I consider myself a pretty average card collector. There are certain things that distinguish me from other collectors, but nothing about my collecting habits are unique. I'll even assume there's another collector out there who accumulates night cards. He probably started long before me, too.
But there are ways of collecting -- or in this case, ways of talking about collecting -- that I don't resemble or even understand.
One phrase that's used all the time by certain collectors is something I've never said in my life:
"My personal collection."
I hear this all the time. From bloggers. From guys at card shows. "That's going in my personal collection." "I have that card in my personal collection."
And every time I think, as I smile blankly, "what does that MEAN?"
I envision a box or a binder with words scrawled in marker that say, "My Personal Collection." Maybe it's a safe deposit box, or the cards are framed up on the wall under a hand-made sign that says "My Personal Collection."
There are really only two kinds of collectors where I think this phrase fits. One kind are the collectors who specifically buy certain cards -- usually off ebay or another online place -- and only those cards. They're usually autograph collectors or hit collectors or player collectors. Those are the only cards in their collection and it's limited to maybe 50 cards. It has a somewhat exclusive vibe so "personal collection" works.
The other kind is the collector who is also a dealer. This must be where the phrase came to be. These collectors accumulate large quantities of cards but keep only a small fraction for, of course, their personal collection. The rest are fodder for collectors, for the right price.
But I've heard collectors who don't sell cards -- or sell very few -- use this phrase. As if almost all of their cards are on the chopping block at all times. Except for those exclusive few, in their personal collection.
I don't think this way. Part of it is because the phrase "my personal collection" sounds almost smarmy and too exclusive to me. It's something the super rich would say while asking someone to survey their fleet of Aston Martins. But these are pieces of cardboard here.
The other part is every single card that I have IS "my personal collection." It's possible that I could sell these cards someday. But until/unless I do that ALL of the cards I have are MINE. They're not intended for anyone else. I own them. I'm not sure how many total cards I have in my collection. I'd guess around 30,000. And that's a personal collection of 30,000 cards.
You saw that 2011 Bowman card of Erik Davis at the top of this post. There are a lot of things that I don't like about that card. It's a Bowman card. It's from a set that I can't define without looking it up. It's a player that I don't know. It's a Padre. There is nothing desirable about this card in terms of any of my collecting interests. Yet, I own it. Therefore it's part of my collection.
Another card in "my personal collection." I don't know who this guy is. I'm not a Royals fan. 1991 Score Rising Stars is not a set that I like or pay attention to in the least. Truthfully, I didn't even know I had this card until I pulled it out of a box for this post. But until I get rid of it somehow, it's in the collection. The collection owned by me. Or, in other words, my personal collection.
Sure, if I'm going to define cards by which ones I will always keep and which ones I have some microfraction of doubt over keeping, then, yeah, the Koufax rookie stays with me in "my personal collection," and the other cards may have to fend for themselves someday.
But I don't like thinking that way. All of my cards have a home with me. Even the Yankees can be assured that I won't put them out on the street unless the time comes that I need to raise some cash. But why would I want to hold that over their head?
Dear cards,
If you currently reside in a box or a binder or a top loader or just lying out their naked on a desk shelf somewhere in my home, then rest assured, you are part of 'my personal collection.' Rest easy my little friends."
Sincerely,
Night Owl
P.S: I hope that's the last time I use that phrase.
Comments
There are cards that define your collection or really stand out and represent the cream of the crop.
The term PC is a way to refer to the truly great cards in your collection or even extend it to your interests.
You do make a great point about all the 30,000 cards in your overall collection basically being in your PC because they aren't going anywhere anytime soon and you are stuck with them.
Thanks for this post!
I totally overuse the words "PC" or personal collection, but I feel it fits my collecting style. In fact, I just used it in my most recent post ;-)
Cards in my PC are those I will never sell or trade (unless I enter a financial crisis or I lose interest in collecting that particular player, team, or genre). I have a ton of cards in sets, binders, and boxes... but only about half of them I consider to be PC items.
The rest of my cards are part of my trade bait lists, cards I sell at the flea market, and cards I hand out to my students.
Maybe SOPA or PIPA will force me back to having a personal collection someday.
-Lifetimetopps
I say "Player Collection" a lot, which may or may not be better, but I'm with you on "PC".
--Jon
Also, when I think about this more - the term personal collection doesn't really bug me. I don't think I really use the term - but I just don't think I refer to my cards as "my collection" much at all anyways. I say "I collect X" more than "My X collection". But if I did say personal collection, it wouldn't really mean anything.
What about guys who collect something for their kids? They may have their own collection, but they also may have bought the last 3 base Topps sets for their 3-year old kid. Personal collection could be a differentiater there.
-Lifetimetopps
Don't feel bad about Jeff Schulz. Royals fans don't know who he is, either. 85 career PA is all he had.
I have something I call a personal collection that's different from the other collections.
I have my type collections, set collections, player collections, and then the personal collection. I have that definition because I haven't found any better way to describe it. While my set, player and type collections are cards I collect with specific, measurable goals, the personal collection is the opposite. It contains the autographs and relic cards I find most important to me, and also a (very small) group of cards I kept for nostalgic reasons or because the card is cool and it has no other place. Those 300-or-so cards mean the most to me and are the ones I want to have on display. More than half of those are non-sport or at least non-baseball cards, like the Sasha Cohen card I posted about a couple weeks ago.
I could call it something business-fancy like "Private Reserve" or simple "Favorite Cards" but I think the word personal really describes their importance.