This upcoming week, my blog hits a pretty special milestone...it turns 15 years old. And while over the past 5-6 years my activity on this site has been minimal, I still take great pride in knowing that blogging has remained an important part of my hobby environment and enjoyment.
I'll chat more about this anniversary accomplishment later in the week. For now, I wanted to share some photos that made me laugh as I realized just how long I've been collecting my guy, Trevor Linden.
A couple years ago, I was sifting through my collection and noticed some pretty old cards. I gave them some TLC and a little tidy. Today, I started dealing with his Montreal Canadiens-era cards...
This......is how long I've been collecting Trev. :)
I had a good snicker when I noticed that his cards....toploaders from the early 2000's had deteriorated to the point where they needed a permanent shift change. It's incredible to see how much more appealing and vibrant a card is when it's got that shiny new suit.
I can remember buying cards from this time period. I had just discovered eBay and that opened the door to a flood of Linden cards that I never thought I'd own. Impossible to find parallels were now a click or two away. I was in player collecting heaven.
At that time, it was completely foreign to me seeing Linden in non-Canucks colors. First, in a stint with the New York Islanders, then the iconic Montreal Canadiens and finally a cup of coffee with the Washington Capitals. It never felt right and I was thrilled when he finally returned to Vancouver to finish out his career.
That said, I knew I'd never waiver from collecting his cards. I know of other hobbyists who have abandoned their pursuit once their favourite player moved on to another team. I've always been a "nameplate on the back" guy first over the "crest on the front" (make note...I say that as a big Canucks fan).
I've always kept my cards in the standard penny sleeve, toploader combo and have stored my Linden collection in the cardboard monster boxes that have dominated hobby collecting up until recently.
I never really subscribed to the binder and binder sheets combination for my Lindens...to this day, I never feel comfortable flipping through pages. I thought the safety of my Linden collection was more sound in those cardboard boxes.
I go to shows and trade nights these days and see big, beefy briefcases tailor made for sportscards. I don't know if I will ever see my Linden collection switch over to that. It lacks a sense of warmth and innocence that some of the older storage methods have created for me.
It might be a little less convenient (as opposed to binders) to enjoy my collection and look at my cards, but I do love the fact that when I go through the various years and admire them, it's one piece of cardboard at a time. Each card gets my complete attention when I look at it - it's not competing with 8 other friends on a page.
And while I'm not taking the cards out of the toploaders, I feel more connected to my collction by the way I'm physically holding on to them. They aren't resting on a table as I just flip pages. The cards feel (literally) more tangible. Probably why some of these cases have yellowed (that...and they're just old).
This toploader swap process has also made me stop and smell some of the rare flowers that normally wouldn't get much of a look - they're not the "rare hits" or "flexes" that others might like to see and enjoy. But I cherish each card I've been able to add.
These near 25-year old base cards and parallels are such an important part of my Linden collection. They take me back to a time when I was growing and developing a player collection at a rate that gave me some real excitement in this hobby - a level I'd never reached previously. I knew I had found my real collecting passion.
And I had no idea of the rollercoaster ride I was about to go on.
How do you store your player collection (or just general collection for that matter)? Have you ever done an upgrade to the storage of your cards?
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