collections

the one random thing about me that most people have no idea about, is that i have a collection of archie comic books.  a small bookshelf full.  new ones, old ones, the tall thin ones and the short double digests.  my dad introduced them to me late in elementary school and i became hooked.  it was a great escape to read something totally easy amidst the hours of honors english books, sat study guides and gate books all through the summers.  they were so great, in fact, that it became a source of tension for me with my little brother.  he would sneak into my room and take one and then read it by his bed, leaving it flipped and open upside down when he fell asleep.  i would find my treasured books like this and ban him from reading them ever again.  that would only last so long, before i would find another one, flipped again.  i didn't want them ruined and took great care of them. they are all currently in utah, and i remember my first holiday w/my parents and jan, when i opened wrapping paper to reveal new issues that i hadn't read yet and j looked at me like...you're getting excited over a comic book at the age of 27?  yes, i still get excited, and yes, my parents still surprise me with them, either new issues from the grocery store or some that my mom was lucky enough to find at a thrift store or garage sale. other than these books, i have never really collected much of anything. 

when i went to hawaii last month, i met my brother rick's co-worker who has been collecting plastic rings for some time. as you can see, she has hundreds! an unknown fact is that bigger design houses (eg. dior) came out with collections at one time and she has some of these along with rare ones from japan and other countries around the world.  she also started making her own and sells these pretty rings in her ring museum in honolulu above their office. these are some of the ones she collects. they have the look of glass but are actually plastic, thus much more affordable - she sells hers for only $5/ea.  

what do you collect?