TMDSIK: 1991-93 Topps Micro

(Most years Allen & Ginter would have been released by now. Yes, I'm still bitter. But at least that doesn't qualify A&G as a defective set. And now, here is one of The Most Defective Sets That I Know).

2. TMDSIK: 1991-93 TOPPS MICRO

I am a known lover of minis. I love 1975 Topps minis. I love Allen & Ginter minis. I'll tolerate Gypsy Queen minis. I'll accept 1980s minis.

What I don't like at all are micros.

Micro works for a kid that's 7 years old. Miniature is a big deal when you're little. Matchbox cars. My Little Pony. When my daughter was that age, we had tiny, easy-to-lose toys embedded in every carpet in the house. The vacuum suffered the most.

So why would anyone make cards that small, especially for a demographic that was a lot older than 7?

Here is how small they are:

Regulation-size card on the left.

That is one gigantic difference.

When I scanned these two cards together. I opened the lid to pull the cards back out. The regular card was sitting right there. The micro card was nowhere to be seen.

I had to crawl on my knees behind the scanner and behind the table to see the micro card resting on its side, hoping to hide forever like the tiny tea cups and baby bottles that I remember from my daughter's toys -- until they were lost forever.

I've mentioned this before: I once had the complete set of 1992 Topps Micros. I gave up on them because it was impossible to handle them without dropping them, losing them, stepping on them, etc. And forget about reading the backs.

What boggles my mind is that Topps released micro sets in three consecutive years.

There are missing micro cards scattered through homes all over the world. Hiding forever.