What Happened to Card Collecting That I Knew?

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by theseeker

Oh, one last thing....as for slabbed cards, I probably wouldn't mind so much if the undeserving PSA didn't dominate and bring higher ROI. And for what? Their registry. Tells me the hobby's mindset still isn't where it should be.

Let me get this straight, you acquire a high grade card, with bright colors, sharp corners, and perfect centering. So the next step should be to sent it to PSA so they can carelessly slap it into a scratched up slab. If the fit isn't right, they'll fix it with wrinkled mylar. I don't get it and never will.

Well, you're just not the right sort of collector. Get with the program, man! Whilst you are skeptical about the Higher Power of PSA, we know it to be the One True Faith. We put our trust in the great whale collectors whom we idolize; hallowed be their bankrolls! Until you join us in the great group and feel the power of the farce, young jedi, you will not know the true meaning of life.

Or not.

[novakjr]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Well, you're just not the right sort of collector. Get with the program, man! Whilst you are skeptical about the Higher Power of PSA, we know it to be the One True Faith. We put our trust in the great whale collectors whom we idolize; hallowed be their bankrolls! Until you join us in the great group and feel the power of the farce, young jedi, you will not know the true meaning of life.

Or not.

Very Nice...

[theseeker]

Seconded.

[Jayworld]

Great comments. Been fun reading the contributions.

I miss opening a pack and immediately knowing what team a player was from by the color of the cap and/or uniform. The tri-color cap and 1" red and blue stripes on the uni sides says Expos to me, as does the brown-gold (yellow, mustard yellow, etc.) of the Padres, with their distinctive "bell-shaped" front yellow panel, and the gold, white, or green jerseys of the Oakland A's. Nowadays, I open a pack, and the color is...navy. Of course, the Yankees stand out because they are the Yankees, but am I looking at the Cardinals, Twins, Padres, Brewers, etc.? And the team cards, too, were great. Do they even have them anymore?

Anyone besides me get excited to buy a box of Sugar Frosted Flakes and pull out the 3D baseball card? I never could get more than three cards before the prize in the box changed to something else; I did order the complete sets from Kelloggs in 1979 and 1981. Very, very cool, as was the cards I cut out of the bottoms of Ding Dongs or Cup Cakes by Hostess....

The last cards I bought were a box of the 2009 Topps Allen and Ginter, and I thought those pretty neat for various reasons: they did not look like the "typical" modern baseball card, they were thick, the artwork was eye-catching, and it was not just baseball players (video game players, track and field, pop stars, etc.).

Oh, I did buy several packs of 2009 O-Pee-Chee cards, as the cards LOOKED like baseball cards to me (from the 1970s). If I do buy a pack or two now, I always try to look for new issues featuring players from the 1970s-80s that I used to collect. Few and far between.

[cdn_collector]

Originally Posted by Jayworld

Anyone besides me get excited to buy a box of Sugar Frosted Flakes and pull out the 3D baseball card? I never could get more than three cards before the prize in the box changed to something else;

Hah. This makes me chuckle. I have 3 siblings, and thinking back -- even with four of us, plus my old man, we couldn't get through enough boxes of Alpha Bits and Honey Combs to complete the Post baseball sets of the early 90s.

Regards,

Richard.

[ncinin]

Originally Posted by cdn_collector

Hah. This makes me chuckle. I have 3 siblings, and thinking back -- even with four of us, plus my old man, we couldn't get through enough boxes of Alpha Bits and Honey Combs to complete the Post baseball sets of the early 90s.

Regards,

Richard.

How I got around this problem as a child in 1970 (Rold Gold Pretzel 3D ATG) was to take the bag of pretzels to the woods when my parents wasn't home and dumped a half bag at a time for animals & bugs to eat.

I was able to get most of the set that suimmer.

[laughlinfan]

Nice thread! I started in 1969 buying packs and always enjoyed the gum, the cards, the cartoons on the back, the inserts - loved the whole experience. Finally stopped buying new packs in 89 or 90, when it was apparent that they were taking down full forests for each of the countless sets that were being produced, and am not a fan of the manufactured scarcity in chase cards.

Since then I have moved over to collecting oddball issues, figural items, display items, orignial art - almost anything that I find interesting but probably not mass produced. I am now as I have always been, a minnow as opposed to a "whale" (and proud of it, although I guess I am supposed to feel inferior!) but I still enjoy collecting and finding the rare bargain for an item I would never be able to spend the big dollars on.

So I would suggest you try to find a way to reconnect with your old feelings of joy in collecting, even if opening packs and stuffing 5 pieces of gum in your mouth is sadly no longer an option!

P.S. And speaking of Kelloggs, one of my all time great days as a kid was pulling not one but THREE(!!!) 3-D cards out of a single box of Corn Flakes in 1970, including my hero Tom Seaver! As a 6 year old, I felt like I won the lottery!