Ever since I moved into my new apartment in the city, music has become a larger part of my life in ways I never would have expected. I now have access to so much more live music without ever having to drive long distances, and even when I do have to drive to another city, I welcome it so much more since it’s something different than seeing live shows in my home city.

Music isn’t just a hobby of mine. That’s what I think sets it apart from some of my other interests. I don’t ever refer to music as a hobby since it’s so much bigger than that. It’s more of a lifestyle, a way of being, in my eyes. And I don’t try to make it sound like I’m some sort of music snob, because I don’t look at my preferred music as the best or as someone else’s as uncouth. I just make music such a big part of my life. I try to listen to something new each and every day and to even explore a new album in its entirety every two weeks or so.

So, it probably comes as no surprise that I’m pretty big on collecting vinyl records of only my favorite albums in their full glory. I enjoy sitting down and really getting into a full album, not just putting it on for ambient music or for just a few tracks. To me, collecting vinyls is so much more than that.

I’m quite lucky to have come into possession of a classic record player, thanks to my girlfriend’s dad. He had the entire audio setup and even came with a few cardboard boxes full of old vinyls from the 70s and 80s. So, getting us started on collecting those was all it took for us to go out and grab more of our own favorites.

I’ll be honest, it was exciting to dig through those cardboard boxes in hopes of finding a few classic gems that we love. While we didn’t keep everything, it gave us enough to start off with around 30 or 40 albums. Since then, we’ve added at least 10, and I figure we’ll add about 10 more each and every year at that clip.

Vinyls have fortified my love for music and I don’t foresee my interest and lifestyle changing anytime soon, because the more I discover and enjoy, the more I find myself craving more and more.