If I preserve it in lucite, will that make you happy?

The BBQ Pit
1

Why does it seem so tough for my friends to grasp the fact that I buy things with the intent of actually USING them?

Friend A recently took a ride with me in the car I just bought in August…

Friend A: “3000 miles on this thing already? Jeez, where have you been driving?”

Me: “Well, I drive the car between the city and Long Island, usually to my mom’s place. About once a week I drive up to Stamford for band rehearsals. Next month, I think I want to take a trip to DC to see some friends…”

Friend A: “I’d rent. You can get a car for a week for a few hundred bucks. Then you can keep miles off this car.”

Me: “Yeah, but I really like driving it. That’s why I bought it.”

Friend A: “Suit yourself, man. You’re going to hurt the re-sale value.”

Another friend of mine came to my apartment and was looking at some of the guitars I’ve acquired over the years.

Friend B: “Cool, man. That’s a first year Eddie Van Halen Music Man. Transparent black, too…That’s a rare color.”

Me: “Yeah, it plays really well, too.”

Friend B: “You should stick that thing in a case and save it for your kids.”

Me: “Naw, man. I gig with it. And since when do I have kids? I don’t even have a girlfriend.”

Friend B: “Yeah, but you just don’t see a transparent black EVH these days. I’d lock it up and sell it in about 10 years.”

Buy a car and actually drive it? Buy a guitar and actually play it? How dare I?

All this “advice” reminds me of what people were telling me about my comic book collection 15 years ago - “Don’t read that copy of X-Men. It’ll be worth money in a few years.” Look where that got me. I missed out on the whole storyline and the books are worth precisely dick today.

My Corvette was built to be driven. My guitar was made to be played. And I should have read all those comic books in the 80s. Get over it.

2

For the most part, I agree with you. The part about the car, though, well, I average 500 miles/weekend and have for about the last 11 1/2 months (Avis-miles = ~20,000 this year, personal-car-miles = ~ 5,000) and frankly, it’s worth it to me to get a rental (especially since I am reimbursed for mileage, so the cost of the car is a wash.)

I love to drive my car. I love my car, period, but I just hate the idea of putting that many miles on it for weekend jaunts.

The thing I hate is when people have all their furniture covered. WTF? Who are you saving it for? Use the damn chair already!

3

Ok, nobody else read this thread. If the mods would lock it and make it unviewable, we can reopen it in 50 years and it should be worth a fortune! Stop reading! Every view reduces the value of this thread by half!

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I know how you feel, man! Sounds like the way I feel about Beanie Babies. I used to buy them and give them to my kids to <gasp> play with! I don’t give a fuck if they’re going to be worth a lot of money in the years to come. I don’t want to collect them and I don’t want a million fucking display cases full of beanie babies sitting around my house collecting dust.

5

I used to enjoy the horrified looks on friend’s faces when the Star Wars and McFarlane toys I collected then were {shudder} opened and on display. Otherwise, what’s the point?

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My grandmother is always on my case because I take my dolls OUT of the box.

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You’re me! You’re me! Except I don’t buy 'em for the kids…they’re gifts (and I won a beanie baby sheep in a skill crane). The only beanie babies I buy are for ME, and so far my huge collection consists of: a bat and a squid. The bat is hanging from its tag (read: ass) from my garage ceiling, and the squid is adorning the box which contains my Cancer (astrological sign, you mooks) “Hello Kitty.”

Toys are to be played with.
Cars are to be driven.

The whole “collector’s” mindset utterly escapes me.
(For what it’s worth, THespos, I’d be happy to go riding around with you. In your car. :D)

8

I have friends who owned a Saturn POS* and, for years, rented cars for their frequent weekend road trips. They wanted to keep the miles off the Saturn (their Baby :rolleyes:) so it would last longer.

What happened? They got in an accident and totalled the thing.

Their response: The low mileage means we got more from the insurance company.

My response: Yeah, but that didn’t offset the cost of renting cars every weekend, dumbass.

*[sub](No flames, please. I know Saturns are good cars, but they’re not exactly going to appreciate in value as they age.)

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:mad:

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So, THespos, when are you gonna be in DC?

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Probably some time in December. I have a bunch of fraternity brothers who live in Alexandria, and we’ve been talking about a reunion of sorts (you know - hanging around drinking, playing foosball, chilling out). Hopefully I’ll have some concrete plans soon, but you know how frat boys are - lazy and noncommittal.

Hama, I’m remembering fondly the ego boost you gave me in the post-NYC Dopefest thread a while back. Since I owe ya one, you can go driving with me anytime, dear.

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There are things I collect, and there are things I don’t, and the things I don’t, I use.

It also reminds me of my mother when I was living at home. “Oh, don’t wear that shirt - I just ironed it.” Not that I don’t appreciate you doing that for me, but what am I supposed to do - put it up in a framed display case? Is there a time limit? Shall I never wear it again?

When I pointed it out to her, she laughed, too. :wink:

Esprix

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A few years ago Mr. Athena bought a new mountain bike. Shortly after, we decided to go camping & mountain biking for the weekend. He seriously thought about taking his old bike because he was so worried about his new bike being scratched while being transported in the back of his van to the campsite.

I made no end of fun of him for that one.

Surprisingly enough, I posted the story on a biking message board, and got a LOT of people who agreed with him. :boggle: I thought the whole POINT of having a bike is so you can ride it!

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Athenas post reminded me: I want to egt a nice, new SUV, a Jeep or Durango or something and, you know, actually take it offroad. Get it muddy and bump into shit with it, cruise down woods-y trials just barely wide enough and, like I said, actually use the damn things 4x4 function.

I’ve got a sports car that I baby and keep glossy so if I get a truck, it’s gonna get used (abused) like a truck.

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Preach it, brother!

I just decided to throw caution to the wind and buy myself a full set of grown-up dishes – not “three that match of this kind, plus two of this other, plus the plastic ones”, which is my current “set.” I’m 32, prolly never going to need to “register for china,” at least not at this rate, but am sick of not being able to set a nice table if I have more than, say, three people over.

So I’m cruising for a nice set of dishes. Not the “bought 'em at Target” kind – not that there’s anything wrong with those, but that’s not what I want. Here’s what I hear: “Yes, that pattern is very popular. Of course, you can’t put the dishes in the dishwasher or the microwave.” Can’t put them in the dishwasher? And people buy them? What do they do with them? “Well, many brides choose to display their wedding china.” Ah. Display it. How totally useless. Now, I’m not a bride but even if I were I wouldn’t want dishes only to display: “Look! I own dishes!” But apparently the thinking is: You don’t need to worry about washing them by hand because you won’t actually be using them.

I just don’t get it.

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Now, now, Jodi, there is such a thing as “special occasion” china. I’m willing to wash dishes by hand after celebrations, but it gets old doing it every day. I have “special occasion” clothes that have to be dry-cleaned and everyday clothes that don’t, too.

But I generally agree with the OP. If the day will never come that you’re going to use it, why do you have it?

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We do a lot of traveling from Providence to Long Island and my husband used to suggest getting a rental for those trips. Notice I said “used to”. I guess he got one too many looks of disbelief to actually go through with it.

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My father-in-law brought his wife a set of Wedgewood China during one of his overseas trips years ago. She never used it. It was too “good”. She never displayed it. She finally decided she should maybe use it. Several pieves were broken from being moved and stacked over the years. In the 18 years I’ve been a part of this family, they’ve used this china twice. She worried about breakage, but it broke anyway.

My mother has 2 sets if silver. For years, it was only brought out on special occasions. Then she decided that it was silly to own something and not use it. Now any meal eaten in the dining room calls for silver.

I don’t have china - just Corelle. I have silverplate that belonged to my grandmother and I’ll dig it out on occasion. But no matter how much I like something, if I don’t think I’ll use it, I won’t get it. And my van, which I’ve had less than 5 years, has over 100K miles on it. So there!

19

Ditto on the silver. My parents have three sets of silverplate they never use.

We have been very slowly putting together a set of sterling that we decided on before we were married. So far we have two place settings, two toddler sets and a letter opener.

They all get used every day. Gosh darn it, the kids may be eating Mac and Cheese, but they’re eating off a silver spoon.

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Transparent black?