@villain: how important things are is rather subjective, give or take a few statistical landmarks. how important everything is is also subjective, with some influence on the general stance of a person towards his/her life.
broadly speaking, defining anything as a carrier of all meaning in one's life is the stuff obsessions are made. focusing all your efforts on finding - say - love and neglecting role-playing games is bound to make you unbalanced and weak. on the other hand, if nothing means much, the subject is lost to apathy and self-destructive instincts.
i still wouldn't put a sentimental life and your hat on the same level, and not just because your hat would easily outshadow my sentimental life of the past three years. the former has implications that extend to sometimes encompass a large part of your life experience. other things do: helping famine-stricken populations in south africa; becoming a neurosurgeon; taking care of dark tranquillity fans.
you'll forgive me if i'm not selfless enough to pick any of the above against a sentimental life: i do like to help others, but it's stronger with those i know and appreciate, which i think it's what a sentimental life should (also) be about.
in the light of eternity, whether i find love or your hat, villain, doesn't really matter a lot. but i'm forsaken by the light of eternity: it simply doesn't want anything to do with me. so for as long as i'm in the slumbering half-darkness of the temporary and the fragile, i'll either look for love (sorry for the hat, it was admittedly a pretty nice hat) or give up completely and sulk, in the belief that some things are more important than others, and that it's not exactly the same that i'm left here holding your hat.