[drcy]

If you were going to spend it on a car for sons, you would have spent in to on something that depreciated quickly anyway. In the strictly financial scheme of things, you may come out better financially having spent it on the collection.

And some people spend good money on fakes. There are real horror stories there. You got something authentic and worth money out of it.

The autographs are the wild card here. Along with what you get for the entire collection. In your funk, perhaps you'll get more than you're thinking right now.

Overspending on a collection happens to everyone, even experienced dealers. Even the Mr. Mint you mentioned has overspent. He wrote about buying super rare football card boxes sitting in a garage or warehouse, only to discover when approaching them that they were infested with bugs. I know a well known dealer who bought a high grade 1971 Topps, but when he took the cads out of the binder he discovered many to most were recolored in black pen.

The best thing to do to make up for a bad deal, overspending or whatever, is to save some money and cut spending that you already wouldn't have-- a little here and a little here. Over time, you will make up the lost money by saving money you wouldn't have spent if this situation hadn't happened. If a loss causes you to alter your actions and habits for the better, it can actually lead to profit.

They say a difference between people who are overweight and healthy weight is both will sometimes overeat way more than normal at a meal, but the healthy weight person will make up for it by eating less at the next meal (a light dinner after a big restaurant lunch) or by skipping some snacks he or she would ordinarily have, while the overweight person will continue to eat the same amount as normal.

Personal setbacks and mistakes can make for a better person, short term financial losses can lead to long term profit and a big early season loss can make for a better football team. It's all a matter of how you handle and react to them.