My First Card Show since the Pandemic... The more things change the more they stay same


     I recently attended my first card show since the world stopped in 2020. Having recently decided to sell off and refocus my collection I went with a different goal in mind. Rookie Cards of Hall of Famers Drafted in the 1990's., and of course cards of my beloved New York Knicks. Fortunately for me I knew that I could get out of there without breaking the bank. 

    There was definitely an eclectic crowd in attendance, along with a variety of dealers, and I was surprised to see a strong wrestling and Pokemon card presence at the show. I know there is and has always been an underlying tension between the trading card and gaming card community but its nice to know that coexistence is possible. 

    As I perused the show I realized that somethings in the Hobby in fact will never change. You will always have one dealer using Beckett for prices, insanely overpriced commons, and booths with no prices marked. The booths with unmarked inventory are usually a hard pass for me, because time is of the essence and if I am going to make an offer I would like a starting point. Unmarked items show me the dealer is not willing to make a minimal effort and is willing to be inconsistently priced,

    Then we have the dime and quarter boxes! I call these the treasure chest due to the fact you never know what you will find. All it takes is a little patience (something not prevalent in the hobby), and a willingness to dig a bit. Well between two booth and a little digging I left with four Rookies meeting my new collection criteria for the staggering combined price of $2.25.



I know Robinson was drafted in 87, but he didn't debut until 1990

    I know it's "junk wax", but I collect what I like so I was quite happy with my finds. Also included in the price was a rookie card of someone I consider to be one of the most electric basketball players of the 1990's as well as one of the biggest "what if's?" in basketball.

It is impossible to talk 90's basketball without talking about the Reign Man


   Another thing that caught my eye at the show was the amount of people trying to sell to dealers. Pre-Pandemic this was a common occurrence, but it would be a safe assumption that every booth I visited had someone trying to sell to the dealer. The 2020 bubble has began to burst and it seemed local "investors" were trying to get out. As for me as I continue my hobby reformation, I look forward to attending more local shows when they come to my little pocket of the world. As of right now I am laid up with a torn meniscus and potential blown out knee. So If you believe in a higher power throw a prayer up for the big guy. All the Best


The Big Orrisotle






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