A Third Joe

 So after my first international eBay purchase I immediately dived back in.

That Joe Lake T206 is a card I had waiting on standby after I knew the international shipping program works.

There's a big reason for that.

Mostly I just wanted to address this hole in my T206 New York Highlanders collection that's been there for 12 years.

Back in 2014 I had another copy that I sent off to The Lost Collector (shout-out to TLC, hope you're doing well out there).

Scan/Pic used without permission (hey, I sent him the darn thing!)

As luck would have it the name Joe would be very close to TLC's son's name. On top of potentially being exactly a century older than TLC's son. It's also a T206. Of a Yankee/Highlander.

In other words it was the perfect card to send to one of my first and longest collecting buds.

But I figure I'd get another one before TLC ever had any inklings of sending it back to me (this is why I always kept my address hidden from him, obviously).

Scan/Pic used without permission (hey, I sent him the darn thing!)

Funnily enough I did get a St. Louis Browns version of Joe Lake that was also sent off to someone else (shout-out to Tony, hope you're doing well out there).

Which means that the newest Joe Lake is the third ever T206 Joe Lake in my possession.

In some ways that feels insane to say.

But I was also once insane enough to redistribute a lot of these to other collectors back when these were easier to find and a lot more affordable. I did that 15 times. Possibly 16 but I can't remember if I ever sent Mark Hoyle one (shout out Mark Hoyle, I hope you're doing well out there).

I still even remember how I got a Kaiser Wilhelm T206 from COMC for free. They were doing the game/cataloging promotion where you got free credits for typing card names or something like that. I got roughly $25 worth of credits and after this card arrived I promptly sent it off to God. Imagine saying that with a straight face here in 2026.

Nearly $200 combined for this foursome

Although I don't want to harp on the way prices for T206 commons got inflated way too much, it's something I do notice because I can't lose sight of the fact that T206es are notorious for having forgeries or trimmed copies.

Even if it's not the big Honus Wagner or the likes of Ty Cobb or Cy Young, $10-$20 for a T206 that you're not 100% sure is legit was a reasonable chunk of change to take a shot on.

Now prices for commons and no-names are triple that and you might as well go after a graded (or rather an authenticated) copy to get some peace of mind.

I won't though because I already own two graded T206es and I feel like I'm in this awkward zone where I feel like they own me, not the other way around. It's like these cards know I'm only their owner now before they eventually hit the market again either because I give them or up my estate does after I kick the bucket.

POSSIBLE TTM?!

Still, progress is progress. 13/20.

Dare to dream.

As always thanks for stopping by and take care.

Impulse Knickerbocker Purchase

In case you haven't heard, the New York Knicks became NBA Champions for the first time in 53 years.

After all of this time, they've finally done it.

I picked up this Jose Alvarado (not the Philadelphia Phillies pitcher who got popped for steroids) autograph the day before Game 5 and it proved to be the best possible timing.

Because I buy the card, it immediately gets shipped. Then a few hours later the Knicks win it all. Then 30 hours later it arrived in my mailbox.

There's a lot of notable names on that Knicks squad who will go down in history, but GTA's the only New York native (Brooklyn in the house!) which made this a no brainer. Though because he was just traded from New Orleans to New York his cards are all pretty much him as a Pelican (that's going to change next year though).

He's one of the scrappy guys off the bench types whose signature move that fans know is probably his sneaky steals where he comes from behind and steals the ball from unsuspecting opponents. His highlight compilations are a fun watch.

It was definitely fun to see him in the finals too.

Luckily for me this autograph was pretty affordable and it turned into an autograph of an NBA Champ in the time it took to arrive. Just like how I drew it up.

Also this card has a very interesting cracked ice effect going on that the scan just does not pick up on.

The darkened background made it hard to see but the way the light gets bounced off hits twice as hard as a result so I do see what Panini was going for here. Worthy concept, mixed execution.

But anyway.

My mayor muslim

My bagels jewish

NYC feels so alive

Cuz the Knicks won in five

Nevermind that this is being blogged from Tokyo, Japan. I've been wearing Timbs nonstop.

Also be mindful of the viral "Knicks fans" videos. The property damage and fights are getting attention but there's a chunk of it that's a hidden ad for prediction markets. You can tell because the Knicks jerseys in those particular videos have an extra green logo on them that don't sponsor the Knicks (at least not to the extent their logos are on their jerseys yet).

Also quick shout-out to former blogger The Lost Collector who got to witness game 4 in person.

Congrats to Jose and the New York Knicks on becoming NBA Champions. What a sentence.

As always thanks for stopping by and take care.

My First eBay Purchase on This Side of the Earth

 So for the first time in two years I used eBay.

Yes, I actually shelled out the big bucks on international shipping.

I'll admit I was nervous because from afar it looks like the US is going through a lot right now, and even when things were "normal" it wasn't exactly the best at international mail.

Then again in the year and then some since I've moved back to Japan I've had folks like The Lost Collector and Nick V send me stuff and I've been able to verify that the Tokyo to New York/New Jersey connection is super fast (surprisingly so). Although the further away from Kearny you go the more I lose confidence.

Still, might as well try and give it a shot.

Yeah, if there was ever a time to use eBay it'd be for something like that.

This was the first time I used eBay's global shipping program and I now know that they have an International Hub where sellers send stuff to one of eBay's subdivisions who are responsible for relaying the item to international buyers.

I'm not super sure where exactly the seller's liabilities end (I've heard it's upon delivery at the Hub but I couldn't verify that), but having eBay step in and take care of the bigger hurdle of international shipping seems pretty logical.

The average Joe might not be super well versed in shipping internationally and given how collectibles and cards are worth stupid money now the more eBay steps in, the more assurance that provides for the rest of the parties involved. Even moreso now with global trade being what it is.

So yeah a few days being re-organized at the hub and a week in transit later...

Always good to get one of these in hand.

Although woof, these commons are $50+ now. Back in 2014 they were like $20-30 and in slightly better condition then too. At least I can justify it as a century old tobacco card of the pitcher who gave up the first two home runs of Babe Ruth's MLB career.

Anyway with that... 

12 down, 8 more to go.

Dare to dream. Yes I am woefully aware that it probably would've been smarter to finish the team set while I was in the states but no matter. At least I know there's still options at my disposal as long as I'm okay with burning money.

As always thanks for stopping by and take care.