Completing an On Again, Off Again Quest

Sometime last year, I received a trade package from Julie over at A Cracked Bat which contained my first certified auto of former Michigan Wolverine/NY Yankee/Dallas Cowboy Drew Henson. It stirred up a want I'd had since 2003. That's right, 13 years ago, Henson was supposed to be the Yankees future third baseman. I scrambled to pick up a few of his cards from that year, but late in the card season, Fleer released a higher-end product called Legacy. It contained an autographed hat in each box(you read that correct, I said hat) and autographed RCs of many of that year's rookie class. Henson was on that checklist with an autographed RC. I couldn't afford a box, but I had friends that busted a few and assured me they would trade the Henson to me if they pulled it. Well, that never happened and I gave up on owning the card since it was one of the hottest in he hobby at the time. In the years since, I would occasionally search for it on eBay, but those auctions always had the card priced out of he range I wanted to pay, especially since Drew ended up being a two sport bust of a prospect. Then I pulled that Henson auto from Julie's trade package(not the Legacy RC) and my desire to own that card was stoked up again.

A week or so ago, I found a copy while I was browsing in the land of Listia and I decided that I would have to win that auction. Sure enough, once the dust settled on the bidding, I was the winner. Granted, I probably 'overpaid' but finally owning this card is oddly satisfying. Besides that, I hunk I probably look at Listia a bit differently than most that complain about it. I figure that I have never spent any money to obtain credits(with the exception of the cost of stamps). I consider it a form of trading. I post cards that I don't want(and probably aren't worth selling on eBay), ship them to new owners, and get credits that I can use to pick up cards that I really want in my collection. Simple as that. I don't attach any monetary value to cards or credits and as long as I'm happy with my winnings at the end of the day, I'm a happy guy. At the end of this auction, I was ecstatic! I didn't realize how much I really wanted this card until I had it in my hand. Thanks for reading.