Joy of Collecting

                My experience with diecast dates far enough back that I can honestly say that I do not remember where life without cars ended and life with diecast vehicles began.  I am too young to remember the original redline Hot Wheels, although I am sure my father probably had some as a kid.  I missed out on much of the old Corgi castings and vintage models that Hot Wheels turned out throughout the seventies.  But shortly after I was born, someone began saving cars for me.  I remember turning four years old and finally seeing the massive wooden case that stored the collection of cars and trucks.  What followed were days and weeks of playing with my cars under a tree, building dirt roads and making tunnels under roots.   I really have no idea what happened to most of the cars I had, although I suppose they became too worn out and my parents simply threw them out.  I really don’t regret that I didn’t keep them nice and packaged up;  I can’t honestly say that I wished that I’d kept track of them either. 

                Several years—and one newborn son—later, I found Hot Wheels again.  I’m not sure why.  Maybe it was a need to connect back to my own childhood, perhaps I wanted my son to share the same joy I did when I was younger.  Regardless the reason, I started collecting in 1998.  At first, I collected what I liked.  Then came the treasure hunts and first editions, the limited cars and internet exclusives.  Pretty soon I was buying castings I hated just to fill a series or set.  I’ve since corrected myself and I’m much happier collecting only what I like.

                My son is four years old this year.  I let him open several cars that I was waiting for him to see.  He likes them, though not as well as his Zoids.  I’m not disappointed; hey, he humored his old man as we played with the track set he has.  We share many days hunting for cars at the local spots, and he’ll insist I buy certain ones that meet his criteria of cool.  He always wins out too.  I took him to a flea market the other day and my heart skipped a beat—there on the table was a Split-Window ’63 Hi-Raker.  I had one of those when I was his age!  When he told me he thought that it was “wow-cool,” I just had to buy it.      

                I hope everyone has found such joy collecting toys.  I have some family that view my collecting as a waste of money.  If all they see is the money, then that is sad.  I see an opportunity to spend some time with my son and do something we both enjoy.  Those opportunities—I’m told by those older and much wiser—are so preciously few and far between.   

 --hwcrash