The nebulous 9 is a wonderful thing

A little piece of advice:

If you have a card blog, and you are interested in trading, and you want to add specific cards to your collection, then you must, immediately, as in this instant, get a "most wanted" list on your blog.

You can put it on your sidebar, or do one of those fancy tab things at the top of the blog (please, someone tell me how to do that, I haven't figured it out yet). You can even put the "most wanted" list up in your header if you want to be all ugly about it.

Just get it done. Because it's quite effective.

I first saw this on Saints of the Cheap Seats. Then I saw it on garveyceyrusselllopes. I thought it was a great idea. Little did I know how great.

People are always checking out my "most wanted" list, which I call "the Nebulous 9." It's an easy tool for potential traders. If they don't feel like wading through a giant want list, they can just check out the abbreviated list.

As a result, I'm constantly updating the Nebulous 9. In the last couple weeks, I've received so many Nebulous 9 needs that I think there are only 2 or 3 cards that have been on the list for more than three weeks.

Jim of GCRL was the latest to knock off a few. He sent me the 1988 Fleer Fernando Valenzuela, the last card I need for that team set.

He also sent two other Nebulous needs:

Both of these cards are unimpressive on their own. Who doesn't have stacks of 2005 Topps and 2006 Upper Deck insulating the attic?

But each card here means I am just one card away from completing each set. It is so much more painful to admit that you need a card from 2005 than one from 1965, so I'm glad Jim cleared up that bit of embarrassment for me.

He also was kind enough to send these two cards that weren't on the Nebulous 9:

That means he checked out the Nebulous 9 list AND the big bad want list. Now, that's going the extra mile.

So, what have you learned here today?

That's right.

Get a most wanted list. Now.

Unlike most things in your life, it works.