The white whale: finding the #1 card on your wantlist

[Michael Peich]

Tim--Congrats on finding the Livengood since I know this card has vexed you for years. And as Bill Cornell alluded, my white whale was the T222 of John Henry which I finally found last year, thanks to the largesse of a board member. And although I didn't break out in a sweat as I followed an eBay bid, I did almost fall over when this board member mentioned to me, at the Valley Forge Show, that he had a Henry and would be willing to trade it. That set off a series of interesting emails and negotiations, and now Henry resides in my collection. (BTW, Henry is far more difficult than either Alexander or Johnson, and, like so many difficult cards, he was a marginal player who had an unremarkable eight year career mostly with Washington: .207 lifetime BA. Another difficult card, also of a minor player, is the T3 of Rhoades.)

The fact is, though, that I have a number of white whales, and these are my want lists. I only need three cards to complete my Grignon postcards, and seven to complete my Obaks 150 subjects backs. But, until I get to that one last card, these won't qualify as white whales.

Even Melville would be happy for you, Tim. And I hope you celebrated with one of your favorite martinis!

Cheers,
Mike