A Battle Against Time

Tuesday November 5th, 2019

10:00 PM
While looking at Crave (a real-time database of sorts of upcoming signing events across the country), I notice that former New York Giant Ottis "O.J." Anderson is doing a signing event at a local Stop and Shop. I check the Giants' official website to confirm it and find that it's real. The hunt for a card to get signed begins.

Unfortunately the event is on Saturday 9th.
Which is also the fastest an Anderson card ordered on eBay could realistically arrive if I were to buy one on the spot on Tuesday night. That said I knew that'd be a lost cause because none of the cards were in a close enough radius to me to maybe make it earlier like on Friday. Also mail doesn't get delivered on my street on Saturdays until well into 2PM or 3PM, the Anderson signing ends at 12:30 PM. 2/3 day shipping on Amazon seemed like an interesting option until I saw that fees would be well over $50. Pass. And I refuse to sign up for Prime because I don't want to waste a free trial on such a thing, nor do I particularly want to support Amazon anyway (pay more taxes Bozos!).

I try to start talking myself into how I'm not THAT much of a Giants fan anyway and that I can live without an Anderson autograph. Even if he happens to be signing at a local supermarket that I frequent. So much so that if I let the opportunity go I'd be full of regret every time I entered the store from then on.
DENIAL.

Wednesday November 6th, 2019

1:15 PM
I go to American Legends, a card shop that's a good 45 minutes away by a combination of both train and bus (I don't have a car because living close to the city means I don't really need one unless I'm dealing with the burbs, like where this shop is). My hopes for an Anderson here were dashed in a matter of five minutes because they only dealt with a select few football, and no Anderson among them. Darn. I start getting a little miffed at myself for not checking out the Giants' official meet and greet page earlier so I could plan this out ahead of time. I am also getting angrier at myself for caring so much about a card that goes for a buck on eBay.
ANGER.

4:45 PM
Later that day I stop by the Washington Nationals Walgreens to get a flu-shot. In the process I notice that they have some repacks for NFL cards. "Perfect" I thought, Anderson's entire career was spent in the junk wax era that permeates these packs. I know the odds are against me, but it's worth a shot I tell myself. I plucked out one of the repacks and though I found sets that he was in, I didn't him pull him specifically. I then pull up some card shops in the city, I find Alex's MVP Cards & Comics on the upper east side. I tell myself I'll go take a look.
BARGAINING.

Thursday November 7th, 2019

2:30 PM
Alex's MVP Cards is a nice quaint shop. It's half comic books and half sports cards, and it's the kind of mom and pop shop people imagine their LCS' being. They had around nine packs of 1990 Pro Set NFL at $1.25 each, I bought all of them in the hopes of snagging an Anderson. I knew this was dumb, but I did it anyway. Ottis is in the set! I tell myself. However so are 300+ other guys and I went 0-for on Giants in general, let alone Anderson. Given the lack of time and even more dire lack of options, I remember the Midtown Sports Card Show that happens every second Saturday in NYC. I remember the show being a small one that's also a total crapshoot, but it's worth a shot in my mind. Though the fact that I'd have to wake up very early in order to get the show in the wee hours in order to make it to Stop & Shop by the time Anderson starts signing has me dreading Saturday.
DEPRESSION.

Friday November 8th, 2019

7:30 AM
I ate a few toasted rolls with hummus on them. This was a nice change of pace from the bagels with cream cheese breakfast I'd been feeding myself for breakfast for a good chunk of the past two-three years.

Saturday November 9th, 2019

9:30 AM
I overslept but managed to make it onto the express subway that would take me to 59th St. In my head I'm calculating routes to take from 59th to West 54th St (where the card show was happening). I also needed some cash. Luckily every block in NYC is littered with CVS Pharmacy's and bank branches for every bank in existence, so the plan took 15 secs to make.

9:52 AM
I make it to the card show and immediately start looking through the only dime box in the joint. It's also the one by the whole show's organizer. He asks me what I'm looking for and I tell him of my predicament "I need to find Ottis Anderson cards in the next 25 mins!". He wishes me good luck, within digging through his box of cards from the 90's, I stumble onto many Tim Wallachs (s/o Tim Wallach Collector), a card of Orel Hershiser up to bat, and a Charles Oakley sticker, but my thumbs just pound through all of those in the hopes of finding an Ottis. Miraculously I did! Two of them! I had a stack of stuff that amounted to $3 but I gave the guy a $5 and told him to keep the change. I was happy, I give tips, that show probably wasn't going to get much more traffic (though granted I went at like 10 AM) so I figured he could use the $2, and I didn't have the time to wait for change.

10:22 AM
Oh fuck I'm gonna miss the train. *Runs a good 12+ blocks to Grand Central Terminal*
The blocks to get from the west side to the east side are LOOOOONG. Do not think for a second that getting from third ave to eighth ave is a quick stroll.

11:00 AM
I made it onto the train north. As I prep the cards with a simple eraser rub, I wonder if I'm required to spend stuff at the store BEFORE I'm eligible to get an autograph. I look on Google for other events as guidance and get zilch. My plan was to buy groceries anyway after I got Anderson's autograph so I'll just tell them I'll buy shit later if they ask. Knowing full well that this type of focus pocus bullshit hasn't worked since the 70's.

11:45 AM
Made it to the store and am standing in line with other people waiting for Anderson's autograph. It does not look like any of these bought groceries from the store, nor do they look like they've ever shopped for groceries in their lives. They all have Anderson sign items like helmets, balls and cards and then eventually it's my turn.

12:00 PM

Mr. Anderson signed the cards I didn't have in my possession until a good two hours (not even!) ago right there in front of my eyes.

He even (reluctantly) posed with the cards for me. Don't worry Mr. Anderson, these are never going to eBay. Not after all of the time, stress, thought, physical labor, pre-planning, planning, preparation and grief I'd gone through to make this happen. Also note the rings on his fingers.

12:45 PM
I go home and start writing this blogpost.
Here I sit reflecting on the past few days and wonder what all of it was for. The money spent traveling, the money spent on stupid gambles that I knew weren't likely to favor me from the start, above all else the time I spent devoting actions and thought to this. What was it all for? And was it all worth it? What was the opportunity cost involved with all of this and how will it affect me going forward?

All I know is that now I have two more Ottis O.J. Anderson autographs than I did at the beginning of the week, I've now attended a meet and greet at a supermarket, and I can at least say that I've gone toe-to-toe with time for a battle once.

I am still kinda miffed at myself though for spending $25 on a bunch of worthless football cards while the Andersons were 20 cents. Meanwhile I've also had a decently priced Kevin Knox auto in my wantlist for ages. Also I should've taken more pics of the shops and shows for a better blogpost. Darnit.

Fuck it, at least I have a stupid and dumb memory that's only impressive to others with a similar brainworm infection that keeps them in a hobby where the objective is to consume and consume with no clear end.

Oh and I got my first NFL IP autos. That's pretty big too.
ACCEPTANCE.

Big thanks to Mr. Anderson for signing the cards.
And as always thank you (the readers) for stopping by and take care :).

2019 IP Auto Count: 62