Night Owl Cards

I have a list of bloggers that deserve card packages from me sitting on my card desk. It is 15 names long. It is 15 names long because I can't fit 20 on there. This list also doesn't include any "I trade with this person all the time so I guess it's time to send him some cards" packages. I can't wait for the day when I get to that point. Nope, all of the folks on the list have sent me something days, weeks, months ago and in my current "I can get 4 packages out a week" frame of mind, I am way behind. Meanwhile, March is still tossing lit firecrackers at me as I juggle card packages while peddling a unicycle. Evil, evil month. I have no way of stopping March. And I have no way of stopping cards from coming to my house (we all have our problems, don't we?) But I do have a way of preventing the "INCOMING" stack from spilling over and forming a giant pile of cardboard in the living room, the combustible materials interminglin...

For awhile there, I thought it actually would be 59 years and counting before I landed this card. But last week my counting came to a merciful end after a 21-year wait. It's strange how long certain cards elude me. Specifically, I have tried to figure out why this particular card was so evasive. Here is my basic thought process concerning this card: Me: Well, it IS 1989 Donruss . You didn't buy many of those cards. Me, quickly realizing I'm an idiot: But '89 Donruss is EVERYWHERE. You have 7 versions of most of the other Dodgers in the set. Me: It's a quirky and popular card. Orel Hershiser was huge in 1989 and you can't get more charming than showing the top pitcher in the majors juggling. People probably hung onto this card longer than other cards. MQRIAI: But '89 Donruss is EVERYWHERE. You have 7 versions of most of the other Dodgers in the set. Me: People probably hoarded their Hershiser cards thinking they were going to be valuable. And ther...

For the second time in a month, I received an email from out of nowhere from a generous collector named Joe. Now this Joe was not this Joe . It was a different Joe. But the package I received from this Joe was no less generous than the one I received from that Joe. And now I'm searching for cards to send to both Joes . I've got to tell you, Joes , you're making things a tad challenging in the card department. But you've certainly gotten my attention. The cards I received from this Joe were so successful in their effectiveness that I have to break them up into two posts. This will be part 1. The second part, hopefully, will be coming up very soon. But with Gint -a-Cuffs and some vacation plans all going on at the same time, that's a bit shaky. But I'll get to it. Don't you worry 'bout a thing. Part 1 will address the Dodger cards. You already saw one of them , although Jackie wasn't dressed in Dodger blue on that card. Here are most of the others: F...

I haven't lost my job. Not yet. It's just that I heard news today that no employee wants to hear from their company. It makes workers skittish. To make matters worse, I heard it on my day off. That completely killed the enjoyment of a day I had waited for all week. Everyone knows that newspapers are going through some tough times. Some of them are disappearing. I'm not sure where all this will lead. A lot of people think this is merely the progression of people receiving their news from other outlets, in other forms. I believe it's more than that. And, losing the printed word in its newsprint form -- if it ever comes to that -- will have ramifications for generations to come. And a lot of them won't be good. But that's a post for another time. I was in the mood for a pick-me-up today for another reason. My daughter was sick and missed four days of school this week. Our week had been turned upside down caring for her. Today, we were finally getting b...

I have to say Friday was the highlight of the week for me. I received two autographed cards in the mail from my favorite player as a child, and I finally tracked down some 2009 Topps. A week after I first saw these things on other blogs, I knew exactly what to look for when I stepped into Target this evening. From 60 feet away I could spot that baby blue background behind you-know-who's head (apparently the qualification for being featured on a pack of 2009 cards this year was not getting into the playoffs). I reached into the double-wide feeders and came up with air. But fortunately, there were '09 packs scattered all around the '08 boxes still there. All of them were probably manhandled, but I didn't mind. I grabbed six and brought them home to daddy. And after opening them, I have to say what I suspected: Topps is a clear winner over Upper Deck this year. I have a natural preference for Topps, so I am a little bit biased, but when I compare everything as obje...