Night Owl Cards

   I've made many references about my sister-in-law's ability to select exactly the right box or packs of cards when she's picking out a gift.   It's happened over and over. The cards I get from her, I never pull myself.   But this time it was even more impressive. She didn't even have to pick out the box herself.   She sent a Target gift card for Father's Day. It took me awhile to decide what kind of cards I wanted. I ended up settling on a Topps Series 2 box, it was the only thing in my wheelhouse and I almost always purchase some Series 2, particularly if it's a set I like, and that's the case for 2026.   The box arrived a few days ago and right from the first pack I knew it contained my sister-in-law's magic touch. Yet she didn't touch the box!   I don't think most people are interested in seeing every card -- it's Series 2 -- so I'll offer a highlight from each pack. That'll be enough to show that this wasn't the ordinary...

  I've cleared my schedule and I've got snacks but I'm not expecting much from tonight's All-Star Game.   It's been exactly 50 years for me of watching the All-Star Game. For decades, my expectations were high. It was a highlight of the summer for me. And even when I got older and not as attached to the players, and MLB started tinkering with the format, I'd still remain enthusiastic and look on the bright side because of tradition and all of the games I enjoyed in the past. And it was still stars and baseball.   But I'm just not feeling it anymore. Last year's game was it for me. I tried to stay quiet but people close to me know I hated the in-game interviews -- especially multiple interviews going on at the same time -- and I really disliked the HR derby to decide the winner.   I know I'm shouting into the void. It's clear that many enjoy the changes. But I look at it as the usual failing of successful businesses, from Topps to MLB. Bigger and ...

  I don't expect this post to be anything more than venting. The collectors who need to see this aren't reading blogs. But sometimes I encounter something and I've got to write about it and that's why I'm laying down a few guidelines for the ridiculous idea of "card show etiquette."   I went to the monthly card show Saturday and was slightly surprised by how many people were attending. It's the summer time and usually dealers (if not the whole show) take the season off because it's not a very profitable time. But it was busy.   The show is in a medium-sized conference room in a small business complex. If you set up seven rows of tables inside that room, with another row of tables along the back wall and a couple tables along the front wall, there's not a lot of room to roam. That's the show promoter's fault more than the attendees, sure, but maybe take that into account before acting like you're the only one shopping.   I went to th...

(Welcome to what's annually my favorite week of the year, a week where all the things I like converge within seven glorious days. Maybe we'll get into more of why that is -- and why it's not as great as it once was -- as the week goes on. But for now it's Vacation Time! Oh, and Cardboard Appreciation time, too. This is the 372nd in a series):   One of the benefits of playing the Topps card game over on Bluesky that I mentioned earlier is that I come across cards I never noticed all the time.   Most of these cards are either from the 1960s, 1990s or some part of the early 2000s, i.e., times when I wasn't collecting. In 1994, in particular, I was pulling away from the hobby and bought a handful of Topps packs before deciding I wasn't into it anymore.   I never saw this Kevin Wickander card. But when I saw it in an online image a few weeks ago, I immediately purchased a real one for my collection.   What is it that makes cards like this so appealing?   Well, for st...

  The theme to this week apparently is completing sets because here comes another one.   Yesterday I wrapped up 1985 Donruss. I wrote a couple of weeks ago that all I needed to acquire was the Kirby Puckett and Roger Clemens rookie cards. The Puckett showed up like the next day and the Clemens arrived yesterday as the final card.   A bit off-center but I didn't pay double figures for it and it's still a sharp card. 1985 Donruss really looks good in some situations with the black borders and mid-1980s Donruss' fondness for shadows.   I would have rather had someone else to chase down as the final card than Clemens but at least it didn't take me months of searching for someone I find unpleasant. It occurred to me as I was tracking Clemens, Puckett and Gooden at the end that some of the biggest stars of the mid-to-late '80s were also some of the most flawed. That doesn't make me feel good as this is my generation. If I was good enough to play major league baseball,...

  On one hand I think it's a decent accomplishment to finish the 1980s Topps Traded sets. That's nine years of sets. I feel pretty good about that.   On the other hand, the only one of those sets I truly "collected" was the 1984 set and some of the 1986 set. Traded sets from that time arrived more conveniently -- send a check in the mail and all 132 cards showed up at your door in a tidy box. It wasn't exactly difficult to assemble.   My only regret in finishing this entire run of sets is I don't have all the colorful boxes from each year. What you see in the picture is all I own. I'm most distressed that I no longer have the blue 1982 Traded box as that's the first one I ordered and the set I have the most nostalgia for -- those red backs! I suppose I could buy the empty boxes.   But to celebrate completion I've pulled 20 of my favorite cards from these sets to count down. Many of these are familiar cards and you'll expect certain ones to show...