Treasure Hunt

When I was a small child, my grandfather collected coins. He had tons of them; boxes and boxes of coins from all over the place and all different periods of time. He also collected coins for each grandchild, starting with the year they were born. I had a small tub full of coins from 1985 and on. I never really thought much of them- actually I thought it was kind of boring. I think back now, and I wonder how far those coins traveled before they ended up in his hands. How many hands did they pass through? How many places around the world did they travel to? What small treasure did they buy for someone?

As I've grown older I've had a yearning to collect something interesting. Something with history behind it like my grandfather's coins. So a few months back I began looking for things I would be interested in collecting. One of my favorite hobbies is photography. I've always loved taking pictures and I'm usually the friend with the camera when we go somewhere. So I decided to collect cameras. There's nothing else with more history behind it than an old used camera. Thinking about all of the hands it could have passed through, all of the memories it may have captured is fascinating. Thanks to Nick, I have a small collection of 3 or 4. He loves thrift stores and yard sales, so he usually brings me home some lovely treasure to add to the shelf. So far, most of my cameras originated in the late 1960's to 1970's, but I'm going to take the hunt more seriously and start searching for older ones.

This is something that really interests me, so hopefully I will actually stick to it. I'm so bad about starting projects and losing focus. I know it is so cliche, but being in a new place makes me want to do things differently. I have so many ideas that flow through my head constantly, and I never just let loose and let them out. It's mostly laziness, but I am really going to work on not being so inanimate. But that's an entirely different subject for another day.

So far here are the few cameras I have. I would have taken my own photos of them, but my camera is dead at the moment, and in the move I have misplaced my charger.

Kodak Instamatic X-35 produced 1970-1976

Magimatic X50 126 Magicube produced in the 1960's

Polaroid Colorpack II produced in 1969

Of course, I have more current style cameras as well. But those are boring, and have only been used by me. So I decided to only post the ones that are considered collectibles. I'll post more as I collect them. I may even try to find film to fit, and see if they still work!

Update! Sort of...

So here I am- moved and settled in Jacksonville, FL. I really don't have much to say at this point. I've spent my first week and a half inside unpacking while Nick is working. I just felt like I needed to post something. I love my house. Now that I have all of my stuff, it is really starting to feel like home. The first week I felt misplaced, if that makes sense. I was in an empty house by myself for most of the time. I didn't go anywhere because I hate to drive, especially by myself. So I sat here with the animals and waited for Nick to get home everyday. Now I am almost completely unpacked, and I feel more comfortable. I think I am nesting. I do this whenever we move. I turn into a little hermit, and all I want to do is stay inside until everything is right. I don't want to be around people. I don't want to go anywhere. I barely even speak. I want to arrange and rearrange my things until it feels like home. I think I am the true definition of a homebody. I LOVE to be at home. And if my home isn't a place I can come to for peace and serenity, then I will not be happy. Some people say that a house is just a place to sleep, but not for me. The place I live is so much more than that. So I'm nesting like a little bird. Nick thinks I'm sad. I'm not sad. I'm just in my head right now. I shall return when my home is right. And I will return with pictures!

Side note: We did take a little walk the other day. We walked about ten minutes down the street to all of the shops and restaurants. It gave me that big city living feeling. It was really neat. Like I mentioned before, I hate driving. So this will be very convenient for me when I am home by myself.

Strange Things Come in Strange Packages

I don't like talking about religion. Unless you are around a thousand people that believe the same way you do, it's just not a fun topic. When someone brings this subject up, I can feel my temperature rise and my muscles tense up. It's worse than talking about politics. I don't like arguing (or debating, same thing) with people. I don't see the point. I don't see the point because there is no point. Most people hit a certain age, and they are pretty grounded in what they believe. Debating an issue like religion does nothing but cause bad feelings. I'm getting nervous just typing this, but I felt compelled to do so.

Religion is tricky. You grow up believing something because your parents told you that's how it is, and your parents are never wrong. But then you actually grow up into an adult, and life happens. You realize your parents are as human as you, and you wonder if they really believe all of the things they tell you. You watch all of these bad things happen to people you love, and it sucks. You read about all of the crime, war and hatred in this world, and it sucks. You watch people, young and old, suffer and die, and it sucks. That's the only word for it all. Life freaking sucks sometimes. So you start questioning everything you have been taught. You question the man upstairs. You question the man downstairs, and you question all of the men around you. Why in the world would someone create such a horrible place and allow these things to happen?

That is what happened to me. I've really struggled with my beliefs the last few years. I used to believe in so much. I used to believe that things happen for a reason. I used to believe that the good triumphs the bad. I used to believe we were all destined for something great. Then life happened. And let me say it again: Life freaking sucks sometimes. So for the past year or so I have really taken the time to figure things out. I've let go of the fairy tale stories we are told as children, and reached into my own heart for answers. For a while, I was comfortable with what I learned. It made sense to me. But I still had a few nagging questions that I just couldn't come to peace with.

That is where I was two days ago. Friday night I had to work the closing shift at Belk. It's tax-free weekend, so we were opened until 10:00. I was the only person there from about 6:00 on, and it was AWFUL. So I'm stuck behind the register for a good two hours when a woman and her two children approach me to check out. Long story short- she hadn't used her Belk card in a while, and I had to open a new account for her. She ended up waiting for about 30 minutes, so I gave her some extra discounts for being so patient. She was probably the nicest person I have met in a long time. I could tell she had a deep spiritual connection because she kept using phrases like, "Oh what a blessing!" and talking about how great the Lord was. We talked a while and I told her a little about myself- I lived with my boyfriend; we were moving to FL next week, and tomorrow was my last day. One thing that bothered me at first was that she asked me why we weren't married yet. I told her we just didn't have the money, and we were happy the way things were. I waited for a rude remark or a judgmental look like we usually get from religious people, but there wasn't so I relaxed a bit. She told me she wished me many blessings on our journey. I said thank you, finished bagging her clothes, and she left.

When I got home I told Nick about it in passing. We didn't talk about it much, but I couldn't get that woman out of my mind. The next morning I returned to work. A few hours into the day, I received a phone call from her. She told me she had something for me, and would drop it off around lunch. So I waited kind of nervous about the entire situation. When she got there she handed me a gift bag with a really nice study bible in it. She told me that she prayed for me the night before, and that she felt compelled to buy me a gift. She then went into a little spill about how harsh the world can be, and how mean people can be, but not to let that come between myself and God. She also told me to find a church that taught the love of God and scripture, and not all of the nonsense you hear about these days. It was the strangest thing.

All of this time I had been struggling with a few questions. Nick and I have been wanting to find a church to go to, but have been so turned off by the way people preach these days. We don't want political views and end of the world scare tactics stuffed in our faces. And my main struggle hasn't been with my spiritual connection, but with people. People turn me off to religion- the hate, the anger, the judgements- it's horrible. Why would anyone want to be a part of that? I keep my beliefs to myself. I pray and talk to God when I am alone. I don't feel the need to broadcast it to the world or try to get everyone I know to believe in the same things I believe in. But that woman did something for me that I have needed for a long time. She restored my faith in people. I don't know if God sent her to me or if I was just in the right place at the right time. I don't know if it was God talking through her, but I will be forever grateful. She answered my questions, and gave me hope. I have found the peace I was looking for.

By the way, her name was Tammy Steinberg. And if for some strange reason she reads this, I just want to say thank you.

Gypsies

*Side Note: This turned into a total rant. I was going in a totally different direction, and got side tracked. I apologize if it is hard to follow.*

After only a little more than a year, I am packing my bags and leaving this place I almost called home. I will be relocating to Jacksonville, FL in less than two weeks. I'm extremely excited. Tuscaloosa was sort of a let down. The school, the culture, the "bigger" city- none of it lived up to the expectations I had when moving here. But maybe that was my problem- I had expectations. I've made a few really great friendships that I know will last a lifetime, but other than that I'm glad to be going. I welcome adventure and change. Some people don't adjust well with change, but I enjoy it. I don't get attached to things very often. And as long as it's on my terms and my time, I like stirring the pot every now and then- mixing things up a bit.

I have a cousin that moves all over the place. He never stays in one place too long. I've only recently had the chance to get to know him, yet I've admired him for years. I once asked my dad what he did for a living. My dad told me he was a gypsy. When my cousin was a child, my dad lived with his family for a while. My dad was a total badass (in the good and bad way) and was always on the move. The way my dad told the story was that they were hanging out in the yard when my cousin asked my dad what he did for a job. My dad told him he was a gypsy. Supposedly after that my cousin wanted to be a gypsy too. So that is what he became- a gypsy.

I recently had the chance to verify the story with said cousin. Once I got a little older, and especially since my dad has passed away, I have come to question his stories. My dad loved telling tall tales. Everyone knows it. So it's hard to know which stories were true, and which ones he told just to "pull our leg." But low and behold, the story is true! Which leads me to my next belief that this gypsy living must run in our family. I've always had the same urge to just go and live. A person is always weighed down with the standards of life- finish high school, go to college, get a job, get married, have kids, grow old. But that has never been a part of my plan. I used to want to be a wife and mother. When I was a teenager it's all I ever thought about. I think it had more to do with the fact that I came from a "broken" home than anything else. But once I got older and lived on my own, I realized there is so much more to life than that.

I want to live outside of the box. I want to travel the world. I want to breathe the different atmospheres. I want to struggle and learn, and do all of the things people think I'm crazy for doing. I think that is one thing that really turned me off to Tuscaloosa, and my hometown for that matter. I had so many women make snide comments about not being married when they would find out that Nick and I were just living together.

"When is that boy going to marry you?"
"He better hurry before someone else sweeps you off your feet."
"Nick, when are you going to propose to that poor girl?"

No one ever took into consideration that maybe this poor girl didn't want to get married yet, and that Nick had already swept me off my feet. I think this has a lot to do with why we haven't married yet. We want to. Eventually. But we don't want to do it just because we feel pressured by society. No one ever stops to look at US. No one ever watches us together to see how happy and in love we are. They just look at my left ring finger, and judge me for not wearing a ring. When in reality, our relationship has survived more and is stronger than most marriages. We are married in our hearts. We are committed to one another. We are in this for the long haul. We don't need a sheet of paper to declare our love. We know how we feel about one another.

And that is why I'm so happy that I get to go on all of these adventures with Nick. He's my soulmate, my right hand man, my partner in crime. He has the same dreams that I have. He has the same passion for life and living that I do. We may not do everything the traditional way, but that is what makes our life so much fun. That is what makes our love so strong. We get each other.

So we're moving to Jacksonville. We'll get jobs. We'll make friends. And we'll wait for the next adventure to come. Then we will pack our bags once again, and continue on our way.