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At that point, it will not only not matter to you, you will know nothing about it. (your 3 sets of silver tableware, silver Navajo antique jewelry, and european jewelry)
So philosophically, the older one becomes in old age, the less possessions should probably matter because one will know nothing about them shortly.
I would probably bequeath the above items to someone who might enjoy them or sell them when you are quite elderly.
LOL. I was discussing what I wanted done at my funeral with my wife one day. After going over some things she told me that my funeral was not going to be for me, it was for everyone else and I had no say in it. Since then I have insisted on only two things that has agreed to.
No priest praying over me (which leads to an interesting story about my sister and her son), and the music I want playing.
At that point, it will not only not matter to you, you will know nothing about it. (your 3 sets of silver tableware, silver Navajo antique jewelry, and european jewelry)
So philosophically, the older one becomes in old age, the less possessions should probably matter because one will know nothing about them shortly.
I would probably bequeath the above items to someone who might enjoy them or sell them when you are quite elderly.
Wow, you are absolutely positive that there is no existence after death? Can you prove it? might be a Nobel prize in it for you.
I, and a lot of others, would disagree with you.
I do agree with the "it won't matter to you" part.
...we spend the first half of our life acquiring stuff; the second half getting rid of the stuff...
God made the world round so we couldn't seen too far down the road...
Profound and so true for many...
One of my neighbors must have every Beanie Baby made... her husband simply gave up as his wife was thinking these Beanie Babies would pay for Granddaughter's College...
Dealing in collectibles for the past three decades the observation is that people under age 50 have a lack of passion about collecting things. Hobbies begin with accumulating objects which are affordable and interesting. Even when mass produced they need support of craftsmanship because there is belief of potential appreciation. With passing of time one values the nuances, history, common or scarce availability which has molded one into and informed as invigorated collector.
Younger generations do not find durable as well designed collectibles which remind them of their youth. Little has been manufactured to provide happy memories and nostalgia. Why? Thoughtless design and overall cheapness, from foreign trade which flowed with acceptance of a throwaway society. Hence our disposable culture.
Toss in distractions of electronic devices and obsession with social media, lack of storage space, disintegration of the family unit, paucity of scouting and other youth guidance groups... is it any wonder there is little interest in our old stuff?
Those prices will also dramatically vary by area. I see you're in the Chicago area so your prices may be higher than mine....small town middle of nowhere. Plenty of antiques around here and they say sales are nothing like they used to be. We're seeing antique shops close up here....just not enough customers or buyers nowadays. Big difference between big city. Here it's mostly tourists. Not easy to get home furniture....case of wine is much easier to transport!
It's the same here with shops closing and a lot of them have moved to smalls as well. There are a couple of cool salvage places in Chicago but we recently lost the best one. She had everything. There is also an auction on every Tuesday in Chicago with both antiques and regular household items. That phonograph we were looking for was listed in their items to sell. We recruited a friend who is very knowledgeable about the phonographs and we all drove an hour to preview it. Unfortunately it was pulled from the auction that morning. Doh! Our friend is selling some of his high end phonographs and they're expected to bring around 40-50k. I think he's selling around 10 machines. Of course he has that Columbia we want but it's not for sale.
I love running through antique malls. You just never know what you're going to find. It's a shame that antiques are falling out of favor. Those phonographs are 100 + years old and they still work. You just don't find that kind of quality today.
The spouse fixes old radio gear and stereo gear (although the bulk of his business is old/older guitar amps). SOME of it can be fixed, some of it the tubes are just too esoteric and the only hope is NOS (new old stock). For a great deal of money he can redesign it to use newer tubes, but it's really not worth it. People bring him various old radios and when they find out it will cost several hundred bucks to fix something worth $20-$30, they often decide that perhaps it will be best as a shelf ornament.
Yep you're right. I have a 20's cabinet radio that I looked into getting repaired. We even went to a radio convention to find someone to repair it. I'm hoping to sell it for what I payed for it 40 years ago. It actually worked when I bought it for twenty five dollars. It's just too cool to throw in the trash. Hopefully someone will want it and bring it back to life.
The phonographs on the other hand are much more valuable. Especially the rare ones. Some can go for 15k to 20k. There's something about turning a crank. placing the needle, and having some 20's Dixieland swing play from something so old. Magic
Yep you're right. I have a 20's cabinet radio that I looked into getting repaired. We even went to a radio convention to find someone to repair it. I'm hoping to sell it for what I payed for it 40 years ago. It actually worked when I bought it for twenty five dollars. It's just too cool to throw in the trash. Hopefully someone will want it and bring it back to life.
The phonographs on the other hand are much more valuable. Especially the rare ones. Some can go for 15k to 20k. There's something about turning a crank. placing the needle, and having some 20's Dixieland swing play from something so old. Magic
The problem with old phonographs/record players is finding a needle/stylus replacement (also some of the belts are hard to find, as far as size and correct durometer material). There are some people who make new equivalents for popular brands.
We have an radio cabinet (very Art Deco, lots of marquetry) that we bought for $5, missing most of the internals. It is slated, in the great list of Stuff That Should Be Done Some Day, to be turned into a liquor cabinet.
I had a great aunt that lived a very simple life... she did have things important to her and at 85 moved to a retirement home... the family paired down things very quickly in that she was limited to what she could take to the retirement home.
It was causing this otherwise upbeat and dear lady stress...
I stepped in and said I have a single detached garage and would be happy to store anything she wanted and I did...
Over the following years I would let her know of a family that could use a dining table of chest of drawers... even her refrigerator... SHE WAS MORE THAN HAPPY TO GIVE THEM TO SOMEONE THAT NEEDED THEM.
Her stress was caused because others were making decisions for her and putting NO value on her feelings or her belongings...
I believe this is very important and was glad to have been able to help... I still have her 1959 Rambler, the only car she had ever owned... when she was alive a couple of times a year I would pick her up with it all clean and polished and she was beaming...
The problem with old phonographs/record players is finding a needle/stylus replacement (also some of the belts are hard to find, as far as size and correct durometer material). There are some people who make new equivalents for popular brands.
We have an radio cabinet (very Art Deco, lots of marquetry) that we bought for $5, missing most of the internals. It is slated, in the great list of Stuff That Should Be Done Some Day, to be turned into a liquor cabinet.
That kind of thing can be great for hobbyists, etc., but it's not that useful as-is.
I tend to know a lot of older people... still nice being the "Kid" after all these years.
When I bought my home it was from the original owners and almost all the neighbors were original and ranged in age from 70's to over a 100... actually two neighbors over a 100.
I've seen the joy they have when a grandchild takes an interest in them... could be looking at an old album or grandpa helping to repair something that is broken...
Sadly, they are slowly passing... but so far none have gone to retirement homes except my sellers.
He had some tools and supplies in his workshop... I know one of the reasons they accepted my offer is because of the time he spent showing me some of the things he had made... contrast to one of the offers where the couple kept talking about all the junk and clutter... where as I asked if he would even consider selling his bandsaw and welder... the last things they said on the day I got the keys was they know the place is in good hands and gifted me the tools... the same ones I had asked to buy.
The older you get the more time you have to reflect and no one wants to be irrelevant or worse... something to get rid of or deal with...
Last edited by Ultrarunner; 02-07-2018 at 11:51 AM..
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