My husband has complained for 50 years about the fact that his mom "disposed" of his collection of sports cards and comic books when he left for college. He's not alone in his grumbling since often when men of a certain age gather together and speak of their lost childhood treasures, it always goes back to "mom's fault." Wow--what was/is the deal? I must admit I've never encountered any women who lamented that their mom's threw away Barbie dolls, paperdolls, china dishes etc. etc.. So what was wrong with little boys and teenage boys collecting things as ordinary as baseball cards with famous athletes or comics such as westerns, sports heroes, funnies and a few Superman or Batman books? My husband had hundreds of collectibles that he kept in his dresser drawer or the fruit cellar in the basement which never held homemade canned goods. Best friend Dick used to join him in the backyard alley behind the downtown upstairs apartment where the family lived, and they created a "comic book" store where one comic was traded for two with neighborhood kids. This was in a small town, population about 1,000 so there wasn't a lot of activity for young boys. In those days comics sold for 10c at the local drugstore; Dick and D sold used comics for 5c. Some baseball and football cards escaped the housecleaning but none of the comics. To replace them today would cost a lot more than 10c and try as he might, my husband can't even find some of those comics he knows were the most valuable. Over then past few years he has started collecting again so he isn't without a considerable supply! Now, I, as the wife, am not without guilt-----I insisted that he get rid of all of his sport's magazines in an attempt to create a bedroom for one of our boys. Oh oh, I joined the ranks of those wives/mothers who are into a cleaning frenzy, but only as it pertains to the belongings of the male members of the household. My decorating magazines survived the purge!!! However, I did vow that I wouldn't throw items belonging to our three sons-----well sort of. Every once in a while someone will "remember" a certain toy or game and wonder whatever happened to it. Probably sold at a garage sale, boys. At least my mother-in-law donated the cards and comics to a good cause --- the church rummage sale. So is that better?
