Flea Market Finds #71: Quarter Bin Vintage + Blonde Ambition

When:  Saturday, September 20th
Where:  Branham Flea Market
What:  Sports Cards and Laser Discs
How much?:  $18

When I woke up yesterday, I almost rolled over and went back to sleep.  Thankfully, I didn't.  This school year has been a little crazier than usual, so I figured the fresh air would do me some good.  It did.

My friend and I walked around the small high school flea market and while she looked for cookbooks, I looked for cardboard.  There's always a fair share of sports cards at this flea market, however with only $40 in my pocket and two card shows coming up next weekend... I knew I wasn't buying anything unless:

A.  It was cheap.

B.  It was something I really, really wanted.

Purchase #1:  Quarter Bin Bonanza $4

I'm not sure if you did this, but when I first started collecting cards in the early 80's... I used an old shoe box and recipe dividers to store my cards.  About halfway through the flea market, I stumbled upon a woman who had a similar setup.  She had sorted her cards alphabetically by teams and thrown the cards in the box without any penny sleeves or protection.

I could tell by the color of the card sides that these weren't your everyday, run of the mill early 90's Donruss and Fleer junk wax.  Before I even reached for the stack of A's, I asked the lady what she was selling the singles for.  As soon as she said 4 for a dollar, I knew it was worth it for me to look, so I dove in.

I immediately discovered the 75T Fingers and Hunter, which got me excited.  Unfortunately there wasn't much to get excited about from the Angels to the Mets.  The lone card I pulled from the Angels, Astros, Blue Jays, Braves, Brewers, Cardinals, Cubs, Dodgers, Giants, Indians, Mariners, and Mets was a 75T Garvey.

But as soon as I hit the Orioles... things began to flow and I began pulling cards left and right.  When the dust settled, I had extracted sixteen cards from her box.  They weren't in the best condition, but that's okay... because I enjoy collecting cards with a little character.

Best of all, I had a great time talking to the vendor about sports and collecting.  We covered everything from Rowland Office to O.J. Simpson.

Does it get any better than hanging out a flea market and talkin' cardboard?


Purchase #2:  Madonna Laser Discs $1

I continued to shop with the "Quarter Bin" lady when I noticed that she had a bunch of sealed laser discs.  They took me straight back into the 80's.

One of my buddies in elementary school had a laser disc player and I was totally jealous of him.  The lady had a bunch of Disney movies, but the two that caught my eye were these Madonna concerts.

I've been a fan of her since the days of Borderline and Into the Groove.  It's just a shame that I have no way of ever watching them, but they're cool nonetheless.

Purchase #3:  1974 Topps #250 Willie McCovey $8

I have wanted to build this variation team set for several years and now that I own the McCovey... it's time to get to work.

This card has been sitting in my friend's display case for a few months now, so I finally pulled the trigger and bought it.  I know I didn't secure it for $5 like Marcus @ ...all the way to the backstop, but I grew tired of waiting and figured $8 was a fair price for the condition.

Purchase #4:  Shoe Box Smorgasbord $5

There aren't any vintage Mickey Mantles or Tony Gwynn autographs in this box.  But there were a few cards that caught my attention.  Unfortunately... this post is starting to drag on, so wrap things up and write about the five dollar mystery box either tomorrow or Tuesday.

In the meantime, let's talk Madonna.

Are you a fan?  Favorite song?

Happy Sunday and sayonara!