Among my finest accomplishments

 

Although I track milestones on this blog because it's a great way to see where I've been and where I am in the hobby, I don't think about my accomplishments in life very often.

As a writer, though, I naturally look inward, so it's not difficult to come up with some on the spot. Some of my biggest are: establishing a career goal in college and making it work for me for 30-plus years, creating a family and raising a smart, well-adjusted go-getter kid, being a home-owner for close to 30 years, winning awards for my writing in my job and reaching a goal I had as a teenager -- writing in a national magazine.

And here's another one: completing multiple sports card sets.

Ha, ha, you say, that doesn't seem to fit with the ones above. But I say it does, very well. I am almost as proud -- really and truly -- of many of my finished sets as I am of the things above. This set-building ain't easy. I've heard more than one collector say that set-builders are a different breed and kind of insane. OK. I don't really understand the insane part, because when I was a kid, the only thing we wanted to do when we bought packs was accumulate as many cards as we could and maybe, just maybe, we could have them all! (This almost never happened).

I honestly did not complete a full set of 660 or 726 or 792 cards until decades into my collecting journey. So when I finish one now, it is for that young collector, from age 9 to 19, who dreamed of what it would be like -- that sure would be a fine accomplishment.

That's why I celebrate every completion and why I'm on a mission to finish more.

 

The set doesn't even have to be all that major for me to get that thrill. For example Dizzy Dean at the top of the post. I received it from Dennis of Too Many Verlanders a few days ago and it finished the 1990 Swell set for me. Not a significant or difficult set at all, but one of those sets that I thought was complete, only to discover gremlins had struck. So now it's done and I'm celebrating a major accomplishment.

 

 

Dennis also sent a card toward another Swell mission, from 1991. I can fully attack that now that 1990 is done.

 

 

 The brunt of the package was Dodgers of the random variety, but all of these are needs. And one of them -- the Robin Ventura -- completed a team set for me, which is my second-favorite kind of set completion. I never have to think about 2004 Upper Deck again.

Going to veer into random team needs now. That's why I started with the best stuff up front for those of you who have to walk the dog or whatever. Don't let Trevor Bauer for goodness sake keep you from doing daily tasks.

The Shiny Prospects portion of the program. Ruiz is safely in the Dodgers binders for good but the other guys need to find some major league experience for them to remain in good binder standing.

How about this Topps nonsense? Six cards and two photos. Maybe wait until the guy gets to the majors and you'll have a bigger choice of photos.

Stadium Club makes me happier. Walker Buehler is starting to get his bearings on the mound again and I've always loved this card with his electric-blue glove. The Kimbrel was a need, too. Teams keep picking that guy up, with the same results.

Dennis also sent a couple of 1987 Sportflics Dodger needs but those photograph terrible. 

Just one more baseball card to show, but it's one of the final four cards I needed to complete 2024 Topps. It's on its way to being another great accomplishment!

Dennis also sent some Bills. These are all from 1997 Stadium Club, which I have never seen in football form ever. Some of those Super Bowl guys were still hanging on at this point, so I want these cards. Not so sure about Antowain Smith though.

And some Sabres, including a new Dominik Hasek card! Yay!

Hockey has yet to join the parade of sets that I've completed. I don't know if that will ever happen. But I'll definitely keep you updated if it does.

Because that is the mission. Always.