First Class

Five years ago, this made us all a little bouncy:

The U.S. Postal Service seemed to be on a roll, making all sorts of sought-after collectible stamp sheets. A year earlier, in 2006, a sheet of DC comics characters was released. But in July of 2007, it was Marvel's turn:

With the Postal Service in decline, it's hard to say whether or not this kind of release would generate the same sense of anticipation today. I remember buying a few sheets each of both Marvel and DC sets--but even then, I didn't have any illusions about them one day being in demand or worth a lot. Today, well, I can't remember the last time I affixed a stamp to an envelope.

So the sheets will stay stored away on a shelf. I may even end up framing them and hanging them side-by-side. "See?" I'll say to anyone who pauses and looks at them, "Those were from the days we had a postal service--yeah, letter delivery by hand, in mailboxes." And they'll look at me in amused disbelief.