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San Diego, California Almost everyone is a collector. Look around. Someone you know may have collected matchboxes. Another person may have collected masks, magnets, coins, or yes – even baseball cards. My friend with 120 magnets on her refrigerator is as much of a collector as the person with 20 masks from throughout the world on his wall or someone like me who has collected for years. We are all collectors, because the items we collect mean something to us. Collecting is intensely personal, and what may be meaningful to one might be meaningless to the other. That is why collecting is unique. The only person you want to please is yourself. Don't get me wrong. I take a great deal of pleasure in my collection, and likewise, I am very pleased when individuals and groups of people share what I collect. I had a silver spoon in my mouth for collecting because my mother never threw away my baseball cards or comic books. How would I know that by the time I reached my teens I was already a marked collector. My collection has now turned into a museum composed of three galleries: Sports, presidential and historical, and celebrities and entertainers. I have authored a weekly column on collecting for nearly three years, am a frequent speaker on collecting, and have been the subject of many media documentaries. Even collectors become the object of collections. Coins, lunch boxes, books and Bibles, postcards, fountain pens, autographs, dolls, sheet music, baseballs, milk bottles, Disney items, and playing cards are all hot collectibles today.  Million dollar baby: The Honus Wagner card is the Holy Grail of collecting, valued in seven figures. Nowadays collections truly span the spectrum. Men and Collections by Brian Jenner features stories about people who collect such obscure items as signposts, sugar packets, military vehicles, lawn mowers, valves, and rulers. But that is indeed what makes collecting so compelling – you create your own rules and boundaries. The collecting craze mushroomed beginning in the 1950s and into the 1960s, when people became attracted to items of the past and especially to trivia. Television shows such as Antiques Roadshow and Jeopardy or board games like Trivial Pursuit cashed in on the nostalgic feelings of the past. I cannot stress enough that you should collect because you want to enjoy the process. You should have fun collecting. Sure, collections can be used as investments, but enjoy what you are doing. After you have had a hard day at the office, walk into your house, and look at a few collectibles on you mantel. Your attitude might quickly improve. You might even get lucky. Maybe your mother never threw away a Honus Wagner baseball card. Maybe you still have Wilt the Stilt's rookie basketball card. Hey, how about the person who took apart a picture frame only to find an original copy of the Declaration of Independence. Take this advice. Collect what interests you. Are you interested in sports autographs, record albums, or presidential photographs? You need to consider as well how accessible your collectible items may be. Sure, you may have an interest in old coins, but how many do you think you can collect? Likewise with old presidential photographs. Not too many photos were ever taken before the Civil War. So be practical. Select a collectible that lends itself to being acquired, such as playing cards, baseballs, masks. Another consideration is monetary. Will you be able to afford your collection? Even if you can afford, lets say two or three jerseys, will you be happy? Or do you want 20 or 30 jerseys? Of course, you don't have to buy all your items at once, but you surely do not want to have to refinance your house merely to keep up your collection. Other considerations include where you will be keeping the collection, and how you will display your prized possessions, the cost of insurance for this valuable asset. There are many ways to collect, including auctions, estate and private sales, and even flea markets and garage sales, as well as a myriad other methods. Each way is unique, with its own advantages. Why do people collect? That can be the subject of several columns and even more sessions with a psychiatrist. Why do I personally collect? Not a tough question to answer. Collecting takes me back to the past. Enjoy the journey. Jeff Figler is one of the nation's most prodigious and astute collectors. The San Diego Union-Tribune called his collection one part Baseball Hall of Fame one part Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame and one part Smithsonian West. He lives in San Diego with his wife, Linda, and can be reached at
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