Jim's Cafe - Wednesday, October 9, 2024 "keepsakes"

[Angie]

Hello SF family, I hope this find you well.

Before today's question, I want to say a few things.

First, I am so happy that many of you are enjoying the Cafe. It's a nice break from our main thrust of emotional support. Second, I want to repeat that anyone can start a Cafe, I just started because it wasn't being done and I felt the need was there. Third, about tagging, tags are fine, but I want to reiterate that EVERYONE is invited, whether tagged or no.

So, what about keepsakes? Do you have something that means a great deal to you that might not to another person?

Movie or concert stubs, books, jewelry, your grandmother's candy dish?

 

[Angie]

I have two books from my childhood. I was horse crazy as a little girl, and I have two "coffee table" type glossy picture books of horses.

Bit silly, but I've kept them all these years.

 

[FFurry]

A pocket calendar from (too many) decades ago, back when these used to include good-sized sections of all sorts of other information -- everything from abbreviation/acronym lists and the periodic table to facts about countries and a small color atlas of the US and the world (the real prize 👍)

Nowadays, you get all this (and then some) on your cell phone, but despite the staggering assortment of functionalities, you get none of the charm of those pocket books 😥

 

[Lane]

@1Lefty @Road to Nowhere @MisterBGone @silly kid ;P @SillyOldBear @Bergerac @Lisa the Goatgirl @Astrid78

 

[Lane]

@AmberMarie @iloverachel @Innocent Forever @mosaic hearts @Harrow @Winslow @nicktheundoer @LumberJack

 

[Lane]

@AvidFan @cymbele @Auri @toomuchreality @JMG @KM76710 @seabird @Livelife

 

[Road to Nowhere]

I have my great-grandparents' rocking chair, the original Star Wars sheets, and a Snuggles bear.

 

[Lane]

Thank you for opening the cafe Angie. I have a few keepsakes.

A Vermont Teddy Bear my exhusband gave me 37 years ago. I call her Mama Bear.

My pocket book and little bible from when I made my first communion.

And pictures here, a girl ornament my oldest daughter made for me when she was a baby and cowboy boots that both my sons wore when they were little boys.

 

[JMG]

Tysm for tagging me @Lane , and for posting a cafe for today Angie

I have LOTS of keepsakes (I’m a bit of a packrat I guess, lol) but I guess some of my most precious are the gifts that were given to me by a special someone. I’d always wanted to be treated as so special like that, so it means more than I could ever say that they were so thoughtful and took the time to do that. There’s other things too of course but those are the first that came to my mind

Some more tags: @Witty_Sarcasm @Holding my breath @Dante @Sassy Cat
Think most or all of the other regulars have already been tagged lol :p

 

[Citizen Insane]

Thanks @Angie for this cafe! I'll try to make one new cafe this week, it will probably be "Jims Cafe of the Future" or something Sci-fi futuristic theme maybe. Or where do you see the world going in X amount of years and such.

I actually have a digital keepsake, which sounds weird. I have kept a digital folder for some music albums from iTunes and other sites back in the day.

Those mp3/m4a files are the one consistent thing I've kept with me for albums that are super special to me since 2006 or so. And it has been moved from Hard drive to other Hard drives many many times. Still listening to those albums each week! They're basically what defines me for a big part.

 

[SillyOldBear]

My favorite bear, Rudi. We have been buddies for almost 38 years.
Also a couple of small toys that I have had for over 60 years. A small donkey and a porcelain horse.

 

[Aurelia]

Hello SF family, I hope this find you well.

Before today's question, I want to say a few things.

First, I am so happy that many of you are enjoying the Cafe. It's a nice break from our main thrust of emotional support. Second, I want to repeat that anyone can start a Cafe, I just started because it wasn't being done and I felt the need was there. Third, about tagging, tags are fine, but I want to reiterate that EVERYONE is invited, whether tagged or no.

So, what about keepsakes? Do you have something that means a great deal to you that might not to another person?

Movie or concert stubs, books, jewelry, your grandmother's candy dish?

I used to have 2 ticket stubs to AFI from 2009. Actually, I think it was a stub and a ticket because my ex never came with me to that. I lost them somewhere, though. But it's okay, I actually kept them just because they were my favorite band, not because of who I went with or anything like that, since I went alone. They're just ticket stubs, when it comes down to it, so I'm not upset or anything. I still have the memory itself. Aside from that, there's a stuffed snake from the zoo when my brother and I went together. He urged me to get the snake because it looked cool. I still have it sitting on my bed with me. Then there's also a stuffed seahawk with a French fry in its mouth from wildwood that I won. My brother was also with me for that. There's a small rock that says "faith" that I picked out and my brother bought for me right before I went inpatient into the psych hospital a couple years ago. The voices were worse back then and other hallucinations. And there are various other Christian keepsakes that mean a lot to me.

 

[LumberJack]

I have two books from my childhood. I was horse crazy as a little girl, and I have two "coffee table" type glossy picture books of horses.

Bit silly, but I've kept them all these years.

I’m still horse crazy lol, I don’t know why. I have only been around them every so often, but I find them calming to be around and it helps me get outside of myself. It must be a thing, because equine therapy is pretty much just hanging around with them I think

 

[LumberJack]

My most prized possession is a little jade elephant statue (figurine?) that I used as a worry stone in rehab. It’s small enough that it could fit in a one inch cube. It symbolizes the relationship between my partner and me. Jade is a type of rock that is prized in Asian culture, and the elephant is a symbol of Thailand, where he is from. I would hold the little elephant in my pocket and rub it between my thumb and forefinger as a self soothing action.

I had to empty my pockets at one point, because it is protocol to have to be checked when returning back from an excursion. So I wasn’t accused of anything, but it ended up with me placing my little keepsake on the table. The guy checking my stuff picked it up and immediately set it down. He apologized about that. Based on his nonverbal cues, I think he could tell it was sacred.

Maybe I gave him a look, or something, but I think that loved objects can sort of absorb certain vibrations for lack of a better word. I think I can feel the emotional charge of something very important by being near, and I wonder if that is why we love museums. Go spend some time in front of a Michaelangelo sculpture and tell me you don’t feel something.

Anyway, it got me through a rough time. Rehab was not terrible, but I had tried to withdraw from alcohol at home and it wasn’t working. I was cycling between booze and weed. I found weed the hardest to quit because I was miserable without it, until my brain had a few weeks to adapt. So that was the point of rehab for me; I needed to be in a place where I couldn’t just go out and relapse when the withdrawal got tough.

 

[LumberJack]

I used to have 2 ticket stubs to AFI from 2009. Actually, I think it was a stub and a ticket because my ex never came with me to that. I lost them somewhere, though. But it's okay, I actually kept them just because they were my favorite band, not because of who I went with or anything like that, since I went alone. They're just ticket stubs, when it comes down to it, so I'm not upset or anything. I still have the memory itself. Aside from that, there's a stuffed snake from the zoo when my brother and I went together. He urged me to get the snake because it looked cool. I still have it sitting on my bed with me. Then there's also a stuffed seahawk with a French fry in its mouth from wildwood that I won. My brother was also with me for that. There's a small rock that says "faith" that I picked out and my brother bought for me right before I went inpatient into the psych hospital a couple years ago. The voices were worse back then and other hallucinations. And there are various other Christian keepsakes that mean a lot to me.

I had a ticket stub from a Social Distortion show that I managed to get signed by frontman Mike Ness. Dude was so genuine and chill. I mean he was the exact same person onstage and off, and he made it a point to hang out with fans after the show. I eventually parted ways with my ticket collection because I decided that I have the memories an i can let go of the physical artifacts.

I think that it was my involvement with music overall that made the difference for me between turning out relatively stable and giving into my symptoms.

 

[Lisa the Ferrociraptor]

Thanks to @Angie and @Lane.

So, what about keepsakes? Do you have something that means a great deal to you that might not to another person?

Movie or concert stubs, books, jewelry, your grandmother's candy dish?

I have a lot of things like that. A few random examples: an owl and a teddy that my nan made. A chessboard my dad made, and a family heirloom chess set to go with it. Old toys from when i was a kid. And a couple of photo albums that were entrusted to me by my nan.

 

[Aurelia]

I had a ticket stub from a Social Distortion show that I managed to get signed by frontman Mike Ness. Dude was so genuine and chill. I mean he was the exact same person onstage and off, and he made it a point to hang out with fans after the show. I eventually parted ways with my ticket collection because I decided that I have the memories an i can let go of the physical artifacts.

I think that it was my involvement with music overall that made the difference for me between turning out relatively stable and giving into my symptoms.

When I was completely wrapped up in hallucinations and delusions, all I could do was lay and listen to music. In a weird way, my new way of seeing the world somehow made music so much more beautiful. It helped me get through that time, even though nothing else made sense anymore.

 

[AmberMarie]

Thank you for opening again @Angie and the tag @Lane

i like the tags because they tell me when something is new that i wouldn't normally see.

i have only a few things that mean the world to me. They make me smile when i see them. One in particular is a guitar that probably should never be played again as its cracked n such. i am sure it's older than i am... my dad played it ALL the time. Instilled my love of music.

 

[Livelife]

I have many many of these kinds of things Everything from nice childhood memories to momentos from adult experiences and events. It's making me sad to think about this topic at the moment so I'll share some specifics later on.....

 

[Auri]

I have many things that would qualify as keepsakes, so I'll just pick a few randomly. ^^

I have a nice family of plush animals from all sorts of places (a squirrel, a bunny, a fox, an owl, a pig, a penguin).

I have a few guitar/bass picks from concerts.

I have almost every card I've ever gotten - birthdays, Christmas, Valentine's, etc.