this is so me too lol Most of my things are in bins currently because I can never decide how I want to display them. Executive dysfunction kicks in and I end up freezing and not doing anything. I'll get ideas for multiple display options and then I can't decide which one I want to go with, so I end up not displaying anything for lack of being able to decide. Do I want to display them in a large battle dio? Do I want to display them in teams? Do I want to display them according to X-Criteria? The answer to all of these is always YES, and I don't have the room for all of them.

For what it's worth, as I've gotten older that issue has spread everywhere so it's not just toys and display...I'll spend a half hour scrolling through movie options and end up not picking anything, or I won't eat because I can't decide what sounds good. A very frustrating issue that has only become worse as I've aged. Unfortunately, that problem has never spread to deciding what to buy Oh, how I wish I could just be undecided on purchases and end up not spending anything lol

@RicksNerdLife - I've been where you are in the boat of "how do I find all of the accessories for each figure I need to sell?", and the answer for me was - "don't worry about it." Put things in lots and sell them as-is. My rule of thumb is if a figure is worth over $40, I sell it separately. Otherwise, I put it in a lot. I probably lose money in the long run, but if I just need something gone anyway then it makes little difference to me. Once I've decided to get rid of something, then I don't care what the cost is unless it's rare and can actually improve my collection by selling it. Find the things you can live without, put them in a lot, sell and move them. You'll feel better once you get some space cleared, I promise.

 

[cmoney]

I listed some stuff on eBay last month and decided I was gonna keep that train rolling, only I didn't and instead I just have a bunch of boxes in my kitchen now that I kept because I was gonna need them for that thing that I already failed to keep doing.

 

[Schizm]

Another thread I finally caught up on and a few points I feel are worth re-iterating.

So it's just going to be a matter of reminding myself all the time that less isn't none

I wrote that last phrase down.

This one's fun, but ttrpgs, drawing, writing, making, and so on are more about building new things and memories, while toy collecting, for better or worse, is more often about living in old memories.

Collecting is living in old memories. I also wrote this down. I don't 100% agree. Collecting helps you make media your own. One of the biggest draws of figures to me has always been they are a 3D representation of flat media - it's a tactile expression of something I love.

Maybe that's why I really like my MCU figures - that wasn't past media but current and it was a way to "join in." And now with the figures gone/delayed, my ability to "play along" has been removed. And that's a bummer.

It’s not the $30 price tag. I already paid for them. It’s certainly not the $4 shipping cost. I spend more at Starbucks on any given morning. So WHAT IS IT?!? Whatever it is, I wish it would go away, because I really miss the good ‘ole days.

The answer is depression, as later stated. But also: I am so unimpressed by the Sentinel - okay, it moves in every place all my other action figures move, just bigger. There's no discovery anymore, unless it's an ab crunch or those horrible new shoulders that can shrug but not butterfly. All the bodies are one of three styles AND the legs don't come up enough to articulate how I want. That's an area I really want Hasbro to invest in - getting figures able to crouch lower without the thigh plastic digging into the lower torso plastic and ankles that articulate deeper. And also being able to hold said pose.

I also think in general it's a hobby where it's sort of easy to see how it eats your life by how much space it takes up. I think in years gone by that might not have been so noticeable, or might've been a source of pride more often, but in the world now, with the level of adversarial consumerism so high, you start to look at your things and think "Jesus, is this it?". I think there's a cultural shift to start divesting of the products that lock us into buying loops and franchise ecosystems. It's certainly not everyone, but I think it's an undercurrent with a lot of folks here.

I saved this entire paragraph as well. "Adversarial consumerism" that locks us into buying loops and franchise ecosystems. I feel convicted.

Picard: I realized there are fewer days ahead of me than behind me.

Had that revelation a few months ago. It's probably not true, but also - it's not untrue.

It's damn near the only thing I have even a modicum of control over in these crazy times, which is also why, I think, it feels even more frustrating when things sell out before you can order them or you have difficulty finding it- it feels like you've lost the last thing you have control over, and that dopamine is being held from you by forces outside your control.

I have lost my shit over missing Hasbro's exclusives the last year for exactly this reason. And instant pre-order sellouts. It's not healthy and I'm aware.

And I know we like to joke in the hobby that hey, at least we're not doing hard drugs or drinking, but even the heaviest drinkers I know are not spending what I spend in a week on third party figures. So if we are just talking about a coping mechanism, I bet cases could be made about every vice or hobby.

I never thought about how much I'm spending versus the spend of a heavy drinker. I am definitely spending way more. Now, the value isn't completely lost like it is in drinking, but I am certainly pouring money away. I hadn't thought of it like this before.

And start keeping an eye out for shelf stocking at Walmart and Target when you're there and grab boxes, particularly in the health and beauty or electronics section. Those little boxes come in so damn handy when shipping loose figures.

This is a big problem for me - I save boxes. Walmart decided to send the last Mini-Comics wave in six boxes, one per figure, and I've yet to break them down because "maybe" I'll need them. I have a closet+ full of boxes and I hate it. But then - I do use them and don't want to pay for them. The storage of stuff I'm trying to sell is such a burden on space - which is why I want to stop doing that.

But I also ship regular loose figures in Amazon bubble-wrap, with some added layers inside. Never been a problem.

When did everything start to shift towards chases and limited run.

I remember panty and party Angela. But I think I would put it on Marvel Legends Wave 4, at least as a Toys R Us employee.

Can't this blame be placed on Playmates? The 1701 debacle with Trek, but probably even before then.

and studios don't have the budget to pump into them or the time to delay them.

Studios always have the money. They claim poverty at every instance, and yet - they find the money. It's such a waste of time.

 

[JakeEkiss]

Collecting is living in old memories. I also wrote this down. I don't 100% agree. Collecting helps you make media your own. One of the biggest draws of figures to me has always been they are a 3D representation of flat media - it's a tactile expression of something I love.

Maybe that's why I really like my MCU figures - that wasn't past media but current and it was a way to "join in." And now with the figures gone/delayed, my ability to "play along" has been removed. And that's a bummer.

I do think there's that aspect to it, but I also think it's also heavily weaponized against the consumer. And it definitely varies from person to person. I think there's a percentage of many of our Marvel Legends collections (for example) that's basically us getting cooler, better versions of looks we had in 5" form as kids (and I mean, they definitely play into that aspect). Or getting stuff because it's a depiction of a story we read 20 years (or more) ago and we want to be reminded of it. That, I think of as living in an old memory. And it's not a terrible place to visit, it's just making sure you're not staying there.