Exit Interview: I'm Retiring from Collecting Canseco and Selling Out

[mouschi]

Man, I've gotta say - I love blowout. Thank you all for all the kind words of encouragement! I wish I can respond to everyone here so far, and I'll try to keep up better if more people write tomorrow, but here are a few things I'd like to share that hopefully will cover most everything:

1) Will I be around? YES - I hope to continue buying/selling, custom card creating and writing. I love all this about the hobby!

2) Why am I not keeping the collection? For me, the majority of the excitement of supercollecting is landing the new thing. I never did this to "reach the top of the mountain"; I did this fully fueled by passion. There isn't anything quite like finding a hot card, negotiating for it, landing it, opening it up from the mailbox and showing it off online. All that is gone if I am not active, so ultimately all just becomes cardboard that stays in boxes ... very expensive cardboard at that! I'd much rather just enjoy the card scans on my site and the moola in my bank

3) What about hanging onto one or two items? I'm planning on keeping my game used glove that Jose traded me, my game used team signed 1989 World Series baseball and the autographed bat my wife gave me (not a gamer) for Christmas one year. That meant a ton to me I may also keep a binder complete with a full run of base cards ... nothing over 10 cents though.

Oh, a few call outs:
itradeerrors - Sure, hit me up!
clocksta2323 - I fully understand you not liking Jose. He's a genuinely nice guy now though from what I can tell.
branesergen - I have not told Jose, however Jose will not care. He doesn't care at all about cards
anderdale - I LOLed!
calculusdork - I'm waiting sir

[KCfan1985]

Originally Posted by clocsta2323

I've already exclaimed my admiration for Tanner. I question his judgement of character based on collecting one of, if not, the most publicized scumbag in all of baseball.

I always thought that was odd as well. Seems to conflict with the morality and god stuff.

[Ferg1945]

Originally Posted by mouschi

Throughout all of Saturday, I felt free.#@ I felt a huge amount of peace like I hadn't in a longtime.#@ Sunday, however, was a different story.#@ Simply put, I felt bad about it all. I asked God to give me clear direction on what to do, because I considered slipping back into it all.#@ A mere couple hours later, we were sitting in church and our pastor said the following:#@ (this snippet is less than 1 minute long).



My eyes almost popped out of my head.#@ Snickering to ourselves after hearing that, I dug my fingers into my wife's leg as to control my laughter.#@ I thanked God for a clear sign.

On the car ride home, we told our son my decision and what all had transpired.#@ Then my wife said:

"So, here is something I haven't told you yet.#@#@You know that I've been praying for you about this decision during my runs.#@ What I didn't tell you, is I've also been praying that God show you if you are supposed to sell your collection - even before you ever mentioned considering selling!"#@#@

It is truly amazing to me how good God is, and I am overjoyed in how it happened so I can share it with you all here.

Is it at all possible that your wife talked to the Pastor and he inserted that little nugget?

[Wolf8MeVillie]

Enjoy the extra time with your family and friends. Collecting can be fun, but you can't go wrong with taking that time and money and spending it with your family.

[alpine]

I sincerely hope you do not have any regrets later on. A person needs healthy outlets. If it is no longer healthy or gratifying, just step back for awhile. Personally, I truly regret selling some one-of-a-kind things I have had. You will never see them again & it will be difficult at best to replace an amazing collection.

This might be a dumb question, but what is it that you seek in publically telling everyone you are selling your one-of-a-kind collection? You truly stand out in a positive way because you are so well known regarding Canseco cards.

If you have no regrets, so be it. I always enjoy reading your posts. Best of Luck in whatever you decide to do.

[mosperus]

Great read Tanner- As a fellow believer- He is on time- His time- Every time without question- Good luck to you sir..

[broncomanning18]

Thanks for sharing, great read, good luck to you in everything you do, seem like a really cool guy.

[Bowman1951]

Best of luck with the book and sale, I think that may be one I have to pick up once it comes available on Amazon.

I have a sneaking suspicion that your next “obsession” is going to be breaking junk wax and attempting to open every box that came out of the era. Unless I missed the part in the OP where you are giving that up too.

[Chrisyork33]

Thank you for sharing and I wish you the best. I always think about a line I heard in Fight Club: "the stuff you own, will eventually end up owning you"

Something to think about for all collectors. It's a thin line between a hobby and an obsession.

[bedot]

You have to really think highly of yourself as an important piece of the hobby to write this.

Then masking it as a call from God. Keep it private then, between you & God, rather than seeking justification from board members. Being good with the Lord should be good enough.

Or actually give advice to help. This entire piece showing your tweets, graphics, etc... just comes off as narcissistic.

It comes off as bragging, prideful, going into every little detail about your collecting experience.


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[DonnieBaseball2]

I wish you the best of luck Mouschi. I don’t think I’ve ever commented on your posts or threads but always enjoyed reading them. Every thread I’ve seen you post was always positive and made me think of the reasons I started collecting cards in the first place and love the game of baseball overall. I’m not a religious man, but do believe that there is something bigger than all of us and that there is a plan for our best lives. Enjoy the time with your family bud.

[imbluestreak23]

Great post and I can certainly relate. Cardboard as a hobby can sometimes be a crutch in life for many of us. It’s a great escape but can certainly take away from being able to develop oneself in other areas. Too much of anything is bad.

As a likeminded person, yours signs were very clear. Good luck on your next journey and look forward to seeing your selling progress!

[Orange October]

Very sorry to see you "leaving" the hobby (Well, the Canseco aspect. Glad you'll still be around). I've always really enjoyed reading your posts. I'll definitely read your book though!

I also lost it at the Trump/Obama photoshop

[rngrdanny22]

Heck of a ride man. Hate to see you go, but onto the next journey!

[PatchSentinel]

We all know there is always that "what's it all for, why am I doing this, it's just cardboard?" every time we make a purchase to have some fun, but I hate hearing people who've spent Herculean efforts to build a collection and then sell it off for non-emergency, non-monetary reasons. Whether its Dmitri Young or mouschi.

But it's your life so do whacha wanna do.

[Orange October]

Oh yeah, not sure if this was mentioned before but do you have any plans on what you're going to do with your new financial windfall from selling your collection?

[base set]

Originally Posted by Orange October

I also lost it at the Trump/Obama photoshop

Spelled trump-esque “huge” wrong though.

Shift gears, change lanes, keep on keeping on. I have been trying to chase less Trout in my limited free time, but it’s hard to pass on an opportunity. Brook Trout, that is. Just not restful enough for a day off from outdoor work.

If no one shared their personal experiences, the Internet would just be a newspaper with a couple three columnists.

[Reverend Ghost]

You lost me on the god stuff, but I was prepared for that as you’ve made it clear that’s a thing for you. And while I don’t share said belief, I think it’s worth addressing that yes, this hobby can be problematic in a few ways from a moral standpoint.

That being said, I got back into the hobby when I quit using my body as a filter for alcohol and narcotics, about six years ago. Obsessed? Maybe. Time consuming? Yes. Are there better ways I could be using my time and money?


No. This hobby has taken the place of some extremely destructive behavior on my part, if it wasn’t cards it would be something else I guess but for now, this is one of the best things I do because it keeps me from doing the things I did before.

And I have a Mouschi-Esque Trae Arbet collection to look at when I think I need a drink. Which should make me want to drink more, but whatever lol.

Best to you and your efforts, if nothing else I can certainly appreciate your dedication to that Canseco collection. Sorry to see it liquify.


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[Bottom9th]

Many times I've heard a sermon or message that I think was specifically directed to me, but nothing like that message from your pastor. That was a clear sign if there ever was one. I commend your decision and your courage to publicly declare your faith. Like you said it may not be the view that many agree with as some of the posts have already proven, but it's not about them. Best of luck where this journey takes you. One of these days I'll hit you up for a custom.

Bob....

[Coug46n2]

I can live in a Blowout world where Tanner doesn't collect Jose Canseco. I would be a lot sadder if you were leaving our little collecting world altogether. I'm very glad to hear that is not the case. I enjoy your posts and your positive commentary. And selfishly, I have many more customs I want to partner with you on. To summarize, it's ok to leave Jose, it's not ok to leave Blowout.

This hobby has a thousand tentacles, player collecting is just one of them. Anytime I near a burnout stage I switch to one of my other dozen or so focuses and find renewed energy. I can certainly understanding how the chase becomes more of a burden and the rewards aren't providing the same level of satisfaction. I'm nearing 1400 graded RCs. It's boring to find, land, and receive new ones. Lately I've been sorting through my 12 monster boxes of old commons and having a BLAST. Call it a mid life crisis, call it 'getting back to basics', but to be able to enjoy cards for the cards themselves and not their monetary value is refreshing. In a world of Trout, Acuna, and Ohtani, I find enjoyment in Kent Hrbek, Chris Sabo, Jerome Walton, Todd Zeile, and Pat Listach. And even Jose Canseco!

As long as you are happy with your decision Tanner, I wish you the best. Please stay a part of BO, I'm sure you'll have just as many interesting stories of selling Jose's as you did accumulating them. I'll be checking out your website as I want to pick up at least one card from your collection. Got any 1987 Topps Jose's.......

[spuds1961]

Another thread that shows me who I need to ignore. Tanner I commend you on your decision because at the end of the day you are the only person that has to answer for it. I would find it hard to completely sell my Yankees collection but I could see taking a break and reassessing what needed to be changed in my collecting habits. I would think there could be a way to apply your love for god and your love for cards to a common goal, I have sold a lot of cards to donate money for a lot of children causes that my local church sponsors. I really don't think God wants you to quit collecting but he just might be trying to get you to diversify.

[ThoseBackPages]

i thought Politics & Religion were not allowed in this section of this message board?

[tkraft24]

I’m curious what the strategy for selling is? Is everything in the collection just up for sale (if someone approaches you) or are you selling it all ($0.99 auctions!)?

I know there’s other Jose collectors but you obviously set the market value for basically everything rare of him.

[lauriontj]

Knowing that you are a devout Christian (I am too), I knew the reason you were selling off your collection before I read your post. Trust in the Lord! His plan is perfect. He knows exactly what He's doing!

[cardozo]

Originally Posted by bedot

You have to really think highly of yourself as an important piece of the hobby to write this.

Then masking it as a call from God. Keep it private then, between you & God, rather than seeking justification from board members. Being good with the Lord should be good enough.

Or actually give advice to help. This entire piece showing your tweets, graphics, etc... just comes off as narcissistic.

It comes off as bragging, prideful, going into every little detail about your collecting experience.


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To each their own but I second this post .