My Hobby Blog/Vlog Story of the Month details the sights and sounds of a weekend of Hobby 1st and my personal and vulnerable exploration of what these two experiences meant to me, how they have shaped my collecting journey as a Black Collector, and how I can help move the hobby forward in becoming more accessible and inclusive.
Intro: Salutations and A Scenery of Nostalgia
Before Skylar and I made our way into the grand ballroom for The Brotherly Love Card Show, I had to give flowers and extend gratitude to the founders, Alex and Frank, for bringing my greatest cardboard dream to fruition. After my salutations with Alex and Frank, I purchased my ticket and watched my sidekick Skylar retrieve her multiple door prizes. The nostalgia and connectedness of this hobby dream come true moment was hard to ignore as a steady flow of collectors congregated at the grand ballroom entrance. The communal actions I witnessed at that moment were an astonishing sight to see. The non-stop smiles, laughter, conversations, handshakes, and hugs from long-time friends and new acquaintances were inspiring and contagious. Given the significance of all these magical and nostalgic cardboard/human moments at the grand ballroom entrance, I had to immortalize what I saw. So, before my sidekick and I crossed the threshold of the grand ballroom, I took two photos. I stored the first photo in my mind and captured the other photo through the lens of my iPhone. After immortalizing my sidekick with her door prize, I was ready to unleash my inner kid—the little Black boy in me was smiling from ear to ear.
Skylar with her Topps Project 2020, Frank Thomas
1st Draft Pick Art Card Door Prize.
Act 1: The Sights, Sounds, and Candid Moments of The Show
When we entered the card show, the grand ballroom was filled from the first aisle to the last aisle with collectors from multiple generations. Collectors representing Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, Generation Z, and even Generation Alpha moved up and down the aisles of the magnificent grand ballroom, searching for one thing—cardboard! Seeing this beautiful scenery of collectors move gracefully throughout the Brotherly Love Card Show made me feel right at home. As I began my customary walkthrough of the grand ballroom, holding my sidekick’s hand, I could truly see the whole room. On my traditional cardboard walk of the grand ballroom, I saw everything the Brotherly Love Card Show card vendors had to offer. The young and old vendors had cardboard from every era; tobacco cards, vintage cards, junk wax cards, modern cards, and Pokemon cards filled the showcases of every table. Besides sports cards, the overall inventory was diverse; in each aisle, I saw tables filled with memorabilia, pop culture collectibles, funko pops, and animation collectibles. After several intentional loops up and down specific aisles, my sidekick and I decided to explore specific tables that caught our attention—well, at least I did.
While I wanted to explore specific tables, Skylar took a slight detour to hang out with her best friend Neytiri and my hobby sister Erica, aka Love What You Collect. Erica and Neytiri had a table at the show. Skylar’s detour wasn’t a bad idea because every time I see Erica in her card vendor role, she always brings the 90s cardboard heat. So, after chatting with Erica and putting aside pieces of cardboard from her stacked 90s inventory. I asked my sidekick if she wanted to walk the grand ballroom again to find some cards for our PC. Skylar gave me an all too familiar coded facial expression that read… Daddy, I am hanging out with my friend. After being shooed away by my sidekick, I circled back to a vendor holding a classic 1970s Topps rookie card for me. As I returned to the vendor’s table, the sights and sounds of this magnificent card show started to consume my eyes, ears, mind, and heart. Immediately after I completed my transaction for my newly acquired Artis Gilmore 1972 Topps rookie card, l let my eyes, ears, mind, and heart follow the sweet symphonies happening in each aisle of the Brotherly Love Card Show.
My 1st Cardboard Acquisition of The Brotherly Love Card Show—Feb 2024:
The 1972 Topps Basketball Artis Gilmore Rookie Card #180
As I walked the perimeter, the first incredible cardboard moment I witnessed was a little Black boy sitting in the corner near the entrance, organizing his collection and looking at cards he just purchased. Witnessing this intimate cardboard moment filled my heart with both joy and envy. Why? First and foremost, I was uber excited to see a young Black boy robustly experiencing the hobby. Secondly, I envied this authentic cardboard moment because, compared to my first hobby run, his cardboard experience was much better than mine. However, the little Black boy in me couldn’t hold back the smiles on my face and the authentic joy I felt for this Black boy. So, instead of harboring my envy, I chose to live vicariously through this young collector and be happy for him and his hobby experience at the Brotherly Love Card Show. This singular cardboard experience I witnessed was one of several moments I lived vicariously through as I navigated the aisles, listening to cardboard stories, engaging in cardboard conversations, and participating in my fellow collector's milestone hobby moments—but the best was yet to come!
Act 2: Cardboard Conversations with Family, Friends, and Dave—The Ultimate Star Collector
My consumption of the sight, sounds, and candid cardboard moments I had during the multiple loops I made throughout the grand ballroom was extraordinary. In one loop, I ran into one of my former students who collected cards. During our interaction, I had an out-of-body experience because seeing him talk passionately about cards as a collector and entrepreneur while appreciating the social and emotional impact the experiences that the Brotherly Love Card Show had on him brought joy to my heart. Also, not to toot my own horn, it felt good to have one of my students looking up to me and being an inspiration to him both through cards and as his assistant principal. In another loop, after checking on my sidekick, I got into a passionate debate with a young vendor about Philly sports and Wilt Chamberlain’s status as one of the basketball GOATS. I also ran into several of my local cardboard friends… Adam, if you are reading this article, drinks are on me the next time I see you at a show! In these moments, we talked about our collections, shared what card(s) we were looking for, and showed off our pickups from the show. These interactions were nostalgic, memorable, and fun because after each interaction, I walked away feeling like a better person, a more informed collector, and inspired to try something new in the multi-universe of the hobby.
The Brotherly Love Card Show was a catalyst that cultivated ideas, laughter, conversations, and community. The conversations I participated in with Erica, my former student, well-known and unknown collectors, and vendors had several inspiring cardboard themes. These thematic conversations took me on a nostalgic cardboard roller coaster as I moved through each aisle in the grand ballroom. Every day since my hobby dream came true on February 24th, I have replayed these cardboard conversations repeatedly in my mind. Out of all these nostalgic and memorable cardboard conversations, the one conversation that I continue to circle back to is my conversation with Dave, who goes by @high_speed_card_chase on IG.
If you don’t follow Dave on IG, I suggest you do. If you haven’t had the privilege of meeting Dave in person or virtually on IG, please take advantage of any chance you have to engage in a cardboard conversation with him. I can guarantee that it will be time well spent! Before the Brotherly Love Card Show at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, I saw Dave at various shows but never interacted with him. If I had to describe who Dave is, his cardboard story, and his standing in the hobby. I would say Dave is an impeccable card show vendor, an awesome Dad, and a super collector of Star basketball cards. In my opinion, Dave’s Star basketball collection has to be in the top one percent of collectors who PC Star basketball cards. Dave's passion, knowledge, and commitment to Star basketball cards are genuinely inspiring.
During the multiple conversations he and I had at the Brotherly Love Card Show, I received an in-depth lesson about Star card number 101 (e.g., Jordan Star Rookie). Dave also taught me about the marquee Star basketball sets, cards, and years I should collect. Dave then took the time to share personal stories about specific sets he purchased from collectors at card shows. After that, Dave shared his personal insight and grading advice about the particular Star basketball sets and cards I have in my PC. The time I spent with Dave throughout the Brotherly Love Card Show was an experience I will never forget. Dave’s insight and historical knowledge about Star basketball cards in scarcity, rarity, and monetary value were invaluable. I walked away from our experience with a wealth of knowledge and a feeling of joy because we became more than acquaintances/fellow collectors—Dave and I became friends.
Act 3: Gratitude and Acknowledgment
Since I returned to the hobby during the global pandemic, card shows have been instrumental to my individual collecting experience. Every card show I have attended over the past three years has played a pivotal role in pollinating many of the ideas I curate within #thehobbyexperience. When I think about my experiences at the Brotherly Love Card Show, I can honestly say this show exceeded all the hype. Everything I envisioned and hoped for with my cardboard dream came true; I achieved that and much more. This cardboard experience at the Pennsylvania Convention Center became possible because of the commitment and vision of two collectors (Alex and Frank). I would be remiss not to give Alex and Frank their flowers again because the card show marketplace is competitive. It took a lot of guts and forward-thinking for them to pull off a show of this magnitude at the PA Convention Center because the big card show promoters have yet to come into the heart of Philly, let alone the PA Convention Center.
Despite the historical vacancy/void of the PA Convention Center regarding card shows, Alex and Frank did the unthinkable. They not only put on the first-ever card show at the PA Convention Center, but it was a COMPLETE success. Frank and Alex, thank you for making my cardboard dream a reality. I will never forget the day my sidekick and I had in the PA Convention Center grand ballroom. Thank you for being bold and daring to be great. The leap of faith you both took long before that February 24th date opened the door for this show to be the premier card show in the heart of Philadelphia.
Outro: This Day of Cardboard First was Far From Over!
As my sidekick and I made our way to Jefferson Station for the 4:48 pm train back to North Hills, we smiled ear-to-ear. Our day in the grand ballroom at the Pennsylvania Convention Center was beyond magical, nostalgic, and memorable. While part one of our cardboard trip was officially over, part two of our cardboard trip at Wheelhouse Sports Cards for Topps Rip Night had some big shoes to fill.
To Be Continued…
Keep Collecting,
#thesprtzcardcoltr #thehobbyexperience #everycardhasastory #thebrotherlylovecardshow #toppsripnight #thehobby #whodoyoucollect
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