Our Passion For Collecting

Is it the internet that is helping old friends get back in touch with friends from their past or is it just another stage of life that we go through or is it both. Through Facebook, I have renewed many old friendships. One of these is a friendship with my friend Ellen whom I met through our passion for collecting. Collecting is a not only a lot of fun but for some of us, collecting lies at the core of our very existence. Collecting is not just about collecting great treasures but also in making and "collecting" new friends. Hunting for both is an adventure which is different and unique for each. Each one newly found, has its own "story.' In truth, it's a history lesson that teaches us many valuable skills. First is being able to identify, then select and, lastly evaluate. Financially, my collector friends, when faced with hard times during this recession, were able to survive by selling off their collections and also by counting on one another.

I met Ellen many years ago when I was in the midst of my collecting phase. I collected just about everything, but my passion was bakelite and costume jewelry. Ellen, collected everything that was Victorian. The Victorian period was her passion, especially paintings on Ivory. She has very long dark beautiful hair and she lookes like one of the victorian ivory portraits that she so much likes.

Going to the 26th street, and the 67th street flea markets on the w/e's, was our time to hunt for treasures and be with friends. We looked forward to the w/e. Ellen and I would meet and then go on our own way to find our cherished treasures - only to meet again at a diner and have our breakfast. It wasn't so much the breakfast that we were looking forward to, but it was the opportunity to look at our goodies and share our finds with a friend. Sometimes, Ellen would say, Frances, didn't you see that this brooch has been repaired, or this necklace is not original and I would shriek, and I would vouch to be more careful next time, and the next w/e it would be the same. Most of the time, I would have bought some really amazing treasures, which along with fond memories would be cherished for many years to come. I can still remember our oohs and aahs when looking at our goodies and complimenting ourselves on our finds. Ellen had great taste and always came up with the perfect item.

After many years, here we are again "thanks to Facebook " on the phone to find out she is no longer buying antique and Victorian jewelry nor am I buying anything either. Actually I have divested myself of just about everything material. My interests are now elsewhere and so are Ellen's. Her sister has left her job and opened an exclusive pet shop, specializing in dog items. No live animals. I immediately checked out her website and OMG. It's amazing. Check out the website at www.causetopaws.com She has everything I would want for my daughter's dog NIKE. HERE WE ARE AGAIN SHARING A MUTUAL INTEREST. It's just amazing after all these years -it's like time has not passed - we went from one passion to another.

While our passion for collecting inanimate objects has decreased, our passion for "collecting" friendships has increased. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPTOY8FrvNw simon and garfunkel song old friends