Today, I would like to blog about the 1970 Topps baseball. I was just four years old in 1970, attending the Little Ones Nursery School in Northbrook, Illinois. I did not collect baseball cards just yet. I do remember that I had a great fondness for candy, ice cream, plastic army men and local kids’ TV show “Ray Rayner.”

My mom drove me to school every morning in her early 1960’s beatermobile. I don’t remember what make of car it was but it was huge and had one of those long front seats, AM radio, and a thin steering wheel. I sat in front, no seat belt. I remember at the intersection by school there was a hippie crossing guard, who I later got to know as he had twin younger brothers my age. They were all huge Cubs fans, screaming at the TV whenever I was over during a game.

My older brother, who I affectionately refer to as “Dickhead,” collected baseball cards in 1970. My mother promptly threw them away as she did with all our stuff. It took years of fighting with her to get her to stop.

Over the next several years, I was able to find a handful of my brother’s 1970 Topps hidden and scattered about the house. I thought they were pretty cool. 

Later, in the mid-1970’s, as I began collecting baseball cards with my buddy Andy, we would swipe hordes of them from his older brother, also a dickhead. By the late 1970’s, when Andy’s parents split and he moved with his mother into a nearby townhouse, I was able to purchase all of his older brother’s cards for about twenty bucks.  I received a brown paper grocery bag filled to the brim with cards from 1969 through 1974. I think this occurred around 1977 and I now had hundreds of 1970 Topps baseball cards.

The 1970 Topps set featured 720 cards — the largest set Topps had produced up until that time. Topps released the set in seven different series with the last series, cards numbered 634 to 720, being the hardest to currently obtain because they were issued in the fall when kids had lost interest or had moved onto to other things like collecting football, basketball, and hockey cards. Cards of Nolan Ryan and Johnny Bench were issued in Series 7 and carry a premium due to their scarcity.

The big rookie in 1970 was Thurman Munson. Though, if you were a kid in the early 1970’s, you valued the rookie card of Vida Blue (RIP), who dominated the early part of the decade and was considered a superstar by us kids back then. I also really like the rookie card of Bill Buckner, who I came to love when he played for the Cubs. Another rookie of note is Darrell Evans.

Some other 1970 Topps cards I always sought to obtain were those depicting the Seattle Pilots, who existed for one year but had cards in 1969 and 1970. The Pilots went bankrupt after their one season and were purchased by Bud Selig, who moved the franchise to Milwaukee, renaming them the Brewers.

When I started setting up at card shows in Milwaukee, around 20 years ago, I learned that Pilots cards carry a premium in Milwaukee. Those that collect the complete run of Brewers team sets, seem to start with the 1969 and 1970 Topps Pilots sets.

I have seen a lot of critique of the 1970 design, which I think is unwarranted. I have always liked the design. The gray backdrop always made the cards seem much older than they actually were, which was something I always liked about the cards.

Card Number 1 was always kind of a painful card for me due to growing up in the north suburbs of Chicago where Cubs fandom is rampant. The Mets broke the hearts of Cubs fans with their epic run at the end of the 1969 season, passing the Cubbies and rolling through the playoffs and World Series to take the title.

That 1969 Cubs team is still the most beloved team in the history of Cubdom. That card number one depicting the Mets World Series Championship just hurts. It has actually taken years for me to stop hating the Mets.

Topps debuted Playoff cards in 1970, something I enjoyed. I also love the All-Star cards which Topps reused the 1961 All Star design of having the player’s portrait pop out of a newspaper. 

Other than the high numbers and relatively large number of cards in the set, the 1970 Topps baseball set is a rather simple one to complete, largely because it is the first set since Topps began issuing cards in 1952 that did not contain Mickey Mantle, as he retired after the 1969 season.

A few years ago, I picked up a 1970 Topps wrapper, pictured above, and have it prominently in my collection. Wax packs in 1970 cost 10 cents each and included 10 cards and an insert of either a poster, scratch off or booklet. I have obtained quite a few of these inserts over the years and really like them. I am amazed that they do not carry much of a value, so obtaining complete sets of the inserts are just as easy as building the base set.

Topps’ photographers stepped up their game for the 1970 Topps set which featured some unique and excellent photos like Bud Harrelson signing autographs for fans, the Hank Aaron photo seemingly looks like the photographer sneeked up on him, I like the Lou Brock photo showing him chilling out by the batting cages, then there are several photos depicting players choosing bats like Harmon Killebrew, Juan Rios, Jose Laboy, Del Unser, Gary Moses, Bob Oliver, Andy Etchebarren, Jay Johnstone, and Tony Taylor.

I have always been a huge fan of the backs of baseball cards and continue to read them and go through the statistics. The backs off the 1970 Topps baseball are some of the best, featuring complete stats and a cartoon depicting an aspect of each player.

In addition to collecting cards, I collect autographs as well. I have always found the 1970 Topps one of the best issues to get autographed due to the clean design and lack of facsimile auto. I have obtained quite a few signed 1970 Topps over the years.

So back in 1977, after I purchased that horde from Andy’s brother, I sorted all of the cards by year, then by number. I then pulled out all of the star cards, placed them in photo albums, and priced them through the ads in Sports Collectors Digest. In the summer of 1978, my dad packed me and my baseball cards, along with assorted junk from the house into the station wagon my mom now drove after the beatermobile died, and set me up at the flea market at the Twin Drive-in in Wheeling, Illinois. I sold cards there on Sundays all summer long and took in quite a haul. 

As the years went on, I obtained more and more 1970 Topps baseball cards. Today, I probably have around 15,000 of them. I still buy them and don’t even know why -- I have so many. I have at least one complete set and am slowly building a second. Who knows how many complete sets I have if I was to actually go through all 15,000 cards. 

The 1970 Topps baseball has always been a great seller and continue to be so. My current show binder of 1970 Topps baseball is nearly empty. I am slowly working on a second binder and hope to have it done in a month or so. 

I was surprised at the lack of info I found on the internet related to 1970 Topps baseball, so I would really like to hear your thoughts on the set. Did you complete a set? Any roadblocks/issues in completing a 1970 Topps set? Anyone collect them back in 1970? Any memories? Please share!

I took last weekend off from shows. Big weekend ahead with the June 3rd Oak Creek show. Tons of new dealers. I'm bringing out one display case of pre-war, baseball, basketball, hockey binders and my late 1970's/early 1980's football binders. Hope to see you Saturday!!!

Sunday, May 21, 2023, Civic Center, Orland Park, IL

I arrived at the Civic Center around 8:15 a.m. and saw that the parking lot was nearly full due to massive little league games in the adjacent baseball fields. I was able to snag one of the coveted green carts to load in which leads me to my one complaint about the Civic Center -- they leave three green carts out in the morning but just one in the afternoon after the show closes. So load out is usually two or three trips on one of the smaller carts while load in is just one trip on that nice green cart.

I pretty much brought out the same stuff that I had yesterday in Woodstock. New for Orland were two more display cases for a total of four cases. In the cases, I placed baseball cards from 1963 through 1979, after doing 1958 through 1962 last month. I also had space for football cards from 1948 through 1959.

Here is a random observation from my Orland set up. Like clockwork, as soon as I put out a few binders, someone stops to flip through them, blocking my way to put out more binders. It is like they hide in the bushes and wait for me to put out a binder or two then they pounce!

This is a problem at most shows. I almost always have someone jump on a binder as soon as I place any of them out. I wish they would wait until I finish setting up. This problem used to be worse in Orland during the John Leary days when I was set up in the back of the room. In those days, I would have four or five guys at my table as soon as I brought in my bins of cards. At least now, it is usually just one guy who blocks my way instead of four.

I finished setting up at the 9 o'clock bell. Except for the early guys who get in my way, I did not have any customers until 9:30 or so, which seems to be the pattern here. Terry drew my attention to Record Store Steve's table which was mobbed at 9 a.m. As Terry regularly points out, all the vintage customers go to Steve first, then to Jim, then to Terry, then to me. 

Outside of the group at Steve's table, there were not a whole lot of people in the room early on. By 10 a.m., the place had filled up and sales started to come in. Will and Joe arrived with hot coffee and Sausage McMuffins. Thanks guys! I really needed that coffee. Those blood pressure meds just drag me down. I felt so much better with that coffee in me.

I sold a 1963 Topps Bill Mazeroski early on. My guy working on '59's pulled out another large pile. I love that guy! Then my pal Joe showed up and we went out to his car in the parking lot where he gave me three heavy boxes of sets from the 1990's. I normally don't take cards from this era but I have a hard time turning down free cards. Thanks Joe!

I found it funny when a regular customer ran over to see what I was getting from Joe in the parking lot. I tried to tell him that it was nothing all too interesting but he still came over to peek in the boxes.

My friend Milan found a card in my recently reloaded 1963 Topps binder. The couple working on '77's was back and pulled another large pile. The older couple working on 1966 Topps purchased a few high numbers from my display case. Two of my regular hockey collectors found some cards.

I did not bring out much football since those binders are beat. Seems like I pretty much just have football from 1977 through 1982 filled up. All the other years have been attacked. I hope to add more football soon. I did not sell any football from the display cases or the few binders that I had out. I normally sell football 12 months out of the year. It is an odd day when I don't sell any football.

Quite a few others purchased cards but I can't seem to remember exactly what I sold. Will was the big winner today with a nice purchase of 1970-71 Topps basketball and all of my 1975 Topps baseball stars from my display case. Thanks Will!

Pretty solid day selling cards as usual in Orland. My numbers were not quite as good as last month but good enough where I was not disappointed. 

On the buying front, Jeff P. sent over a young guy selling some old football cards. I picked up the group which included two 1970 Topps Gale Sayers. Jeff also directed me to a new dealer in the corner of the room who had a $5 dollar box with some good stuff. I picked up a few cards there including a 1972 O-Pee-Chee Harmon Killebrew. Any time I see vintage O-Pee-Chees, I automatically buy them because you just don't see them. Thanks Jeff!

Jeff and I also had a nice discussion after the show on our diabetes related illnesses. Did I say that diabetes sucks!

Anyway, back to buying. A guy came to my table with a baggy of beat 1960's and 1970's cards. There were some big names in there but the cards were worn and creased. I asked him for a price on the baggy but he refused and demanded an offer. Uh, oh. This never works out. As I have stated in the past, every seller has a price. I am not going to overpay for beat up and worn cards. I offered $100. He walked away but not before showing me a few more cards including a 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson Rookie and a Gretzky Rookie. He told me he was going to get those cards graded. I told him not to bother because they were creased. He said the Gretzky was not for sale -- then why show it to me?

I gathered that this guy knows nothing about cards. He told me he collects vintage video games and obtained these cards with a purchase of a video game collection. I am going to guess that he went on eBay and saw some high-grade slabbed prices and thought he had gold. I tried to explain to him that the value of vintage cards is condition sensitive. He did not seem to care nor take my comments seriously. I saw him walking around later in the show without the baggy. Someone must have bought those cards. I wonder what they paid?

Later in the show, my old friend Blue Island Tom reported that his long-time pal Jeff Watson died on Friday. Tom said he had been friends with Jeff since 1955. Jeff was one of my regular customers at the Orland show and he was working on the early Bowman baseball sets. His health started to fail about a year ago and he stopped coming to the show. I received regular updates on Jeff's condition from Tom. I always thought I'd see Jeff saunter back into the Orland show and take his rightful place at my old Bowman binder with that usual smile on his face. It never did happen and I am so sorry to hear about his passing. Jeff was a super nice guy. My thoughts and prayers to Jeff's family and friends. Here is a link to his obituary: James Jeffrey Watson Obituary (tributearchive.com).

On a happier note, I capped off the day at the sub shop with Will and Joe. Those guys went with the fried shrimp while I ate a burger. Man, that shrimp looked so good. I made a mistake and should have gone with the shrimp. Problem is, I hate eating the same thing I had last time. I always try to go with something new but I think I'll have to go with the shrimp next time.

So the next Orland show is on June 11 will be a rare show where I will not attend. I have a scheduling conflict. The bi-monthly Roma Lodge show in Racine, WI, is also June 11 and I opted for that show in June. I skipped the April Roma show for Orland. I don't know what to do when two shows I want to attend are scheduled for the same day. All I can do is rotate. I wish I could be in two spots at once!

I will be at the July 16 Orland show. I sure would like to see more of my Orland regulars come up to Oak Creek! Next Oak Creek show is coming up fast on June 3. That show is located at the Salvation Army Community Center, 8853 S. Howell, in Oak Creek, WI. Oak Creek is a south suburb of Milwaukee and really easy to get to from I94. I will have a bunch of new dealers at this show. Come on out!!!

A big thank you to Rich and his crew for putting on another excellent show! 

Pictured below are some of my purchases from the May Orland show.

​See you soon!

Saturday, May 20, 2023, Woodstock North High School, Woodstock, IL

I was waffling all week on whether to bring out binders or all display cases. In the end, I decided to bring out most of my binders and two display cases. My binders generally do well at this show while the display cases are hit or miss. My cheapy boxes also do well here but they are in need of reload after the Loves Park show the previous week, so I did not bring them out.

For the display cases, I brought out my pre-war because someone had asked for it at one of the previous Woodstock shows. Well, I did not sell a thing out of either display case. I think I need to stick with binders and cheapy boxes at this show. I did sell quite a few cards out of the binders. New binder for this show was 1977-78 Topps hockey. I sold quite a few of those cards.

I was really busy in the morning. Joe purchased a huge pile of cards from the late 1970's. Thank Joe! He told me he is an accountant so I had him add up that pile of cards! Big Mike purchases some cards. Thanks Mike! His pal Kevin purchases some 1950 Bowman baseball. Thanks Kevin! Kevin informed me that I looked like crap in Loves Park. Yes, I am still having health issues. It is a battle. I did not feel so good in Woodstock. I've got more doctors' appointments and tests lined up. Hopefully, they can figure something out and get me on the right path. They keep giving me new meds which I do not like at all. The meds seem to drain the life out of me. I am a little worried on how I am going to make it through the National this summer.

Anyway, a bunch of regulars purchased cards from me and I am in much appreciation. A new customer spent quite a while at my table. He told me he was building the sets from his childhood and he brought his collection with him. He kept going through his own binder before pulling cards out of my binders. He was an older guy and had a lot of questions for me about eBay which he did not understand. I tried to explain to him eBay auctions but I don't think I did a very good job, he seemed confused.

One thing I find confusing is the way some of these guys store their cards. I regularly see guys storing their oversized 1952 through 1956 Topps cards in 9-pocket sleeves. Well, those 9-pocket sleeves are not wide enough for these cards. The proper sleeves are the 8-pocket ones. The cards are getting damaged by being jammed into those 9-pocket sleeves. It is so painful for me to see cards improperly stored that way.

While I was hosting an inner monologue about proper card storage, my stomach began to rumble. There were all sorts of sporting events going on at the school simultaneously with the show that I was hopeful the school would have its concession stand open but to no avail. Good thing I brought some coffee. One of the dealers was selling chips and Gatorade but neither are good for my diabetes so I took a pass and just stayed hungry.

On the buying front, not nearly as good as the last time I was in Woodstock. I was offered some 1966 Topps Scratch Offs but the price was just slightly too high. Those things don't sell for much, even the hall of famers. My only purchase was an Exhibit Phil Rizzuto.

It was nice seeing my pal Donny, along with Lou's son Anthony. I enjoyed chatting with dealers Tom Kummer and Tom Mularz. There are a couple of regular dealer there that I always talk to but their names escape me. Nice guys. Speaking of nice guys, John and Mike from the Rockford-Loves Park-Janesville shows stopped in. Always great to see those guys.

I was sad to learn that promoter Curtis's dad died recently. My condolences to Curtis and his family. Curtis's dad regularly came out to the Church show to help Curtis pack up. As most of us know, it is tough to lose a family member. 

After a busy morning, the crowd thinned out in the afternoon. I think I was out the door by 2 p.m.

So there is no show in Woodstock in June and July. Apparently the school doubled their rental rates for those months and Curtis did not want to double the dealer table rates. So no show in Woodstock until August. If Curtis can squeeze me in, I'll probably set up. 

I just checked my August schedule and observed that I do not have much going on. I might just keep it that way since my health is shite. The card shows are getting tough for me to do right now. I think I might start doing more online selling this summer. I have posted cards on this website in the past but nothing seems to sell here. I might try my Fat Daddy's Facebook page. I am seeing more and more cards for sale on Facebook.

Anyway, a huge thank you to everyone who purchased cards from me in Woodstock. I had a better-than-expected day selling cards.

I am taking next weekend off, though I won't get much rest as my son is graduating high school and my in-laws will be in town. I am a little worried that I won't have much energy to hang out with the in-laws. Hopefully, I can get by. 

Next show is Oak Creek on June 3. I have added a bunch of new dealers off the wait list. I also really need all dealers to prepay me. With my health failing, it is harder than ever to move around and collect table fee. 

I appreciate everyone checking in with me. It certainly helps to have so many friends out there. Thank you guys!

​Orland blog coming soon.

Friday - Saturday, May 12-13, Indoor Sports Center, Loves Park, IL

This had all the makings of a tremendous show. Promoters John and Mike did a helluva job organizing this 200-table show. As you know, I love the vintage and this show had some of the best vintage dealers around. Man, oh, man! There were Cobbs, Ruths, Gehrigs, about a dozen or so Rose rookies, Ryan rookies, Mantles, Jackie and more. I was blown away.

For whatever reason, attendance was down. Where was everybody? You guys missed out!! Look at that photo above! This was something special!!

I brought out most of my binders. I only put out a few football binders since the majority of them are empty. I've got to find some time to work on the football binders! New for the show was 1979 Topps baseball -- I did not sell one!! Also new for the show was 1964 Topps Coins. I sold four or five coins. Terry H. purchased a few. Thanks Terry!

When attendance is light, I need all my regulars to make purchases and I need some new customers. Only some of my regulars showed up this weekend and only some of them made purchases. I also only had a handful of new customers.

I am absolutely amazed that I could sell a ton of cards in a blizzard in Rockford but on a nice spring weekend, I could not sell much at all. Very strange.

My weekend was saved by being in a "pod" with some great folks including Gary G., Dennis B., Reed P. and Kerry (sp), and Chris. I really enjoyed hanging out with these guys. Gary, Dennis, Chris and I went out after the show Friday to nearby Italian restaurant Sam's which was awesome. I enjoyed a Chicken Portabella entree caked in olive oil and garlic that was oh, so good, while the guys shared a pizza. I accompanied my meal with a beer called a "Pig Minds Vanilla Bitch Slap." I honestly was hesitant to order this beer based on its name but Gary recommended it. Glad I ordered the Bitch Slap because it was damn good.

My hotel in Rockford was practically under the highway and featured a bunch of folks partying all night. It was tough to sleep. I was tired on Saturday but got by on a lot of caffein.

I appreciate the few folks that purchased cards from me. Thank you! On the buying front, I took a pass. I know I should buy when things are slow but I am just not in the mood when my pockets are empty. 

I don't play the blame game. When a show promoter puts in the effort to get the word out, like John and Mike did, I will not place blame on them like some nutters did at the end of the show. I know first hand, as a promoter, all you can do is put the word out. You have no control over who does or who does not show up. 

I have set up at quite a few of John and Mike's shows and they almost always are well attended. We all produce a dud every so often, myself included. You just gotta dust yourself off and get back in the box, like John and Mike will do on June 4 when they host a show in Janesville. Normally, I would attend that show but it is scheduled the day after Oak Creek when these old bones are tired as hell. I'll be sleeping in that day. However, I recommend everyone attend the Janesville show which is always a good time!

John and Mike are working on their schedule for the rest of the year. When I learn their dates, I will be sure to place some of their shows in my schedule. 

In the meantime, I am getting back in the box next weekend with the Woodstock North High School show on Saturday, May 20, 2023; and Orland on Sunday, May 21, 2023.

I have not decided yet what I am going to bring out next weekend. Any suggestions? I did start work on my 1977-78 Topps hockey binder. I should have it ready to go by the weekend.

The next Oak Creek show is coming up fast. A lot of my regular dealers have other stuff going on that day, so I will be pulling guys off the wait list. If you are on the wait list, you should hear from me shortly.

A belated Happy Mother's Day to all the moms who follow my blog. I took my mommy and the mommy of my kids to Lamb's Farm in Libertyville, Illinois, for Mother's Day. We had a real nice time!

Have a great week everybody!

​Here are a couple more photos from the Premier Card Show.

Oh, and I made a new friend at Lamb's Farm on Mother's Day.

Saturday, May 6, 2023, Salvation Army Community Center, Oak Creek, WI

Nothing ticks me off more than dealers cancelling the week before the show or just not showing up on the day of the show. These dealers just suck ass.

The main reason it ticks me off so much is that with more notice, I could have filled the space. Some dealers will pay me for the space after they miss the show, others don't bother. They do not realize that I still have to pay for the building rental whether they show up or not.

Another reason I am ticked off is that I have a HUGE waiting list of dealers and desperately want to add some guys off the list. I could have added four or five more guys from the list and not lost any money if some dealers had given me reasonable notice that they were not going to attend the show.

I had to tell one dealer, who cancelled the night before the show, that he has to go back on the waiting list because, even though he paid, he has cancelled multiple times on the night before the show. It is only fair that I try someone from the wait list who might actually show up.

I also think it hurts the show when I have five or six empty spaces in the building. Customers want to see all the spaces filled... me too!

This is an ongoing problem. I am amazed how many irresponsible people we have in this hobby. 

So one guy no-showed me in April. No call, text, message. He just did not show up. The week before the May show he texts and asks for a spot. What? Why in the world would I leave space for him when he probably won't show up? Priceless!

All the guys who cancelled the week of the show and did not pay will not have tables at future shows. They are going to get pissed off at me but I just don't care. I have a card show to operate and a duty to fill all the spots. I need to get rid of all these jokers who don't have the decency to give me reasonable notice or any notice that they can't make the show.

Did I say I am ticked off?

Bad dealers aside, it was an excellent show. Lisa and I arrived at the Salvation Army around 6 p.m. Friday night. I am getting more organized and have begun to make maps of each room that show the layout and where each dealer is located. New this month, I gave the maps to my main man at the Sal, Mr. Mark. 

I was so hopeful the rooms would be laid out according to my map. Well, at least all the chairs were out. As I watched Lisa struggle with my maps, I realized I need to edit them to make them much more clear, then hopefully Mark's crew and Lisa can read them.

Lisa and I ended up spending four hours rearranging the tables and chairs and placing out our dealer name plates. It is such a big job and awfully tiring, especially when I worked all day.

Lisa started to nod off around 10 p.m. We left the Sal at 10:15 p.m. I was starving and tried to find a late-night place to eat. We ended up at Denny's, the one across from Mitchell Airport.

Late night at any Denny's is always an adventure. We waited a good 20 minutes to be seated. Then we waited another hour to have our order taken. Our food arrived around 11:45 p.m., about an hour and half after we got there. Mine, a T-bone steak, was quite good. Lisa's French toast breakfast was disgusting. She ended up sharing my food. At least we ate something. Though, we won't be visiting that particular Denny's again.

I woke before my alarm was set to go off at 6 a.m. We made it to the Sal around 7:15 a.m. The parking lot was already full of dealers. I opened the front door for the masses.

Thankfully, I loaded in Friday night and was able to start setting up right away. With so many no-shows, I had my pick of spots. I chose to set up in front of the concession stand. The kitchen is being remodeled and we moved concessions to the stage in the Chapel. I really liked that spot. If the kitchen is still out in June, I'm snagging that spot again.

One note about the spot. It was initially blocked with a huge metal structure containing a sink. On Friday night, I told Lisa we'll move the structure so we can set up there. She tried to lift it and said it was too heavy to move. I tugged on it and thought I could move it myself and told her so. She got angry at me and then moved it by herself. Note to self, don't make Lisa angry, she is super strong.

Another on-going issue with the dealers is trying to get them to prepay for their space. 
With 130 dealers, it is just way too hard to collect from everybody during the show. We're tired as it is after spending four hours Friday night setting this thing up. I think I am going to start charging more for the space from dealers who fail to prepay. Hopefully that will solve the problem.

Lisa did the vast majority of the fee collecting. I was so tired and truly thankful to have her walk around and collect table fee. She is as trouper! 

After set up, I went out on patrol. I have to make sure that dealers don't take more than their share of space and also don't move their tables into the aisle. You would not believe how many dealers move their tables into the aisle -- totally asinine! How do they expect customers to reach them when they block the access?

I had one dealer pay me for his tables early in the morning then disappear. WTF? He did not tell me he was not setting up. Again, I would rather have him tell me the week prior that he was not setting up and pull someone from the wait list. I hate empty tables!

Another issue with dealers is that some will find replacements when they cannot attend the show. I would rather pull someone from my wait list than have the dealer go find someone. I will save dealer spots if they just give me at least a week's notice that they can't be there.

When you have 130 different dealers, there are lots and lots of headaches. 

Another headache is customers who arrive well before the show opens at 9 a.m. I watched customers come in at 8 a.m. I know I've said this before but I just don't understand these early arrivals because none of the dealers are open for business at 8 a.m. Most are just arriving at 8 a.m. Please, do not come to the show before 9 a.m. You are just in the way! We need to load in and set up!!

As the show went on, I was in a much better mood. My tables were busy from the get-go. I had a great day selling cards. It was awesome to see Jason and his wife Michelle. Aside from being a great guy, Jason has been buying card from me at Milwaukee shows for more than 20 years. He pulled a nice pile of cards. Thanks Jason!

Craig purchased some cards but I missed his better half, who did not attend. Robert purchased some cards. Thanks Robert! Jerome purchased some cards as well. Thanks Jerome. Dave found a few. Thanks Dave! Bob bought some cards and did not leave any this time. Thanks Bob!

I was busy from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. when the place cleared out. The big winner today was Shawn who purchased a huge pile of 1963 Topps baseball. Thanks Shawn!

Seemed like everybody and their mother was on the hunt for 1961 Fleer Great of the Game. I have them but am not anywhere near getting them ready for a show. I might be motivated now to organize them.

I had one of my best Oak Creek shows of the year. I talked to some other dealers that had excellent shows as well. I also talked to a few dealers that bombed. It happens, you are going to get a bomb here and there. I do. Whenever I bomb out, I automatically re-evaluate and come up with a game plan for the next show. I suggest that those dealers that did not have a good show try and bring different inventory in June, or possibly lower your prices.

There is just no rhyme or reason. Why did I have a really, really good show when others did not. Then there are the days that my sales are not very good and I talk to others whose sales were terrific. On those days, why did they rock and why did I bomb? Who knows! As for me, I just try to hustle and fill these binders before every show and make sure new inventory is out on my tables at each show -- usually that works.

On the buying front, Jim sold me some 1950's Braves, as usual. Jim C. brought over a guy selling a 1961 Post Eddie Mathews and a 1966 Topps Sandy Koufax, which I purchased. Thanks Jim!

Jerome had a box of 1959 Topps commons that he was walking around. He still had them at the end of the day. I hope to purchase them at the June show.

On the food front, I had sloppy Joe at 9 a.m. then two bratwursts later in the day. I felt bad for all the dealers in the Chapel because the scent of food permeated the whole room. I think I would have been drooling all day if I was set up in there.

On the people front, I was delighted to see that Johnny Adams flew in from Minnesota to attend the show. Thanks Johnny! The show now attracts folks from far and wide. One dealer drove up from Southbend, Indiana. We now have quite a few Indiana dealers. Thanks guys! I know it is quite a drive. Lisa said she met some folks who drove up from Kentucky. Awesome!

I also ran into a couple of Oak Creek first timers. The first is Bob, who I met years ago at the Gonzaga show. Bob had nothing but kind words and really enjoyed the show. Thanks for coming Bob! I also saw Paul Costanzo from the Wisconsin Sports Collectors Association. I also met Paul at Gonzaga. I appreciate all the kind words Paul! Thanks for coming!

On the health front, my health is shite. I learned after coming home from Strongsville that I am suffering from diabetic macular degeneration in my eyes. I went to see a retina specialist who stuck a needle in my right eye and injected something in there to try and alleviate the fluid that is gathering in there. So that sucked and was super scary. 

I am still working on getting my blood pressure down. I had a good reading at the doctor's office last week but these meds just kick my ass. I did not take them the morning of the Oak Creek show. They make me too tired. I took them when I got home and had a good blood pressure reading on Sunday after the show.

I have all sorts of doctors appointments lined up. I need to make more with this or that specialist. Man, diabetes does not pay! I have been feeling down because of my health issues but my pal Larry Larsen always brightens my day. Larry has the heart of a warrior in defeating cancer twice. More than anyone, he understands what I am going through and is a huge inspiration. You guys need to stop at Larry's table at the Oak Creek show for a chat. He always has great cards and is not only one of the funniest guys I know, but he tells it like it is, no BS. Thank you Larry!

I know I rant but I am always happy at the end of the show because it is usually a good day. No reports of thefts. One dealer tracked me down because he thought a young guy stole some stuff. Officer John and I talked to the guy and determined he was clean. 

Attendance was down to 780, our first show in months under 900. I don't attend any other one-day shows that draw 780, so I can't complain.

Next show is June 3. I hope to be able to get in a large number of new dealers for that one, along with all the old favorites. Thank you so much for your support. A big NO thank you to the dealers that did not show up!

Next up for me as a dealer is the Premier Card Show in Loves Park, Illinois, on Friday and Saturday, May 12 & 13. I am going to work a half day on Friday and try and get there around 1 p.m. I am not sure what to bring out. My binders took a beating in Oak Creek. I might have my 1979 baseball ready to go for Loves Park. I am not sure, I need to figure this one out. I might want to give the binders a rest.

​Below are some photos from the May 6th Oak Creek show. Lisa took most of these photos.