Unfortunately, considering getting completely 100% out. Advice/thoughts?

vintagehofrookies · #1 02-19-2016, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brian Van Horn

Let's face it. We call it a hobby, but it is also a passion which feeds an addiction at some level. Separating yourself from collecting is a step by step process.

Brian,
I think you hit the nail on the head! As I really have tried to get out in the past but I feel my first step to getting out was in me selling my prospects with the next step me being able to sell very important and meaningful pieces such as my Seamless Steel Tube Cobb, which was my favorite card of everything I had. There is no doubt that I am very addicted to the hobby and although I never smoked or am much of a drinker, I do have an addiction problem. My selling is me trying to end that addiction.
Dan

Jobu · #2 02-19-2016, 09:32 AM

Dan, the only thing I will say is that you should do whatever leaves you with no regrets. Be 100% sure you are making the right decision for you at the time (it sounds like you are and like you have really thought this out) and then move on knowing you did the right thing because you wanted to do it. Plus, the cardboard will always be there waiting for you to start over again if things change. Leon mentioned that liquidating wasn't as hard as he thought it would be, so there is hope.

I look forward to seeing what your Stainless Steel Cobb brings!

One thing that might help here: if you have bulk newer cards you could donate them and write the loss of against your sales. I have a bunch of stuff from the 80s and 90s that I had been planning to dump, but given that I bought all of it a pack at a time I could probably claim a pretty huge loss against the sale of the rest of my collection (if I ever decide to sell it) if I was willing to look up pack prices and do a little math.

mechanicalman · #3 02-19-2016, 11:31 AM

Hi Dan:

I am a relatively new collector, so my personal experience is perhaps not terribly relevant to your situation, though I have thought, at some point, I will have to part with the cards of which I'm become so fond, and I know that will be a challenging decision.

Just yesterday, I watched a Ted talk from a scientist/author named Dan Gilbert on the subject of happiness. One of his basic arguments is that, as humans, when we part with things we like, or when bad things happen (i.e. like break-ups), the disappointment tends to erode faster than we initially think it will. This is because we tend to overestimate the impact of future events, good or bad. I'm oversimplifying, of course, but it was a very interesting discussion nonetheless. It may or may not be of any relevance, but if anyone has a spare 20 minutes (never a given in this hectic world), it's not a bad use of time.

Cheers, and best of luck to you.

https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_gilber...py?language=en

h2oya311 · #4 02-19-2016, 12:15 PM

Wow Dan! Crazy news! It looks like you've gone "all-in" on this decision with the consignment of those three amazing pieces!

I'm sad to see another HOF rookie collector fall victim to the "reduced itch" bug, but for my own selfish reasons, I guess I'm okay with it. I'll certainly be on the lookout for much of your material!

I hope you continue to contribute to the boards in some fashion. Perhaps you'll get the itch again (as Leon and others have).

All the best in your decision.

Derek

Hankphenom · #5 02-19-2016, 12:23 PM

It's all part of the churn, and we will all do it someday--or our heirs will. I've found that selling can be almost as much fun as buying, and there is satisfaction in knowing these great things you've treasured and protected are moving on to those who will do the same with them.

drcy · #6 02-19-2016, 12:55 PM

I sold off my collection years back and don't collect anymore (maybe in the future), but get enjoyment reading the board and reading about the stuff. Definitely can live without all the Mastro-esque drama, though. That gets old fast, especially when you realize we're dealing with kid's collectibles. The hobby as a hobby good, the hobby as a industry bad. I figured if I started collecting again it would be in an interesting antique area where items have almost no value and look quaint on my mantle, so the financial part of it isn't involved-- and of course, nothing that is professionally graded.

Though I'm an art historian by trade and am teaching a photo history course, so am still actively involved in "the stuff." I just don't buy for myself as a collector.

Snapolit1 · #7 02-19-2016, 01:02 PM

A lot of my drive in building a nice collection is the idea that I will be leaving it to my kids who can share it with their kids. Very few people have the foresight and patience to do things in their life like build a collection of something and pass it forward. I wish I had a distant family member had put some things in a box and said preserve these. Kind of a legacy that tells you grandkids and great grandkids a little something about a person they never met. I've never been happier in my life than sitting at a baseball game on a beautiful summer day drinking a beer with my family. Or reading about baseball history. And all the better if those things have some value that will inure to others.

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