Skip to main content

The obligatory milestone contest


I received a very prompt and plump package in the mail yesterday afternoon.

It was from Mojo & Beardy's Fantastic Card Blog. Actually, I believe it was specifically from Beardy if you want to get all uptight about it. But that isn't the point.

The point is they were GIVING AWAY CARDS. Shiny, colorful cards. They were giving away 2004 Finest. I love '04 Finest. It might be my favorite Finest ever. Yeah, I know. I have a lot of favorites. That's a common theme in a lot of areas in my life. And it can be a problem.

But THIS isn't a problem:


Isn't that FANTASTIC???!!!!!

That is so awesome. They really did Finest right that year.

And, I received half of the freakin' set from M&B's card emporium!! HALF. OK, so the set's only 100 cards, but still half a set is half a set. It's a good deed. Flat out. A good deed.

I have been the recipient of a lot of good deeds since I started this card blog. To briefly recap, someone found a way for me to get my cards signed by my favorite player of all-time. Another person sent me a glossy photo of my second favorite player of all-time, signed by said player and personalized to my blog nickname. Another person sent me my favorite player's rookie card. Another person sent me the coveted 1971 Thurman Munson card. Several others have sent me hundreds of cards in a simgle mailing just because. No reason. Just because.

I have received drawings from bloggers' children and custom cards of bloggers' children. Another person sent me a perfectly created custom card of my favorite player.

When I think about it all, it's overwhelming.

I can't possibly return all the favors. I don't have the cards or the money or the time. I do what I can and I hope an "A" for effort is enough.

So here is one of those "A"-for-effort" moments. Whether I deliver, that's up to you:

You may have noticed that I am quickly approaching 100,000 visitors on my blog. I just surpassed 99,000 in the past 24 hours. It's a cool number. Hell, if 10 people a day looked at my blog, it'd be cool. But since I'm coming up on a big round number I figured I should hold a contest -- not really because a bunch of people look at this thing, but more because of what I mentioned before: I am very grateful for what you have done to help me appreciate this hobby more than I ever thought I could.

So this is what I am going to do. Instead of offering a cool card from my collection or something similar, I am going to do something a little more tailored to your interests. I am going to go shopping for you.

I have a card show to go to in about a week and a half. When I go to that show, I will shop for whichever lucky person wins this contest. I will devote a portion of the cash that I bring to that show to that person.

But I need to know what that person likes to collect. So, this is how I'm going to figure that out and how you enter.

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post. State your name and your collecting interests, whether it be a player, a team or a set. It can be more than one of those things. The more options I have at the card show the better. It's a larger show, but I never can find everything I want, so I'll need secondary options.

The winner will be selected at random. I hope I can get the random.org thing screen-captured on the blog, but I have trouble with stuff like that, so you might have to trust me. Don't worry, I run a very honest operation. I am a contest-operating veteran.

You will have until I reach 100,000 visitors to enter the contest. Once I reach 100,000, the contest is closed. But that should take about a week, so you have time. Oh, and one entry per person.

Once I determine the winner, I will consult with that person before I head to the show to find out what they're specifically looking for and what I can afford.

So, be wise when listing your interests in the comments. If you say you collect only original T206's or Albert Pujols 1 of 1's, then you apparently have me confused with Keith Olbermann. You aren't going to get what you want. The more expensive or more specific your tastes, the less you'll get from me. However, I am doing this with the intent of trying to find something nice. So don't think I'm going to go all Topps Attax on you.

And, if you happen to be collecting something that I collect and will be looking for at the show -- like Dodgers or 1971 or 1976 Topps, then you NEED to enter this contest, because I will be all over that kind of stuff.

In a day or so, I'll link to this contest on the sidebar, so you can continue to enter, and I'll let you know when the contest is closed. In a week or so, I'll reveal the winner.

Thanks for reading. And thanks for, well, being nice to me, I guess. You're all awesome.

Comments

Captain Canuck said…
the problem with being first is that on Random.org, first never wins....

congrats Mr Owl... quite the blog you have going on here...
TBRaysNews said…
Congrats on the milestone my friend! Great idea for the contest. My name is marck and my three most coveted sets right now are the 1986 Larry Fritsch Negro League Baseball Stars set, 1964 Topps Giants and 2008 Allen and Ginter. I am pretty close on all 3. I also collect other things, but they are less exciting... Oh, I really doubt it will take ya a week to rise 1000 hits-TONS of people read your amazing blog. Thanks!
Matt said…
Congrats on reaching 100,000. My name is Matt and I collect the Royals and post-retirement Brett cards since I have most of the stuff from his playing days. I am also working on the 1980 Topps set. My blog is 26centsummer.blogspot.com. Good luck getting your next 100,000.
Congratulations on the milestone! My name is Jonathan and I collect - well, I'm back into the game so I don't really know what I collect yet. But I can tell you want I like.

I like Topps Heritage, and I like the Reds, Orioles and White Sox. I also like Ken Griffey Jr and Ichiro Suzuki. And I think the Oakland A's green-and-gold scheme make some of the prettiest cards ever made. I've got 1987-1991 pretty much covered (guess how old I am) and big old holes in my meager collection everywhere else.

This is a great idea for a contest. I hope I win! But good luck to everyone.
Two Packs A Day said…
Congrats on the milestone. I hope my blog can grow up to be like yours someday! ;)

For this contest, I collect Roy Halladay or Pujols. Not too picky but I do prefer non-numbered or plentiful numbered inserts to base (as I probably already have a lot of the base of those players from when I've bought h/c sets through the years) whereas I don't have many inserts because I buy h/c base sets.

thanks for the opportunity in the contest!
Steve Gierman said…
Congratulations!

My name is Steve and I am an... oh wait, wrong comment.

I collect White Sox cards, including White Sox minor league cards. I also collect cards of Harold Baines, Carlton Fisk, Don Wakamatsu, Bobby Thigpen, John Cangelosi, Mark Buehrle and Jason Frasor, in any team's uniform.

Very interesting idea for a contest.
What a nice number 100,000 is...congrats on approaching and passing that milestone in the coming days.

Texas Rangers, Vintage (pre-1980) catchers, preferably in the catching pose, and Senators cards (1961-1971 condition not an issue).

Going shopping for the winner is a great idea. Keep up the awesome work sir.
madding said…
Congrats! My name is Kerry and I have a cold. I collect the Cardinals and other things as you well know.

I guess I will throw out a couple of ideas. If you're shopping around the vintage bins, I don't have a ton of pre-1979 Cardinals cards. Also, you really can't go wrong with any Topps Heritage cards prior to 2007 or so. Even if it's Juan Pierre...
jacobmrley said…
you know my name and my mo. you know my naaaaaaaame, look up de number... sorry, random beatles cabaret moment...
Congratulations on the upcoming milestone!!

My collecting preferences are currently: Andre Dawson, Jim Palmer, Joe Morgan, Frank Robinson, Willie McCovey, Fergie Jenkins. I also need just 2 cards to complete my PC's of both Greg Maddux and Darryl Strawberry.
AdamE said…
Wow that is a lot of hits. Congratulations.

Going to list Preacher at the front of my wants so you don'thave to look for anything but Dodgers while you are at your card show. Problem with that is they are usually expensive. It isn't every card show where you can find a Preacher for a couple bucks. (except for his 55 Bowman) (but I do not have to worry about getting that from you because you have only seen one 55 Bowman ever) So after Preacher is Bill Virdon oddball cards (Post, Jello...)or manager cards. And as always I like Red Sox.
Anonymous said…
Congrats on the big moment. I would love a shot at a virtual shopping trip with the Owl.

It should be pretty obvious, but my current collecting focus is Emmitt Smith and base Topps Pirates. Given my fairly large Emmitt collection and general wish to not accumulate doubles, I would say base Topps Pirates would be the easiest (and cheapest) to make me a very happy person.

Here's to another 100,000...
beardy said…
Congratulations dude, and I'm glad the Finest reached you quickly.

You know me, I'm an O's guy, and a Hall of Fame guy.
gcrl said…
as for me, well, you could pull a bunch of doubles from your dodger collection and just tell me they're from the show. anyway, i go by gcrl and i collect dodgers, all lopes and cey cards, joe mauer, vlad, non-red sox nomar, and cards of anyone who was on the 1978 dodgers.
i am happy to have accounted for many of your first 1000000 hits...
Jim said…
Congratulations on the upcoming milestone and here's to 100,000 more!

I collect Phillies cards and I will eventually return to finishing my '71 Topps set.
Matt Runyon said…
Howdy. That's a lot of hits! I don't know if you would want to shop for me since most of what I'm collecting now are Giants cards (pre-1973). I'm also working on a few older Topps sets -- 1960, 1966, 1969, 1971, and 1973 are the ones closest to completion. Have a good time at the show -- I haven't been able to get to one in years.
Sooz said…
Congrats. I am not entering, just saying congrats.

Love this community.
congratulations, I collect Bip Roberts, Padres autographs and President Eisenhower
Roy said…
Congrats on 100K. Night Owl Cards and Heartbreaking Cards... were the first I came across in my bloggering endeavors, so it holds a nice place in my history.

I collect Blue Jays, notably Dustin McGowan and Shaun Marcum...and my name is attached to this post.
longlivethewho said…
Congratulations, and I should be getting you something at the next card show for continuing to blog. You do an excellent job.

I collect Halladay, Alex Rodriguez and any Yankee. But just wanted to say congratulations first and foremost.
Wow, 100k, nice big round number. My name is Keith, just started blogging, but enjoying myself. I'm basically collecting Royals 2005 to Present. Just getting started so anything is good! Hope you get another 100k visits soon.
Nachos Grande said…
I'm more of a specific want list kind of collector so I'll just save you from having to parse my list and say Congratulations on the milestone. There's a lot of good blogs out there, but yours is one of the few EXCELLENT ones!
Dan said…
Congratulations on the milestone! This is one of the top 3 blogs I bookmark to read every morning. For the purposes of the contest, I will say I am now collecting 2008-2010 Phillies, 2009 Topps Heritage (I have a wantlist), any oddball Mike Schmidt and Steve Carlton cards,and lastly Phillies in general.
SpastikMooss said…
Wow, congratulations on the high hit count dude! You deserve it!

As you know, my name is Tim, and I collect Fred McGriffs. I'm also working on finishing up a few sets (1995 topps, 1992 topps), LOVE serial numbered cards of any kind (1/1 or 347/3,456,982,348, I'll take it!), and have a bunch of non McGriff PC's as well (NFLer Seneca Wallace and NBAer Tyronn Lue are particular focal points at this time.
Mark Aubrey said…
Greg, nice job. Now, I really thought that you'd have preferred to hit the 100,001 mark. It balances out better. More pleasing to the eye. Or eyes if you aren't Sandy Duncan, Sammy Davis, Jr, Mo Udall, or Peter Falk.

My name is Mark and I collect the following:

* Earl Wilson
* Carl Erskine
* Orel Hershiser
* cheap HoF relics / autos
* Daniel Schlereth
* Bill Wade

Thanks for the contest.

Someday, I want to be like you. By that I mean, back living in the North Country.
TheBrooklynMet said…
Hey, very cool idea for a contest. My name is Jason and I am a Mets fan.

I collect Mets generally, especially:
Edgardo Alfonzo
John Olerud
Mike Piazza
David Wright
Carlos Beltran
Jose Reyes
Bo said…
Congratulations and thanks! I collect everything (within baseball cards) so if I somehow win just grab the most cards you can for whatever amount of money you are spending.
Unknown said…
Congrats on the 100k mark! Awesome! I've been collecting on and off since '91, and this last year has been the first of many to come. Just got out of college and plan on buying lots more cards once i move to Arizona and start my caree this Fall. My favorite collection is Twins, specifically Puckett, Mauer, Morneau, Nathan, Neshek, and yes, Nick Punto. Thanks for the contest, I'll keep checking your site every day!
Hey, I collect Diamond Kings as the name implies, I still need any from 1996-2001.

Also, cheap relics and autos of retired(or especially dead) players.

Really anything else, vintage being my favorite!
Field of Cards said…
My name is Field of Cards.

I collect a lot of stuff but for this contest I'd say Orioles' Autographs.

Creative way to offer a contest prize!
Orioles Magic said…
Congrats on nearing that awesome milestone. Your blog is truly one of the best of the genre and is definitely worth a daily read.

My name is Ryan of the Great O's Autograph Project.
I collect Orioles autographs, Orioles autographs of players wearing orange uniforms, and Orioles cards in general.

Thanks for hosting a contest, they're always fun even though I never win.
flywheels said…
Colbey here from SC. Braves fan first and foremost. Collect Braves players from any year, any set, any maker. Favorite players are Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and David Justice (any cards, not just in Braves uni's)
Spiff said…
Spiff here. Congratulations on the blog traffic. Looking for Rangers, 1961-1971 Senators, and Jon Matlack.
mmosley said…
Mark from stats-on-the-back. You know I like the Mets, but I also collect Tito Fuentes and Turkey Red.

Night Owl Cards is one of the 5 or o blogs I check daily. Keep it up.
deal said…
Team Phungo Here - I hope the hits keep on coming.

Uhm interests...Phils, 2007 Bowman Heritage, and how bout Dated Cards - you know cards featuring No-Hitters, Year In Review.
My name is Sarah and I love the Braves and Chipper Jones. I also like David Wright, Curtis Granderson, Adam Laroche and Jeff Francoeur.

Awesome job on the near 100k.
Offy said…
Mike

Collecting Mike Piazza, Dwight Evans and David Ortiz
I'm Dan and I collect Ichiro, Darryl Strawberry, Portland Trail Blazers and am building 1969 Topps baseball.
RoofGod said…
Congrats on the (future) milestone. I am always willing to accept Tigers and McGwire's into my home. Thanks again for the entertainment.
BA Benny said…
Way to go Mr. Owl. You are a big part of Blogoland and have an awesome blog. I always look forward to reading your stuff.

I would love to join you in spirit on your card show adventure if I am lucky enough to win . I look for Game used, auto, and sn'd cards in this order:
Mets, Yankees, Jets, Saints, Giants(football).
Dinged Corners said…
Well done, Greg, 100k is a good 'un.

We're still trying to get used to your new page style. Yes, we're slow.
TheRealDFG said…
Awesome milestone, N.O. When I grow up, I want to be just like you. You probably already know that I am a hockey collector (since you blew my mind and sent me some hockey before), but also collect Pirates and Steelers.

Anyway, congratulations!!!
BASEBALL DAD said…
Congratulations!!!
If I had a counter on my blog it may be up to 100 by now.

My name is Baseball Dad and I have way too many cards now,but have fun at the show!

Sorry, I'm a little late catching up on my reading.I did notice your new look though. Very clean.
TJ said…
100k is fantastic. Quite a milestone. I collect Rudy Fernandez and his Portland Trail Blazers. On the occasion I'm not in basketball mode I'm into Felix Hernandez and the Mariners. Congrats.
JD's Daddy said…
Hi, I am Mike from JD's Wildcardz...I would like to enter your fine contest!

I would love anything special related to the 2004 Red Sox...like a World Series patch card or something. Also would love a Varitek auto.

As a secondary interest. Any help towards completing Heritage 2009 would be fantastic.

i get jealous of these big shows!
Hackenbush said…
If it wasn't for those Harpo Marx and Marlo Thomas pictures I posted during my "birthday guy" phase I'd barely have any hits at all. But then again, I can't write like you. Kudos on your milestone. Selfishly, I'm collecting the current Cubs and my special favorites, Theodore Roosevelt (Ted) Lilly, and Ryan Dempster.
Unknown said…
I'm Joe, and I've just started collecting again in the past year. Love the blog. I'm thinking of building up the 76 set because, well, I have some, and my kids 7 and has started collecting, and I was 7 in '76, and you know, the Bicentennial rocked.
dayf said…
Havya hit 100K yet?

you know who I am. you know what I like.

Because I'M IN YOUR HEAD....

The owls are not what they seem....
Mariner1 said…
My name is Larry. I recently started my blog Emerald City Diamond Gems. I hope to be like you and some of the other great bloggers. I collect Mariners and Tony Gwynn. Congrats on nearly 100k hits.
Motherscratcher said…
Hey, I'm Motherscratcher and I collect Indians...specifically Sizemore...and Choo...and LaPorta...and Carlos Santana when he gets called up...and Turkey Red.

Finest is nice too.

I wasn't going to enter any more contests until I got up posts about all of the stuff I've gotten in the last 8 months. But since that's all coming next week I can enter your contest! Yippee!
Jeremy said…
Congratulations on your milestone. I'm sure it will happen soon. Thanks for all the cool blog posts. This is my favorite blog to read. As for me I'm a Met, Dodgers(mostly of the Brooklyn Dodgers variety) and Yankees collector. I know it's an unusual combination. Thanks for the great reading.
Anthony K. said…
Congratulations bro.

100,000 hits is ridiculous and I am glad I could contribute to those hits :D

Anyways, I primarily collect Richard Hidalgo, Javier Vazquez, Hunter Pence and Bob Gibson, but I also have a fairly large sized Astros team collection.

Thanks for the contest and here's to 100,000 more!!!
Drew said…
Wow, congrats dude! That is a lot of reading! You have an excellent blog and that award I gave you last year was most certainly well deserved.

I'm in on the contest!
Sooz said…
FINE! I'll enter.

You don't have to be so pushy about it. :)
night owl said…
You WILL enter the contest, you WILL win things, and you will LIKE it. :)
Anonymous said…
Adam K here.

I got into collecting in 1993, so most of the stuff I go for is from that era - 1994 Finest, Stadium Club First Day Issues, ToppsGold / BlackGold, 1995 UD Collector's Choice SE. Not a big fan of relic cards, but I'll also go for most newer numbered Topps items (Xfractors are always a favorite). Being from Colorado, I'll admit that we don't have similar team allegiances, but we're all collectors here, right?
Anonymous said…
Congrats Greg! I'll enter as well:

Name: John
Collects: Paul O'Neill, Martin Brodeur, Yankees, pre-2000 Flair/Flair Showcase inserts and parallels
mr haverkamp said…
Congrats on getting close, Greg! Your blog is daily reading for me, because you're a talented writer. I'll continue to send you Dodger cards because they have no place in my Giants hoard!
All the best - MrHaverkamp
Great Blog here.
I collect Baseball cards.
Peace.
I enjoy reading your blog!!

I'm in the process of collecting Tigers team sets from 1965 to the present & ANY Topps Aurelio Rodriguez cards. Check my want list for missing cards. Thanks!
bbcardz said…
Hi Greg. Congratulations on a huge milestone. I've been reading your blog for a few months now but just now became a follower. I'm a TOTAL Dodger fan (born & raised in LA, in fact my Dad & Willie Davis went to the same high school). I'm also a Topps set collector (since 1969) and I'm still trying to complete those 1969-75 sets. I'm probably too late to enter your 100,000 hits contest but I at least I tried.

fwiw, I don't know if you belong to any fantasy baseball leagues or card trading sites but I organized a Yahoo fantasy baseball league, "Clash of the Trading Forums", with mods from seven different card forums (and online dealer Atlanta Sports Cards)competing for bragging right (and a nice prize pool of cards). Atlanta Sports Cards even chipped in a $100 gift certificate! Check it out on my site, www.andystadium.com. Congrats again!

Andy
night owl said…
The door for entering the contest is officially closed.

Randomizing will begin in the next 24-48 hours.

Announcement of winners will appear a little after that.
night owl said…
Congrats to McCann Can Triple for winning the contest!

FanOfReds is runner-up.

http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2010/04/whos-going-to-card-show-with-me.html