Night Owl Cards

 (Hey, we got some snow! Last night wasn't the first of the season but it was the first of any significance. It's probably around 7-8 inches of fluffiness, which usually gets a shoulder-shrug around here. I guess it's officially winter on Jan. 7. But, let's return to summer stuff. It's time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 331st in a series): I may not be much for making goals at New Year's time, but I like to recognize milestones at this time of year. This 1952 Bowman Billy Loes card marks a pair of notables. It is both the last card I purchased in 2023 and the first card to arrive in my collection in 2024. I could certainly pick worse cards for each honor. This is one of the high numbers in the set. I have no knowledge of how difficult it is to grab '52 Bowman high numbers, there are just two Dodgers in the high numbers (cards 217-and-above) and I've got both now. The giant price guide in my possession indicates that HNs are worth double regular...

  I have probably mentioned a couple times that I feel like my era of collecting is underrepresented on social media. That's likely because folks who collected as kids in the '70s are less likely to be appearing on Twitter/X or Instagram. And I don't do cards on Facebook, which probably has a better chance of showing card stuff from my era. But it's difficult for me to match the glee for late '80s and '90s cards that I see constantly on those other social media sites. Like I've said before, it seems like every collector online began collecting in 1987. There's probably a book in there somewhere because it's definitely a thing. But I don't want to collect stuff from that time. I see pack-openings of 1990 Donruss a lot. I already know what's in those packs, they do, too. I don't have any desire to be trapped in a 1990 time loop. Also, and this is the key thing, I like cards issued earlier a whole lot more. Folks who collected those cards fr...

  A week ago at this time, Twitter was abuzz with the release of Topps Series 2. It was comical really. I know Twitter is very ADD by nature and everyone loves a new release, but Series 2 is not something to get that excited about and it's getting more and more terrible. I've had a conflicted relationship with Series 2 for quite awhile and I've mentioned it on the blog before. It's very anticlimactic if you don't like the set that year (see: 2016, 2017) and this year especially it's almost pointless. A lot of this is probably not Topps' fault. Supply issues, manpower issues, etc., have likely led to what I've seen in Series 2, which is a complete lack of attention to detail. This is not on the level of 2020 Topps Update but seeing Kenley Jansen and A.J. Pollock still in Dodgers uniforms in Series 2 is not making me want to collect it. On top of that, I've seen the photos for a lot of the other Series 2 Dodgers, Trea Turner, Max Muncy, etc., because t...

  I skipped out on a card show today because it was more than an hour away, gas prices are stupid and I couldn't get up in time to make it worthwhile (I work until 1 or 2 a.m. Saturdays while Sunday card shows start at 10 a.m the following day and are packing up by 3). So I'm spending my Sunday just wandering aimlessly when I could have been directing my energy leafing through binders and boxes at a show. There won't be a lot of direction for this post but, don't worry, I'll show you some stuff. First off, some big news on the Trading Card Database collection update front.   I've been adding cards from my collection to TCDB since September and I finally am closing in on listing all of my Dodgers on there. Here is the up-to-the-minute total, and note where it ranks among other TCDB collectors:   As it should be.   That total is sure to go up. It's actually 66 cards more than the amount I showed on Twitter yesterday. I'm sure there are pockets of my collec...

  Twitter, I don't need to tell you, emphasizes the negative. I think it comes with the territory. It's a social media forum that broadcasts people's thoughts and views indiscriminately. My grandmother often said, a long time ago, that "fools names and fools places often appear in public places," and that was uttered way before the internet. But she was so on point. Obviously, I'm one of those fools. I try to be nice and I try to be positive, and I often fail. I also try to be honest and I think I do a better job on that than the others. I see a lot of dishonesty online and on Twitter in particular and it bothers me quite a bit. Twitter has been filled with hobby dishonesty lately. There is the flipping mentality and the folks who try to tell you there is nothing wrong with it. There is the NFT craze with folks trying to convince you that you'll get rich off of digital images. There is so much dishonesty in that, and that's when I fail at being positiv...

My card desk may not show it, but I have a systematic way of showing off cards I receive. It's basically first come, first serve. The only times I make an exception is when I get a little too excited about a card and I just have to babble about it right away. This is one of those times. Somebody is getting moved up in the rotation. Yesterday, I received a two-card envelope from R.C. , who's sent me a few special cards over the years. The first card is pretty fantastic. It's one of the best-looking cards from the 1976 Hostess set, a set that I am collecting. I really like the restraint on the cutting of this card. I do a little celebration when the collector has the forethought to cut around the dotted lines. Nice work, previous collector. One drawback to this card, though. I own it already. I found it at a card show a couple of years ago. It was really a triumphant find, the best surprise of that show . So I have an extra Stars & Stripe Reggie ...