Did anyone ever carry around unusual things?

[Coupe]

I was just wondering if anyone else here ever used to carry around unusual or unexpected items with them when they were kids. I used to carry around a lot of unusual things as a kid. I'd mostly carry around stuffed animals, but I'd go thru periods where I'd become attached to one (or several) objects and choose them to take everywhere.

Some of these items (for me) were:

- Plastic toys; mostly of my fav cartoon characters...like Pongo from 101 Dalmatians, little bendy toys of the Lamb Chop characters, Barney in a raincoat, Baby Bop in a toy car, a rubber squeak toy of Piglet from Winnie the Pooh, Super Mario, the dwarfs from Snow White, Simba, Nala and Zazu from The Lion King, Cookie Monster in a sailor suit.....I think the most random of these was the detached head of a toy "Keypers" animal from the 1980s that I got as a hand-me-down from the girl who babysat for me sometimes.

- Totally random stuff like a yellow plastic baby spoon, a hardened lump of green Play-Doh, a tiny copy of the New Testament, a keychain of the woman from Edward Munch's "The Scream", a 1996 Disney page-a-day calendar (I used to love flipping through it and seeing all the colorful pictures of various characters and stills from the movies themselves! ), a Toy Story flip book, big yellow balloons with Simba from The Lion King on them (leftovers from my 2nd birthday party, I think), pinwheels

- Various rocks and stones I'd pick up from going on walks or to the park

Anyone else?

 

[Naturalist]

I had a three-inch Breyer stablemates Arabian stallion that resided always in my fist or pocket. Then I became obsessed with Incas, and carried around 5 Peruvian beads which were marked with different symbols; at that time I think I ceased to speak English periodically in favor of my own language which I pretended was Quechua. When I was obsessed with Geology I always had a lump of pyrite and one of silver. Also, randomly, I had an old skeleton key to which I was very attached.

In middle school and high school, my special interest was writing so I always had a bound journal in my hands. Then as an adult for a time I did a lot of sketching, and never went anywhere without a sketchbook and watercolors.

I still have all those items, except the bound journals with my writing which I destroyed once when I felt sad...

 

[The Penguin]

I once carried around this baby wooden alphabet block. This was because I found one outside and kept it in my pocket.

 

[royinpink]

These. If accompanying my mother shopping, by the end, I would have full handfuls and pockets of random plastic crap:

sock hangers

zip ties

tag fasteners

There were probably other things. Rocks and stones, as you mention. A rabbit's foot. I forget what all.

ETA: I almost forgot! Formica and paint samples. Mesmerizing.

 

[Peace]

Colorful little toys, and rocks. I always carry a rock in my pocket. I still don't know why.

 

[Harrison]

I have a piece of quartz I found in a river 40 years ago, about an inch big. I think I've worn the sharp edges off it now. I also have a little buddha figurine (the fat laughing one) that goes into every vehicle I've driven or flown.

 

[Peace]

Funny, I have a plastic Jesus with a broken hand. It was my grandmas.

 

[AsheSkyler]

For a long time, I had a little bracelet I made out of those nylon loops from the craft aisle. For a few years I had a small toy frog I took with me everywhere.

Nothing too unusual now. Keys, wallet, phone, pocket knife, lighter, finger nail clippers. Most consider the lighter the odd one out since I don't smoke.

 

[Naturalist]

These. If accompanying my mother shopping, by the end, I would have full handfuls and pockets of random plastic crap...

There were probably other things. Rocks and stones, as you mention. A rabbit's foot. I forget what all.

ETA: I almost forgot! Formica and paint samples. Mesmerizing.

Royinpink, I love the visuals!! My son does this too. He comes home from shopping with the most bizarre treasures in his pockets, I love it. He has gotten in the habit of giving the things he finds to the shop owners lately. One store associate paid him $1 because he found a pair of scissors they had been missing!

I always loved the sound of the formica chips on the display at my aunt's interior design shop. And I still hoard paint sample cards. I would love to have one of the Pantone color sets...

 

[JuniperBug]

I don't think I do this unless you count the bag of trash I carry around and call my purse. Haha!

Interesting topic though. I'm pretty intrigued by how many sock hangers and tag fasteners there are. I used to chew on things like that a lot cause I'd find them while cleaning my room. Actually, to be honest, I would probably still chew on them -.- lol.

 

[Nitro]

I always carried a round shiny metal object and carried it everywhere.
There was a forever quest to improve it by polishing it even more.

 

[Nitro]

These. If accompanying my mother shopping, by the end, I would have full handfuls and pockets of random plastic crap:
ETA: I almost forgot! Formica and paint samples. Mesmerizing.

In my younger years,we had a club we attended that used Formica chips as drink chips and often would stop by a hardware store to grab samples to drink for free
Another club used complicated rusty stamped steel objects as their chips. The club owner told me how ingenious it was as they would be impossible to duplicate. About a week later,I had set up machine tools to duplicate them and then acid washed them to get them to rust. After they rusted for a few days in water,I put them into a rock tumbler to get them to wear on the edges and put 500 more in circulation.

I love it when someone tells me something is impossible

 

[Nitro]

Funny, I have a plastic Jesus with a broken hand. It was my grandmas.

 

[whale_bone]

Well... I had a security blanket, which I called "my special blankie." I very much relate to the character Linus from Peanuts.

I've totally grown out of it.
NOT.

Although I can manage without it in public. But first thing I do when I feel overwhelmed? Hide under Special Blankie.

 

[clg114]

Most men usually have change in their pockets. I do too, along with washers, nuts, bolts and various small parts. I do not have any reason for carrying all this stuff, but it's always there. I just always stick small discarded stuff into my pockets and it has been this way for a very long time. I get some strange looks in stores when I'm looking for change.

 

[Ste11aeres]

In my younger years,we had a club we attended that used Formica chips as drink chips and often would stop by a hardware store to grab samples to drink for free
Another club used complicated rusty stamped steel objects as their chips. The club owner told me how ingenious it was as they would be impossible to duplicate. About a week later,I had set up machine tools to duplicate them and then acid washed them to get them to rust. After they rusted for a few days in water,I put them into a rock tumbler to get them to wear on the edges and put 500 more in circulation.

I love it when someone tells me something is impossible

How had the club made/gotten them?

 

[KinksFan]

I've carried the McDonald's version of Sid from Flushed Away for a few years in the past. I've also carried a dried pea for the entire summer, last year.

 

[KinksFan]

These. If accompanying my mother shopping, by the end, I would have full handfuls and pockets of random plastic crap:

sock hangers

zip ties

tag fasteners

There were probably other things. Rocks and stones, as you mention. A rabbit's foot. I forget what all.

ETA: I almost forgot! Formica and paint samples. Mesmerizing.

 

[KinksFan]

I love those little hooks. I also like both types of paint samples.

 

[Nitro]

How had the club made/gotten them?

I couldn't answer that for you,I suppose they were industrial scrap that Dino happened upon.
I was the president of Polish National Alliance #1930 for a few years and remember the huge amounts of money we made on drink chips from the members who left with them and never returned to collect a drink.We would order them with PNA 1930 on one side and good for one drink on the other to the tune of 1,000 chips at a time because most of them never came back. Every two years,we would retire the old chips,post a notice of the retirement date a month ahead of the date and get a slight few back. The color was the only thing we changed,but because ours were molded a crazy shape with our name and logo on them,the average Joe could not counterfeit them. We usually paid out 20% of the actual drinks from the chips that did get used and put the remaining 80% back in the entertainment fund. I think ol' Dino was putting his profit in his back pocket from his
We went thru about 1,000 chips every three months at a profit margin that was very much higher than selling the drinks