My choice as well.

Hey fellas, just wanted to close the loop on this thread I started last week and thank you all for validating the feelings I’ve always had about the hobby. Like baseball itself there is something magical about collecting baseball cards. Reading your stories and seeing your photos and cards was a great way for me to deepens my own connection to the hobby, the sport, and the community. Great to hear from so many of you out there who seem to think and feel the same way I do about the cards in your collection. Cheers!

I'm an absolute variations hound, so these four are probably my favorites...

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I am really fascinated how all of the stories are: "My dad helped me buy..." or "My mother surprised me with...."

It's a common theme nearly all of us share.

The All Star game came to Seattle in 2001, and I begged my father to buy tickets to the FanFest so I could attend a card show. The ones in Spokane never wowed me, so I wanted to go to a big city show. I wasn't into vintage yet at that time - I was chasing Ichiro and Pujols rookies. He has told me since that he wished he had bought tickets for the games and card show. I told him "Dad, I have never had any regrets!" He stood in line with me to get autos from the free IP signings for two days! The most popular was Branca and Thomson. We waited forever. On our feet on concrete. We were both super tired at the end of the second day. But that day always shows me how much he loved me. I purchased the 2001 Fleer Traditions box and pulled a Jackie Robinson pant relics card in the convention center. They had Negro League inserts that year. That is perhaps my best insert I ever pulled, and every time I look at it I think of my dad.

Between these:

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