The older I get the less I like frosting on my desserts.
Chocolate frosting on a cake -- oh, yes, I want that. Frosting on cupcakes, you bet. But not the weird frosting, the purple stuff and the weird trinkets people put in them. I like a cream cheese frosting though, that will put a cake over the top. But frosting on brownies? Stop it.
Anyway, less-is-more with desserts these days, but I won't say the same thing with card packages.
You want to throw in extras on top of what you intended/announced you will send? I'm all for that. Yes, even ebay sellers -- especially ebay sellers -- who want to send a few randoms. Go ahead. Try to keep it out of the 1987-93 era, but, sure, maybe there's a card in there I could use. I won't be mad.
Bloggers are really good at sending extras. I try to do so when I have a few. Why not? They are the frosting on a card package. The sprinkles atop the goodies within. Plop a giant dollop of unexpected cardboard on that card envelope, please!
Nick of Dime Boxes is very good at sending out sweet extras. In the latest case, they were even better than what I requested during his blog anniversary giveaway.
These are most of the cards that I claimed. There were a few others that are designated for future trades -- maybe as extras! But these stay with me. Oddball sets and retro cards of guys who played when I was a kid, yes, this is me. (Gaylord Perry should have been a Ranger or a Padre though).
I added one card that doesn't fit with the above interests, but only because I've wanted one for a long time.
These '96 Studio "Hit Parade" record cards are inspired. I'm sure I didn't know they existed until seeing them on a blog post, probably around 2008 or 2009. It's been that long going without one. The only Dodger in the set is Mike Piazza and some of his 1990s inserts are a bitch to find. So I'm happy with Mo in the meantime. At least I saw him hit a home run in person. Piazza never did that.
So that was all I figured I'd be getting from Nick that would stay in my collection. And I was happy with that. Despite what I implied up top about wanting ebay sellers' random throwaways, I really am trying to trim down cards that don't fit into my set and team collections (yeah, I know, explain the Vaughn card I just showed).
But Nick knows what I will accept gladly, the chocolate frosting of card mailings and swaps.
Dodger needs. SWEET! There were several of them in the envelope. I will now break them up into three pictures gradually progressing to better and better cards. The above are OK, because they're needed, but it's the usual Panini/pointless parallels fare. The Wills I have but it can go to that casual 2021 Chrome Anniversary quest that I'll never finish.
Getting better. I'm a sucker for '90s Sample cards although they don't mean anything really. Also a sucker for Corey Seager cards, even the dumb stamped stuff, as well as cards that show up only with boxed complete sets, which I think the Jansen is.
The best. The Bellinger Fire card is very colorful and that version is not as easy to find as the gold-minted stuff. The Jim Gilliam photo is great and the throwback design vibe is about as simplistic as it gets. The Ron Fairly was maltreated, what did 1966 Bazooka ever do to that collector? The Kershaw relic is my 17th Clayton Kershaw relic, but just my second or third A&G framed relic! And it's from this year's set! Awesome.
Nick did not confine the extras to Dodgers, although I sure appreciate the Will Smith. Three of these cards are upgrades in the frankenset binder. Yeah, even A-Rod. Who knew?
And finally a couple of extras that were directed right at my interests. These are like coconut cream cheese frosting on a German chocolate cake to me. The Fidrych is an OPC and the Perry is from the '73 Kellogg's set that I want to make my mission to complete very soon. Yum, yum.
So that was quite an anniversary giveaway, some great stuff.
I apologize if I activated a sweet tooth. This post is really just me complaining that all the Christmas cookies are gone.
Comments
I claimed some cards from Nick, too. Off-condition but very cool 60s cards of Harmon Killebrew and Fergie Jenkins and a serial-numbered Juan Marichal were the highlights, although I think my favorite is a Broder of Tom Seaver with the Red Sox, just because it's so weird and sweet.
Anyhoo, glad you liked the cards! I had a feeling you'd like that Gilliam - 2023 Panini Chronicles has a few great cards/designs mixed into a general platter of "meh." That Fairly was a steal at the last card show I attended as well. Most of all, however, thanks for being such a great reader/commenter/supporter during my years here. I really can't send you enough cards thanking you for that.
Nick sent some fantastic freebies, specifically the Kershaw relic and Perry Kellog's.
I went back and looked at the two '73s I own. Joe Coleman looks like he is really in Yankee Stadium but I have my doubts Ralph Garr is in Shea based on the photo. Again the lighting looks off, and the proportions look wrong if Garr is in fact kneeling on the ground.