Night Owl Cards

  I signed up for Nachos Grande's "Not-So-Secret-Santa" event with only a small expectation of what I might get (and even less awareness of what I was supposed to be giving back). A large box arrived quickly and inside of it -- I should have seen this coming -- was practically the whole 2022 Allen & Ginter set. BAM.   I had been following along daily as Chris opened a case of his favorite product and displayed the contents of each box. At the time I didn't really consider what he would do with all of his extras, but I should have linked the Santa contest and his case break together. Of course! A&G is multiplying in his house! Chris sent me every 2022 A&G card except for the short-prints and two base cards, Bryson Stott and Blake Snell. Here are all but one of the Dodgers in the set. I suppose if I'm now trying to complete 2022 A&G, I need another copy of each of these. So much like a teacher, giving me surprise assignments!   Here are just about a...

  Just because I finally completed the 2008 Heritage set doesn't mean I'm done with cards Topps created in 2008 to look like the ones it issued in 1959. No, I'm not going back on my promise to ship off all the black back variations to Derek. The envelope is already packaged, and I can't stand reopening packages. I'm also not referring to any of the inserts in that set, I simply don't care about them, especially those Dick Perez things. I am talking about the High Numbers series from that year. In the frenzy that was me buying every card that I saw on store shelves in 2008, I accumulated quite a few cards from the Heritage High Number set that year. I don't know how I did that. If you remember, Topps didn't making buying the cards all that appealing, at least on the retail level. Remember this wrapper? This is how I bought Heritage High Number packs from Target that year. It was a package deal: if you wanted those High Numbers, you had to buy a couple of ...

  I mailed some cards today!!!! Yay me! I knew the way to the post office and everything! I got in line like a big boy and Mr. Post Office Guy recognized me! Little ol' me! Who hadn't been there in at least a month! Heh. So, some card packages are finally out. I didn't get to all of the ones on my desk because let's not get crazy here. The bank account needs to start getting used to double digits. But I feel a little re-energized now that I'm back to transacting like a properly functioning card collector. I feel so good about it that I'm going to show some cards from someone who is still on the IOU list, guilt-free! These cards are from Chris from Maddux, Glavine and Smoltz. I found out he had some 1972 Topps just sitting around and I couldn't stop bothering him after that. But before you see those, let's see some lesser cards. Chris sent several 2008 Heritage High Numbers cards and I totally forgot I was collecting this. B...

I've got a packed weekend and I don't know how much I'm going to be able to blog. So I better make this a good one if it's going to sit at the top of the blog for longer than usual. And by "good one" I mean lots of great cards. So that means Dave K. jumps the card package rotation right to the front of the line. Don't get mad at him. Wait until you see the cards he sent. He deserves to go to the front. Send some cards like this and you'll go to the front of the line, too. Dave sent a lot of stuff directly off the top of my priority list. You already saw the 1965 Topps Johnny Podres that completed the team set for me. The rest of the package was a lot set completion stuff, too. But first, let's start with some other interests: First, here's the first card in last year's Bowman Chrome set. That's right, Bowman made Yasiel Puig card No. 1. If you look closely, you can see Mexican traffickers in the background waiting to talk t...

I'm still working on the 2008 Topps Heritage set. How many times have I said that in the last five years? A dozen? Two dozen? I'm sure it's more than that. There is one thing keeping me from completing this stupid thing (yes, if I'm still attempting to finish a modern set after five years, its official name is "THIS STUPID THING."). Of course, it's the short-prints. I'm either 10 cards or 11 cards away from completing the set -- my want list says 10 but I just counted the binder and it says 11 -- and I have almost no incentive to find the rest of the cards because I won't spend the going rate on a 2008 Heritage SP. If I'm going to blow more than a buck on a card, it's either got to be a Dodger or something vintage. The remaining 2008 Heritage cards I need ain't either. So, there they sit. To be completed ... someday. Recently, Dave K. sent some needed '08 Heritages for the cause and it was greatly appreciated because I th...

I'm am still in a "get rid of surplus cards" frame of mind. So far, I've gone the contest route and the trade-300-cards-for-2-cards route. This weekend, there was the trusty garage sale. I've had varied success selling cards at garage sales, but mostly it's been productive. Friday was very productive as a big, BIG box of dupes disappeared for the low, low price of 10 bucks. OK, I can hear you: "What was in that box?" you're saying in a panic. "There might have been something in there that I NEED!" Well, you should have spoken up sooner. Those things have been accumulating mold in my closet for six years now. I got rid of all I could in trades, but they were no longer useful. Before I sold them, I removed anything I could conceivable want or use. I still have some beat up late '70s cards. I still have some '09 O-Pee-Chee dupes. I still have some Fan Favorites and a smattering of early '80s Topps and some A&...