I always end up next to one of these guys at card shows.
It's the "I have every card in the universe and I'm going to talk about each and every one very loudly so everyone knows" guy.
Listen, people like to brag about the cards they have. That's half of what we do with these card blogs. We have nice cards, we want other people who appreciate cards to see them. Share the joy, and all that. But I really dislike the stuff that I heard from this guy Sunday. Talk about your cards, but don't make the people around you feel inadequate.
While poor saps like me flipped through cards of incidental value, this guy talked to the dealer about some impossible-to-complete set that he had almost finished. Then I heard him talk about how he was only a couple of cards away from completing the 1949 Bowman set, a set that books for $15,000. Then it was on to mentioning a couple of other major sets that he had mastered. I don't know what they were. I had kind of tuned him out by then. It was my defense mechanism while I pulled 25-cent cards from their sleeves.
But I perked up again when he mentioned another set he had almost completed. It was the 1957 Topps set. He needed just three cards to finish the set. I don't remember what two of them were because I didn't hear anything else after he mentioned the first card he needed.
He wanted this particular card so badly. He would even take one in (*gasp*) less than perfect shape. In fact, he would be thrilled to have the card in any kind of shape. But he just couldn't find it.
The card was none other than No. 10 in the set, the one-and-only Willie Mays. One of the greatest of all-time. "Say Hey" himself. But it had eluded Mr. "I Have Everything." Nope, couldn't find it. Couldn't find it at all. What a shame.
Pssssst. Is this what you're looking for, pal?
Sorry, you can't have it. Just for 10 minutes of annoying the heck out of me, I'm keeping it. And don't tell me it's not in good enough condition. I just heard you pining for a Mays card in any kind of condition.
If only I had this card on me when he was going on his spiel. I wonder how much I could have gotten for it?
It's the "I have every card in the universe and I'm going to talk about each and every one very loudly so everyone knows" guy.
Listen, people like to brag about the cards they have. That's half of what we do with these card blogs. We have nice cards, we want other people who appreciate cards to see them. Share the joy, and all that. But I really dislike the stuff that I heard from this guy Sunday. Talk about your cards, but don't make the people around you feel inadequate.
While poor saps like me flipped through cards of incidental value, this guy talked to the dealer about some impossible-to-complete set that he had almost finished. Then I heard him talk about how he was only a couple of cards away from completing the 1949 Bowman set, a set that books for $15,000. Then it was on to mentioning a couple of other major sets that he had mastered. I don't know what they were. I had kind of tuned him out by then. It was my defense mechanism while I pulled 25-cent cards from their sleeves.
But I perked up again when he mentioned another set he had almost completed. It was the 1957 Topps set. He needed just three cards to finish the set. I don't remember what two of them were because I didn't hear anything else after he mentioned the first card he needed.
He wanted this particular card so badly. He would even take one in (*gasp*) less than perfect shape. In fact, he would be thrilled to have the card in any kind of shape. But he just couldn't find it.
The card was none other than No. 10 in the set, the one-and-only Willie Mays. One of the greatest of all-time. "Say Hey" himself. But it had eluded Mr. "I Have Everything." Nope, couldn't find it. Couldn't find it at all. What a shame.
Pssssst. Is this what you're looking for, pal?Sorry, you can't have it. Just for 10 minutes of annoying the heck out of me, I'm keeping it. And don't tell me it's not in good enough condition. I just heard you pining for a Mays card in any kind of condition.
If only I had this card on me when he was going on his spiel. I wonder how much I could have gotten for it?
Comments
It woulda been if during his "I have to have this card" you said, Oh I got that one. It's awesome.
Then, just walk away.
1949 Bowman? Hmm. Wish I'd been there so I could break out an almost flawless BS-o-meter.
Signed,
Dinged Corners,
CEO,
Quarter Cards Rock Inc.
PS Word verification is parians. For a moment, I thought it was "pariahs."