I've always loved history, and I loved seeing stuff from my mother's childhood or high school days, so I always saved things that I thought were cool, sort of as artifacts. I figured my children or nieces or nephews might get a kick out of it someday. But a lot of that stuff doesn't necessarily have sentimental value.
I'm sentimental about my grandparents, who are gone. I made sure to keep a few things that represented things we did together. I didn't care so much about having "stuff" that didn't represent anything. So I guess it's situational.
I don't feel particularly attached to any of the objects I have. I have old photos, I look to at now and then, but I wouldn't necessarily consider that sentimental. It's more a case of being interested and intrigued by the past and how it compares to the present. Unlike some people I know, if I were to lose all my photos in say, a fire, I'd be mildly upset but I wouldn't be devastated by it.
I used to save artifacts when I was young but I rarely do that now. Where would I put it? And my interests change with time, so I may not necessarily find it as cool later on. I don't like being put in the awkward situation where my mom or grandma will give me some antique object that has sentimental value to them but not to me and there's this expectation to keep it to pass on to future generations.
I don't get a kick out of being melancholy or anything. If I feel negative emotions, I try to make them go away. Most of my strong F friends seem to get mired down in the negative feelings, and let them take hold for a while. That would drive me nuts.
I hate being melancholy too but I find that I tend to wallow in negative emotions for longer than I'd like. Once I get in a melancholy state, it tends to take me a while to pull me out of it.
I have some occasional sentimental memories or thoughts, but I don't keep objects for long. My parents kept my school yearbooks because I told them I was going to throw them away. The lack of attachment to objects and novelty only seems to increase with age. I quit watching TV entirely,
in fact, I don't even own one.
I threw away my middle school yearbooks because I just want to wipe that time of my life away from my memory. It was not a pleasant time for me. I kept my high school yearbooks but I don't look at them anymore.
I very rarely watch TV and couldn't tell you most of the popular shows that people are watching now. I do own a TV that I mainly use for playing videos.
I have a confession. I'm a hoarder, but most things get thrown into one room-that I don't use. I don't hoard trash either-that's gross.(just to clarify) I keep things because of my horrible memory. Which seems to be slightly what hilo has said here. Only I have a hard time throwing it away. I've heard people say 'throw everything into a box that you are thinking of tossing. If you forget about the box, throw it out.' That is pure hogwash to me! The whole reason I keep the box is because I forget what's in there!
I used to somewhat of a hoarder when young, now I'm kind of the opposite. I don't holding onto anything that's not of use or sentimental value to me. It feels freeing to not be tied down by so many possessions. I think I have an easier time disposing of things than most people- maybe because I tend to be on the lower end of the sentimentality scale? Plus my residence has a more spacious feel, which I love.
As for nostalgia, melancholy...
I think INTPs would experience those emotions to analyze them;to see where they fit in the great scheme of things. It's like part of a puzzle.
There are times when I have thought that every emotion must be felt in order for it to be deemed useful or irrational. These times are rare, but I'm coming around to the idea...
Yeah, very true.
Some other thoughts:
I love many types of music but I don't relate to songs the way that many others do. I almost never get moved to tears by certain songs, nor do I have songs that I would call "my song" or "songs that really speak to me" or "songs that change my life". I guess what I'm looking for in music is more something with an interesting and catchy sound to it, something that sparks the imagination. I'm not all that interested in the lyrics.
I also rarely cry when watching sad movies or reading sad books. That's not to say I don't feel for the characters. I do, and often quite strongly. I think its more that I can easily separate fact from fiction.