I wonder if you realize that just because your family bought some trinket (or whatever) for money some time in the past, it doesn't make it special. "Look, honey, my grandgrandfather wasted his money on this piece of junk. He was very susceptible to salesman pitches. He was also a lottery ticket buyer. A drunk. And he beat his wife. Boy, I'm glad I turned out better."
Now, if my grandgrandfather crafted a piece of jewelry, that makes it more interesting than throwing money on something someone else made. It's because of pure informational value. It makes it an object that can be studied, that can inform us how people thought and what their approach about something was. That makes it more valuable than the trivial "they had the money and they lacked the imagination to start a business or buy something useful, or do something else sensible, so they bought this crap here".
But actually most family trinkets don't have a history worth retelling. Usually it's some variation of poor people collecting money and buying/ordering this "symbol" and imagining they "made it", because they now have this thing here, a symbol of success and sophistication. Actually, I think this clip from Pulp Fiction about sums up my feelings about "family jewelry" well:
It's a sign of thinking primitively (of course, not that I blame the poor people clinging to bullshit, but it's nothing to tell the world about). De Beers and co. have made billions out of idiots buying tiny useless crystals as status symbols.
Sure, you can always put some family jewelry in a cupboard and leave it there to make an interesting conversation breaker (hey, my father kept this watch in his ass for 5 years!), because those usually are worth little to nothing on the market anyway.
Suggesting that if I don't respect the sentimental value of trinkets, so I can focus all my attention on "market value" and selling them is just some straw man you think you're oh so clever to pull off on me. But no, the market doesn't care about your ass watch. Nobody cares. You shouldn't either.
But to see someone who really puts great importance on such stuff, even to the point partially basing their self-worth on what their ancestors did (or didn't, as a matter of fact) is a big honking warning sign. Because if you keep looking back, you'll create much less to look forward to.
Focusing on the past too much is the reason why even generations do all the work, and odd generations spend their life "being proud of their families".
It doesn't matter if you're Einstein's grandgrandgranddaughter or Hitler's grandgrandgrandson. All you have left is some family property (if that), and a silly name. You have to make your "name" on your own. Your worth as a human being is not hereditary.
There are two kinds of people, those telling stories, and those making stories. Those telling stories are a commodity. I like this one: "1% of people make things happen, 9% of people notice what happens, and 90% are unaware of what happens."
By the way, I'm done explaining the basics of life to you, I have better shit to do. See ya.
P.S.: You should've read this post in Christopher Walken's voice.
Thanks for explaining the basics of life to me. Thanks to you, I've learned that
a) A hypothetical story about a hypothetical great-grandfather apparently invalidates the value of family heirlooms
b) crafted items are valuable because of the information they hold, which inform us how people thought and what their approach to something was. Their purchasing patterns, however, tell us absolutely nothing about how they thought, what their approach was, or what types of things they valued.
c) Having family heirlooms which were foolishly bought back in the day is primitive thinking (and a sign of being poor). If your will isn't one hundred percent cash you are wasting everybody's time.
d) Sentimental value is bullshit, and market value is a straw man; heirlooms apparently have literally no value at all.
e) You have to make your "name" on your own, but if your name is hard for people to pronounce then you should just deal with it when they give you a different one.
Now, if my grandgrandfather crafted a piece of jewelry, that makes it more interesting than throwing money on something someone else made. It's because of pure informational value. It makes it an object that can be studied, that can inform us how people thought and what their approach about something was. That makes it more valuable than the trivial "they had the money and they lacked the imagination to start a business or buy something useful, or do something else sensible, so they bought this crap here".
But actually most family trinkets don't have a history worth retelling. Usually it's some variation of poor people collecting money and buying/ordering this "symbol" and imagining they "made it", because they now have this thing here, a symbol of success and sophistication. Actually, I think this clip from Pulp Fiction about sums up my feelings about "family jewelry" well:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kngBtoylIVM
It's a sign of thinking primitively (of course, not that I blame the poor people clinging to bullshit, but it's nothing to tell the world about). De Beers and co. have made billions out of idiots buying tiny useless crystals as status symbols.
Sure, you can always put some family jewelry in a cupboard and leave it there to make an interesting conversation breaker (hey, my father kept this watch in his ass for 5 years!), because those usually are worth little to nothing on the market anyway.
Suggesting that if I don't respect the sentimental value of trinkets, so I can focus all my attention on "market value" and selling them is just some straw man you think you're oh so clever to pull off on me. But no, the market doesn't care about your ass watch. Nobody cares. You shouldn't either.
But to see someone who really puts great importance on such stuff, even to the point partially basing their self-worth on what their ancestors did (or didn't, as a matter of fact) is a big honking warning sign. Because if you keep looking back, you'll create much less to look forward to.
Focusing on the past too much is the reason why even generations do all the work, and odd generations spend their life "being proud of their families".
It doesn't matter if you're Einstein's grandgrandgranddaughter or Hitler's grandgrandgrandson. All you have left is some family property (if that), and a silly name. You have to make your "name" on your own. Your worth as a human being is not hereditary.
There are two kinds of people, those telling stories, and those making stories. Those telling stories are a commodity. I like this one: "1% of people make things happen, 9% of people notice what happens, and 90% are unaware of what happens."
By the way, I'm done explaining the basics of life to you, I have better shit to do. See ya.
P.S.: You should've read this post in Christopher Walken's voice.