I love traveling to Columbia, SC. The reason I go is to see my younger brother, Adam, who has lived in Columbia for something close to 7 years now. We alternate trips, so the next time we see each other will be when he makes his way to my house. Adam is always in step with what is going on concerning the local scene, always knowing which are the best restaurants, pubs and shops to check out while we are in town. This always makes our trips adventurous and never dull.
This time down marked the second time we went to the Rosewood Crawfish Festival. Last time we went was 2012, missing 2013 due to one of Chris's baseball games. Before the festival, however, I took a few hours to check out my other favorite thing about Columbia, the Chic Antiques shop at the Columbia Antique mall.
Usually, when I head to the antique shop, I pick up a few vintage set needs and a baseball or two. This time, Conrad, the shop proprietor, didn't have any that I needed readily available. So, along with the 70 1959 Topps cards I got for my set, I also picked up some amazing vintage cards, starting with the above 1952 Topps Bob Feller.
I had this Feller on my Top 10 wishlist and figured it would be fairly easily attainable. Supposed book value is around $250 and I was able to get this card for $75. Not bad at all. I figured that this card took the place of whatever signed ball I would have picked up. I haven't been afforded the luxury of having access to too many 1952 Topps cards, but while looking at this card, and one you'll see below, I can see why there is such a draw to them. They are very sharp cards and I really want to pick up a few more.
I have been wanting a 1953 Topps Roy Campanella for quite some time now. This one has a bit of paper loss on the top and bottom, but the coloring and artwork look great. For $40, I think I got a steal and am really happy with it. I definitely want to pick up some more Campanella cards sometime in the future, and this one is a very good start for me.
One of the more underrated Hall of Fame pitchers of all-time is the man above, Phillies ace, Robin Roberts. I thought I was done when I decided to purchase the Bob Feller, but when Conrad told me I was getting a "friends and family" discount on the cards, I decided to add this one to my stack. This card is also very sharp-looking. The colors are bold and the portrait of Roberts looks great. He and Feller, both, are players that I wish I could have met.
Finally, as a bit of a surprise to myself, I remembered to ask Conrad if he had any 1948 Bowman. I keep forgetting that I am working on this set, mainly because the cards themselves are sort of "unremarkable." I'm one who really enjoys the bold colors or a sleek design (I know, wave something shiny in front of me and I'm easily distracted). However, this 1948 set has been a lot of fun to build over the years. Before this weekend, I had 24 of the 48 cards in the set. Mathematically, I had half of the set completed already, but having 5 of the 6 major cards (Musial, Feller, Kiner, Spahn and Berra rookies; missing Rizzuto) really puts me well over halfway toward my goal.
So, including the above Snuffy Stirnweiss, I picked up 5 cards I needed for my set. That means I have 29 of the possible 48 cards, or 60% of the set. I bet I will have this set wrapped up before too long. I don't know if I will attempt another Bowman set at this moment, but you never know. If I can knock out the '48 set, I know that will be a huge feather in my cap, though.
That being said, I really enjoyed my weekend with my brother. Not only did I get to see him, I also got to hang out with my older brother, Philip, my younger brother, Andy, and Andy's lady-friend, Camryn. We all had a great time eating crawfish and having a few beers. I can't wait til the next time I can make the trip down to see Adam, probably sometime in July.
