Great post! I’m 39 also but had quit collecting as a kid before all this coolness ever hit the hobby. For me the biggest card back then, for me, was a Roebuck OPC Premier RC. I remember it once hit $27 in the Beckett and I had scrounged my way to owning 3! I had them all in a triple screw down and thought I was king shhhh! Lol.
Enjoyed the read, hope you post pics.