I Have an Embarrassing Amount of ____________________________________________! (We Won't Judge -- or Will We?!)

Hey Everyone,

I've recently noticed that, unwittingly and not on purpose, I have amassed an embarrassing amount of -- scissors.

Not counting the several pairs of specialty scissors and shears (at least 8) I have from my sewing and crafting days (once you go Gingher, you'll never go back!), I started to wonder if I was experiencing a bit of Obsessive Compulsive Scissor Accumulation (OCSA) when I realized I have scissors:

* in the kitchen (a specialty pair for food of course, then two pairs for regular utility work)
* at my kitchen table, which doubles as my desk (2 pairs in case I have to open a package/envelope while sorting through paperwork)
* by my bookcase (2 pairs because you never know when you might need to cut a zip tie off a box or trim something up)
* in my bedroom (1 pair for opening pesky containers and cutting off tags)
* in my bathroom (1 regular pair for cutting down beauty product tubes and scooping out the last drop; 1 specialty pair for cutting my own bangs)
* in my car (I have a specialty pair for cutting through seat belts in an emergency)
* And I really need to put a pair in my storage area, because who doesn't need a pair of scissors where they store things!

The thing that makes this a bit embarrassing is that yes, I could do just fine with say, 2 pairs of all-purpose scissors -- but the truth is, I'm too lazy (and get too annoyed) to have to go to another room and get them when I'm in the middle of a project and need a pair of scissors RIGHT NOW.

So for now, I guess I've decided that scissors are cheap and practical enough to justify having multiple pairs scattered all over my living space. (I'm thinking that might be kind of a fun game if friends came over -- hide all my scissors in each room and see who can rack up the most points by finding the most!)

And the thing is, I'm starting to do almost the same thing with frying pans -- even though I don't particularly like to cook!

It's just that I'll need a new frying pan, then find a deal on a pack of 3... And since I find it irritating to have to wash the same pan several times a day -- I'd rather use several pans, then wash them all at the end of the night. I also like to have several things going at once -- eggs in one pan, vegetable in another, sauce in the next, and finally boiling pasta in a fourth (I know the real cooks here will yell at me but I saw it on YouTube -- and since I cook a small amount for one person, it sure does cut down on the boiling time.)

And the next thing you know... I have an entire cupboard stacked top to bottom with frying pans -- for just one little person.

Does this seem kind of excessive or worthy of judgment?! I don't know, but for now, it just works!

What about you?

* Is there anything you can't bear to be without, and simply MUST have multiple versions available, always within arm's reach?

* What are your reasons for justifying spending the money on/taking up the space for so many of almost the same thing?


I always like hearing about how and why different people find different things to be necessities -- I'd love to hear what YOU have amassed an embarrassing amount of, and why! (Justify my hoarding by telling me I'm not alone!)

Dishes! I caught the bug from my mother, I blame her. We joke that if a tornado comes through here we're in big trouble. I have a set for every season. Two sets for holidays. So for early fall I have large sunflower plates, the set, that I put out. Pumpkins for later fall. I justify it because they are dollar store dishes. But hubby now calls it the "hundred dollar store". One day hubby was fixing a shelf on the wall and it fell on the table and broke a couple dishes. He was so upset. I said " no big deal, I have two more, they're only a dollar". lol

The thing is we never eat at the table! So the dishes are just for show. I never thought I would be married, much less have a home of my own. Wow, got a little weepy there. But God blessed me with both husband and home in my later years. So hubby says whatever I do to decorate upstairs is my business and he has sports stuff downstairs. But he has a good eye. So together we've found our decorating theme. And he's ok with the dishes. Bonus is when my nephew got married they had nothing to start out with and I had plenty of dishes to give them, and some other things to help them out. I do also have a lot of season tea towels and oven mitts to go with my plates, naturally. And that's all I'm admitting to.

Oh my, still laughing about this. As I underwent home care for my surgical wound, every visiting nurse left me a pair of scissors. They are the small kind, you know the ones, no doubt, and some are still packaged in their thin transparent plastic wrap. They also left bandaging material I have not been able to bring myself to dispose of either. On top of all the medical scissors I have, I have many pair of different sizes in various shade of purple and magenta. Then I started ordering things from Temu last December, and saw that they had these Multipurpose Craft Scissors with Titanium Blades... so of course I had to have them. They came in a package of three different sizes. My apartment is rather small but I have scissors of different sizes in every room. I definitely prefer using scissors with the thumb side.

We had a house full of nice furniture in our early years. Over the years most of it has gone to the children and grandchildren. We still have a few dishes, beds and recliners, and a dining room table. Mama says that we have a place to eat and sleep, that's more than we need.

I recently had to buy a new clothes hamper because our four legged daughter drug her blankets into the old hamper and now claims it as her bed. She also claimed one of my blankets.

This is awesome!

Sometimes it's just really nice to go ahead and spend the money on beautiful, well-made things (I love furniture!) It also sounds like this was definitely worth it, seeing as it's getting a second home with your other family members. ❤️

And it's great to hear that your "four-legged daughter" has even found her own special piece of "furniture" to claim as her own, too.

Oh my.

Magenta has just given me a severe case of "Scissor Envy." I love the multi-colored look of titanium and have been long looking for an excuse to add something made from it into my collection...

I've perused several kitchen utensils but can't justify needing any of them at this moment.

But SCISSORS. Who couldn't use yet ANOTHER pair of scissors??!

I don't want to say that Lady Magenta is enabling me, but... I'm thinking she just gave me a good excuse (and maybe even permission) to acquire yet ANOTHER pair of scissors.

I'm a lefty, I can hardly ever find a good pair of scissors.

Danger! Danger! Danger, Will Robinson!

RoseLamb is DANGEROUSLY close to unleashing the part of me that has always wanted to collect an entire collection of seasonal/holiday-themed decor, most likely in the form of tableware because it seems the most practical. It's just that... They come out with such CUTE things every season!!! BUT, I don't have the space, budget, or family to justify it so...

I've been trying to calm my compulsions by amassing a small collection of holiday/seasonal kitchen towels (which I use and oddly wear out frequently, even though I'm not a cook) which happily requires replacing a few every now and then.

I have a few neighbors who also enviably switch out their outdoor adornments with the holidays and seasons, inciting my inner cravings to start collecting such cuteness with wild abandon! So far, I've managed to curb this too by selectively acquiring a decent selection of window gel clings:



To my delight, they're cheap (often on sale or discounted with a coupon at craft stores!), don't take up much space (I can fit my whole year's collection in one box!), and happily, eventually disintegrate in the sun, therefore justifying the delightful challenge of hunting for "just the right ones" the next year!

When I wrote this thread, I was thinking of something along the lines of coffee mugs, because I've known even single people who live alone and yet have a coffee mug collection that looks like this:



I now have to remind myself NOT to pick up coffee mugs from places/events/organizations that are giving them away for free (unless it's a REALLY special mug,) and have pared down my stash to a regular rotation of about 5 all-time favorites.

My #1 morning Coffee Mug of Choice is a Purple Minion whom I've affectionately named, "Charlie."




As you can see, Charlie doesn't do mornings, but I am very much a morning person, so he mostly sleeps while I go about gearing up for the day.

Sorry. In this particular instance I am a very boring person. I don't have any big collections at all....

My wife does the scissor thing too, one at the kitchen table, one on the counter, and one on the coffee table.

There was a time many years ago when I was a night owl but these days I am very much a morning person. I got several coffee mugs but I like my YETI's - one for home and one for when I'm driving.

*Seoulsearch eyeballs The Cat.*

What about music, computers, and electronics? 💿🖥️

I only have as many computers as I need. The ones I don't need anymore, I find homes for.

Music? You can have too much music? My grandmother often asked me what I was going to do with all that music. Um... Listen to it?

I do seem to have an awful lot of flash drives at any given time. But they come in handy. Actually my stock is running low and I need to reload at Amazon soon.

I always have a pair handy to scratch my back with .

I’m not embarrassed at all about my collections… though I would only admit to being a collector of toy cars. The rest are better termed “accumulations”.

Tools. I buy them when they go on sale (or at garage sales) and have them later when I (or the neighbours) need them. I do need to build more storage for them….

Model airplanes. I have a shelf full, both built and unbuilt.

Musical instruments. Eight so far, considering the drum kit is only one. My most recent acquisition is a copper doumbek (Arabic hand drum) for $13 at a thrift shop.

Books. I had many even before seminary, during which I had to purchase dozens. I still acquire a few each year. I even read some of them.

CD’s. I prefer hardware-based music to cloud storage. I will likely inherit my Dad’s music collection in the near future. I may need a winter to listen to it all and decide what to keep.

DVD’s. For the same reason as music.

I also support my wife’s cooking habit… er, hobby, which requires its own accumulation of items.

And yes, I have several pairs of scissors.

I must ask, what is the secret to scratching one's back with a pair of scissors without hurting yourself?!

Tea. And this isn't even all of it.

I love hearing about people's collections and the stories of how they got started, etc.

And toy cars are cool!! I don't mind stopping and looking at the Hot Wheels if I'm in the toy section.

Do you have any with working parts? (i.e., the doors and hood really open, etc.?)