No imagination??? Or too much?

While rummaging through a few boxes of football to find some Jets to send out as part of a trade... I found a Game Used card of Peyton Manning. (Yeah, I know. Peyton/Jets??? I am terribly unorganized. But this will change! Soon. Probably. Well, maybe...)
Back on topic. What's so unusual about a Game Used Peyton Manning card? Follow me this. Take a look at it. Read it. I know the foil didn't scan well, but give it a shot.
Yep. That's right. A Game Used Goal Post Cover card of Peyton Manning. Have we already ran out of jerseys, pants, socks and jocks that we need to start using stuff like this???????
Seriously? Take a lesson Topps and Upper Deck... I stopped collecting for 13 years because of the crap that was going on. Don't make me do it again.

Now the real question..... How the hell did I get this card in the first place?

Damn I love stickers....

So if you've been paying attention, I've mentioned that I love stickers. My daughters love stickers. My wife loves 'em too. Especially shiny ones. But for me, I love ones of semi obscure sports stars from my youth. Which brings me to my next post. On the bay, I got an entire box of 1989/90 O Pee Chee Hockey stickers dirt cheap. 48 packs of sticky goodness. But wait... upon opening the box, I find 49 packs.
This is the story of that 49th bonus pack.

If you're familiar with OPC stickers, or the Panini versions, you know that you could pick up an album, and then buy packs of stickers, each of which would have their own special place in that album. Well, I didn't get an album. And I haven't been able to find one yet. But I can't wait anymore.... The trick is though that if you're not familiar with identifying the players by facial recognition, there was no way to tell you who the heck it was.
There begins the game. See if you can remember who these guys are....

For the Quebec Nordiques, #22

Philadelphia Flyers #27 ( a hint, he was a goalie;>)
Chicago Blackhawks #40
Los Angeles Kings #28

Winnipeg Jets #8?
Buffalo Sabres #8

Chicago Blachawks #3 (don't call him Charles)
Los Angeles Kings #26

Okay, this is an easy one. The best goaltender tandem in the league. These two were awesome. I can't believe Montreal stole Hayward from Winnipeg for a bag of pucks....
There you have it. Pack 1 of 49. I'm itching to put these in an album. I better find one quick or my wife is gonna find these stuck to the lamp or something.... (I'll blame the kids...)

A thanksgiving day present..

One of, if not the most amazing thing about the blogging world, are the people you "meet". I get emails all the time from fellow bloggers, and the people who read them. I love hearing the stories from everyone on who they collect and why. One of the perks of these new relationships is that a lot of people want to trade or share cards with you. Awesome.
The latest package arrived yesterday. A 300 count box filled with Braves wonderfulness.

We start with Murph.
Smoltzie
Glavine
Maddux, of course
Chipper...
...and Andruw
Some old friends...

...and new ones...
Vintage
and retro...
plus about 250 more cards that I am waaay too lazy to scan.
Who was the gift giver? none other than Jim over at GarveyCeyRussellLopes. Check out his blog if you haven't already. Jim is a very generous trader. Now all I have to do is save up some stuff to send to him. I'm working on it Jim!
Which brings me to a question. How do you keep track of all of your ongoing trades etc... I'm getting behind, and it's only getting worse. Tell me I'm not the only one living in the land of confusion...

Swap with Night Owl Cards

So awhile back I'm reading the blogs late at night like I often do... and what better blog to read at a time like that than Night Owl Cards? If you haven't checked it out yet, head on over. It's a good one.
Anyways... Greg was having a giveaway. 1993 Upper Deck. If it's free, it's me. I'm all in.
For the complete story, and box break, click here. Here's a mass scan of what was sent...
Yeah baby. That is Chipper Jonesyou see front and center. I sent off a pile of '91 Fleer Dodgers that he needed for his set. A big ole stack of yellow. What I didn't know, was that Greg snuck in a few random Braves to make it interesting.
I needed the '75 Foster and the '78 Paciorek! Sweeet! Thanks bud. I've started another pile to send to you. It'll take awhile, but it'll get there...
Up next on tomorrow's post.... Mystery Mailday! What's the mystery? Find out tomorrow.

Stickers of the day...

Have I mentioned I love stickers? I do. I'd like to say I get it from my daughters who worship everything that is the sticker. But I loved stickers before they came along. Anyways... today's sticker is from 1989. Or should I say stickers...
Silver foil stickers! Logos! and an aerial shot of Fulton County Stadium! (they don't scan well, but you get the idea, don't you?)
So many players to choose in that set, like a dimunitive Ronny Gant. And the always popular Jeff Blauser.
But you want the money shot, right? Here they are...
Dale Murphy and Tom Glavine. Awesome.

There should be more sets like these... regional ones... stuff out of a twinkies box.. 12 packs of Coke, that kind of thing.
I wish merchandising rights weren't so expensive nowadays...
BRING BACK THE ODDBALLS!

Mail day! In reverse....

So I spent the evening getting 7 packages ready to be delivered. I caught the dogsled just in time.
So if you're anxiously waiting for a package from me, it's on it's way. Thanks to everyone I've either traded with, or are in the midst of trading. You guys are awesome.

Card Show Loot continued...

At the card show last week, I found a couple of packs of 1990 Donruss Cello packs on the dollar table. Sweet! I love these! This was the first set of baseball I ever collected. And they were cello packs too. ( in Northern British Columbia, it was hockey, hockey, and more hockey. When these came out, I didn't know any better. They rocked!)
Anyways, I still need 24 cards for my set. There are 37 cards in a cello pack, let's see how I do.
Pete Smith was picking out through the top of the cello wrapper. A good omen.
Willie Wilson - Royals (does he bunt on every card he has? or is that just me?)
John Cangelosi - Pirates
Kevin McReynolds - Mets
Pascual Perez - Expos
Howard Johnson - MVP insert set
Charlie Hough - Rangers
Kevin Bass - Astros
Rolando Roomes - Reds (Holy alliteration, Batman!)
Checklist
Mitch Webster - Cubs
Puzzle Pieces 10,11,12 Carl Yastrzemski
Puzzle Pieces 19,20,21

Will Clark - Grand Slammers cello exclusive insert set
Checklist
Ellis Burks - Diamond Kings
Darrin Jackson - Padres

Bo Jackson - MVP insert set
Dennis Rasmussen - Padres
Greg Cadaret - Yankees
Eric Plunk - Yankees - I need him!!!!
Craig Lefferts - Giants
Ozzie Smith - NL All Star
John Kruk - Phillies - I need him too!!!
Tracy Jones - Tigers
Brian Dubois - Tigers Rated Rookie
Joe Orsulak - Orioles
Scott Sanderson - Cubs
Allan Anderson - Twins
Norm Charlton - Reds
Mark Lemke - Braves - Yeah!!! LEMMER!!!!!!!!
Tim Crews - Dodgers
Jay Howell - Dodgers
Bill Spiers - Brewers
Joe Magrane - Cardinals - Another one!!! That makes three!
Kirby Puckett - MVP insert set
Frank Viola - Mets
Mike LaCoss - Giants
Junior Felix - Blue Jays
Greg Brock - Brewers
Not bad I guess. I got three cards I needed, and two Braves. And a lot of memories brought back.

2007 Topps Baseball Series One Blaster Break

Like I mentioned on A Pack A Day, where I ripped the first pack of this blaster, I bought this, and two other blasters at a card show a week ago. The one good thing I can mention about card shows here in Calgary, is that the focus is so intense on hockey, you can pick up a bargain if your timing is right.
That's right. $5. I bought three blasters because they only had three blasters. Math is simple kids.
If you need a recap of Pack One, click here.

Now that you're back....
Pack Two-
Elizardo Ramirez - Reds
Cincinnati Reds team card
Tony LaRussa - Cardinals
Todd Helton - Rockies
Mickey Mantle Home Run #202 1:9 packs
Frank Catalanotto - Rangers
Eric Chavez Gold Glove - A's
Pack Three-
Hanley Ramirez NL ROY - Marlins
Bronson Arroyo - Reds
Eliezer Alfonzo - Giants
Nick Markakis - Orioles
Ian Snell - Pirates
Hideki Matsui - Yankees

Pack Four-
B.J. Ryan - Blue Jays
Brian Schneider - Nationals
Jake Peavy - Padres
Josh Gibson Home Run #260 1:9 packs
Eduardo Perez - Mariners
Chone Figgins - Angels
Pack Five-
Classic Combo Delgado/Wright - Mets BOO!
B.J. Upton - Rays
Scott Podsednik - White Sox
Jay Gibbons - Orioles
Generation Now Andre Ethier 1:4 packs
Pack Six-
Andre Ethier - Dodgers
Vladimir Guerrero - Angels
Michael Barret - Cubs
Joel Zumaya - Tigers
Own the Game Brandon Webb 1:6 packs
Clay Hensley - Padres
Pack Seven-
Austin Kearns - Nationals
Chris Duffy - Pirates
Brad Ausmus - Astros
Unlock the Mick 2KSports Video Game Cheats 1:18 packs
Checklist
Chris Duncan - Cardinals
Chuck James - Braves! Finally!!!

Pack Eight-
Adam Lind - Blue Jays Rookie
Preston Wilson - Cardinals
Andrew Miller - Marlins Rookie
Distinguished Service - Monte Irvin US Army 1:12 packs
Emil Brown - Royals
Eric Byrnes - Diamondbacks
Pack Nine-
Dontrelle Willis - Marlins
Curt Schilling - Bloody Sox
Road to 500 ARod #4 1:36 packs
Generation Now Chase Utley 1:4 packs
Adam Loewen - Orioles
Rocco Baldelli - Rays

Pack Ten -
Todd Greene - Giants
Albert Pujols - Cardinals
Mark Ellis - A's
Josh Bard- Padres
Brad Penny - Dodgers
Classic Combos Soriano/Beltran - NL All Stars
Pack Eleven- THE BONUS PACK!!
Adam LaRoche - Braves - HELL YEAH!!! WOOOHOOOO!
Tony Gwynn Jr. - Brewers
Albert Pujols Gold Glove - Cardinals
John Lackey - Angels
Justin Verlander - AL ROY - Tigers
Checklist
Brandon Inge - Tigers


A quick breakdown:
ARod 1:36 - 1
Mickey Mantle 1:9 - 1
Josh Gibson 1:9 - 1
Generation Now 1:4 - 2
Own The Game 1:6 - 2
Distinguished Service 1:12 - 1
Unlock the Mick 2K7 Sports Video Game Cheats 1:18 - 1
Base cards - 57
Duplicates - 0
Checklists - 1,2,3
Three damaged cards in the box.... all three checklists dinged on the bottom left corner, all three in the middle of their respective packs. Hmmmmm......
I'll bust the other blaster of this sometime next week....

Frustration

Check out my wonderful experience with 2008/09 Upper Deck McDonalds Hockey cards over on A Pack A Day.

Good luck set builders.

Too pooped to post...

I just got home from work. A blessed 5 hours of OT... so I am too lazy to post anything.
So just feast your eyes on this.
Johnny Sain. Awesome.

First we'll use Spahn, then we'll use Sain,
Then an off day, followed by rain.
Back will come Spahn, followed by Sain,
And followed, we hope, by two days of rain.

I am a collector.

I love collecting cards. Love it. Baseball, football, hockey, Nascar, Battlestar Galactica, Marvel Masterpieces, you name it, I have it. Except basketball. But basketball doesn't count. (We'll save that argument for another post, shall we?)

It started out with a single card in the pocket of a five year old boy. Evolved into an obsession of set building. I collected, and traded for, every hockey set from 1978/79 to 1991/92. Every single one. I bought packs, and traded my duplicates with friends to achieve these goals. But it stopped.
By '91, I was so sick of the card industry... we all know what happened. Being secluded in Northern British Columbia didn't shade me from it. I just didn't know others were going through it too. So I stopped collecting. Period.

Things changed. I moved to another province. Got married. I have kids. A career. A mortgage. But I came back. It was innocent at first. No. That's wrong. It was ebay. I wanted to see what everyone was talking about. So I signed up. Started searching for things. Found things. I had no idea what was in store for me. The scope of what could be found, 24hours a day. 7 days a week.
I purchased a few things. They arrived. I was hooked again. But it wasn't just me that had changed. It was the hobby.

When I left in '91, the best pull I had ever had was a 1991 Donruss Elite Doug Drabek. Remember those? (google it if you must, I'll wait)
Now, autograph cards? Jersey cards? Bat cards? Glove cards? Stadium seat cards? Ebbets Field Urinal cards?

It was impossible to buy a card of my favourite players. Hell, it was impossible to buy a box of cards. They were an endangered species. Everyone was busting them open and running to sell the hits. Card companies saw this. "We've struck gold!" they cried. "Everyone is buying cases and cases of wax! So if a few hits are good... more is better!!!" And they did. They started cutting up every jersey, glove, sock, and bat they could buy. It was like the Golden Oldies station, Crankin' out the hits!

It was impossible for me, the set collector, to collect, well, sets. I couldn't even buy wax. I certainly couldn't afford what people were asking for one card. Game used Auto Jock strap or not. It was expensive.

With painstaking effort, I became a team collector. My beloved Braves. Goodbye hockey, farewell football. As time passed, it was possible to find some of these case crackers who decided they would sell off their "worthless" base cards. Little did I know it was because the well was running dry on the hit parade. People were not as crazed over the hits anymore. Prices were lowering. The amount of hits kept increasing. Supply and demand. Still no wax boxes though. I didn't mind. It gave me a focus. Braves. From that, Chipper, Adam LaRoche, Smoltzie... I was having fun again. Heck, with the prices of the hits falling, I could get one or two every once in awhile. Still no wax though.

I can't quite pinpoint when, but the hobby changed again. Not the card companies. They've still got their blinders on, pumping out set after set of crap. Still revelling in the last decade's cash cow. No. It was the collectors. They changed.

Prices have fallen. Hall of Fame players game used gear is available for pennies. Autos are everywhere. But the writing is on the wall. Wax boxes are once again selling. For reasonable amounts to the savvy buyer. But not packs. I've been to large card shops that sell boxes only! They will not open them to sell individual packs. Why?

They know. They realize that they will not get their money's worth out of the box by breaking it up. How many posts have you read about box breaks? How many times could you go and sell or trade those contents for the $$$ paid for the box it came out of? Rarely? Never?
Times are changing. And I am back to being a collector. I'm buying boxes of cards. Collecting sets. Or at the very least, ripping packs of football with my wife, and busting Scooby Doo 2 wax with my daughters. Having a great time. Then, shipping off the doubles to someone I've met over blog world. Reading an email or a blog post from them about how much they enjoyed the cards.

Have I come full circle? No. You try building sets with all the SP's and parallels out there. But I'm trying.
Anybody want to help me finish off my 1990 Donruss? You know where I'll be.

Card Show Loot, vol 3

Well lookee here. Vintage Hockey. From a card show in Calgary. What are the odds. One particular dealer had three 8' tables filled with stacks and stacks of card filled top loaders. Each stack had about 80 to 100 cards in them, and there were so many stacks, you couldn't see any of the tables. Each card was priced, and each card was "SHOW SPECIAL! 50% OFF STICKER!"

Right. Who are you kidding? But the real kicker was....... there was no rhyme or reason to the stacks. Each stack had every sport, from 1970 to 2008... it would've taken a year to go through them all.

But wait. At the back. Look! Grab it!!!

A 1970/71 O Pee Chee Joe Watson! Sweeeeeet. Now some of you may or may not know who Joe is.

A brief history: Joe and his younger brother Jim were members of the Philadelphia Flyers during the '70's and '80's, including two Stanley Cup Championships in '74 and '75.

"But Brian," you ask, "Why do you care? We thought you liked the Canadiens and the hometown Flames?"

Too true friends, too true. For the answer, we have to turn over the card and read the back. See? Right there where it says "Born:" Birthplace, Smithers British Columbia.


Joe and Jim's parents lived next door to my parents during the '70's while I was growing up.

It's like I was playing hockey! And winning the Stanley Cup! I mean, we're neighbours, right? that counts! Doesn't it?

The card that started it all...

There it is folks. The crown jewel of my collection. That's right. No need to adjust your monitor. You're seeing it correctly. A second year, 1975/76 OPC Pierre LaRouche. Awesome.
You can have your '52 Mantles and your T206 Wagners... This is my most valuble card. It all started on a cold, wintery January evening in 1976. A mom took her 5 year old son shopping to the mall. Dragged through store after store... patience wearing thin... and then, there it was.
Magical. This new and yet fabulous object was right there. Laying on the floor! I was drawn to it. I picked it up... held it in my hands, turning it over and over.
My mom had turned around by this point, and seeing what I had done, came over and took it from me and thrown it back on the floor! No!
I couldn't stop thinking about it... what was that? Who was in the picture?
I had to see it again. So while my mom was paying for her purchases, I snuck back over and grabbed the card up off of the floor and crammed it in the pocket of my winter coat. All the way home in the car, I kept my hands in my pockets... running my fingers over the wonderful prize that I was keeping secret from my mom.
As I grew up, I followed hockey religiously... and collected hockey cards. I traded away, gave away, and threw away enough hockey cards to pay for my daughter's college education. But I always kept this one. In a box, as a bookmark, on a shelf... somewhere... it was always there.
I stopped buying cards in '92... started back again in '06. I had completely forgot about Ole Number One.
But I found it again. The memories instantly flooding back to me.
My mom has been gone for five years now... I miss her.... Feels kind of silly that a worthless shred of coloured cardboard means so much to me. More memories and feelings than I could ever express, let alone type.

Treasure that Pristine Gem Mint 10 Mickey Mantle. Me? I'll take my Ole Number One here...

Three Time Champion!

At Homestead Florida today, race car driver Jimmie Johnson won his third straight Nascar Sprint Cup Championship. Jimmie is the only driver besides Nascar legend Cale Yarborough to accomplish that feat.
While he's not one of my favourite drivers, you can't argue with Jimmie's talent, or likability.
Congratulations to Jimmie Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports for their 3rd championship!
I just wish I could find my card of Cale Yarborough to post..... I'm so unorganized.....

Wantlist, well, a start anyway

I've got some trades in the works, so for now I need to throw this on so it can be kept track of. It's certainly not gospel, and definitely a work in progress...

1976 Topps Baseball

#589, 592, 597, 631

1987 Topps Baseball

#99

1990 Donruss Baseball

#14, 109, 135, 147, 151, 155, 201, 325, 421, 424, 462, 496,

511, 515, 533, 535, 541, 558, 569, 581, 584

2008 Allen & Ginter

#105, 170, 175, 221, 226, 262,

301, 304, 312, 313, 320, 325, 346, 347, 348, 349

State Flag Inserts

#2, 9, 27, 30, 39,


*** numbers in RED are in a potential trade.

WTF?!

What the motherloving hell is going on here???
First off, a big congratulations to Braves catcher Brian McCann for winning a Silver Slugger Award. Very deserved.
But how in the hell can a guy like David Wright win one over Chipper Jones?
Chipper only, I dunno, won a batting title this season. If he hadn't got hurt, would've had a case for MVP...

Seriously? David Freakin' Wright?
Unbelievable....

Happy Birthday Gene Garber!

Gene Garber is 61 today. Wow. Gene doesn't look too impressed about it either....
Gene was a sometimes closer for the Braves during "the wasted years"... piching very well. his unusal submarine delivery often fooled opposing batters. To show their appreciation of Gene, Atlanta traded him to Kansas City in '87. For Terry Bell. Who? You ask?
Terry Bell. You know. The guy who had one at bat for Atlanta in his career. Yeah. Him. Oh, and he struck out too....

Happy Birthday Jody!

Jody Davis was born 52 years ago. Jody was best known for his days as a Cub, recently ranked at #53 in All Time Cubbiedom. Jody could never quite put it all together. In the beginning, he could hit. But had cement blocks for hands. Later, he could catch, winning a Gold Glove in '86... but he forgot how to hit.
A trade brought him to the Braves in '88. He played in 92 games over three seasons before being released. A fairly marginal player you say? Hardly any time with the Braves? Why are you posting him, Brian?
Well, let me tell you. I actually got to meet Jody a few years ago when he was in Calgary as manager of the Calgary Outlaws in the Canadian Baseball League. It was a chance meeting, so I didn't have anything for him to sign... but it was still great as I got to hear a couple of stories from when he played.

2008 Upper Deck Football Box Break

Card Show Loot - Post 3

As I mentioned earlier, my wife came with me to the card show on the weekend. She likes this kind of stuff too... although only non-sports and Football. Only 2 out of the 20 dealers there had any wax boxes, and only one had anything but hockey. My wife picked out this box of 2008 UD Football. I paid $75 for it. Yes. You read that correctly. She's always had good luck picking out wax... let's see how she did this time. (That's called foreshadowing kids...)

16 jumbo packs per box, 20 cards per pack. and this, straight from the Upper Deck sell sheet;

CONTENT HIGHLIGHTS:
Find three Memorabilia Cards in EVERY Box, on average!
Get one Rookie or Veteran Autograph per box, on average!
Look for HOT BOXES containing seven Numbered Memorabilia Cards and one Autograph per box, on average!

Search for rare Iconic Cuts mystery redemption cards featuring cut signatures of sports, entertainment, and history’s most recognizable names.
Collect all of football’s future superstars with four STAR ROOKIE cards in EVERY pack!
Uncover Masterpieces preview cards, falling two per box, on average!


The wrapper is shiny. Another plus according to my wife.

Base cards 1-200

Star Rookies 201-300

Star Rookie SP 301-325

Ouch. That's gonna be tough to complete. Let's see how we did in one box.

Base cards - all 200, plus 48 doubles

Star Rookies - 64 / 100 no doubles

Star Rookie SP's - 4/25

Nice... the SP's are going to kill me trying to get... now how about "the hits"? Two Masterpiece Promos, as promised, On Average!

Wait... oh oh. The Franco Harris is roller damaged on the left border.... crap.

One Starquest insert, On Average! This one is Randy Moss, and is not the regular silver one. I'm not sure whick of the parallels it is though.

One Signature Shot Brandon Marshall, On Average! (does anybody else hate that as much as I do??? No more mentioning "On Average")

The box and sell sheets also promise 3 jersey cards per box. the first is Big Ben Roethlisomethingorother...

the next is Team Colors Jay Cutler. This is everything that is right with jersey cards. The card is coloured according to the players team, great photo, proper placement of the swatch... awesome.
The third is Matt Ryan UD Star Rookie Jersey. Again, a great card. the photo fits the card design. The colouring matches beautifully. And hey, it's Matt Freakin' Ryan!

But wait.... what's this??? Remember the foreshadowing kids? Remember this line???
"Look for HOT BOXES containing seven Numbered Memorabilia Cards and one Autograph per box, on average!"

Yep. My wife did it again.... I wish she could pick out lotto tickets like this....

UD Game Used Jersey Ray Lewis 138/200
UD Game Used Jersey Tony Romo 037/200
TONY MOROMOJO!!!! sorry. couldn't resist.

UD Star Rookie Jersey Joe Flacco 241/350

and another extremely beautiful card....
Team Colors Adrian Peterson 140/299

All Day. Awesome.
Needless to say we were thrilled at the outcome of this box. A complete base set, and a good start on the rookies... the colation in this box was superb.
The photography was incredible... not only the photos used, but they really captured the character and personalities of most of the players.
Finding a "hot box", well that was just bonus. Even with only the promised hits, I still would give this a healthy 9/10
What holds it back? Quality control. the damaged insert, and a lot of the cards have extra silver foil bits on it. Enough with the foil!!!!
If you like football, this is a must have.

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