Well my call-sign is Darth T-Bone if you haven't figured that out yet.
I have been around for a while in this Star Wars galaxy.
I'll just start with some random memories...

I was Darth Vader for Holloween when I was 5 almost 6 (1978). My mom wouldn't stand for the plastic bag Vader outfit which we bought for the mask. She made me a costume while my dad made me a lightsaber. At that time no one had a lightsaber. It was an old Ever/Ready flashlight - remember the classic all chrome with the red cap on the end? He electrical-taped a clear golf club tube - the ones that go into golf bags - onto the lens. The costume was a fabric cape and a shirt complete with chest box made from a box top covered in fabric and felt squares. Of the 5 or 6 Vaders on the block that year I was the coolest.

Annually, when I was a lad, my mom and I would drive to Nebraska (from Cali) to see some of our family. My aunt worked at a hospital in Lincoln. One day they were having a carnival so my cousins and I went to the carnival. Who else was there you ask? How about Princess Leia and Chewbacca for cool? Hey I was a kid. That was the world to me that day. I had just so happened to be wearing my Darth Vader Underoos shirt - not important now but it will be in a second. I wanted to talk to Princess Leia of Omahalderaan - see clever - but I was way too shy for that. I think my aunt talked to her on my behalf. She walked up to me with the most beautiful smile - to a 7 or 8 year old. She kneeled down before me like she was going to record a message for Obi-Wan. She looked at my Vader shirt and said "Wouldn't you like to walk up and push all those buttons?" - and tickled me a little. On the outside I giggled and said "yeah" - but on the inside I was like "No stupid! That would kill him!"

My mom got drunk one night in her life. NIce start, Huh?(Sorry Mom) It so happened to be the day before The Empire Strike Back was released. For reasons unknown - then - my dad took me that day. He couldn't believe the lines to get into the theater. I couldn'd believe Yoda lifted an X-wing with his mind - or - Vader was Luke's father. What a day to be alive!

That Christmas I scored. I woke up around 3am that morning due to a ruckuss. It was my dad in the kitchen. I was mad at him at the time but he looked at me and said "Guess who I just ran into when I was coming in the door...Santa!" He pointed to the tree and lo and behold a glorious sight. Little plastic bags (a bunch too) with silver garland hooks - each containing a figure and it's corresponding accessory. Plus a shiny new Darth Vader Carrying case - that was on backorder-layaway-hell at Gemco or Sears for months - thanks mom! That right there made up for the last story. I had just about every figure that was around for Empire - including the mail-away Boba Fett with one leg shorter than the other. Only mine was like that I think. Not the rarest of the variations and errors - but unique nonetheless

When I was 13, I sold my vintage stuff to my friend for 15 bucks. I needed cigarettes. I don't want to say anything else about that. On the good side - 15+ years later I found some of my vintage figures - including that Boba Fett! Oh, and I quit smoking 4 years ago.

So where am I now you ask. I'm am married to the greatest woman of all time. Her handle is Pink 7 or Bgirl. When she first came to my apartment I had 2 boxes - about 4' x 1' x 1' - that contained some EP1 figures and the Magic Motion Banks. At that time I called myself a collector. I had no idea I would become what I have - neither did she. We bought a house in 2000. It was a "cozy" 3 BR house built in '62. I used one of the rooms for my computer which also housed my collection. That had now expanded to the Power of the Jedi line - which, ironically, I told my wife I "wasn't going to get into". Oh I got into it and hard. What started as 6 shelves in a corner was now a dedicated room. By the time AOTC came out I was toast! Here's some pics of my old room: Center Shot - Left - Right - here's some of the items - My Lay's 3D Pic window valance - some skate boards - Autographed pic and custom oil painting - Nascar - Darth Maul (as seen on SW.com!) - O.K. that's enough for now - but feel free to go through the albums.

We just moved out of that house and into a brand new house Labor Day of '06. Obviously we needed some room. Now it's not just me folks. my wife has a pretty decent Art and Crafts fetish that includes: scrapbooking, painting, jewelry making and other assorted hobbies - so she has some stuff too! Most of my stuff is in storage right now. I have still been buying since I stopped putting it in storage. I have way too much - scratch that - someday I will build a structure that can show it all.