Published September 30, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

The hobby has always been about joy, nostalgia, and personal meaning—not treating every card like a stock to be speculated on. Yet time and time again, mainstream platforms and companies frame stories only through the narrow lens of profit and loss. What was once about childhood wonder is now repackaged as a cautionary tale of dollars “lost”.

Yesterday, Fanatics published a post across social media from their @fanaticscollect channel describing a childhood decision as a “$3,000 mistake”. The card in question—a 1st Edition “Blaine’s Arcanine” from one of the original Pokémon sets—had been pressed into the grip tape of a skateboard when its owner was a teenager. Years later, it resurfaced, labeled in hindsight as a financial blunder. The headline focused not on creativity or nostalgia, but on what could have been if the card wasn’t all but destroyed—a valuation number on a grading scale, forever tied to money left on the table.

Calling this story a “$3,000 mistake” is pure rage bait—chasing engagement instead of honoring the real spirit of a childhood story. The hobby should be about joy and nostalgia, not reducing every card to a profit calculation.

Calling this story a “$3,000 mistake” misses the point entirely. It wasn’t a mistake—it was a memory. It was passion. It was creativity. That card didn’t just sit in a shoebox or a slabbed case gathering dust; it lived. It went out into the world, joined a kid on adventures, and became part of his identity. It represented freedom, imagination, and the magic of Pokémon—exactly what made this hobby special in the first place.

By reducing it to a lost profit calculation, we don’t just insult that story—we reinforce the toxic message that collecting is only valid if it pays. This is the same mindset that has turned the hobby into a speculative marketplace, where cards are constantly flipped, hyped, and exploited. It’s the mindset that fuels gambling-style breaks and addictive spending habits. And it’s the mindset we’re working to challenge every single day at Collectors MD.

What many people in the comments got right is that this is what collecting should be: freedom, expression, joy. One collector said, “The card went with him on adventures. True to the Pokémon story.” Another wrote, “Bro thought it’d be dope to put a card on his board. That’s priceless.” These aren’t financial takes—they’re reminders that the value of collecting is found in the stories, not the spreadsheets.

At Collectors MD, we believe moments like these are guideposts. The value of collecting isn’t measured in resale prices or market charts—it’s measured in the memories we make and the meaning we attach. Cards are supposed to remind us of who we are, where we’ve been, and what we love. And when we lose sight of that—when every card becomes an “asset” or a “missed opportunity”—we lose the very soul of the hobby.

Profit Fades. Passion Remains.

#CollectorsMD
A card skated into childhood isn’t a $3,000 mistake—it’s a $3,000 memory.

—
Follow us on Instagram: @collectorsmd
Subscribe to our Newsletter & Support Group
Join The Conversation On Mantel
Read More Daily Reflections