FIRE HELMET
This is actually my grandfather’s fire helmet. He was the fire chief in Green Bay and a firefighter his whole life. My mom has a bunch of his stuff and she gave this to me recently since I always loved it. I didn’t know my grandfather that well (he died about 10 years ago), but it’s nice to always be reminded of where you come from.
Hobbit Book
My uncle gave this to me when I was 9 years old. It was one of the first fiction books I remember devouring and would eventually lead to a life-long love of books. The craziest thing is that this is my uncle’s original copy, bought way back in the 1960s. So, as you can see, the book has some serious wear-and-tear.
Gaming Computer Setup
I was a big gaming nerd when I was a teenager. And I suppose it’s inevitable that boys, when they grow up into men, they finally get to indulge on a lot of the frivolous stuff they always wanted when they were young. For some guys its cars or sports or whatever. For me, when I moved back to the US and finally had a stable income, I wanted to go out and buy the PC gaming system of my 19-year-old’s dreams. It’s pretty sick.
Ovation Guitar
I used to want to be a musician. I used to own 5-6 guitars and practice hours and hours a day. Eventually I dropped out of music school though and sold off all of my guitars except for this one. I sold most of them because I was broke when starting my online business. It’s a shame but I don’t regret it. I barely play anymore. But looking back, I think my failed dreams as a musician prepared me well for becoming a writer.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
This is my new book. I guess this is cheating. But considering it’s my first big book with a publisher and it became a bestseller, it’s a pretty big deal to me. It still hasn’t completely sunk in yet, but I imagine looking back, it will be a milestone in my life.
Samsonite Suitcase
I spent about six years traveling and living around the world. This is probably my fourth suitcase (the other ones broke due to all of the baggage handlers throwing them around). But I like to keep these security stickers on it. They’re like battle scars proving how far and wide this thing has gone. Sometimes check-in agents will try to tear them off and I freak out and yell at them not to touch them! There are stickers from airports on five different continents on there.
