I'm basically like Ariel

So, we've all been there right? You find something you love and suddenly you have 100 of it. So you call it a collection. My nan collects spoons and owls. It just so happens that my favourite utensil is the spoon, and I also love owls. If she ever tired of her collections, she'd be screwed, because every year she is bound to get more owl paraphernalia and spoons from family members.

Then there's me. I like collecting things just to have collections. Seriously. The idea of having a collection really excites me. It's like I'm in my own little club and I have a cool collection. I also love clubs. Sure, the dancy bar kind, but more so the kind that you join membership to. Like a craft club (note: I am not yet part of a craft club, but I have a name for myself if I ever join one.. Crafty Cat*), or a book club (which I am a part of and LOVE).. or a cool kids club. Those exist, right? If someone ever wants me to sign up for anything, just call it a club, and HECK YES I will join. Can we take attendance?

Whoa. Anyway, sorry for getting all excited there. Back to collections. More specifically, my collections.

I've had many, many collections over the past couple decades.

1. Rocks. I still collect rocks. I have some rocks from France on my bookshelf right now. How cool is that? Way cooler than when I used to steal rocks from other people's front gardens. Also, I wish rocks would stay the same pretty colour as when they are wet. For a child there is nothing more disappointing than taking her rock collection from the stream out and realizing that they are all dull grey. Not shiny and pretty. However, I did have a real rock collection. With amethyst, fool's gold, tiger's eye, quartz, marble, amber and so many others. I loved it. And I still have it. I used to love going to this one store when I was a kid and picking out my next rock.

2. Tabs from cans. What? Why? I don't remember. But I collected them. Maybe they used them to make wheelchairs? I had a shit ton of them and then threw them out when I was tired of them. But I'm pretty sure I held on to them dearly for longer than I should have.. and I didn't make wheelchairs out of them. I also spent a summer collecting beer bottle caps. We won't talk about how many I collected, or what possessed me to collect them. They smell bad.

3. Nail polish. First off, when I was a kid I loved garage sales. Others' junk was my JACKPOT. Much to my parents' chagrin. So, after I bought a bike at a garage sale ($15 bitches) I started going to even more garage sales. Mind you, my memory from my childhood is skewed (I blame it on competitions my brother and I would have to see who could hit their head on the wall harder.....) so I could have only gone to like, 3 garage sales. But I doubt it. So, nail polish. I bought 49 bottles and 2 things of nail polish remover from one lady. Forty nine bottles. And I kept them. And I bought more over the years. I went through a mini phase where I bought mini bottles of nail polish. I still like to collect nail polish, but I also throw old colours away. Maybe some kid can buy my collection some day. And the cycle shall continue.

4. Shit from White Rose. Anybody else remember this place? It was like Michael's on crack. It was this massive crafty type of store and I was in heaven. There was always something I wanted. Like boxes, any type of box - wooden, glass, woven, paper. Or old school candle holders with wicks and oil. Or candles, or even beeswax to make candles. What didn't I need from that place? I wanted everything!

5. Stuffed animals. There's a picture of me as a baby surrounded by a collection of stuffed animals. It was like Where's Waldo. And that's where my teddy collection began. My dad would occasionally bring me back a teddy bear from his business trips too. And then those damn Beanie Babies came around and I was all gaga over those. But there was one condition to this phase - the stuffed animal could have clothing, as long as it was removable. Because duh, bears don't really have tee shirts. They also don't have tags, so those came off too. I still have a couple of stuffed animals in my cupboard: AJ the green bear, Stitch (my old roomie gave him to me), and a tiny dog that my mom got me after I begged for a dog one year.

6. Keys. This started when I was a kid, and I still collect keys. I have always been fascinated by them. Big, small, old, new. I love them all. I recently bought some jailer's keys and adore them!

You thought that was it? No, here are more of my collections: lip gloss (I even made my own), clown faces (not my best moment), stickers (who didn't collect stickers!), photos, denim, perfume and starburst wrappers (what?!).

* When you say Crafty Cat, you have to say it like a Cool Cat that plays jazz. Get it? And do a little head bob and wave your hands.