FIRST CARD PURCHASE OF 2023

I FINALLY GOT TO THE FLEA MARKET THIS WEEKEND WITH A LITTLE CASH IN MY POCKET. THE MAIN FOCUS OF THE TRIP WAS THIS:

   

I SPOTTED THIS BOOK ON MY PREVIOUS TRIP TO THE FLEA MARKET WHEN I GOT THE BASEBALL IMMORTALS AND TONY HAWK ROOKIE AND SAVED MY PENNIES FOR TWO MONTHS TO GET THE CASH FOR IT. THIS WILL LIKELY GET IT'S OWN POST EVENTUALLY BUT THE SHORT VERSION IS THIS IS THE PREQUEL TO THAT GIGANTIC TOPPS COFFEE TABLE BOOK WITH PICTURES OF EVERY CARD FROM 1951-1985. AS SOMEONE WHO LOOOOVES PRE-WAR CARDS BUT IS MOSTLY PRICED OUT OF THE HOBBY AT THIS POINT THIS IS A GREAT WAY TO GET A PHYSICAL OBJECT REPRESENTING ALL THESE CLASSIC CARD SETS. SURE, YOU CAN FIND EVERY IMAGE IN THIS BOOK ON THE INTERNET, BUT IT STILL HITS DIFFERENT WHEN YOU HAVE A GIGANTIC TOME OF CARDAGE IN FRONT OF YOU. ALSO UNLIKE THE TOPPS BOOK THE VAST MAJORITY OF IMAGES ARE FULL SIZED AND NOT SQUISHED DOWN TO POSTAGE STAMP SIZE (WITH A FEW EXCEPTIONS)

I BASICALLY PAID FULL PRICE FOR THIS AND IT WAS WELL WORTH IT. I AM ALSO OFFICIALLY A 'REGULAR' AT THIS FLEA MARKET BOOTH NOW SO WAS ABLE TO SNAG A COUPLE DEALS TO GO ALONG WITH THE LUXURY ITEM. YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED MY HASTILY THROWN TOGETHER POST WITH ALL THE SETS I'M DOWN TO FIVE CARDS OR FEWER TO COMPLETE. THE PLAN WAS TO GET THIS BOOK AND THEN DIG THROUGH HIS STUFF TO FIND AS MANY CARDS OFF THAT LIST THAT I COULD. THAT PLAN WENT SIDEWAYS IMMEDIATELY AS THE SELLER TRIED TO SELL ME BOXES OF STUFF HE WANTED TO GET RID OF. HE KNOWS I WILL BUY HIS TRASH AND I GET OFFERED JUNK BOXES EVERY TIME NOW. LUCKILY, I QUICKLY FOUND SOME GOOD TRASH

OLD TIMERS BOX IN AN OLD TIMEY CARD BOX. THIS IS ANOTHER THING THAT WILL GET IT'S OWN POST AND YOU WILL GET SOME BETTER PICTURES OF IT THEN. THE BOX EVEN HAS A TED WILLIAMS AUTOGRAPH ON IT, TIME TO TAKE IT TO THE NEXT JSA AUTHENTICATION AT THE LOCAL CARD SHOP AND ENJOY THEIR PEALS OF LAUGHTER. AS YOU CAN SEE IT'S A SMALL BOX FULL OF SLEEVED CARDS THAT DON'T QUITE FIT. HERE'S A BETTER PIC OF THE GOODS:

LARGE PILE OF EVEN MORE PACIFIC NOLAN CARDS, SMALL PILES OF PACIFIC LEGENDS AND SWELL BASEBALL GREAT CARDS, A NEAR SET OF THE 85 TOPPS ALL-TIME RECORD HOLDER BOX SET, SOME 1993 STUDIO CARDS, AND SOME RANDOM CONLON COLLECTION CARDS WHICH IS THE BIGGEST PILE OF THE BUNCH. HE WANTED FIFTEEN FOR THE BOX WHICH MADE ME HAVE TO DO SOME MENTAL CALCULATIONS. IS IT A BETTER DEAL TO BUY THE WHOLE THING, OR JUST PICK OUT THE CARDS I ACTUALLY WANT FOR A QUARTER? THE PACIFIC AND SWELL LEGENDS CARDS I DEFINITELY WANTED AND THERE WERE LIKELY SOME CONLON CARDS I NEEDED BUT THE REST I'M SURE I HAD ALREADY. AS YOU CAN SEE, THE BOX CAME HOME WITH ME AND WE'LL BREAK IT DOWN IF I GOT GOOD VALUE AT A LATER DATE

I ALSO CAME HOME WITH THIS HANES HER WAY SHOEBOX HALF FILLED WITH ACTUAL CRAP PLUS A COOL DAVE HENDERSON MINOR LEAGUE CARD. THIS WAS ABOUT THREE QUARTERS JUNKWAX BASKETBALL WHICH IS FINE, BUT MOST OF THAT WAS BEAT UP 1990  HOOPS. DUDE HAD BEEN TRYING TO SELL ME THIS BOX FOR MAYBE A YEAR AND WHILE I WAS INTERESTED, IT WAS A TERRIBLE DEAL AT FIVE BUCKS AND HE USUALLY WANTED SOMETHING LIKE TWENTY FOR IT. AFTER A QUICK LOOK THROUGH IT LOOKS LIKE I NEEDED MAYBE A DOZEN OR SO BASKETBALL CARDS OUT OF HERE BUT IT WAS A HUGE DISSAPOINTMENT TO SEE THAT ALL THREE 2000-01 TOPPS CARDS IN THE BOX WERE ONES I ALREADY HAD. THAT HENDU CARD ROCKS THOUGH AND IS GOING TO END UP IN A PROMINENT PLACE IN A FUTURE COOL CARD BINDER

I WAS ABLE TO GET HIM TO AGREE ON A ULYSSES S. GRANT FOR THE BOOK AND BOXES, WHICH I BROKE DOWN IN MY MIND AS FULL PRICE FOR THE BOOK, TEN BUX FOR THE OLD TIMERS, AND THE SHOEBOX JUNK FOR FREE. I FELT THIS WAS EXCELLENT VALUE FOR EACH ITEM. THIS WAS ALL WORKED OUT WITHIN FIFTEEN MINUTES HOWEVER, AND I STILL WANTED TO DIG THROUGH A BUNCH OF CARDS TO KILL THE AFTERNOON SO I ASKED IF I COULD THROW IN A COUPLE MORE CHEAPO CARDS AS WELL AND THESE TERMS WERE ACCEPTABLE. HERE'S WHAT I FOUND THROUGH DIGGING:

1992 TOPPS CAL RIPKEN JR.

AM NOW DOWN TO ONE SINGLE CARD TO COMPLETE MY 1992 TOPPS SET. NOT COUNTING THE WHOLE-ASS FACTORY SET I'VE HAD FOR DECADES. THIS IS LEGIT A GREAT CARD AND I'M NOT SURE HOW IT ELUDED ME FOR SO LONG. ACTUALLY, I DO KNOW, IT'S A LEGIT GREAT CARD THAT NO ONE IS THROWING IN A JUNK BOX AND I DON'T GO OUT OF MY WAY TO BUY RIPKEN CARDS

1990 DONRUSS RICKEY HENDERSON

I KNOW I HAVE THIS FUCKIN' CARD SOMEWHERE, IF NOT SEVERAL, BUT IT'S THE LAST CARD REMAINING ON MY WANTLIST SO I HAD TO GET IT. I COLLECT RICKEYS THOUGH SO EVEN IF IT ULTIMATELY IS A DOUBLE I'M FINE WITH HAVING ANOTHER OF THEM. SO NOW TECHNICALLY MY 1990 DONRUSS SET IS COMPLETE BUT NOW I HAVE TO ACTUALLY DRAG IT OUT, PUT THIS CARD IN, AND SEE JUST HOW MANY OTHER CARDS ARE REALLY MISSING. AND THEN I HAVE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT I DID WITH THEM BECAUSE I AM 1000% CERTAIN THEY ARE SOMEWHERE IN MY HOUSE. HONESTLY I PROBABLY HAVE THREE COMPLETE SETS OF THIS NOW, BUT IT'S GOING TO BE A LOT OF WORK GETTING JUST THE ONE ALL IN THE SAME PLACE. I STILL HAVENT DONE IT FOUR DAYS LATER AND I'M HONESTLY DREADING IT A BIT

1995 STADIUM CLUB RICKEY HENDERSON RING LEADERS INSERT

SO BY NOW I HAD FOUND THE AGREED-UPON COUPLE EXTRA CARDS BUT THIS GORGEOUS MONSTROSITY SHOWED UP IN THE RICKEY HENDERSON BOX AND I COULDN'T PASS IT UP. THESE ARE A ONE PER BOX INSERT FROM 95 STADIUM CLUB. THEY ARE NOT EXACLY RARE, BUT THEY'RE NOT EASY EITHER. I WAS WILLING TO COUGH UP A COUPLE MORE BUCKS FOR THIS ONE, BUT THE DUDE ALREADY HAD MY MONEY AND WAS FINE WITH THROWING IT IN THE DEAL. I ALSO FOUND A RICKEY DENNY'S HOLOGRAM CARD IN THE BOX BUT LEFT IT ONCE I SAW THIS ONE. THIS IS HOW THINGS USUALLY GO ON MY FLEA MARKET RUNS, THERE IS ALWAYS ONE MORE THING I WANT THAT I LEAVE BEHIND FOR NEXT TIME

1993 UPPER DECK DAVE WINFIELD SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

ANOTHER GUY I COLLECT ON AN INSERT FOR A SET I COLLECT. WHILE I THINK I HAVE FINALLY COMPLETED THE 1993 UPPER DECK BASE SET, I HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO IN COMPLETING THE INSERT SETS. I HAVE A FEW INSERT SETS KNOCKED OUT, BUT THE SEASON HIGHLIGHTS SET IS LEGIT SCARCE AS THEY WERE ONLY INSERTED IN SPECIAL SERIES TWO BOXES. I COME ACROSS THEM VERY RARELY AND WHEN I SEE 'EM I GET 'EM. THIS ONE HAS A GREAT BIG DOINK ON THE BOTTOM LEFT CORNER BUT THAT DON'T MATTER TO ME NONE. I AM A LITTLE SAD THIS HIGHLIGHT IS FOR THE BLUE JAYS WORLD SERIES WIN, BUT THERE ARE ALSO FRANCISCO CABRERA AND BIP ROBERTS CARDS FROM THIS SET FOR ME TO CHASE

I FEEL LIKE THE FIRST PURCHASE OF THE YEAR WAS WORTH THE WAIT AND HONESTLY JANUARY SUCKED SO HARD I'M OK WITH HIBERNATING THROUGH IT. THIS IS BEING POSTED ON 2023 TOPPS RELEASE DAY AND I HOPE ALL OF YOU OUT THERE RIPPING HOBBY BOXES AND RAIDING TARGET FOR BLASTERS HAVE AS MUCH FUN AS I DID WITH THESE CARDS. I WON'T BE JOINING YOU AS I'M BROKE AS HELL NOW