It hit 90 degrees today. I'm not someone who is bothered by the heat, but once it's 90 I take notice. It's not super rare around here -- I'd say we're in the 90s about 5 times a year -- but I was still tempted to stay inside.
Fortunately I didn't.
I was in a yank to get to the monthly card show. I've been frustrated lately by the lagging arrival of my online card purchases the last couple of weeks. I don't know if this is a traditional July thing (sellers and postal workers on vacation), but shipments are not appearing on the days I was told. Also, I have received back-to-back postage-due slips on orders, which seems a little outrageous.
So it was one of those times where I thought "I can't get anyone to send me my cards, I'm going to go get them myself." Crank the AC, I'm coming for you, show!
I had no expectations for this show. With just five 1969 Topps cards needed, and none of them available the last time I visited, I figured I'd settle on the vintage guy I see all the time and just pick up random stuff. I'm kind of limited at that show, too. It has added more and more tables (there were about 70 this time) but it's more and more of the fantasy game stuff. It's a little disheartening hearing even the traditional sports card guys say maybe they'll give that kind of selling a try because it's so profitable. I honestly don't understand anything anymore.
But thank goodness for this guy and his slightly off-condition vintage of real people. For whatever reason, I started with the '50s instead of the '60s like I normally do. ... OK, actually I know the reason.
I love this card so much. I have always loved this card. To me, this is much better than Curt Flood's 1958 rookie card. It looks wonderful in that baby blue border. I saw this for a price I could easily afford and then started looking through Flood's '50s neighbors.
Anything from 1957 Topps looks good to me -- just better and better as the years go on. And as I've said more than once, 1957 Topps doesn't HAVE to be perfect. Its thing is that it looks tremendous even with rounded corners or faded edges.
No luck finding any '67s that I needed, per usual (it's always chock full of 1968, which I still have no interest in adding much). I looked through the '65s and this was the only card that made it home with me. I don't have enough Jim Bouton cards.
This 1970 Tom Seaver was mixed in with the '60s cards. This is kind of a frivolous pick up for me. The 1970 Topps set is complete, but the Seaver in my collection has always bothered me a little because the previous owner started coloring in "Mets". I can take a couple small creases more than scribbling.
While I was shuffling aimlessly through those cards I looked toward the seller's glass case to my right just to see if anything was worth adding.
Even from 12 feet away the 1969 Hank Aaron card popped out at me. The seller didn't have that the last time. I moseyed over and saw it was priced for about half of what it usually goes for. The seller explained it had a couple creases and round corners. Pssh. That's not stopping me. Get out of my way.
Wooo! Four cards to go!!
This made the show an objective success (well, the Curt Flood probably already did). I got a card near the top of my current want list that I didn't expect to find.
After that, it was a matter of finding a dealer who could take my final few bills. It wasn't easy. Like I said, nonsports stuff everywhere, and not the good kind (i.e.: old TV shows and movies or music cards). Also, I knew that the co-worker who sells sports cards was skipping the next couple of shows.
Fortunately I saw a dollar box of baseball and added some Dodgers:
The 2022 Chrome Platinum Anniversary Kershaw and Garvey are prism refractors. The Emmet Sheehan turned out to be a dupe, but how am I supposed to know what Bowman I have in my collection?
And that was it. The money was gone and the place too crowded. Not bad for 25 minutes, huh?
I keep expecting for that show to run out of stuff I want, but so far that hasn't been a problem. Hope it continues. I would hate to rely solely on buying online, especially with the way things have been going lately.
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