Night Owl Cards

A number of times, bloggers or traders have confused me for a left coaster. They know I'm a Dodger fan and automatically assume I live in Southern California. Of course, I don't. I live far, far away from sun and warmth (but it's 81 degrees as I write this). I'm actually on the east coast and have been all my life. I don't necessarily subscribe to the belief that just because you live close to a team, that it must be your favorite. In some cases that makes sense, in other cases, it's just not thinking for yourself. But it's true, there are A LOT of Dodger fans 3,000 miles away from me. And unless I want to keep suffering, listening to Michael Kay and pretending to like it, I better connect with them. And I have. Thanks to them, I actually have some Dodger items that can only be found or obtained in the greater Los Angeles area. And there is nothing more fantastic than that. Recently, steelehere bestowed upon me a package full of Dodger memorabili...

I imagine that coming up with a name for a card set is a lot like coming up with a name for a new car model. Somewhere, somehow, someone thought that "Impala" was a name that would draw customers and sell cars. In much the same way, card companies probably try to find a name that will trumpet their set, create intrigue, and sell a whole stack of cardboard. But there must be a fine line, too. Just as there was a "Probe," for cars -- which even cloistered nuns must have laughed at -- there is an "X" for card companies. Such an easy target. Pick a lousy name for a set, and card bloggers will beat that sucker to death. But I don't think we've done enough to dissect the names of card sets. First of all, there are so many, creating more opportunity for duds (and winners). When I was a kid, you didn't have a company issuing a dozen different sets all under the same company umbrella. There was simply the name of the company. The name " Topps...