Sunday Reflections: When Does Collecting Turn Into Hoarding?

My Dad taught me the joys of collecting at a young age. He has so many awesome collections, from vinyl records to stamps, coins, and of course plenty of comic books, trading cards, and toys. I was hooked on collecting as soon as I could walk. Rock collections, bug collections, toys, comic books, cards, you name it!

Today I still have many collections and it's a bit hard to keep track of sometimes. My wife keeps my collecting under control and my penny pinching ways help me reign in my collecting. However I've always had the fear of becoming a hoarder. I'm sure most everyone is familiar with the hit reality TV show Hoarders.

WARNING!!! The following video contains nasty hoarders' house footage! Not for the faint of heart!

The Honey and I used to watch Hoarders from time to time and afterwards I would have a strong urge to start cleaning the house and quickly plan out a garage sale and DI donation run. Now a days I can't even watch the show, it makes me literally sick to my stomach (and I tell fart jokes at the dinner table!) and it depresses me! I want to own my collection, and not have it own me. I don't wanna end up being the crazy hoarder man, crushed to death under a fallen stack of toy bins and comics.

This card made my LOL! But then I thought "Am I buying too many GPK cards?

This next video made me almost cry. That poor guy, he just wanted to raise money for his kids college funds. I know it sounds silly, but he thought he was going to make hundreds of thousands off of Beanie Babies! A lot of people thought that, but boy were they wrong. This is why I think you need to be wary of considering collecting as a financial investment, because something like this could happen. It can be like putting all your money in one stock.

My brother and I have always found the junk people scene, from the Labrinth, to be rather interesting. A not-so-subtle commentary on hoarding? Maybe. The documentary clip above has an interesting take on the meaning of this scene.

I think it is possible to maintain a high quality of life while maintaining a large collection, though it can be hard sometimes. Collectable Spectacle is a series of documentaries on YouTube by Flophouse Films. The documentaries chronicle the collections of 2 devout G.I. Joe fans, Airedevon and Mark Bellomo. If you are a serious toy collector I highly recommend watching both documentary in their entirety, they're wonderful! They are a bit long, so pop some popcorn and enjoy your favorite fizzy beverage as you watch on in amazement.

What do all you collectors think about this? Have you ever feared you might become a hoarder? How do you keep your collection organized and in control? Do you focus exclusively on one thing, or do you collect a wide range, like me?

And for those of you that don't collect, do you think collectors are crazy? Should we change our ways and become minimalists? Or is collecting just a great way to have fun, bond with family, and meet new friends?

Let your voice be heard in the comments below!