When Is It Time To Walk Away From The Hobby?

I've been in this hobby a long time. A long, long time. Like many of our readers, and others in the community, I started collecting the second the modern line returned in 1995 (with a few very temporary, and ill-conceived breakups along the way). For the first twenty years, I would constantly say that the hobby would quit me long before I quit it. In 2015, it looked like I was right. It was a miserable time. Having such a big part of who I was for twenty years ripped away from me evoked pangs of despair that I can only compare to a very reduced version of losing a loved one. Same emotions, just exponentially less intense.

Then in 2018, not only did the super articulated 3.75" line return, but the Vintage Collection as well. After some early stumbling, and a fairly big scare in 2020, the line has been chugging along for six years and shows no signs of slowing down. But now I'm slowing down. When the modern line launched, my adult brain wasn't even fully developed. I was still doing the stupid, irresponsible things of youth. Now I'm becoming a caricature in one of those Progressive "turning into your parents" commercials. So I have to now confront the possibility that my initial proposition was wrong. I may have to choose a time to exit the hobby.

Because 2015 was so painful (and 2020 as well), I've had a mind to go out on top like John Elway. I don't want to face another Dark Times. It's why I said I should quit the hobby after 2025, which ranks as one of the greatest collecting years for me personally. But I couldn't bring myself to walk away when the most important anniversary in pop culture history was right around the corner. So then, does 2027 become a good jumping off point for someone who should probably be prioritizing other things in life? But then it would only be three more years until the anniversary of Empire, arguably the greatest Star Wars movie. Wash, rinse, and repeat until Jedi, which is my favorite Star Wars movie (but A New Hope has been rapidly closing that gap as I age). There's a reason for me to stay in this almost up until my retirement.

One of my biggest concerns is that I can't keep accumulating in perpetuity. It's not practical. I'm not going to get a storage unit. I did that once, and I vowed to never do it again. So when do I make my exit? I've given it a lot of thought. And I've come to one unfortunate conclusion:


I'm going to do what a lot of long term collectors settle into. I will just focus on the entertainment that truly inspires me to collect. That means OT (and associated nostalgia) first and foremost, PT, video games that I love (KOTOR and the Jedi series), and publishing that I love (HTTE). To battle the "accumulation" issue, I will start moving on from pieces that are outside of those areas (especially carded samples).

I think we all consider our collecting mortality from time to time. We all have that sense that we can't keep doing this in perpetuity. It's something that's been weighing on me because I don't really want to have to give this up. So I'm going to do what I can to extend my run as long as possible.

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