A Sunburn and a New Puppy: a Trade Post

So I was gone for a week or so there.  Did you miss me?  I missed you.

I was aboard this floating monument to excess:

In my entire tenure there (outside of the Mississippi River delta, at least) I was without phone and Internet - it was wonderful. 

We had some fun, got into a little trouble, and tore the roof off the sucker in general.  Two of my friends got married (to each other), and I lost a little money in poker but made it all back at the craps table.



My one good hand all week



We stopped off in Progreso and Cozumel, and we drank lots and lots of rum.

I mean lots.

Nearly there.....

Close enough.


But now I'm back on dry land.  The sunburn I picked up at Playa Mia lingers in that stage of healing between itching and peeling; my keys and cell phone once again weigh down my pockets; and I find myself having to occassionally drive a car, prepare my own food, and face the world with steadfast sobriety.

Before I left I pre-wrote five posts to be published in my absence.  All were on cards from 1991.  I wrote them, set the little date dealy on the right side toolbar, and left it.  When I got home I noticed none of them published.  Clearly I missed something.  Anyway, I started publishing those one at a time since my return to civilized society.  Now I'm fully back and raring to write snarky stuff about Griffeys again.


While I was gone I received two trade packages from a couple of Dodgers fans/all-star baseball card bloggers. 

The first is from Jim at GCRL.  The star of his package was this oversized Rusty Staub postcard:

Rusty went to my high school in New Orleans and once signed an autograph for my Dad when he was 10 (my Dad, that is).  My Staub collection is a bit rusty (humor joke!), but thanks to Jim I have this great new addition as well as these:



The technical name for a group of Kittles is a "bench."  A bench of Kittles.



I feel like Chuck Finley cards are incomplete without his trademark Chuckstache
 even though 98% of Chuck's cards are from the post-Chuckstache era.



I believe this is an Angels team set which means Chuck
is in there somewhere.  I'm no seal-breaker, though....




I love Cal Ripken - he's one of my favorite players to collect, and everybody loves the guy.  I find that sending someone Cal Ripken cards is a lot like giving someone a bag of Skittles.  Regardless of whether the recipient actively likes Skittles or not, you know they're going to eat those things at some point.  Skittles are good.



Maddux is more like Mike & Ikes.



I don't know what it is, but I really like mascot cards now.  I've been setting them aside ever since I pulled my first one from a pack of 2012 Topps.  They're all so....furry.




Just a sweet mullet.





I also collect Griffeys.  Were you aware?

Many thanks, Jim.  Everybody should go send him their double-play cards and whatever Dodgers he needs.....


I also got a trade package from Mr. Night Owl, standard-setter for card blogs everywhere.  I scoop up a fistful of '75 Topps minis for Greg at my local monthly card show whenever I can make it.  There's a kindly old gentleman there who has boxes and binders of the things and lets them go for pretty cheap (as far as I know), and you all know how much fun it is to help someone with their want list.

Anyway, here's a fun mix of cards from Night Owl:

I've been wanting one of these since I learned of their existence.  Bonkers card.

Cow, MooTown Snackers.  Coincidence?  That Flair card is sweet.

Chuck has a real "Do you think I'm sexy?" thing going on in that Triple Play card.



Classic Kittle.  This may be my Halloween costume this year.





A beautifully miscut '75 mini, and one of the silliest
names in baseball.  He coached Griffey from the bench
in Cincinnati for a short time.  Didn't do great.



In honor of Mr. Owl: Griffeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeys!!!!

That mid-90's Bowman Chrome is a beaut, but the real star of the show is this guy:

This was one of the few base cards I don't have.  I learned this because I started writing the post for that Topps set before scanning.  Then while scanning I realized I had the Opening Day issue but not the flagship base card.  Derp.  Felt pretty dumb.

Plus that picture is sa-weeeeet........

Thanks, Greg!  Go update your '75 minis want list ASAP.  I think the next card show is right around the corner, and I'm just going to end up printing that thing up before I go. 

Everybody, go send Night Owl some Dodgers.  I would tell you to read his blog, but I bet dollars to donuts most of you already do.  Keep doing that.

Oh, and we totally did get a new puppy.  More on that later.....

$1600 to Spend on the 'Bay - What Would You Buy?

There's a fun post/contest over at Drop the Gloves! that asks what you would spend a hypothetical $1600 buying on eBay.  Believe it or not, it's not just Griffeys for me.  Here's my list:

#1: 1993 Finest Griffey Refractor – 524.95

#2: 1989 Topps Traded Tiffany Set - $150.00

#3: Griffey Sr/Jr Dual Autos - $125.00

#4: Four boxes of 1989 Upper Deck (strictly for the thrill of pulling a Griffey from a pack) - $200.00

#5: T.J. Oshie RC Auto/Patch (what can I say? - I'm a Blues fan) - $55.00

#6: 1954 Topps Ted Williams Graded - $247.50

#7: Will Clark Triple Threads Auto Relic  - $237.49

#8: 1984 Ron Kittle Donruss RC PSA 10 - $50.00

#9: Chuck Finley 283 card lot – 11.00 shipped

Let's see yours!

A Trio of Tremendous Trade Triumphs

I got a package from Kerry aka madding over at Cards on Cards.  He send me Griffeys pretty regularly, and they tend to be unique and easy to find a place for in the collection.  I recommend you trade with him....

Look at all the people on that sheet of stickers - it's like a who's who of card collecting in 1998!  Here's the reverse:

A lot of great players on this one sheet that I collect to this day.  Awesome.

There are a lot of dual cards out there that feature Griffey and a young player that doesn't end up going anywhere or a single-season superstar that doesn't stand the test of time.  Here is the exception: Griffey and Larkin.  There's a lot of skill on this little card. 

The Reds had a great lineup in the mid-00's.  I'm really surprised when I read about how unsuccessful they were in that time.  Reds fans, I'd like your input on this.

Kittle!

Geaux Hornets!  Er, I means geaux Pelicans?  Hm.  That sounds weird.  Anyway, I don't know who this guy is.

I remember this card from my collecting days.  I was really psyched to find it in that trade package as I have no idea where mine went.  A great piece of cardboard history.

Thanks again, Madding!

There is a beast living in my soul that thirsts for all the Griffeys of the Earth, and it is sated not just by new Griffeys but also by duplicates.  Bert at Swing and a Pop Up sent me a package loaded with delicious duplicates of Griffey goodness.  Bert, your offering has pleased the beast.

That's not your computer trying to catch up with your scrolling.  Those are lots and lots of duplicates!!!

There's so many of everything, plus a Donruss rookie!  This package was truly awesome.

He also included these which were too numerous to scan effectively:

Griffey Sr, Griffey Jr, and......Jim Abbott?  I'll never understand the player selection here, but dammit if they're not fun cards.  I may have to look more closely as building the whole set.  They will definitely be getting their own post.

I see Bert just updated his want lists, so go check 'em out.  Thanks, Bert!

Last but certainly not least, Spankee from My Cardboard Mistress sent me a package he assured me I would enjoy.  It was gigantic because the cards inside were stored inside this:

I'm a sucker for small boxes.  I don't know why, I just like them.  This one shows a Griffey signature which is amazingly cool.  The cards inside were just as impressive:

That's five serial-numbered Griffeys.  And that's not even all of them:

That big postcard-sized mamma-jamma is also serial numbered!  Plus that Fleer Triple Crown card is news to me, and who doesn't love collector coins?  He sent two.

Thanks, Adam!  You were right - this was a really fun one to go through.

I've just sent out a massive wave of trade packages.  My memory is not great (thanks, college), so I'm hoping I'm square with everybody.  I try to keep up with everybody using an Excel document, but it's far from perfect.

And if you sent me something and have gotten nothing in return, don't be afraid shoot me an e-mail.  I embrace every opportunity to mail out free cardboard.

COMC and My LCS Win the Wallet Wars Over the Evil Repack Boxes

Last month was the first card show I skipped since I started paying attention to card shows again.  I thought my money better spent on COMC.  Here are the cards I picked up, all for around 30 bucks:





My first Ron Kittle autograph!  This was not the most expensive card I purchased, but it's very cool and has a neat signature.  Check out the stylized R and the oval that dots the i and crosses the t's all at once.

I consider this one of the most interesting cards ever made.  Embarassingly enough, I still wonder how they did it....  Was he holding a blue or green card and they added it later, or is it some early version of Photoshop?  Madding, I'm sure you know, but don't ruin it for me!  I'm enjoying my ignorance.

I've wanted an un-mustachioed Rollie for a long time, and that Hank Aaron is just a beautifully put-together card (1994 Topps had some gems).  Then you've got Steve Lake with his pet cockatoo, Ruffles.  Cockatoos tend to live a long time, up to 70 years, so I wonder if that guy is still alive today.  Plus I don't always collect basketball cards, but when I do, they have rainbows over the Golden Gate Bridge.  Yowza.

That Desert Shield Kittle card is the most expensive card I bought in this whole post.  I am still on the hunt for the Griffeys, but at least I've got that Kittle on lockdown.  The Bowman Kittle card is a Tiffany, and that Staley Bowman card is one of the more disturbing pieces of vintage I've ever seen.

AHHHHHHHH!!!

The rest is a bunch of silly names, pictures, etc.  You know the type.

Hee hee.

I also had to stop into my LCS for 5000-count box I'm using for a secret baseball card-related project that has taken up nearly all my blogging time.  While I was there I snagged a few neat cards just for me.

That Chipper rookie is one of the few I don't already have.  The big Unit '89 UD offcially completes that set for me - very exciting.  The '90 Leaf Frank Thomas RC is one of the great ones of my time, so for a buck I just couldn't pass it up.  The Yaz just kind of spoke to me, as did ol' Gern.  I've been trying to pick up that Yogi on ebay and COMC for cheap, but none doing.  It's one of the most iconic manager cards ever made.  And finally, yes, that is an Aaron Brooks autographed card.  He's kind of a joke in NOLA, so I guess I kind of bought it as a goof.

I feel better when my money goes to cards I already know I love and want to keep as opposed to packs and packs of cards that, while some are cool, just cost too much to gamble on.  That's why I'll keep going back to COMC.  You other bloggers make sure to keep posting new cards for me to drool over, especially if they have names like Stubby Clapp and Urban Shocker.

Did you notice that none of the above cards are Griffeys?  What is happening to me?  Am I becoming a collector again?