Friday, September 13, 2019

Sixth Stop On The Six State Tour

The next leg of the trip was more a return home than another venture into unknown lands.  We got stuck in Nashville after our shop visit, so the trip back to Michigan was made overnight with only brief stops.  Sunday was basically lost to travel and fatigue.  We got up Monday with no planned journey farther than Stuart's family home - a few blocks from his apartment.


I've probably visited him six or eight times since 2009, the year before the National was in Baltimore - an hour from my house.  We had been talking on the phone about cards for months, but hadn't met in person.  We figured it was a good idea to make sure neither of us was a psycho before committing to going to the convention the next year.


He likes to tell the story that we first contacted each other over a box of 2002 Upper Deck 40-Man for sale on eBay in 2007.  Stuart won the box, so I emailed him to see if we could trade singles from the set.  He responded, but I never got the message - must have gone to my spam box.  Then about a year later, he posted on Sports Card Forum about building the set.  I answered and sent my remaining wants.  He still had a stack pulled from the first communication that he realized matched my list, and figured out I was the same guy that bid on the eBay box so long ago.  This started a free-form exchange of cards between us that continues to this day.   We just send anything from PWE's to two-row shoeboxes (and bigger if we deliver them on visits.) all the time without really matching up each transaction. We've been back and forth to Michigan or Maryland pretty much each year thereafter.

So as we were climbing through some of his collection (literally), and finding binders and boxes to put away some of the singles he had picked up on our trip, he pulled out some things for me to take home.


A set of 1991-92 Topps hockey, including the Team Scoring Leaders inserts.  Highlights include Jagr second year card and Guy LaFleur tribute cards.


Some 2002 Traded and 2007 Heritage singles to potentially knock off some numbers on my current wants.  Didn't end up needing many of these, so they're available...


And some nice vintage stars!  Really shocked me with these!  Sorry, these are not up for trade.  The 66's will go in my star binder and the 68's to my set build. 

Thanks to Stuart, who is always glad to thin out the hoard a little.  Look him up on Sports Card Forum as BseballCommish75.

Next time...on to the Warehouse!


5 comments:

  1. I currently am open for some of you readers of blogs to locate your needs if you are able to find what I need as well. Plus GCA & I are always looking for new insights in our roundtable discussions at the National Conventions it gets pretty much boring coming back to the hotel & watching SportsCenter compared to meeting up w/a fellow trader in 2011 who bought a case of Lineage & had us over to give our reviews on the product as well the State of the hobby we enjoy. Another thing that GCA failed to mention about me is that I am a walking talking baseball encyclopedia as well very knowledgeable about any baseball card. He calls them *Cha-Ching* moments. So I hope to hear from some of you soon & I am always happy to entertain anyone who would like to visit the places where GCA & I have been to during his visits here.

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  2. Dang. Nice 66T and 68T hall of famers!

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    1. Yeah I got them for as a my payment fee for doing an appraisal for at the time at an auction of a sports card shop that was selling all their inventory as well getting $50 an hour. The person who hired me didn't want them he mainly wanted the newer at the time 1997 Topps Chrome refractors as well the 1995 Bowman set & didn't care for the Hall of Fame vintage lot I got for him at $3.00 that eventually went to GCA cause I felt like he would do these vintage sets since I am trying to finish up my 1967 Topps set.

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  3. It's nice to hear the story of how you two met. Real friends aren't easy to come by these days, almost sounds like you guys destined to meet at some point :)

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    1. Well....even though GCA was an only child w/some ex-brothers & sisters in his life sometimes he is like the older brother that I wished I had growing up truth be told I have 2 older brothers but neither one collected baseball cards or knowledge about the game like me. Sometimes when needed I will call him on advice other than cards as for our friendship I told him once I can see us as the 2 old men in the balcony on the old Muppet Show going to Nationals still & completely complaining about all the new stuff & prices & how hard it is still to complete our lists....sorta like we do in the present lol.....but GCA is truly a great guy.

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