Night Owl Cards

I had a tiny little bit of Christmas money leftover after my junk wax team set binge. It was just enough to grab a couple more cards, so I looked up which team set featured only a couple of wants and settled on a favorite: 1993 Select. I needed just two Dodgers to complete Select, the upscale brother of Score, and now they are mine. Yup, I needed a couple of Erics. I'm very pleased to have another team set from the early '90s completed, but particularly one like '93 Select. I've been a fan of this set from way back on this blog and in the unlikely event that I decide to start completing sets from the 1990s, this will be in the top 5, easily. I've always liked the look. Green sets normally don't do anything for me, but I enjoy the design and it's one of those sets with good photos that are not sacrificed for design. And just as important: it does not sacrifice design for the photos. But without further babbling about my likes and dislikes, her...

First, if you haven't voted for which set blog you'd like me to start, head to this post and then vote in the poll on the sidebar. OK, onward: I received this card from Those Back Pages  a week or so ago. It was a Nebulous 9 need, which means I am super-happy to check it off the list. Donruss Triple Play should never, ever, ever be needed . Juan Samuel's awesome action was shipped to me as basically a one-card agreement. "I've got a card from your list for you," is what TBP said. So I expected to pull a single card out of the envelope. But this card came out, too: Excellent. A night card. And a stadium shot. It was a finalist in the Awesome Night Card tournament a year or so ago. I have a few copies of this card. It'd be cool if I could get nine of them and then put them in a page to kick off my night card binder. But then people might think I'm a Cubs fan, and I'd never want that to happen. But the point is, I wonder if there's ...

I'm sure a few of you retail hounds have noticed that blasters of 2008 Upper Deck Timeline have reappeared in Walmart. It's been three years since UD put out this set and I'm still tempted to buy packs or blasters every time I see it. I'm wondering if in three years time when I see marked down blasters of 2011 product, if I'll be even half as intrigued. I really like the Timeline set. I've said that many times. I'm also half-heartedly collecting the whole thing, which is the proper way to collect this set. If you try to collect it wholeheartedly, you'll blow through the ceiling fuming over how you've pulled another Chase Utley base card for the 52nd time. And then you'll have to call the fire department and be all embarrassed. I bought one discounted blaster a few weeks ago, and the only thing keeping me from buying another one (besides the "no money" excuse) is the fact that 2011 Heritage is still amusing me. Fortunately, ot...

There are group breaks popping up all over lately. It is absolutely wretched timing. My wallet literally screams every time I remove money from it at this time of year. The ATM scolds me. Paypal laughs at me. I've had a bank teller or two slap me. They all say the same thing: "It's November, idiot, who has money for cards?" Well, obviously someone does or else there wouldn't be any group breaks. But it's not me. So I've ignored the majority of breaks going around. I do so with great reluctance. But if people want Santa to stop at the house instead of cursing the fat old fraud for not coming through again this year, I have no choice. Fortunately, there are a few breaks that have been cheap enough or enticing enough that I am able to tell my wallet to shut the hell up. I'm already in for the Dodgers in a big ol' 2011 Topps break . And Cardboard Collections is holding another cheap break and I've got the Dodgers again. So that means I ...

Collecting cards, as everyone knows, has a lot to do with reconnecting with your childhood. But I never returned to collecting for the purpose of reliving those childhood experiences. I returned because I became interested in cards again. But a byproduct of returning to the hobby and collecting vintage cards was that feeling -- that nostalgia rush -- that I would get when I saw a card for the first time since I was an 11-year-old. Often times I wouldn't even remember that the card existed until it was thrust into my face. Then the "oh wow" nostalgia rush would hit me. I hope everyone knows what I'm talking about. The feeling is almost addicting. It's not better than a couple of other sensations out there -- I think you know what I mean -- but it's got to rank in the top 10. It's the same feeling I got when I thought about Freakies cereal or space food sticks or the TV show "Angie" for the first time in decades (whatever happened to Donna Pe...