This past weekend, the De Anza Flea Market looked like a ghost town. Okay... maybe I'm exaggerating, but it's safe to say that more than half of the usual vendors didn't show up. The same could be said for shoppers. Normally, the first three floors of the parking structure would be packed. But when I left, there were only ten cars on the 2nd level.
After taking the above photo... I actually considered turning around and going home. My fingers were numb and I questioned whether or not I'd actually find anything to buy. However... I had driven for 30 minutes and figured I could use the exercise.
So I manned up and walked around.
Purchase #1: 1995 Playboy Chromium Wax Box $5
I immediately found a guy with a bunch of wax boxes sitting on the ground, but don't really need to open anymore 1988 Topps or 1990 Score baseball. The vendor saw me checking them out and started talking to me about cards.
The conversation eventually led to him showing me this box of Playboy cards and the announcement that their magazine will no longer be publishing nude photographs. I was surprised that I hadn't heard this earth shattering news.
I mean seriously... are people really going to buy their magazine for the articles? Anyways... I did a quick check on eBay and noticed that these boxes actually sell pretty well, so I grabbed it. The only problem is the box is in pretty poor condition. Maybe that's a sign that I need use this for a box break post (wink, wink).
Purchase #2: Elvis Presley Bobblehead (SF Giants SGA) $5
Wise men say... only fools pass up on San Francisco Giants stadium giveaway bobbleheads featuring the King of Rock and Roll. I could easily quadruple my money at the Serramonte Mall Collectibles Show in a few weeks, but I'll most likely just add this to my bobblehead collection.
Purchase #3: Two 1989 Donruss Baseball's Best Factory Sets $5
The Cardboard Gods are looking out for me, because I've actually been looking for the Ken Griffey Jr. inside of this set. Although it's technically not considered a rookie card... it's an oddball issue from The Kid's rookie year. Plus there are cards of Sammy Sosa, Randy Johnson, and Gary Sheffield.
Purchase #4: Team Signed San Francisco 49ers Football $10
I know what you're thinking... it sounds too good to be true... but the Rice and Young look good and I'd be hard pressed to believe that somebody is going to forge the other thirty signatures on this ball. I compared about ten of the other signatures to ones certified by PSA and they checked out. I figured for the price, it was worth the risk.
Purchase #5: Baseball Cards $10
One of my friends sets up at De Anza every month and offers me his leftovers for a fair price. What you're looking at are the remnants of a 2015 Heritage High Number box and a few 2015 Topps Update blasters... plus a few singles I needed from his dollar bin.
There isn't really anything worth mentioning, but it helps me restock some inserts and base cards for blogger care packages.
Okay. Another head scratcher, right? Five bucks is a lot more than I'd normally pay for sports magazines. However... much like the 1989 Donruss sets... I've actually been looking for the very first issue of Legends for awhile now.
Not exactly a huge bonus... but both of these covers are signed by Christopher Paluso. He's the artist who created the artwork used on these covers.
That wraps up my first flea market adventure of 2016. Six purchases... totaling forty dollars. That was a little more than I anticipated on spending... but to be honest, I'm not feeling any buyer's remorse towards any of the items. The only downside is that all of these purchases are classified as memorabilia... which means they count towards my monthly budget... which translates into less money for the Serramonte Mall Collectibles Show.
Well... that's all for now. Vacation is over and it's time to get back to work. Have a great week. Happy Monday and sayonara!
11 comments:
That Elvis bobblehead is very cool. And I definitely think the football was worth the risk at that price.
That's a great haul of Heritage High Number and Update for $10!
I picked up a 1989 Donruss Baseball's Best Ken Griffey Jr. card for myself since I remember a childhood friend having one in his collection.
Bunnies!
Great dealS. I'm envious of the 2 Donruss sets for $5, and equally towards the Playboy box.
If you want to believe the publishers of Playboy, people are already buying it for the articles, because they say that free internet porn has basically taken away the demand for the dirty pictures.
Truth be told, my favorite part of Playboy has always been the "adult" cartoons... not that I didn't look at the pictures as well...
Gee, I wonder how a discussion about cards turned into the vendor showing you that Playboy set... ;).
You've shown skin on Saturday Night Five in the past, I'm sure one more wouldn't hurt (think of the views you'll get from one scandalous thumbnail).
I've very envious of those 1989 Donruss sets. For whatever reason, I never heard of those sets back in the day and finding that year in particular now is tough. They blend in too much with the regular issue Donruss from that year.
That looks like a pretty great haul to me. You make me miss flea markets/card shows more with every post. Also, judging by the Playboys from the past decade or so I've had access to, the articles are generally pretty excellent, and the women are frequently so ridiculously over-photoshopped to the point the pictorials probably qualify as cartoons. I was initially as upset as everyone else, but upon remembering that, I decided it was probably for the best. Also agree with Joe: The adult cartoons were hugely underrated. I wonder if they ever put out any special editions of just the comics.
I want to see a Playboy pack opened on A Pack a Day.
That haul would be the highlight of the year for me. My last flea market find was 2010, I think.
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