Pony collecting problems?

[Roseprincess1]

I can totally feel you on this darling.
Now my father and my honey don't have any issues with it. My father says that my collections are a  healthy enough way to exercise my slightly ocd personality traits and that there are a lot worse things i could be spending my spare cash on than paint(i am an artist btw) and lil plastic horsies and the occasional doll. ( heck he bought me a lil miss no name about two weeks ago.... I dont understand men and the whole money thing but thats for another post! )
My honey is a big transformers collector( i am too but no cool ones have come out in two years  ) So i got back into ponies recently. He smiles and says that hasbro needs to give us stock when we ever get married due to the giant room of stuff we are going to own from them.
My mom's bro in law (moms passed... sad but life goes on) thinks my collections are super cute and says I'm just like my moms mother my gramma mavis.
That's about where the support ends.
My sister in florida, had the gall to tell me that she thinks its a waste of time and money that could be spent on her and her kids and if i didnt waste all my money on "selfish" stuff like that. Id have had it to help when they took her kids.  I'm like ..huh?
My aunt is something of a drug additct and has found out about some of the rarer peices in my collection... she keeps asking me to pawn them so i can loan her the money. RIGHT.. like im going to pawn a Genuine George McAllan so she can buy pills. to heck with that!
Again the selfish cracks were made.
and i could list about a dozen more that have made nasty cracks since and before my mom died.
I honestly just have to tell you.. if the people that really love you.. have NO issue with your collections... then dont worry about it.
And even if they do. They are five dollar lil plastic horsies.. I mean seriously.. you could be spending your extra money on drugs or booze at least when you are done you have something to show for the love of this stuff.
I dont get why people who go out and get wasted and party are considered so mature .. but a gal/or guy that likes to spend a few spare bucks and hours playing with something beautiful and constructive not to mention valuable is considered childish.
I really dont.
Hang in there darlin'.
We all support and love you here, and you are with friends.
So dont let them get you down.

[elish2]

I honestly just have to tell you.. if the people that really love you.. have NO issue with your collections... then dont worry about it.
And even if they do. They are five dollar lil plastic horsies.. I mean seriously.. you could be spending your extra money on drugs or booze at least when you are done you have something to show for the love of this stuff.
I dont get why people who go out and get wasted and party are considered so mature .. but a gal/or guy that likes to spend a few spare bucks and hours playing with something beautiful and constructive not to mention valuable is considered childish.
I really dont.
Hang in there darlin'.
We all support and love you here, and you are with friends.
So dont let them get you down.

Well said!!

[PandoraFox]

I'm lucky enough to have mostly supportive people around me.
My father doesn't get my collections at all, and doesn't see any value in them, but he knows they make me happy, and that's good enough for him, provided I don't put myself in debt. I get the suffering look and a sigh whenever I drag in another pony or transformer, but there's never any malice, and he'd never ask me to get rid of them.

Most of my friends are geeks and quite a few have collections of their own. While not all of them might get my attraction to transformers, or ponies in particular, many of us share the same love for collecting things we have a passion for, and they'll actually keep an eye out for me for ponies and such. I do occasionally get some good-natured teasing but nothing else.

Not all of my extended family quite gets it, and I'm sure some of them think me to be rather weird, but I've always been the "quirky"one anyways, so it's just chalked up to that and they don't make a fuss about it.

I'm sorry for everyone who's family and loved ones make such a fuss. None of you deserve that over something as harmless as this.
And the people calling any of you selfish for spending your own hard earned money on something you love, instead of giving it to them. I...I have no words. Talk about entitlement issues.

[CrazyCatPony]

My parents know me and support my MLP habit but my in laws think its a waste... Whatever I really don't care. My father in law collect junk ( literally) and my mother in law collects antiques so I really don't see a difference.

[HoustonCollector72]

Well  Being from the same area of the world  Like you   I'm in Texas as well  and just to keep it short , Texas is another world on it's own , We are in the middle of the most ultra conservative close minded  people of the world  I think 
So to make matters worst ,people are just that way, they judge everything and everyone  around here, if you are in a  big City  then you have a lot more freedom  to be "you" otherwise is just a different kind of life in small towns .
I have had some people distance themselves after learning of my collecting and others ask questions about it or bring it up to people in a public setting to put me on the spot , but I always stand my ground ,is not easy,but i think it also defines you .
I started collecting ponies after watching the Cartoon I tell them and while i was recovering from heavy health problems,I found it therapeutic to start collecting them, so that is what i tell them , Instead of getting depressed about life changes and limitations from then on, I embraced the pony collecting and it is something that keeps me moving and takes me off the edge of the bad stuff happening .
Some of them are changing the way they see me since then , others are supportive ,My family  is ok with it, some of my sisters even help hunting/buying ponies for me .
For my last birthday all of them gave me cash ,since they knew how much stuff I still want to buy

best to be loved for who you really are , than accepted for who you are not !!

[Pandora]

Wow, so much great advice! 

My greatest thanks to everyone who has replied to this.  I didn't think I would be alone, and I'm glad I'm not, but I just wish that those who don't understand would just keep their mouths shut.  Then again, there are far greater issues out in the universe that these same people keep voicing their opinions about, so why should we expect any different.     Oh well...

I am very thankful that those who are closest to me support me.  Thankfully, my in laws are over 1000 miles away!     It could be a lot worse than it is.  If they come visit us anytime soon though I can already hear the complaints because all the ponies are in the guest bedroom!  Hehe...

[Lady Starflower]

Everyone needs a hobby, trust me. I've seen what happens when someone doesn't. My father-in-law is divorced, lives a bit aways and my husband is his only child. He doesn't have a hobby or anything to do in his spare time. He's kind of a jerk so he doesn't have many friends. Since he's bored and my husband is his only child he spends most of his time calling and harping on my husband. Lately it's not as bad as it used to be but I've often said he needs a hobby to fill in his free time. At least it would be something positive to focus on. On his good days he's accepting of my ponies and has even brought he a Rainbow Dash shirt, but on his crusty days he's always saying how I should spend my money elsewhere.

It sucks I do wish people would remember the old teaching of if you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all but a lot of people didn't get that lesson I guess.

Good luck with your in laws.