I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. Ever since I was
little, I have always collected things. I even have all the things my mom was
given when I was born, such as, new baby cards, hospital bracelets, even the
umbilical cord (yuk). I just have a hard time letting go of THINGS. I dwell so
much in the past that I actually collect memories. Every little token I have
kept over the years has some special meaning to me. I like to sit down, dump
everything on the floor, and then put each item back in the box. That is while I am reminiscing.
Over the years I have also collected stuff animals. I have a few
that I was given before I could even remember. Most of them I have bought and
some were gifts. My last count was around 1,500. I have given some away at
times to Santa Rosa Children’s Hospital and Goodwill. I used to spend hours in
thrift shops searching for one stuffed character I was missing from a set.
Slowly but surely, I would find them, one by one. I even have a few I ordered back in the day
when there used to be coupons in the newspaper. The coupon pages would have
sections where you could buy certain products and then cut out and save UPCs
and mail them in for items. These are some of my rare stuffed characters that
you can’t find anywhere else. One of my favorites is the Kraft Dairy Fairy.
I take especially good care of them and always keep the original
tags attached. Most of them are in excellent condition as if I bought them
yesterday. I have them arranged around the room from floor to ceiling and in
categories, such as, dogs, cats, wild animals, bears, farm animals, Disney
sets, Looney Tunes, Warner Brothers, Hanna-Barbera, Cartoon Network, Care
Bears, birds, etc.
