I don't do the holiday decorating at our house.
When I was single, I was lucky if I opened the Christmas cards that came in the
mail. Daphne is the one who is passionate about getting our house into the
spirit. If Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day, or Easter is
near, you'd know it by looking inside our place. It is a lot of work for
her, but I know Daphne is making warm memories for Charlotte.
I only make two contributions during this time of the year. One of the
decorations that I add to the mix is my Twinkle Twee (and no, that's not a
typo).
This plastic tree stands 18 inches tall, is lightly covered in glitter, and has red, green and blue colored light bulbs that flash intermittently.
It's a simple apparatus, but if I had to
name one item from my childhood that symbolizes the Christmas season, this
is it. I can't remember a Christmas in the 70s or early 80s without Mom's Twinkle
Twee flashing in the living room. Those were the good Christmases: the ones
when everyone was still alive and still pretended to get along.
I asked if I could have the Twee when I got my
first apartment, but Mom said no. If I wanted to see the Twee at Christmas, I'd
have to come home to see it. That was fair enough, so I went Twee
hunting.
The problem was I couldn't find one. There's a good chance most Twees didn't make it through very many holidays. The Twinkle
Twees were first produced in 1964, and over the years the plastic can become brittle
and crack. Also, it would only take one game of indoor football or one drunk
uncle for someone to fall on it and crush the Twee like a paper cup.
The Twee prices on eBay have gone through the roof.
How is that possible? Who else would want one?
I don't think it’s possible to predict what will be
collectible in the future. What will be worth more: a Justin Bieber concert
poster, my daughter’s collection of Squinkies, or your old flip phone? Only time
will tell. I can tell you that if something says "Collectible!" on the
packaging, then don’t believe that. It will never be worth more than what you
paid.
You also can't believe popular trends. Two decades
ago people were convinced that Beanie Babies were a solid investment. Certain
“collectable” Beanie Babies were being sold for thousands of dollars. You can
now buy them on eBay by the pound.
What I have noticed about vintage, collectible
items is that they were once popular, and at one time anyone could have bought
them. Since they were commonplace, they were considered disposable. Most of
these items were replaced, thrown away, and forgotten. Then a new generation comes
along and realizes why these items were popular, and they want one for
themselves. Problem is, they are now scarce. Some examples include Frank Zappa
vinyl records, first generation iPods, and 1980s mopeds.
For others, these items represent a happy time in a
person’s life, and they want that item to help them relive the past. Different
motivation, but same problem. What was once common has now become scarce.
So it was with my Twee. I had given up my active
search about ten years ago, and that’s when I found one. I spotted a Twinkle
Twee on a top shelf at a local antique mall in the middle of July. The price
was $19.99, and I didn’t hesitate. I drove home with my new collectible in the
passenger seat and an unstoppable grin on my face. I was in the Twinkle Twee
club.
When I walk around our house during the many
holidays, I wonder what item will remind Charlotte of these times when she is
older? What will she want to take with her to her first apartment?
I guessing it won't be my other contribution to the holiday decor.
If Charlotte wants to enjoy my 1959 LP of Christmas in Hawaii by The Surfers, she'll have to come back home to do it.
Side note: Like most people, we walked through a lot of houses when
we were house shopping. One of the deciding factors if I liked a house or not
was the mental question, “How will it feel to walk down these stairs on
Christmas morning?”
What I was really asking myself is, “Does this
house feel like home?”
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