Night Owl Cards

I can't believe I haven't featured this card yet on Awesome Night Card. How was I able to resist? Brett's quizzical stare aimed at the ump, the pine tar halfway up the bat five years after the freakout , the Dick Howser memorial patch, this card coming two years after this card . Just so much to admire, review, question and get into that Night Card Binder already! But here is another reason: I've considered 1989 Upper Deck a significant night-card pioneer, the set that distributed night cards into the mainstream, turning night scenes from an occasional quirk into a regular part of the set. Perhaps I've been a bit hasty. The 1988 Fleer set, which I enjoy more than '89 Upper Deck by the way, seems to have more than its share of night cards. I don't know the full story as I own just 60 or so '88 Fleer cards, but I've already featured one 1988 Fleer night card on ANC. And there's the Brett card. And then there's these three: ...

That's probably a silly question coming from someone who lived through the entire decade. But I don't feel like I have a good handle on what the 1990s were like in terms of the spirit of the decade. The 1970s I know. Sunhats and flowers. Green, orange and gold everything. Wood paneled walls. Head scarves and giant sunglasses. Disco balls. Yellow smiley faces. Open-collared shirts and mustaches. Sideburns. Split-level homes. Funkiness. Platform shoes. Bubble letters. Monty Python. The Electric Company. Singers and songwriters. Arena rock. The Brady Bunch. Economy cars. Herbie the Love Bug. Bell-bottoms. Star Wars. Cigarette ads in your sports magazine. I could go on for hours. The 1980s I know. New wave. Devo. Pastel colors. Miami Vice. Teen movies. Day-glo orange and green. Synthesized music/soundtracks/commercials/everything. Shoulder pads. Wine coolers. Moonlighting. Cable television. MTV. Videos. Aerobics. Pac-Man. Donkey Kong. Video game arcades. Purple stuff. Cabbag...

I was at the dentist earlier this month. I look forward to/enjoy the dental visit about as much as you can imagine. But I still go because I keep hearing about what happens if you don't. The last couple of visits have been slightly more enjoyable because I have a new dental assistant. The office features three different dentists and several more assistants. I couldn't tell you how many. It seems like about 50. They seem to try to keep certain assistants with certain patients, which I appreciate. And I think I like Rachel quite a bit. She's one of those people who talks about interesting, relatable topics, and even though I'm at least 20 years older than her, I felt -- right there in that dentist chair -- that she could be a long, lost friend. She also didn't talk to me when my mouth was full of water/instruments. Major bonus. So, there we'd be, talking about high school experiences or parents' unfamiliarity with technology when suddenly Rachel would...

First, this: That's right! Just as Bo promised in the comments , the Rob Picciolo card that I discovered missing has arrived direct from Baseball Cards Come To Life, and the 1982 Topps set is complete again! The ceremonial registering and placing of the Picciolo card in the '82 Topps binder will take place tonight. There will be cake and punch. You're all invited. Also, the first person to arrive gets a free 1982 Topps John Verhoeven card. OK, that's out of the way. Now, this: This outstanding tribute to the 1975 Hostess set, my favorite current player and my childhood was created by Gavin at Baseball Card Breakdown , of course. It's a very faithful re-creation of that first Hostess set (I appreciate the lack of pseudo cake stains). In fact, here is a card from that set to compare: How about that, huh? Just some slight alterations, on par with what Topps does with its Archives set. Gavin, because he's always complete, carried out the re-cr...