By Charles Dull

Although this will be the last article regarding hobbies it should not keep you from thinking of your options.  Thus far the hobbies we have discussed have been somewhat physically active. But, your ideas and interests for hobbies can be as unique and individualistic as you are and can keep you at home or take you far away. For those of you who would like a more sedate hobby, you might try collecting something you enjoy. I have known people who collect antique tools, toys, furniture, books, bar badges, and even shoes.  The art of collecting is as endless as the imagination. Budgets will somewhat set the limit of establishing the hobby but not the creativity of it. Put some thought into items that you may find you would like to accumulate and then begin the hunt. But you may ask where do I begin. The beauty is that there can be just as many places to begin your search.

        In past articles I have spoken of swap meets and flea markets, or as the British like to call them, boot sales. This is just the beginning. Once you begin to establish your hobby, you will want to find ephemeral groups. These are often obscure and hard to find, but that is where the glory of technology can be your help mate. The World Wide Web can help you locate these specialist collectors and aficionados. They are often trading items on such sites as eBay or Craig’s list. Let me give you an example.

As tobacco finds its way towards the prohibition list, tobacciana items, antique items related to tobacco usage, are becoming collectable. For example, I collect these tobacciana items. I have collected snuff mulls, snuff tins, pipes, advertisements, bottles, spill planes, Toby jars, and now I am looking for a snuff rasps. First off you are probably going to ask me what is a snuff rasp. Well, many years ago, let’s say 300+ years; most of the tobacco that was consumed in Europe was in the form of short rope tobacco. The rope was then often cut up for smoking in a pipe or could be grinded with a rasp to make nasal snuff. Rasps could be as mundane as a common ginger rasp or as ornate as one carved in ivory or whale bone. Some of these rasps have made it to North America in the early colonial or independent years. Yet, the majority of them are still in Europe. When I get the chance to travel abroad, I look at antique shops and flea markets. I have found them on the internet but the excitement of the hunt does not stop there. Items that are as rare as rasps, or along that vein, are thrilling in to find. Just as rare can be the people that you will meet along the way. This is what makes the physical hunt so exhilarating.

Find the interest that stirs you and fits your budget and then begin the hunt. Get outside, look locally, be an investigator, and learn to look in unusual places. Let the hunt be part of the excitement in the search for your treasures. Once the first steps are taken the hobby becomes exciting. Remember, like with any hobby, have fun.