A Pop Culture Tour: from childhood to today

The more I write about childhood, the more I realize I’m still a child at heart. Ironically, it took a long time to get there. When so much of one’s life is spent in various college degree programs and in the necessities of living (mortgages, car payments, yuck), we can forget the simple joys of life.

I’m a pop culture and nostalgia junkie. I thought I’d share with my Blog readers (thank you, you loyal few!) some of my interests. Let’s do it with pictures! It wasn’t until this spring and summer that I really redesigned a few parts of my home to showcase my inner childhood. It took me until age 35.

My favorite horror films and fun figures

My favorite horror films and collectibles of the horror villains get two special shelves near my fire place. I organized this little collection as I began writing a new novel this summer, the one I'm trying to get published, which I would consider to be my love letter to horror stories. Pennywise from It, Michael Myers from Halloween, Jason, Freddy, and the like: How can you not love all of these? 

Game of Thrones

 Perhaps my all time favorite television series and one of my favorite book series: of course Game of Thrones earns several spots in my home. On the left, two more shelves by my fire place showcase the books, movies, and collectibles.

And there's this gem, a hand made work of art personally created by one of my best friends.

Movie/Game Tower of Nostalgia

I have a large, spinning movie tower and I decided to devote some of the shelves to my favorites.

One top shelf hosts my Rocky Blu-Ray collection, along with some pretty sweet Funko figures of the Rocky characters. 

Below Rocky, Gizmo sits proudly displaying the Gremlins (and the Goonies, not everything fits perfectly). Gizmo even dances and makes his signature sounds. Am I a geek or what?

Below Gizmo, Slimer found a home by Ghostbusters and several other Blu-Rays.

And of course I have Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, guarded carefully by Shredder and Leonardo.

And I can't forget the video games! Mario Kart and Mario Party earn top shelf in the game selection!

Below Mario, I had to give a little tribute to Pac-Man!

The other shelves are just rows and rows of movies and games, but over time, I hope to create lots of little displays like this on my tower of fun :)

The Man Cave of Nostalgia 

And then I have an entire room devoted to pop culture favorites. As you walk up to the man cave, you are greeted by characters from Star Wars, Daenerys from Game of Thrones, Iron Man, and Spider-Man. 

When I was a kid, I had some strange idea that unique soda cans and bottles would be very valuable some day. I've put a few on display here. Below that, I have a Michael Jordan autographed hat, an Everclear t-shirt signed by all the members in the band, and a Nolan Ryan autographed baseball (he was my favorite player when I was young).

Then I had to find a home for my oldest wrestling figures. Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, Jesse the Body Ventura, Hillbilly Jim, the Junkyard Dog, and more proudly stand, with all the beatings and bruises they took from my childhood.

If you're up for a game of chess, Monopoly, or Yahtzee, we'll play over here, where more Mario nostalgia awaits.

And of course there's an original Nintendo Entertainment System along with a few of my favorite NES games: The Goonies, Mario Brothers, Friday the 13th, and the Karate Kid. 

There's a lot more to this room and to my inner nerd who loves to hold on to and now proudly display current favorite entertainment and those favorites from days past. 

They all inspire me in different ways, and they help me reflect on a time of innocence and the joys of childhood, which will all be part of future stories I write. I hope you've enjoyed my little tour, and if nothing else, you certainly know the kind of gifts you can get me if you ever feel so inclined. I do love presents.

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