I'm a slob

Last night after dinner I was organizing some cards for packages that will go out next week.

In the process of stacking and crossing things off the spreadsheet, I realized I hadn't enjoyed a post-dinner treat. So I grabbed a small bit of chocolate and a napkin and went back to the cards.

Soon afterward, I noticed with disgust that I had gotten a small smudge of chocolate on the above Bowman Stephen Strasburg card. This has happened more times than you would think or that I would care to admit, but it was the inspiration for a poll I posted on Twitter.

I wondered:

How often do you get food on your cards?

It doesn't happen a heck of a lot for me. Probably under a dozen times since I've started this blog. But it does happen, and I figured it had to happen for others.

The Twitter polls are posted for a day and this particular one got some decent play because Beckett Media retweeted it.

The final results are in and here they are:

Yeah, I'm a slob.

These results surprised me somewhat, but not a lot. With Beckett retweeting it, I imagine there are all kinds of card-grading people who got a look at this who are horrified by the thought of human hands touching cards, let alone some sort of food product.

But it also seems there are a lot of commoner collectors who don't let food anywhere near their cards, which did surprise me. If I were voting in the poll, I probably would have selected "sometimes," but I'd be tempted to pick "hobby and food go together" because, in my life, they do.

I don't have a lot of time in my day. There are a lot of things I have to get out of the way before I deal with eating, blogging and playing with cards. So guess what happens often? Yup, I have to do it all at once.

Many of my blog posts, especially when I'm working during the school year, are written at lunch time. I have a sandwich on my computer table, inches from the keyboard, and a stack of cards du jour in the same area, and I'm scanning and flipping and munching and typing all at the same time.

Food and card sometimes meet. I get it off as quickly as I can, but it happens. And I'm not all that shaken up about it. It's just the way things have to be. There isn't enough time to have both "card time" and "food time" all the time.

It's kind of odd when I think about it because I absolutely hate food stains when I see them on cards. But the part that bothers me is the "leaving it on there" part. Most food can be removed quickly. You didn't see any chocolate smudge on the Strasburg scan because it came right off -- shocking!

The funny thing about posting the poll is that it was obvious right away that people were alarmed by the thought of food coming in contact with cards, and yet that very night, at my house, it was all about food coming in contact with cards.

During the evening, I settled down in my favorite chair and turned on the Mariners-Blue Jays game. I grabbed some taco chips and a beer and a couple of baseball card binders and happily munched and slurped away as I watched the game and turned card pages.

I realized that I was probably getting taco chip dust all over the cards even with napkins in the area. I didn't care. This probably happens all the time. There is no greater joy in life than snacking while filing cards while watching a baseball game. You're telling me I can't do them all at once? I'm getting chip dust on my cards!

Of course I'm not going to eat french fries or anything greasy or messy while handling cards. But most spills can be handled with a napkin/paper towel/wet wipe. These cards are not putting my kid through college. They're just happy pieces of cardboard.

Later that night, while the Dodgers game was entering the 15th inning, I grabbed a small bowl of ice cream as fans often do in extra frames. I set the bowl down on my desk, when I realized I had done it again.

Sorry guys, I'm just a slob.

(P.S.: I took the Strasburg card out of the packaging pile. I don't want to scar anyone).