Out Of Sight - Out Of Mind

I think I have hinted at this topic before - but it's late and I am feeling philosophical. I'm staring at these binders and boxes filling my bookshelf wondering when too much of a good thing just removes the enjoyment. I have a vision of stamp collecting with my magnifying glass enjoying the single stamp - but reality seems to be hours of sorting and mounting stamps of no particular interest or value to me - just because I have them. Or pages of albums filled 30% and the few great stamps I love buried somewhere in pages I have long forgotten where.

I have three small stockbooks on my desk that I have randomly filled in no order and without regard to country or year - and I have fondly looked through those more than anything else on my bookshelf. The stamps in the little books have great eye appeal, or a super postmark, or some other story and I smile at whenever I look at them.

I think most of us have a favorite stamp (or more) that reminds us of what we really love about philately. A stamp that takes us back to a time when we were really, really excited about collecting. It's not necessarily valuable or a showpiece, but rather something simple to reflect upon.

Thank you for reminding me that place still exists in my mind :)

Brian

Scouter, I could not agree more. I began putting stamps in a large world wide album. I finally realized that the prospects of ever browsing through the album were slim to none. I have put several really nice sets into the album and am seriously thinking of taking them out and putting them in my Vario book of stamps that I like with no particular order or reason. They just have to be stamps that I like.

I ran into this recently. Part of a collection I sold had a UN complete collection. The buyer gave it to me.
Now, I am not thrilled about UN stuff, I got over that fast awhile ago, so I began to transfer the stamps from the old pages to a newer album set. For me it was just work, nothing exciting about it. I will probably never look at it again. But, now, at least, I have a complete UN collection up to 1975

I like the topical thread because when I participate I search in my albums looking for a specific topic. Sometime I see stamps I forgot about.

Nicely put Scouter, I could agree with you more.

Don't lose the enjoyment. Stamp collecting is a hobby not a job. Choose what interests you, then collect it anyway you want. It's your hobby and should be collected your way. As for the stamps you aren't interested in....bundle them up and sell them here in lots.

Scouter - I subscribe to the way you enjoy stamps. Aged 75, having been collecting stamps uninterruptedly since I was 5, I've adhered to the same idea for decades and my enjoyment of the mini collection of my dreams has never failed me. And what's more: the older you get, the more you appreciate what once left an indelible mark on you.

I've never regretted avoiding having too much of a good thing. Now that old beauties turn up again you can always - once in a while - catch up on what you may have missed provided you don't hunt "big game".

Re-arranging a little my "treasures" in the three stock books where I, too, keep my all-world gems, re-matching the stories behind them, colours match colours (these were what originally attracted me to stamps) and create new harmonies enlivening and brightening up the whole. With each noteworthy stamp your mind's cinematograph starts showing a film full of memories ...

For more details see my post of 01/13/2012 in Collecting by Engraver, p. 56.