Collecting Pleasures

Collecting can be easy, simple, enjoyable, bring much pleasure and fun as well.Sometimes though it can  become serious,time consuming,taxing,create rifts and friction etc.The bottom line is there are two sides of it so choose wisely.Sadly though many get dragged into the path which brings more unhappiness than joy or pleasure.So, the question is, how come?
Collecting is all about fun so first and foremost you got to decide on what you gonna collect, it should be the items that you fancy most.There are a host of things you can collect, its your call, i for one started collecting fishing reels some time back, in fact i collected anything related to fishing,some encouraged,some sceptical and some critical  but i remember this particular incident when i was buying a vintage fishing reel, a curious vintage watch seller said" Apa lah main mesin pancing, ni bukan antik, orang tak main benda ni, orang main jam tangan lah, ni baru antik"( reels are not antiques,watches are, and people dont buy reels as antiques), i just smiled and said that, i enjoyed fishing very much(at that time)and loved fishing stuffs and that i respected his view.
A few months later when the  Berita Harian GP joran boom hit the country, every angler wanted vintage reels and lo behold, the bloke who told me off about collecting fishing reels offered me a nice reel for a reasonable price." Nak jadi cerita kan".
So lets see what you can collect

M & M collectibles(worldwide collectors)

cigarette tins( there are many different types of sizes, shapes,brand names)

Playing cards- i know a nice gentleman from sarawak who collects airline playing cards,

coke collectibles.

oil lamps

watches and the case/box as well( watch pic missing though)

Woodart- This pic was taken in one of my mentors place in cherating,Pahang.Awesome guy!Awesome Art!

Porcelain items- Check out the Antique Porcelain Collectors FB.Amazing collectors with much passion.

Coin Box- there are older castiron/metal ones mostly given out by the banks.(u can see one at the background UMBC(plastic).My Friend Mr.C  is a ardent coinbox collector.

Airline related items- the items in the pic are from the old MSA( malaya/singapore airlines) before the split

Police/Military items

The list is endless.You can collect anything under the sun if you like and have the money and time to spend on it.One last story to share before i sign off is about the same bloke who told me off about collecting reels.He continues to trade for a living in the same place and guess what does he sells these days besides watches/clocks? CEREK ELEKTRIK( ELECTRIC KETTLE)!  i met him last month and enquired whats the story behind the electric kettle? he answered" SEKARANG ORANG KOLEK NI !
I asked him" NI ANTIK KER?( is it antique?)" he replied" BUKAN KIRA ANTIK,ATAS PADA ORANG NAK KOLEK"( its all up to what one wants to collect).My oh My.What a wonderful world!

AIR LAMNED@AERATED WATER INCORPORATED

Aerated water is fondly known as air lamned among the malay community in Malaysia (Boleh).Just walk into any kampung and ask for ayer lamned and they will oblige and show you one.The local kingpins of the Aerated Water without doubt has to be FRASER AND NEAVE PTE LTD from the Straits Settlements.They continue to rule to this very day and the logo of the mighty LION serves justice to it.

Anyway there were also other players aka competitors, the small timers, the posers,the short lived ones, the underachievers and the obsure and forgotten pretenders.I remember purchasing a pamphlet on the local aerated water companies, it was more like a case study and if i am not mistaken, it was compiled by Mr.Megat from Kuala Lumpur.It was more on the bottles and practically covered  almost every state in Malaysia.I was fascinated by that and started to collect items related to the aerated water industry.Bottles were hard to come by but glasses were in abundance, advertistment were also quite easily available as long as you showed them the MONEY!., bottle openers, coasters, trays, etc.You just name it.

Lets look at some of the items.

Can you identify the logo? Name the company please.

THe mighty F & N product 500ml and 285ml bottles

285ml F & N orange krush and namesake glass

Ideal Aerated Water Old Kuala Lumpur.-soda water,sasaparilla,gingerbeer,orangecrush n ice cream soda.

Coke coasters with partly hidden coke plastic cup

Penang Pesta F & N promotion  voucher.

Got  the voucher(got extras) from a chinese gentlemen who sadly had to vacate his home which sat on a piece of land earmarked for development.He let me go through a stack of items which he wanted to throw away, the vouchers were actually a "cover" for a stack of "bizniz cards" from neighbouring Thailand.

F & N sharpener and plastic cup

7 UP Family size bottles

I think  i will  save the rest for future postings.To sum it up, Aerated Water collectibles are very cool and create an old feel deco when you display them right..My Frens Mr.Halim and Mr.Lan from Perak are masters in  Aerated water deco.Nice guys with a sharp eye for interior deco oldschool style.

Adios.