I've played pokemon for a vast majority of my life and hyperfixate on it almost way too much sometimes; though my partner says it's cute so it makes me feel less insecure. My first game was HeartGold which I got for my 7th birthday. I chose Cyndaquil as my starter and he's become a life long friend. I even got a lifesized one named Tye (same as my in game Typhlosion).
I have a few graded cards and only allow myself to keep as many as I can display in my Ikea Cabinet. Below are some of them:
TAG Pristine 991 Misty's Psyduck
Pulled March 20th 2025 | Graded April 14th 2025
This is my Misty's Psyduck I pulled from a Heatwave Arena box I preordered from Plaza Japan. I had pulled it from one of the first packs I opened and was shocked at how beautiful of a card it is. After opening the rest of the box I pregraded it to check if I could get an estimate grade and score. The centering I measured was 49.3/50.7, or a TAG Pristine. After sending it in, it came back as a 991 scored TAG Pristine. It is the first Misty's Psyduck graded by TAG and as of July 2025, the highest scored one as well. However all that is trumped by the fact that I had pulled it from a pack. I do love this card greatly and it's become a surprise addition to my collection that's very welcomed.
PSA 9 1st Edition Dark Espeon (Old Cert)
Bought May 1st 2025 | Obtained May 9th 2025
This Espeon was purchased off of a reputable seller and YouTuber. I had examined the card first as much as possible before buying it. This was actually the third one I had been looking at, however the previous two had been purchased before I bought them as I wanted to sit on it for a week before I purchased it. I didn't want to miss this one as it was the last one of its kind on eBay in it's grade. (When I say "Last of its kind", I mean that it is a very high quality PSA 9 with better than 52/48 centering and two small touches on the back side.) After a 5 or so days I bought it. It's my only old PSA Cert. I didn't expect there to be a difference but I found out that they used to have slightly different slabs which felt nice to hold. Someday when I'm ready I'll be sending it to TAG as I prefer their slabs.
TAG 888 Hisuan Zoroark VSTAR Alt Art
Bought Jan 12th 2025 | Obtained June 5th 2025
This may see like an oddity, not just because of its score but the card as well. Well, it was sold to me by a very friendly vendor at a local show who I later became friends with as a PSA 10. He offered it to me under market because I was a few dollars short of his asking price. I held onto this slab for about 6 or so months until I cracked it out of the slab and submitted it to TAG. I was a bit of a goof and forgot to check the back, where it had two scratches. Because of that it got an 8.5 or an 888 score. This card was special to me so I was upset when I saw the grade, but immediately became exstatic at how cool the score being 888 was. Regardless of the grade I would have kept this card due to it being in great condition and being such a wonderful card to stare at for a while. I'm not one to believe in Angel numbers but it is a very cool addition for a very cool card from a very cool person.
PSA 10 Shaymin Holo
Bought Jan 12th 2025
This is quite a funny card. I really love shaymin, especially the Sky-Form. I just so happen to find one of my favorite vendors with this slab for $35. They couldn't move it and no one was even looking at it. Of course I bought it. I now keep it at my desk at work and look at it daily. It had a gorgeous old-styled holofoil along with blue grass and a gorgeous dusk red sky.
TAG Pristine 10 Arcanine
Bought March 21st 2025 | Graded April 14th 2025
Graded along side my Misty's Psyduck and Ethan's Adventure, this Arcanine is another beautiful card. This specific card was part of an experiment I conducted in which I took a CGC Perfect and graded it at TAG in hopes of getting a TAG Pristine. Due to being a dying breed of label, this was a one time experient. I'll be keeping it for a long time due to loving this illustration and loving REND, the artist behind it. REND has very quickly become one of my favorite artists in modern Pokemon. Having their contest card in my favorite label as part of my collection is very fitting.
PSA 10 Mareep
Bought Dec 11th 2024
This is the first graded card I've owned. I was getting back into Pokemon after a the low point in my hobby which were the Scarlet and Violet games. After seeing the new cards and absolutely loving some of the new artworks, I deceided to purchase this guy off of eBay. I normally keep it on my desk next to my desktop. Though it isn't in my favorite looking slab and isn't of a super crazy card, it was my first slab and nothing will ever change that.
CGC Pristine 10 Mantyke
Bought Jan 12th 2025
I had bought this Mantyke off of a Whatnot live stream and managed to snag this beauty for $22. The reason I bought this in the first place was because I wanted one graded as it reminds me of my partner. They're big into marine life and absolutely adore any sort of ray. After seeing this card at a show I knew I needed one. I think this one is one of my favorites because of how much it reminds me of them. Mantyke's silly face also reminds me of them.
BGS Black Label Chandelure
Bought Apr 21st 2025
This card is quite funny. I didn't plan on keeping it originally. After buying it for $180, I was looking to send it to TAG to a highly scored pristine (995+). This didn't happen because as I looked around I realized there was not way I would get another illustration black label of a pokemon and trainer I really liked for that cheap. As you can see, there's heavy scuffing on the front of the slab. This wasn't originally visible on the listing as they had a rubber guard on it which also had a rubber piece going across the slab right below the label. I plan on getting it reslabbed in the near future as that and the sleeve have been bothering me.
SGC 9.5 Shining Celebi
Bought Jun 26th 2025
I am a sucker for Neo Era holos. I only realized that after buying this beautiful shining card for a much lower price than I expected to pay. I really love shining cards and always wanted one, and finially I pulled the trigger. I'm hoping to send it to TAG soon for a high 9 or low 10 due to whitening one of the back corners. This was also the first time I had ever seen a vintage shining card in person. I cannot believe how good they look. The holo is just so good looking that I don't have any other words to describe it besides awesome.
TAG 10 985 Ethan's Adventure
Pulled March 20th 2025 | Graded April 14th 2025
This was actually my chase card in the Heatwave Arena box I preordered. I managed to pull it in the last 3 packs of the box. I had already pulled a Yanmega full art so I thought I had pulled my SR or better. Boy was I wrong. I was unaware you could get another SR or better in Japanese boxes until the moment I pulled this card. I absolutely love it. It reminds me of when I would play Heart Gold in first grade. I often view myself as Ethan due to that fondness of the game. I chose Cyndaquil, love Mareep, took care of a Togetic and kept it on my team, and had so many good memories from that time. I also love the aesthetic of generation 2 and it's remakes. Life just feels slower. The pokemon aren't world altering creatures, more like animals that roam freely. Most feel like creatures you'd find in our world. It feels more grounded. This card reminds me of that and how I can still have adventures, despite being an adult now.