My Kind of Collecting by Cheryl Harper

Some people have priceless art collections.
Others build extensive, impressive wine cellars with rare vintages meant for special occasions.
There are fans who collect expensive dolls or action figures or baseball cards or stamps or even first editions of things everyone here loves...books!

Me, I have 2 "collections" in my house. Both are built on the places I've been.
I have two aunts who both encouraged my interest in travel. One brought me a new ornament every year and most of the time it came from a great vacation that sparked my interest. Those are the ornaments I hang on my tree.

And the other collection I started for myself. Magnets. Easy. Every souvenir shop and tourist trap has them. They have a purpose and liven up my trips to the refrigerator. In one of my moves, I lost some that I still regret, but each new trip gives me a chance to build on my collection.

It's been a long year of only work and work and work, so I spend a great deal of time right now daydreaming about vacations.
There's a shady lake and a lawn chair waiting for me close by, I hope. Until then, I think about my last "Don't Be Crabby" trip to the beach every time I reach for a Diet Coke.

What about you? Have any special collections? What do you pick up to mark the special places you visit?

If you're in desperate need of a getaway that doesn't take a plane ticket or bug spray, how about a visit to the Otter Lake Ranger Station? It's in east Tennessee, in the shadows of the Great Smoky Mountains. You can spend time with a daredevil firefighter and his old rival who has lost her way. Smoky Mountain Sweethearts is out right now. I'm also giving a few copies away. Check my Facebook Page for more details.

Comments

  1. I have a collection of magnets too. I try to remember to buy one whenever I travel. I have a small collection of teapots as well. But I collect more books than anything else. I just ordered Smoky Mountain Sweethearts from Harlequin.com yesterday. ( :

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  2. I used to have a small owl collection—not the real kind—but on this summer’s vacation to Maine, I bought a cute red glass lobster wine stopper. Not that I have a ton of stoppers. 😌 Love your magnet idea. Congratulations on the new book!

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  3. Congratulation on your new release, Cheryl! I used to collect Boyds Bears music boxes, until they stopped making them.

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  4. I have a collection of baskets, but don't get more because I have too many. When I traveled more I used to buy a charm in each place for my daughter's charm bracelets. I like your collections Cheryl.

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  5. hi Cheryl! When my daughter joined the Air Force, her first duty station was Germany. She took full advantage of her days off to visit as many countries as she could. She started collecting snow globes from each of the places she visited. But after several got broken and she realized how much harder they would be to pack and move, she resorted to magnets. She ordered a few online for places she'd been but probably wouldn't be back to for a while. I love looking at her refrigerator! To date, she has been to 32 countries. I myself have only been to few places and I have shot glasses from those places. I don't drink shots but there's something cute about those little glasses, lol. I think collections are great!!!

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  6. Hey--you and me both with the magnets. People and places and especially authors' magnets. They're great for securing photos and postcards--my fridge is a gallery of "mixed media," as the phrase goes. Your book sounds wonderful--I love that part of TN--I used to go over to the park often from Asheville, spring and fall were the best! Sounds like a great story, by the way. I know I'll enjoy it!

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  7. I like to collect magnets and Christmas ornaments from places I've visited, too. It's nice to remember those special places when I'm decorating the tree each year.

    I'm halfway through Smoky Mountain Sweethearts, and loving it. Sam's personality makes me smile.

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  8. I don't collect anything anymore because I'm trying to have less stuff, but I still have over 100 trivets in the attic that used to hang on my kitchen walls. I do have a lot of magnets, thought...

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  9. Oh, I have so many collections. Too many. LOVE the magnet idea. One of the things I started (a little too late) when I traveled, was to pick up something that would fit in my dollhouse. Made for light packing home. I also have books (boxes and boxes of books) and dolls (I think I got that from my grandmother ). Lovely post, Cheryl. Hope you get some time off soon!

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  10. This is a great post, Cheryl and reminds me how I have too many collections. I'm guilty of the Christmas ornament collection. Glasses of any kind. Wine glasses. Tumblers. Mugs is another thing. Plates. Serving bowls. I need a 12 Step Program!!!

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  11. Okay, I'm weird. I don't collect anything, intentionally anyway. I will have to visit Tennessee someday. So many songs and stories come from that part of the country.

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