Why do really really really old people find baseball cards worth hundreds of thousands or the lottery?

This is an INCREDIBLY valid question, and I would like to know the answer to this myself. Is it just plain irony? I often think of that song "Ironic" by Alanis Morrisette where she mentions an old man winning the lottery and then dying the next day. It happens more often than I think it should statistically.

Maybe it's life's way of telling us money isn't important because you can't take it with you when you die. Maybe it's life's way of telling us we should be nicer to our grandparents because they could win the lottery and leave us lots of money. :-)

Although I certainly do not know the answer, I believe it is an incredibly valid question!

Older people find the good stuff because they or their parents bought the stuff when it was new, held onto it all their lives and then 'found' it again, stashed away in their attic or basement. You only hear about the lucky ones who realize what they have (or knows someone who tells them what it's worth). Think about all the other old people who have their homes cleaned out by relatives because they are moving to a nursing home or passed away, and all their stuff is just thrown out in the garbage. There could have been some really valuable antiques worth some serious bucks just tossed in the trash.

as for the lottery, well, just lucky, i guess. But, better late than never!

really old people have no use for money anymore. baseball cards, however may be more significant. sure, the card is worth a turd-load of cash, but is it the card that's special, or how much it costs?

Jealous?

Because really really really old people tend to have more really really really old things.

And many times, really really really old things turn out to be really really really valuable.