Lost Treasures When we Pass..

[fleabus101]

I sometimes buy items online that Im sure someone
collected over time. I see it on ebay auctions where its
clear someone is selling a family members gun items they had. I wonder how much stuff is out there laying about that still is yet to show up somewhere. I watch American Pickers and see all that stuff accumulated thats out there still and sadly how much
stuff we collect is probably just "thrown out" and lost
forever to landfills everywhere. Lifetimes items gone forever. Its very sad to think about, but, it gives hope
that there's still stuff that will show up everyday somewhere. Maybe a treasure will show it your
collecting pathway soon..
You never know..Random thoughts today.
My Best..
Randy..

 

[Rule3]

Don't you wish you had all the stuff from when you were a kid or better yet what your parents had. Just the toys and games are worth big money.(in the original boxes of course!)

 

[Rustyt1953]

I subscribe to the George Carlin theory of "stuff".

 

[bamabiker]

I was talking to Mom a couple of months before she passed. She asked me what we were going to do with all her stuff after she was gone.
I told her we would keep some of it, give some away, sell some and the rest would be disposed of. And that's exactly what we did.
No way we could have kept all that stuff.

 

[Ole Joe Clark]

I subscribe to the George Carlin theory of "stuff".

Saw a guy on you tube recently that said he was a Junkologist. He also said that if a person had enough junk, at some time it would instantaneously turn into something useful.

I rest my case.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

 

[Dougaz]

How my Mom handled it

I was talking to Mom a couple of months before she passed. She asked me what we were going to do with all her stuff after she was gone.
I told her we would keep some of it, give some away, sell some and the rest would be disposed of. And that's exactly what we did.
No way we could have kept all that stuff.

My Mom passed early at the age of 96. For the past 50 years or so, anytime one of her kids gave her something, she turned it upside down and wrote their name on it.

The idea was whomever gave her an item, they had to take it back after she took the A train to Heaven.

When she passed myself and two (2) sisters (The trolls) had to sit down and try to take back a million items that none of us wanted. I'm pretty sure Mom looked down and giggled as we basically said "I don't want any of this "stuff"

Too funny

 

[Ματθιας]

After going though a lot of my dad's stuff after he died, he was a Silent Generation baby, I realized a lot of the stuff he collected was just that - stuff. He collected stuff that he could reuse/repurpose.

He also collected a lot of everyday stuff that got tossed. Stuff like the old metal band aid boxes, glass containers, and such. I'm glad he kept all that stuff.

Me? I have multiple collections going. I'm starting to wonder if I own the stuff or does it own me. The hunt, the haggling and then the research is what's fun.

At what point does a collector become a hoarder?

 

[THE PILGRIM]

I have some of my Mother’s stuff in a front closet.
Was hoping the Granddaughters like my Dau would want it, but they don’t.
So there it sits with some of my stuff!

 

[ladder13]

A coffin is only so big.

 

[twodog max]

Sadly most of the things we place importance on are only important to us. This even includes my treasured S&W items. To someone else even family they are just the old mans toys. And in some respects that is a fact. Once gone all my guns and reloading and hunting paraphernalia is to be sold so someone else who appreciates the items can enjoy them as i did. My son can pick a few guns to keep but the rest go to my daughter to sell so she can take a trip of a lifetime she would never do on her on. All the trivial items can be sold trashed whatever. I used them and will then have no further use for so it really won't matter to me.

 

[delcrossv]

 

[emptypockets]

A coffin is only so big.

And there are no luggage racks on the hearse.

 

[ACORN]

Makes me sad to look ay my Dads stuff since he’s passed. He wasn’t a gun guy and didn’t really collect anything, but when I see things he bought for some project around the that are unopened, it makes me wonder what unfinished chores I’ll leave. What treasures that I just had to have, will be thrown in the trash.
It just goes to prove material wealth is not the measure of a mans life.

 

[MRB1]

My surviving family are going to have a field day when I kick that bucket. For the last 60 years I've accumulated stuff that caught my eye - mostly knives, tools and tool boxes, and turned them into "projects" that bring them back to serviceable, or better condition. Nearly everything came from estate sales and garage sales. They will find no "Junk" in the accumulation - everything is in far above average condition. What they do with it is their business. But I have one pet peeve that I hope they'll respect, and most people won't understand. Bibles - especially family Bibles. How anybody can discard a family Bible - probably a family treasure at one time - is beyond me. Thus, I have several boxes full of discarded Bibles that nobody cared about. (I'm NOT a overly religious person). I've asked they go to a local church, but under no circumstance are they to be sold like some worn out pots and pans. I'll be smiling when they start digging thru that stuff.

 

[steelslaver]

And there are no luggage racks on the hearse.

I plan on riding in the back of a 4x4 and without any kind of seat belt.

 

[pawngal]

Stuff, Stuff! I have stuff, too much stuff! Way too much stuff!!
My late hubby was a collector of a lot of things, thankfully I am knowlegable on most of the things and am able to sell them. Pays for some traveling and lots of jewelry, guns & ammo.

But I also have a lot of his mother's stuff. The kids don't want it. Has been boxed in storage for 28 years. Yuck!


When my mother passed away my sisters and I and a couple of the grandkids went thru everything, 2 rolloff dumpsters full, several trips to Goodwill, and an auction. Done.

And I have too much of my own "stuff" that needs to go somewhere.

 

[old bear]

After having to clean up the stuff when Dad died, then three years later same chore when Mom died, and a year later when Genie died, I quickly realized that most of everything was just stuff. Most of M&D’s stuff went to a local homeless shelter. Genie grew up in a Large Foster family, and her “sisters” were More than wiling to help me dispose of much of her stuff. I saved a few Special things (from each one) mainly photos, paperwork, and assorted personal items.

Sometimes I wonder what to do with them or what will happen to them along with my stuff, when I die. Oh-well I won't have to worry about that, will I.

 

[hoosierone]

My mother kept a few diaries, very interesting to see how her life was going at different times. She also kept many letters, mostly family that give a good history. Unknown to me was that she kept most of the letters I sent her while she was in FL and I was in IL. She had them in a notebook. I had to edit some or toss them as they were too private.

All this is in a box maybe 2 x 2. Told my daughter to keep them in the family. She agreed.

 

[Marshwheeling]

The greater loss is the memories and untold stories extinguished by their passing.

 

[Golddollar]

This is something that I posted in another forum, which seems to have a lot of relevance for this thread:

I've probably done a little of what everybody else here has done.  I had a big sell off when I lost my job in 2009, but I have pretty well recouped what I sold and added a lot to the collection.  Now I have 5 safes full of guns, several cabinets and sets of shelves full of ammunition and reloading components, and shelves full of boxes full of spare magazines.  And then there is the library of firearms related books and magazines.  What to do?

First and foremost, you have to sit down and put on paper how you want to dispose of everything.  If you don't, you will die intestate (term for not having a valid will when you die).  If you die intestate, then your state of residence, using the law of intestate succession under your state's statutes, will decide who inherits your estate.  If you have an irresponsible child or grandchild you wouldn't trust with a gun, too bad, the state will say he could inherit one from you (unless he was a prohibited person under law).

Really give some thought to how to match up your guns and such with your family members and friends.  For me, the firearms library is easy to decide what to do with.  A young man who I call my 'Honorary nephew" (I'm a friend of the family and called "Uncle") is a premier firearms law attorney.  After I go, there will be a truck coming to his office with all of my firearms library (except the manuals that match up with particular firearms I have).  I figure he can use my library in his law practice, and I don't know of anyone else who could better use it.  Why give something to someone who is going to send what you leave them to the landfill?  I do have guns that I can associate with certain persons and I have it set out for them to get them.  And for the things you can't match up with a particular person, locate a good auction house who specializes in firearms auctions.  Leave instructions for the remainder of your collection to be sold through this auction house so that you can assure yourself that your things will end up in a good home of someone who was willing to pay for them.

And of course, nobody will know your collection like you do.  So some means of identification and record keeping for your guns is absolutely necessary.  As I am a complete dinosaur when it comes to computerized recordkeeping, I have to do it the old-fashioned way with pen and paper.  The constant request for money from various organizations has given me a solution.  I take the return envelopes from the begging letters and put the bill of sale and any other related paperwork for each gun in a separate return envelope and write the brand, model, unique identifying features and sometime the serial number of each gun on the outside of the return envelope that has its paperwork inside.  That makes it easy for the paperwork to follow each gun.  Keep these envelopes in a safe and secure place.  

No question, to do this right will take hours if you have any kind of collection.  But once you sit down and do it, I am sure that you will feel a lot better when you realize that you saved your survivors from having to do this during their time of grieving.