Night Owl Cards

(I went to an antique show today. It used to be a collectibles show with lots of baseball cards but has morphed into showcasing expensive jewelry and paintings. I did get to see a couple of $400 Play Ball cards though. No, I didn't buy them. Time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 260th in a series): I've been having some problems with my left shoulder. It's just some muscle/alignment issue that will probably be alleviated by a trip to the chiropractor (mine does great things, don't get all weird on me). But it's particularly annoying because I am left-handed. I identify myself by just a few things. They are not my job, any political affiliation or ideology, nor even where I live. But one of them is the fact that I am left-handed. I am a left-handed in a right-handed world. (In fact, I have two strikes against me: I am also a night owl in a daylight world). Today is National Left-Handers' Day, a day for myself and fellow lefties to beam with pr...

I'm not fully convinced that the reason that 2017 baseball cards have disappeared from the shelves of big box stores is solely Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger. If you're paying attention, Archives, Bowman, Platinum, Stadium Club and Allen & Ginter aren't the only sets that have vanished very quickly. In my neck of the woods anyway, Gypsy Queen and Heritage made terribly hasty exits, too. So, the question is: Is Topps mandating a shortened shelf live on product to heighten demand? I have my doubts that this is the case. There is only so much Topps can control. And distribution is often out of Topps' grasp. I don't think distributors care anything about demand (or maybe they do, I'm not a distributor). But I just think it's interesting that cards almost across the board -- except for flagship -- have barely lasted even two weeks on store shelves. There aren't any more people in the card aisle with me than there was before (none and none), so ...

You've read me whine many times about how busy I am during the month of March. It is annually my busiest month of work. Or at least it used to be. I'm finding that June is quickly surpassing it. I won't go into details, because nobody cares, but the added responsibilities at this time of year over the last couple of years has led to many extra hours on the job. It actually begins in May and didn't end until, well, yesterday. Needless to say, I slept until 1:15 in the afternoon today, which is shocking even for this night owl. During my wildly busy time, I put on a good front on this blog, attempting to sample what was new in the card world. But I didn't focus on it at all and there is much I don't know about everything that has been released during the spring -- Bowman, Bunt, Archives, Series 2 -- I know the basic details only. Heck I just got my Dodgers want lists up for Bowman and Archives today. I can't tell you what half the cards that I need ...

All of your favorite self-help sources say it's best to live in the present. Living in the past is not recommended. They say it stunts your growth. It skews your view on what's going on around you. It's unproductive. Living in the future is also frowned upon. They say you're wishing your life away. But, frankly, when it comes to cards, living in the present is pretty damn boring. At least it is for me. Your mileage may vary. I would much rather live in the past when it comes to cards. I like the old cards better, I have more connection to them. Cards from the past make a whole lot more sense to me than cards from the present. So, I'm stunting my growth? So what? Everyone knows we're not going to live forever, right? Might as well enjoy what you like. (I'm talking strictly cards here, those of you looking at me for permission to break your diet). But for just this one post, I'm living in the present. I promise not to nod off if you promise no...

I just got back into town after several days away. Usually, the day I get back into town from vacation is the day before I have to go back to work. I don't know why I arrange it that way. I guess I want to squeeze the maximum amount of enjoyment out of my vacation, down to the very final hours, before I return to that familiar drudgery. But this time I'm back with several more days of vacation remaining. I've got to be honest, there is nothing better than that. Just sitting around and savoring that feeling caused me to think of a few "nothing better than" hobby-related activities. I selected just 10, but I'm sure you can find many others. Here they are: 1. There is nothing better than pulling cards out of that first pack of the season . There is a reason why people make a big deal when the release date for Topps flagship comes around. There is a reason why you sometimes see news of the first cards' arrival in mainstream media. No matter how mu...

I have not purchased so much as a pack of Gypsy Queen in four years. While I run around frantically trying to complete at least the team set for any card brand available in retail, I ignore Gypsy Queen. There are team set needs on my want list from GQ from 2014, 2015 and 2016 that I barely know exist. That's how undesirable this product is to me. But I had spotted images of this year's GQ and for once the design didn't look like dog crap that's sat out in the sun too long. Topps had toned down the ornateness that gives me the creepy crawlies and had actually incorporated some color into the set. It still isn't a set for me, but let's just say I noticed. Yesterday I was running errands and arrived at the usual big box stores. I needed to get some printer paper so I could surrender all of my financial records to various institutions of higher learning just for the shot at some measly cents off of their ransom ... er, tuition ... demands. I needed to buy...