Night Owl Cards

I was involved in Cardboard Heaven's Rose Bowl draft a few weeks ago. It my first card draft and a lot of fun. I quickly figured out that the objective, after finding a few cards you want, was to get cards that could be used in future trades. And that's what I did. Some of the cards are already in packages waiting for All Work And No Play to get his dull ass to the post office. Some of the other cards you'll see here are posted in a pathetic effort to jump-start some trades -- not that I have any time for that. The Prince Fielder bat card was obtained to work out a deal with a Brewers fan. Heh. That worked out spectacularly. Fielder will be making his imprint in Detroit for the next nine years. I don't even know if a Tigers fan wants a relic card of a guy in a Brewer uniform. I know, personally, I wouldn't. It's not like I'm clamoring for Angels cards of Juan Rivera. ... OK, bad example. But you know what I mean. So, Prince may or may not stay with...

(This is the anniversary of something I can't mention on this blog. ... Hey, LOOK!!! ... CARDS!!!!! ... I knew that would distract you. Time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 131st in a series): All right, the scan of this card is going to sabotage the point of this post. But it's too late to be tinkering with settings on my scanner. What I want to say is this card here is a perfect card. Well, as perfect as a card of a non-Dodger can be. This is why: There are really only three elements that I consider in what makes up a perfect card. 1. Card design 2. Photograph 3. Something special that enhances the photograph. That's all that needs to be evaluated. Nothing about the player's rookie-ness, no super-bwahaha patch, no autograph, no piece of loin cloth. Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be. Just: Card design Photograph Something special that enhances the photograph. The 2009 Topps Chrome David DeJesus card has it all....

I've been doing this blog for a couple of years, and one thing I have noticed is that some collectors have the organizational aspect of the hobby down cold. I'm not one of those collectors. But I've been envious of the ones who know exactly how many cards that they have. I've never known that. I just have never gotten around to counting them all up. Wrigley Wax , every once in awhile, announces how many Cubs he has in his collection. That always caused me to wonder how many Dodgers I have in my collection. I've been wondering now for more than two years. But not anymore. Today, in the middle of about 400 other things going on because it's still blasted MARCH, I did a quick inventory of all my Dodger cards. Yes, I'm insane. But in that state of insanity, I was lucid enough to keep the count to just my cards. Stickers were out. Glossy 5x7 photos were out. Postcards were out. All I tallied were those items that meet the traditional definition of a card...

I am the lowest of the low in terms of displaying my baseball card gains in a prompt and efficient manner. For example, I am just now getting to the prize that I received for claiming Play at the Plate's May contest. Brian is already into this month's contest and I can barely get around to advertising why you need to enter his monthly giveaways. In short, I am a loser when it comes to winnings. But I will plow through in the hopes that someone will see these fine gifts, sneak through just under the wire in entering Brian's June contest, win the whole damn thing, and then shower me with praise and gratitude and perhaps enough money so I never have to work again. That's all I'm hoping for here. Immeasurable wealth. So with that fantasy in mind, here are some of the splendid cards that I won: First up are the final two Dodger 2010 Heritage needs. Still looking for that New Age Kemp, but otherwise, Heritage is Plan "G" in the card aisle from this poin...

So, I had the day off today and drove all the way to the other side of town to that Rite-Aid to grab my two half-price 2009 Topps Chrome packs that I had left behind for a rainy day. I'm glad that I was over there for a couple of reasons. First, apparently this is the day for all Canadians to migrate to my city. I tried to get gas today on my side of town. I almost got into three fender-benders in the mini-mart parking lot. All 12 of the pumps were busy. Seventy-five percent of the license plates were from Ontario. I was baffled. The check-out lady said it had been like that all day. I suppose it is holiday time. I don't know. Captain Canuck, help me out. Secondly, I found a very cool pack of cards. There was only one pack. Apparently someone sneakily grabbed what was rightfully mine. But that's OK, because they didn't get the good one. Here is what I pulled from the pack: An awesome red refractor. Yes, it's a freakin' Rockie again, just like my boy Jef...