04_The beginnings of my hobby!!!
The beginnings of my hobby
On October 23, 2004, I visited the «Salon des Collectionneurs » (an exposition for collectors) which was taking place at the Pierre Charbonneau Center in Montreal. Following this visit I was overwhelmed with the urge to begin a collection of my own, but I wanted something different from what I saw there.
I thought about this over a period of many days, even weeks, what could I collect? Pins or badges….too many collectors for this already. Hockey cards….it is a little late to start now. Firstly, I would never be able to get the older cards and it would cost me a small fortune to buy all the cards. Secondly, it is far from certain that the 2004-2005 hockey season will even get underway; so, I prefer to pass on this one.
After racking my brain for a little longer, I came to the conclusion that I would like to start a collection which was simple and would not cost too much because I was unemployed at that time. It was at this time that I needed to dig into my wallet for something and came out with almost ten (10) business cards. The light went on, why not collect business cards!!!! It literally costs nothing to obtain this type of card, it is a simple process and a large majority of the population possess them. It's a GO!!
Simple and original!
In less than two (2) months I managed to collect over five hundred and thirty (530) business cards. Naturally, I did not arrive at this total all by myself; many friends and associates "emptied" their pockets and generously offered me any business cards which they did not need.
Slowly, I began speaking to others about my collection and each time I spoke the words « Business Cards » I received many different reactions. Some people found it of little interest and some even called up outright « absurb » and useless. Others were surprised, nothing more. For the most, though, the majority smiled and found my idea original. At this moment they would poke around in wallets and purses and pull out some cards saying " It's not much…but"….each and everyone adds to my collection.
Sometimes, weeks go by when I don't get any or few cards and then….whoops….I am in my glory when I suddenly receive a few hundred. I am very content with the way my collection is going.
What a bright Idea !!!
During the Christmas holiday season I had mye ars open to various discussions going on around me. In the midst of one of these I learned that certain hockey players had their personal business cards. I held on to this information and file dit in my brain for use a few days later.
What did I have to loose by sending requests to obtain some of these business cards? The worst that could happen is that my request would be refused, or they just may send me some cards, maybe even one for every request.
I began by focusing on what sport I wished to begin trying to obtain business cards. The first league to which I sent my letter was the Junior Major Hockey League of Quebec (LHJMQ, Ligue de Hockey Junior Majeur du Québec). I had to decide if I should send these requests by mail or by electronic mail. I went with electronic mail be that is the choice which would cost the least and to which I could receive the quickest response.
Now, I needed to find out to whom I had to refer to make the requests. Luckily for me, I found the internet sites for each team as well as all other information necessary to make contact. The first letter sent was addressed to Mrs. Joanne Lefebvre, communications and promotional agent for Drakkar of Baie-Comeau.
The request was sent on Monday, December 27, 2004 at 15 :01 hrs. and to my surprise, I received Mrs. Levebre's response exactly twenty-six minutes later asking me to send a preaddressed and stamped envelope and she would send the cards. Well, what is fifty cents (0.50$) compared to the value of those cards? I know, I said I did not wish to invest too much money into this hobby but in order to obtain a new lineage of business cards I was ready to invest some. On January 10, 2005 I received their cards and following this quick and positive response I decided to make the requests to other teams in the league.
With no desire to let it rest there, I repeated the same requests to two other junior major leagues of Canada. And…..I could no longer content myself with just this….I got taken in with my game. I now had a goal to make the requests to all hockey, baseball, football and basketballs teams in Canada as well as the United States of America.
The question now was, how do I avoid sending a second request to the same place? I opened a file in Excel in which I created worksheets with the Team name, personal contacts, date request was sent, method of communication as well as the response obtained (noting all cards received).
As I had expected, I received some rejections but, happily, I also received many numerous positive responses. Certain teams asked that I send a pre-stamped and addressed envelope; I would have been foolish to refuse. Others teams made no such request and I was delighted to discover many envelopes addressed to me in my mail box. Needless to say, I was more that content with the response to my demands.
And Since
I was not content with just the cards from the various sports teams. I have business cards from many different domains, be it automobile, manufacturing, beauty, construction and many more.
In the beginning, the business cards were kept in no particular order in a box, not being placed in any order of category, alphabetically or otherwise. I now had no choice but to consecrate some of my spare time to my collection because I wished for it to be appealling to the eye as well as interesting to look through.
I spent the first day categorizing and noting them in my Excel file. I then purchased plastic sheets and began installing each card in a sleeve and put these sheets in a binder. Wowwwwwwww, much more interesting and pleasing to the eye, especailly for others.
Anecdote
Just the other day, one of my aunts gave me many cards. Amongst these, there was one with a message written on the back - Good for one meal. I wanted to give this one back to my aunt so she could profit from the offer but she just laughed and told me to keep it. This is when she told me the story which goes with the card.
To make a long story short, two of her friends wanted to go for a gormet supper at an establishment where you had to be a chef at another restaurant in order to not have to pay an entry fee. For this reason, her friends created a fake business card as their alibi in order to obtain access without paying the entrance fee. They had decided to call the fake restaurant "Alibi". Quick thinking….
On March 29, 2005, I decided to begin sending out requests again, this time to Re/Max, real estate agents. I sent many to numerous agents and to many different offices all over the Province. At approxiamately 10:30 am, the telephone rang and i twas Brygitte Lupien from Re/Max of Sainte-Agathe des Monts.
I was totally surprised and listened to what she had to say. She made a long-distance call to ask me why I chose her rather that someone else at her office. I tried not to laugh at her question because, after all, she does not know why I choose one person over another. I told her I simply choose a name from a list and sent my request. It is like I get a certain "feeling" when I see a name. I just feel that this is the person who will take the time to answer. It is as simple at that. She must have been satisfied with my answer because she said she would be sending the business cards within the next two weeks. Thank you Mrs. Lupien.
Thank you
I feel I must thank all the persons who have helped and continue to help in their own way with my collection. They encourage me by obtaining business cards, filing the cards and also in many other ways.
A heart felt thank you!!!