LOL must be a common trend with women, cause mine has done that to me on several occasions too. Probably thinking our buds will poke fun about it, but instead the guys are like "DO YOU THINK I CAN SEE DAT ONE??!!!" My wife is pretty understanding though, since I started collecting while we were still dating. I figure if she really hated it she would have left me a long time ago anyway, lol. My dad was a mechanic and collected all those ertl diecast cars so he knows the drill, and my mom went through all his collecting so she could care less. I think the rest of my family (and my wifes) probably thinks I have a mental disability though
My parents don't get but they do not stop me. As for my girlfreind that i have been with for 4 years and live with she does not care. Hell she has bought me some toys such as MP Skywarp as my birthday gift that year. This is because she has her own toys she collects a bit.
My parents hate it. I still live at home so they can see they stuff often. They always bug me about how I should save more money. Also, I don't have room to display everything. The other day I was going through some stuff to sell and took everything out. I thought my mom was going to have a heart attack. I also buy Marvel figures so I really do have a lot of stuff. When I move out (soon, God willing) they won't be able to bug me. All my friends are supportive, they collect stuff too.
In my situation, ever since my divorce with my ex-wife, I decided to rent out a room at my folks house. They don't really care and they don't trespass my room since I keep it locked when I leave to go to work, but they do have a key to get in my room since the attic is located in my bedroom and they have stuff sometimes they need to get to. My mother won't say anything but she'll notice when I get constant packages at home and I'll hear her once in a while say to me "quit ordering so much" "you have too much".. I'll laugh it off with her and she'll just give me a smirk back, so no big deal. My father is never home so he never does see how many packages are mailed home. When I was my ex-wife, she tripped whenever I received a package. We had money saved and all but she hated it when I bought or ordered figures.... and no we didn't divorce because of my hobby, if that would of been the issue, I would of quit collecting to make my marriage happier.
My parents don't really give me much hassle - they know that it's just a hobby, and I never seem to be hurting for money because of it, so it's not a problem. My fiancee used to give me a little grief, but she's since embraced it wholeheartedly. Now, at least a portion of the figures on display are hers (both TF and otherwise). Even when we go out for dinner or something, if there's a Target or Walmart or something nearby, we'll go on a little toy-hunt together. My brother is the biggest problem, but he's an older brother, so it's kind of in his nature to be a douchebag my nephew, however, thinks I'm the most awesome uncle because of my TFs. My friends are all geeks, so I really don't get guff for my collection. Some of them even call when they're browsing to ask what I know about such-and-such a character, if I need him for my collection, how rare he is, etc. Some of my closest friends are even fellow TF collectors (one of them makes my collection pale in comparison).
My wife is the one that encouraged me to buy Leader Optimus Prime, and then continued to go "Hey he's cool, you should buy him" through the rest of the movies.
Even though I don't live with my parents, I get various reactions when my family visits: Dad: I'm sure he's not too thrilled about it, but he's still very understanding of my hobby. Took a look at my shelf once, even recognized a few G1s that I re-pieced from my childhood when he said "Hey, I remember this one!" A very cool dad indeed. Mom: not as understanding, thinks it's quite immature for a grown (31 year old) man to still be buying toys. Last time she visited, a giant box with Takara MP Rodimus got dropped off and she gave me an earful: "What are you, a baby?" I still joke with my g/f how I should've answered "Baby?! This is a 'collector's item', ages 16 and up bitch!" Brother: probably also thinks it's a waste of money, but keeps quiet about it. Saw my shelf: "Umm, that's a lot more than the last time" (when he visited 2 years prior) G/f: very understanding from the beginning. We started house hunting recently, and she knows I'd need a room/area for my toy shelves
Mom: only ever really gave me trouble back when we didn't have much money but every since our family got back on it's feet, there's been no trouble. I can't say she supports it or likes it, but clearly she's happy that I have something I love. Plus the whole "at least he's not wasting it on booze/drugs/whores". Dad: never really an issue. Stopped livign with him when I was 13 and only realyl reconnected once I was 20 or so, so we weren't really together for the usual ages that parents tell their kids to stop doing such things. Extended Family: No one mocks me for it, and several of my cousins' parents are glad they get lots of hand me down toys from me. I've got two cousins aged about 7 and 10 and I've been trying to get them into robots all their lives. Gave them all my old Power Rangers zords when I was done with them. Co-Workers: I keep a TF or two on my desk at all times. No one hardly notices. The odd time someone drops by and says "Oh I had that dude!" Girls: Honestly, I haven't dated much since moving out and having my display more prominantly displayed. I blame that mostly on moving to a small town to work, where most people my age have moved away for work. ...and I'm a total loner and such, it's not like I'd be a playboy in the city, lol. Anyway... I've never had a problem, sometimes they ask about them, just never mention it. In the end, I can pay my bills, run my household, am as social as I want to be, and enjoy a hobby - if anyone gives me trouble I can walk it off easily.
Ok let's see here, my mother supports it whenever she's at the store she stops by the toy aisle to see if they have anything I'm missing. My brother who lives att either end of the country looks for stuff for me and ships them out. My dad is a carpenter and is in the works for my display cases. Last but not least, my girlfriend gets mad if I don't share with her.
I'll have to break this down into different categories of people as well as providing an honest answer for each one: Mother: My mom doesn't like a lot of things about me, which is different from the love a parent gives their child. She's just the type that would rather mold me into someone that I'm not. She's never been a big fan of my writing pursuits, my hobbies, my girlfriends, my friends, my sense of humor. She's always making some kind of negative comment regarding my appearance such as my full-figured beard. She also fails to notice any positive changes in me. Father: My dad is quiet about a lot of things. He doesn't really give me flack for anything. I think it's because: (1) I have a full-time job, and (2) I have my own place. It's not really his business to criticize me for the things that I do, especially if they're not getting me into trouble. Brother: Doesn't say anything. I honestly don't think he cares. Relatives: None of them really know. Friends: Most, if not all, of them think it's a cool hobby. Some have warmed up to it over time, while others are super interested from the start (especially the fact that I also customize them). Girlfriends: I'm currently single. My recent ex of 2 years thought it was neat, but it was too overwhelming for her to follow. My ex before that berated me for some of my nerd hobbies. I've never really had a nerdy girlfriend per se, but I think that's a characteristic I'm going to shoot for next time. It makes things a lot easier. I feel like such a closet nerd around other types of women. Co-Workers: I don't go out of my to tell any of them. My Cats: They don't really have an opinion. They sort of just sniff them when they get up-close. I think I'm going to just make it a point to surround myself with people that are positive about hobbies and interests. I'm a nerd, regardless of my toy collecting. If it's not this, it'll be something else.
Realistically, the trick to defending yourself is looking at the useless shit that person buys for themselves. Women: - Get their nails done - Get their hair done - Have multiple, multiple bags - Have many multiple pairs of shoes - Have multipe pairs of Sunglasses - Over ambundance of Jewelry Men: - Workout equipment they don't use - Golf equipment they don't use - Electronic equipment that gets replaced every 6 months for the newer better So all you need to do is say, "Listen, I may collect this, but you *choose an item from above* and spend a fortune on it. You enjoy that, I enjoy this."
Mom: Outside of the usual "wasting money" concerns like all moms usually have, she's supportive and does her best to understand my hobby so she knows what to get me for Christmas. For example: she once stole my collection manifest to figure out what toys I didn't own, and that year one of my presents was Universe 2.0 Sideswipe. Another time she remembered I'd said something about "Classics Thundercracker is rare and valuable" when I was trying to explain the concept of repaints (due to her noticing Acid Storm and Starscream were the same toy in different colors), and that year I got Animated Activators Thundercracker because she thought it was who I was talking about. She can also use my collection as a bargaining chip (unfortunately, since I have some valuable stuff like Aveo Swerve and a 1984 Sixshot that I prize dearly) if she needs me to do something, so it works both ways for her. Dad: Like mom, he'll do the whole "wasting money on toys" thing, but he also likes ribbing me vebally when he gets the chance. Thanks to him, I will never think of Drift without having SO many puns being able to be made about his name. He is supportive as well, though, so I can't really complain. Sister: she does the average teenage female thing: ignores it. However, she does like to work with my mom in trying to figure out what to get me for Christmas (I'm the easiest to buy for, obviously), and usually she gets me some awesome stuff like Ani. Leader Megatron. Friends: I have one die-hard TF fan as a friend, and my other friends don't mind it. Roomates (I'm in college right now) - Don't seem to care that I've got Warpath, Thundercracker, or RTS Gold BB on my desk.
Definition of family? Parents? Spouses, inlaws, extended family, e.g. cousins etc? Well my wife thinks, "ok as long as I don't have to stare at this stuff in the main living areas." Parents - really don't get a say as I'm an adult and I support my family (knocks on wood in this economy)
Both of my parents don't mind it, they understand it's a hobby as they have theirs, dad has his flowers and my mom is books. Now as for my sister well, she couldn't wrap her head around the hobby it self, as in her own words she told me why, what for. But then when she started collecting Willow Trees statues ( told her more then 2 you have a collection) she opened up more to my hobby with TFs and other collectibles
Parents: hate it. Want nothing to do with it. Sister: fine with it as long as I don't buy too much. Friends: think it's awesome. Girlfriend: N/A Pets: know to stay away from it.
