If you’re looking for something to fill part of your Saturday with, and you’re in the Sioux Falls area, come check out the Comic & Toy show from 10am – 5pm at the Ramkota Exhibit hall, where you’re sure to see something your parents threw out after you moved out:
Since I’m trying to downsize in preparation for a move out to the Hills in 2026, I’m going to be one of the vendors hawking my wares to try to reduce the amount of my “stuff.”
I don’t really need that old ’70’s Star Trek action figure set in the box that I thought was nifty, but picking that kind of thing up in my travels is symptomatic of being brought up by an antique shop owner/auctioneer.
The 2016 Donald Trump “Road to the White House” bobblehead isn’t something I’m going to display on my mantel either, so that and the other speculative buys can also get cleared out of my closet.
Used to be when I was being drug along by my mom to look at collections to buy or doing personal property auction sales, she would get excited when we got to sell someone’s collection of Hummel figurines. I can’t say that I feel the same way about ceramic figures.
Anymore, those have become a meme for the stuff people don’t want to inherit.
People nowadays are mainly after items they remember fondly from their own childhood. For example – one of my holy grails – at one point my antique-dealing mother traded our jukebox (as pictured on the left) for a roll-top desk. Yes. She traded the UFO bubble top jukebox we had in the basement & played with (in perfect working order) for an antique oak roll-top desk, which she later sold.
Fast forward 45 years, I know which one I would prefer to have. The family jukebox actually did come up on an auction estate sale about 10-15 years ago, but I wasn’t so flush with cash at the moment I was going to drive to Pierre to unsuccessfully bid on as it cruised past $1000 or more. *sigh.*
But, that’s why people go to shows like this to seek out the stuff they used to have. It reminds them of the less complicated days of their youth. It’s nostalgia for simpler times.
So, if you’re looking or something to do tomorrow, don’t mind a blast from the past for the things you used to have as a kid, and get to see how much that thing was that mom threw out is worth now; come check out my booth as well as all the other vendors at the Sioux Falls Comic & Toy Show tomorrow (Saturday) from 10-4 at the Ramkota Event center.
Pat, I want to thank you for posting this. Whenever my wife accuses me of being a packrat, I’ll just show her this post and say, “But, but, but, it could be worse. You could be married to Pat Powers and all of his toys!”
Pat, I feel your pain. So much good stuff to part with.
More than 20 years in the auction business removed a lot of my need to hold on to “stuff.” If you’ve ever seen Hoarders, I’ve been involved in a couple of clean outs of places like that. And I’ve seen families get in actual scuffles over mom or grandma’s junk, which is even sillier.
It’s just stuff. You can’t take it with you.
But Pat, I’m trying to! 🙂
I gave a Rotary presentation on my political button collection (most complete set of South Dakota political buttons in existence) and a buddy came up afterwards and asked if my kids were going to want this collection. I said “of course they will”.
My friend has a large and valuable antique collection. He said “you’re lucky, my kids don’t want any of mine”!
So I asked my kids,,,,my friend is closer to right than wrong.
A good Lenton lesson about not accumulating so much “stuff”
I collect vintage Star Wars and I am lucky that my son enjoys my collection of movie posters and figures. See you at the show.
And I did have a chance to chat with Herman. Good to see you!
Like Herman, I had the opportunity to chat with Pat for a few minutes too. Even though we don’t always agree on the issues, Pat couldn’t have been more friendly and engaging. Thank you for being such a genuinely decent person. It’s all too rare in politics.
What’s brining you out to the black hills?
I know a guy with quite the collection of “stuff.” Might have to open a museum.