Nostalgia [Part 4] – Trinkets

The past couple of months going through all of my old stuff and other things I’ve found things that were long gone from my current memory.  I laughed when I pulled out thing after thing out of these packed away boxes.  These small things from my past.  Toys, music, books, and other little trinkets. This post will be dedicated to all my little trinkets.

Trinkets

As I ruffled through all my stuff/junk I had kept over the years I found things that I asked myself, “why do you still have that piece of junk”.  I then sit there and think about it, and remember why I have all these little trinkets are sprinkled throughout a box of random things.  They have memories.

Each little think brings up a story or a memory that is often only relevant to me.  I tried to tell my mom and dad a few stories about having the stuff, but it just wasn’t the same to them as it was for me.  The reason I kept these things is to remember all the times with those people and also because no one would but them in a garage sale.

Eye Patch

As you can tell in the picture above I do not have an eye patch on, but I did try to look for one.  I have this eye patch that I bought when me and my current girl friend at the time decided to go to Wal-Mart… dressed up as pirates.  I am quite an interesting and weird guy, but this is something that i can say most people have never done.

We walked around the store asking people that worked there if they knew where the eye patches were.  I think it might’ve only been funny to me, but nonetheless I still have that eye patch mainly because I don’t know what to do with it, and it’s just such a good story to tell people… sometimes.

Turtle Lamp

The infamous turtle lamp.  My grandparents would often go to Mexico and buy random stuff for me and my sister when they would vacation down there including mix matched Tommy Hilfiger clothing and other stuff which was obviously a knock off.  For some reason after I made a statement that I liked turtles I started getting thing after thing from my grandparents that was a turtle or at least turtle themed.

I got one thing that I at first was completely dumbfounded what to do with.  it was a turtle lamp.  The picture above is the actual lamp, and actually what it looks like in the dark.  It’s a pretty good little lamp, but why in the heck is it a turtle.  I had this lamp for a long time, and then I moved into a house with 6 other guys and while scrounging throughout the house I found another turtle lamp that was exactly like it.  It reminded me of home, and of family and most of all random gifts from my grandparents.  I still have the turtle lamp, and will keep it until it just doesn’t match the decor in my house.  But who knows if that will ever happen.

Flasks

For some reason my family thought I’d grow up to be an alcoholic or something.  I have been given multiple flasks by family members and friends.  I’m just wondering why?  I feel like a flask is only good for one thing… weddings.  Which I’ve never had enough guts to use one at the wedding, but I did get given one at a wedding.  It has my name engraved on it.

A flask is such an odd thing anyways.  Its a way to hide that you are drinking, but the thing is that if you have to hide your drinking you probably shouldn’t be drinking there anyways.  It’s just a sense of common decency.  I think I’m going to start a collection of them, but over all I don’t plan on really using them all. Because then I might actually be an alcoholic.

Hats

This is me and my sister living in a trailer one summer with our “old people” hats.  I love hats, but the problem is I don’t really wear them much.  I have one of the most rediculous hat collections, but it’s not like ball caps or something useful like that it. It is a hat collection of hats that are only useful for one thing if  even that one thing.  I have a collection of maybe 3 or 4 hats that I will wear on a regular basis.

The rest are just crazy off the wall hats.  I have a sombrero that is so large there is no use for it unless it is a torrential downpour or you just feel like doing a Mexican Hat Dance.  But if it is raining I have on of those umbrella hats you could wear to keep your head dry, but you still might need an actual umbrella cause everything else is getting wet.  I have two or three cowboy hats, but don’t have a horse or even go to rodeos. So I really don’t know why I have them.  I haven’t even started on my beanie collection, which I won’t for obvious reasons.  Maybe one day I’ll actually wear all my hats…. not at that same time.  That’s just ridiculous.

I’m a Pack Rat

I ended up throwing away a lot of stuff that I really don’t need, but I did keep a good box and a half of stuff.  Just stuff that I don’t really need, but they still have that memory.  They continue to remind of all the good times with my friends, family and other people in my life.  I’ll put on a hat and remember the time I  wore the sombrero to school and through the second half of the day in high school.

I’ll remember filling up the flask with crystal light because I wasnt’ 21 and I thought I was cool.  I’ll remember my grandparents everytime I turn on that turtle lamp, and I’ll remember every pirate joke I’ve ever heard when I put on an eye patch.  I can’t forget these things.  They are what have made my life so rich so far.  Not the things, but the stories and the people in them.