The nature of the beast for collecting is to 
never be satisfied with what you have, and to 
always want more. You look at what others have... 
and you envy them. You see what you lost... and 
you wish you had it. It happens to everyone, 
whether they buy one-dollar cels or one-thousand-
plus dollar cels. ^_^

What you need to do is stop and take a look at 
what you have. Why did you buy it in the first 
place? What was your motivation? Did you buy it 
to impress someone else, or did you buy it 
because it connected with you on a certain level? 
Reconnect! :o) Appreciate what you have in your 
hot little hands, rather than lusting over the 
ones-that-got-away.

Why did you start collecting in the first place? 
Was it to have the best anything? There will 
always be people who have something better than 
you... and there will always be people who have 
something better than *them*. It's impossible to 
have *all* of the best of anything, so it's not 
much use trying. ^_^ Collect what you can. If you 
can only afford to collect on the $25 scale, go 
for it! Don't worry when you see someone else buy 
a $2500 cel... they're in a completely different 
situation, and envying other people their good 
luck to be able to afford such things isn't going 
to be good for you at all. It's just depressing 
in general, dwelling on what you can't have... be 
happy that they have the good fortune to have 
such nice things, but take care to be 
appreciative of what you've managed to collect 
yourself.

I also like having a "coming soon" page to keep 
in mind exactly what packages will be arriving in 
my mailbox. They're very comforting. Sometimes, 
the anticipation of getting a new cel is the best 
part. ^_^

But relax and don't worry about what coulda-
shoulda-woulda. Be happy with what you have, and 
know that you're fortunate to be able to collect 
luxury items in the first place. Watch the shows 
your cels came from, and pick out your scenes. 
Set aside a certain amount of money every week or 
month, perhaps as a special "wishlist" fund to 
help you bid more aggressively on the ones you 
reallyreallyreally want.

But be content! :o)
-Cres