Is this worth my time?

 

I don't know how many more times I'm going to visit my local monthly card show. I can feel my interest waning.

 

I skipped last month's show, mostly because there was a bigger, better show the next day. But another reason is the content of the local show is just not interesting to me. I've already mentioned how it's now dominated by RPG cards (Pokemon, etc.) and graded slabs of mostly modern football/basketball, but today it was particularly dire.

 

There was one table that I found dedicated to sports cards as I knew them as recently as 25 years ago. Just, plain, good, ol', unslabbed cards from the '50s, '60s, '70s and '80s. It was the usual table I visit. But often there are some other smaller tables with the same stuff, or dollar boxes I can sift through.

 

But not today. My dealer friend, of course, was not there, having passed last month. The other guy I know who used to work in my office hasn't been there for at least a couple shows. The three or four other people I've visited who have had discount boxes were nowhere to be found.

 

Is this worth my time anymore?

 

Well, yeah, as long as the discount vintage table is still there.

 

I looked over his wares, quickly grabbed a couple mid-'60s cards of interest and paid up.

 

A handful of 1965 Topps. The Warren Spahn has a crease in the corner and is off-center, but Pitcher-Coach!!!

 

Without trying very hard I've managed to accumulate 20 percent of this set, much of it over the last five years.

 

 

These two 1967 Topps cards came off the display rack. The Bob Gibson wears a crease to the right of his head as you probably can see, but it's a big improvement over the folded-over Gibson I picked up in Cooperstown three years ago.

 

The Roger Maris, meanwhile, was the last card from the first 100 in the set that I still needed. So there's a little milestone! The last cards I need from the first 200 in the set are Willie Stargell, and, of course, Mickey Mantle.

 

Speaking of Mantle, I spotted a 1969 Mantle -- the last card I need for that set -- for sale at the table while I was looking at cards. But the price tag was the same as all the ones I've seen advertised for sale. I'm resigned to having to pay that price. But I'm not doing it anytime soon.

 

After another desperate tour around the showroom for something -- anything -- that resembled a show from even 10 years ago, I gave up. I walked out of the place not even 15 minutes after entering.

 

All things considered, still a solid haul. But how long will it last?