Better late than never

Is there a record, amongst bloggers who actively exchange cards with other bloggers, of who's gone the longest before trading with the Night Owl? If there is, I think I now own it.

I started this blog almost 7 1/2 years ago, and have been fortunate enough to receive, and send out cards to quite a few different bloggers, and blog readers, during that time. However, it wasn't until just this past December that I partook in my first bit of extra-curricular activity with the ever popular winged wordsmith behind Night Owl Cards (and now 1993 UPPER DECK as well).

Some of you might be wondering what took so long, and honestly, I don't really know. I don't think that there's any reason why, it just, for whatever reason, took us a while to swap some cards. For blog purposes, it would've probably been more exciting if their was some great backstory involving murder and betrayal, but there isn't, sorry. 

 

I think I could count on half a hand that number of times that 1987 Topps has appeared on this blog. At this point in time, most collectors seem to either really love the set, or really hate it. Haven't you heard, it's 2023, the internet demands that you pick a side! Me though, well, I guess you could say that I'm indifferent to it. Thanks to my brain slowly turning to mush, I can't say for certain anymore, but it's possible that the very first pack of cards I ever got were 1987 Topps, and if it wasn't the first, it was certainly one of the earlier sets that I collected. With that in mind, there should be at least some nostalgia attached to the set for me, but it's hard to be nostalgic for something that's never gone away -- and from what I've been able to gather, is never gonna go away. I may be neutral on the set, but after all of the blog posts that I've seen in recent years, I'm very glad that I'm not collecting anything current, because I'd probably have a very different take on it, what with it's design constantly being rehashed and all.

These two cards stem back to last year when, much to Mr. Owl's chagrin, he was "gifted" a vending box of 1987 Topps from somebody at work. The resulting blog post was equal parts "Look what someone had the gall to give me!" and "Please take these off of my hands!!!". I knew that I couldn't help him move very many, but I did rattle off a couple of names of guys that I seem to be in need of, and Jamie and Joe were the two that he was able to take care of (please don't ask who the other names were, because I cannot remember anymore). I have a blank backed copy of Jamie's rookie, but somehow did not already have a regular one. And Joe is one of a handful guys that I'm trying not to collect, but still am sort of anyway.

As nice as it was to get them, I'm not sure that these two would've been enough to justify the cost of a stamp. However, they had company...

I suspect that this, and the next card, are copies that have both been upgraded, thus rendering their slightly off-condition counterparts expendable. I too will undoubtedly upgrade this one at some point, but for now, it's just fine for my set. And given current prices, it'll probably continue to be fine for at least the next couple of years.

If the Post was unexpected, which it was, I don't know how to describe this one. I mean, it's not everyday that someone sends me a playing days Erskine. Sure, there's a vertical crease going down the middle, but it doesn't detract from the overall image very much. I've come to realize that if I want to pursue this set in any sort of serious fashion, I will have to be more tolerant towards acquiring cards that are in a similar state. If not, I'll have to be content to sit on the sidelines until the moneyed crowd moves on to something else.

Many thanks to our resident avian author for the envelope, hopefully it won't be another 7+ years before we can do this again.

On an unrelated note, I noticed yet another new blog on the block, and as usual, thought it was worth mentioning. So, if you have a few spare minutes, and are inclined to want to do something nice for someone else, go show Dillard's Dugout some love. One of the best ways to prevent a new blogger from getting discouraged is to let them know that they aren't typing into a void.

COMC Shuffle #5

Another week, another ten randomly selected cards from last year's COMC hoard!


1955 Red Man Tobacco All-Star Series #14

My first Red Man! It's a little rough, but it does still have the tab, plus it was really cheap (under $2). Solid player too. Having never seen one of these in person before, I was a bit surprised at how big they are. I always thought that they were Play Ball sized, nope, they are considerably larger.


2014 Topps Red Hot Foil #580 (x3)

It's a red out! I'm gonna go on record and say that this might be the best looking individual parallel of the 2010's. Am I wrong about this? If so, Prove me wrong.


2013-14 Panini Prizm Red, White, and Blue Wave Prizms #22

I've said it many (many) times before, but there will never be another player like Tim Duncan! Countdown to the hall of fame in...


1994 Pacific Crown Collection Knights of the Gridiron #3

Drew Bledsoe used to receive a lot of hobby love, now he gets next to none, (cue Fred Willard) Wha' Happened?


2013 Panini Golden Age Historic Signatures #LP

Laffit Pincay is one of the signers who has an autograph in both the 2013 and 2014 sets, which I now have both of. I know nothing of horse racing, but with a signature as nice as this, I have no problem with him being in two out of the three Golden Age sets.


2013-14 Panini Prizm Red, White, and Blue Mosaic Prizms #230

This was my sixth R,W, &B Dave DeBusschere. I really want a full page (or more) of this card!

1973 Kellogg's #54

This is yet another purchase that I can blame on Chris' bad influence! Sorry for the lousy picture, I have a lot to learn when it comes to taking photos of graded cards. After buying this card last year, I, just for a split second mind you, had the brief notion that I would try to collect the entire set in PSA 9 form... thankfully that idea didn't stick around for too long.


1909-11 T206

I got my first three T206's last year, all from the same seller, and all within a couple of days of each other. Condition wise, Danny Moeller here would probably receive the lowest grade, he's obviously got a bit of a crease, but the colors are still really crisp.

There isn't a great deal of info on the interwebz about Danny Moeller. He spent the part of seven seasons in the bigs, playing for Pittsburgh, Washington, and Cleveland. In 1912, while in his first season with Washington, he finished 21st in the AL MVP voting -- and in 1913 (still with the Senators), he racked up 62 stolen bases, which were second in the majors only to teammate Clyde Milan's 75.

Obligatory shot of the back.


1998-99 Upper Deck Ionix Reciprocal #R55

The '98-99 Reciprocal's is are one of my favorite 90's basketball parallels, easily in the top ten, maybe even in the top five... I might have to do a personal top ten 90's basketball parallels list one of these days (that'll really bring in the views)?


1971-72 Topps #172

Although drafted by the Detroit Pistons in 1967, Ron decided to instead join the newly created ABA, playing for five teams during his six seasons. In 1975, he traveled to Europe to play in the European Professional Basketball League, a league that only lasted for one season.

Hopefully everyone enjoyed another week's worth of picks. The shuffle button will now get a much deserved week off, after all... being asked to choose ten random cards isn't as easy as it sounds :)


Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.