I realize for the most part that most of the people reading this are zealous (and sometimes overzealous) participants of the art of card collecting. So you can empathize with the art of the never-ending chase to accumulate all the cardboard and the foil in the (insert sport(s) here) universe.
So the general question is.....what keeps you going?
Is it the thrill of the hunt for that one rare card you've always wanted? But what happens after the hunt? How do you determine what to pursue next?
Is it the set completion itch that keeps you going?
Is it the discovery a looked-over set that sparks your interest?
In other words, what thoughts go into shaping your collection?
I am at a point where I am actually getting closer to many of the goals I set at the beginning of 2009. I can see myself finishing them in the next few months. I also have a lot of cards that don't fit into the general scope of my collection. It's not that I want to cull them (because I like having at least examples of most card sets), it's that I'm running out of room.
After I finish this "Phillies project" and the Bowman sets I'm working on, what will keep me going...besides the effervescent harmony of nostalgia and thrill-chasing?
Don't misunderstand, I will always be a collector. How does one reduce and expand focus at the same time?
Feel free to discuss.
4 comments:
i love collecting and the trading part really keeps me looking for that great card to trade. Also meeting people with the same passion for collecting is also great.
It's not the destination, it's the journey.
I figured out at some point in the mid-80's I wouldn't be able to collect everything, so I went with what made me happy. At the time, that was collecting vintage Topps set with my Dad and collecting Phillies cards.
My attention has turned away somewhat from collecting vintage sets, and now I'm pretty much just collecting Phillies cards. Why? For the same reason I started this crazy racket - happiness.
When I start to feel that "lull" everyone talks about I will usually look for something to shift my focus. I might add a new player to collect or some new sub-set.
I did this back when I first collected and started to search for cards with players bunting the ball. It made the chase fun again and you really do discover new things when you do this.
Now when I feel "bored" or things seem dull I pull out the sub-set and go hunting.
I collect Redskins, so that may never end, and with the 90's, there's still a long way to go. It's fun to find sets and inserts I've never seen before. I also have plenty of 60's and 70's baseball player collections, some of which they still make new (post-career) cards of. Plus I started a few newer guys to see all the post 1985 sets I haven't seen.
And then, I've just started into hockey in the last year, so that opens a whole new facet.
On top of it all, I'm still going back and working on the core of my collecting - vintage baseball sets from the early 70's and older...
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