Favorite Things: Eric Palmer and his personalized bobblehead

Eric Palmer is a freelance photographer and composer for film and television productions. His favorite thing is a bobblehead that was gifted to him. It’s not just a regular old bobblehead, it’s one modeled after his very own likeness. 

This bobblehead was actually a gift from my current employer. It was an unexpected Christmas gift. It’s one of the most unique gifts I’ve ever received, a personalized bobblehead that looks — in my opinion — stunningly accurate to my big head. All of the employees got their own bobblehead, but everybody did agree that mine was strangely the most accurate, for whatever reason. That’s how I first got it. 

It’s a personalized gift item that was modeled after me. You send the company that makes these things a picture and they shape it off of that. It reminds me of “Austin Powers.” My bobblehead is basically my own Mini-Me. I have it in front of my work desk and it mostly serves as a paperweight, but also makes a perfect photography subject. 

When I go on hikes, or visit places of interest out of town, I bring the Mini-Me bobblehead in my suitcase or my camera bag. Sometimes, instead of taking a picture of myself, I use the bobblehead as a funny photo stand-in to represent the things that I do.

It comes with me on a lot of somewhat local trips to places like Saugatuck. I bring it on beaches, and I’ll take it to all the different parks I like to visit. Unfortunately, because of COVID, I haven’t been able to travel much lately. 

There’s a hiking trail there that I go to often that is a beautiful place. There’s a mile long hike that you go before you reach the water. Once the summer weather hits, I try to go there as much as I possibly can. It’s a very therapeutic spot and makes for great sunset photos. Saugatuck beaches tend to be a little more private — I think the mile hike helps slim down the beach crowd. 

It’s hard not to like the bobblehead. My friends are always surprised that they can recognize that it’s me so easily. Other than that, it’s just a fun little thing to take along with me. I personally think the world would be a better place if everybody had their own little Mini-Me bobblehead. I definitely encourage people to seek out and get their own. 

Interview edited and condensed by Skyler Ashley. If you have a suggestion for Favorite Things, please email Skyler@LansingCityPulse.com