Saturday, September 24, 2011

Vladimir Guerrero, 2011 Topps Gypsy Queen #36

In short, today's trip to the Philly card show was a rousing success. I spent every last dollar that I walked in with, and not a penny more. I spent a few bucks on this year's Orioles cards, including those mind-blowingly awesome Diamond parallels from the Topps flagship set. Among my O's purchases was the card you see above, which allows me to properly pay tribute to Vlad Guerrero on the day that he ties Julio Franco for the most career hits by a Dominican-born player with his 2,586th base knock. He might not be able to hit for much power any more, but that takes nothing away from his remarkable career. I also gobbled up a bunch of 1970s commons from a dealer with a dime box, knocking some 1972 Topps set needs in the process. Another table had 1950s cards at a deep discount, so I tackled some of my 1959 Topps needs for a buck a piece and also laid my hands on a few beautiful 1953 Topps for three to five dollars each. On my way out I also relieved a dealer of a wax box of 1992 Topps for $11, because I'm hoping to finally put that set to bed and I always like to have some packs to rip. I was in and out in three hours with the help of my sister, who surprised me by agreeing to come along. She was a big help in searching boxes for specific cards and keeping tabs on my want lists while I hunted. (Full disclosure: for her invaluable assistance, she was rewarded with a post-show trip to the King of Prussia Mall. That place is so huge and sprawling, I'm surprised we found our way out.)

Now comes the fun part: taking inventory of my new cards and storing them in their binders. No sarcasm intended; I really do like this stuff. You may have noticed.

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