Shanny

I'm sure that I've looked at dozens of copies of this card over the past several years.  Each time, I've known that I need the card for my 88-89 OPC set.  And each time, I've passed on it.   Can't figure out why though.

Finally, I broke down and bought a Brendan Shanahan RC during the Black Friday sale at COMC.  I'm pretty sure that the price was the main factor for the purchase, as the card cost me less than $7

The card is in great condition, and it appears that I was waiting for the right copy at the right price to come my way all along.

What makes this purchase even greater is now I can add it to the center of the 9 pocket page where it belongs.  Those of you who are long time hockey fans will appreciate the talent that is on this page...

5 Hall of Famers (Housley, Gretzky, Shanahan, LaFontaine and Robitaille), Sandstrom and Olczyk both scored almost 400 goals each, Ken Linseman played 15 years in the NHL/WHA and Ron Sutter played 18 years. 

Now, all that's left to finish off this set is the Brett Hull RC.  Maybe the January card show will be the place to find that one...

Thanks for reading, Robert

Card of the year? It's not baseball, and it's not hockey either

Call me what you will.   Geek.  Nerd.  Dork.  I've heard it before, and I'm sure I'll hear it again.

P-Town Tom has a contest going on right now for card of the year. I'm sure many of you thought I would select this card as my choice.

Sure, it's got the bat flip we all remember from the 2015 ALDS against the Texas Rangers.  But that's old news now.

I've seen this card on my desk daily for the past few weeks, and the geek/dork/nerd in me can't help but be enchanted by it.

Sure, it might be just a shot of a mountain, but it is after all the tallest point on our planet.  The write up on the card back is what gets me stirred up.

1. Rising more than 29,000 feet above the Nepal-Tibet border (and growing a 1/4" each year), Mt. Everest is over 60 Million Years old.  OK, how in the hell does someone figure out a 29000 foot mountain grows a quarter inch each year??
2. Winds can bluster beyond 200 MPH and temperatures can range from 100 degrees above to 80 degrees below zero.  200 MPH winds, and I'm here worrying about hurricanes? 
3. In 2015, for the first time in 41 years, not 1 climber reached its summit -- but a record 22 died trying.  Fascinating point, yes, but quite morbid, don't you think?

As I've pointed out countless times on this blog, I've never been a big insert fan.  But this card for me takes the cake.  I have a computer/card room where the only thing on the wall is my Maple Leafs clock.  Maybe a giant version of this card in a frame might adorn the wall someday.

Yes, I do like the card that much.  It is my card of the year.  

Thanks for reading, Robert

It's happening again

The post title has kind of a "two-prong" meaning for me.  My first thought when it comes to the title is my somewhat semi-regular posting routine.  Yes, a lot of what I'm doing right now is posting cards that I've either bought or received lately, but the mere fact that I've hit double digit posts each of the past 4 months (and well on the way to doing it again here in crazy December) means that I'm hitting my stride again. 

When I'm getting cards such as the 71-72 OPC cards you see above, I'm not letting them sit for days, weeks, even months on end before A) posting about them or B) putting them where they belong.

Yes, another small problem I'm developing (note that I used the word small) is there are piles of cards developing on my desk again.   When I lived in PA, my wife was afraid to use the computer because of the endless piles of cards on the desk, some 300 to 400 cards high, for fear of knocking them over.

Mind you, there weren't any stacks of '68 Topps with that many cards in them, but you get the idea.  The piles right now number approx. 1/2 dozen, and they're certainly not of the hundred plus card variety. 

My goal is to keep them moving.   Keep writing, even if it's just babble like this post.

Move them into their proper place, whether it be a binder, or a box, or a plastic 100 count container.  Just get them off the damn desk.

Post about them, so everyone can enjoy them, or despise them (depending of course on your particular tastes).  Even take the time to gush a little about one particular card, like the Alvin Dark below from '69 Topps.

I love this card back, no ifs, ands or buts about it.  Love the artwork, and I actually learned something about Alvin Dark the player, even though this is a card of Alvin Dark, the Indians manager.  I'm going to have to look at the other manager cards in '69 T to see if they are the same on the back.  (I'm assuming they are)

Maybe the best part about the "it's happening again" title is that I'm writing a Wednesday night post on a Tuesday.  Yes, my wife and I go out on Wednesday to our friends house, to spend a few hours playing kitchen table poker and kibitzing with our good friends.  Over the past few months, I wouldn't have even thought about filing a post on Wednesday nights...

I've got the itch again.  The writing itch.   I just have to figure out how to keep it going. 

Thanks for reading, Robert

3, 2 and 1 from the almost done (page)

The Black Friday haul from COMC proved quite fruitful for a few reasons.   Part of the purchase was knocking off part (or all) of the want lists on the "Almost Done" page.  Making this a quick and simple post of just 6 cards, which removed one want list and shaved down a couple more...

Why I didn't chase these down sooner, I can't explain.  But getting the last 3 RC's (at least I believe they are, you never know anymore) from the 2015 A&G set puts it to bed.  Now I can start to work on the 2016 set, maybe some time in 2017 I'll start buying some more packs.

There's still a bit of hope that the '64 set may be completed in the next 18 days.  We'll have to see how the Christmas budget goes.  If I spend more than I expect on holiday gift giving, then the final couple of big ticket cards may have to wait until the new year.  Joe & Jerry here are on card #564, another high number off the list.   There are some of you out there that will like the 2nd high number card I bought more...

For just under $7, I finally was able to get a copy that was in nice shape at an affordable price of the LA Dodgers team card.  The only flaw on the card, front or back, is the soft lower left corner.  A lot better condition than I expected. 

Finally, the rookie shortstops card from the '73 set is now in hand.   Completing the '73 set wasn't on the priority list for this year, even though I'm down to just 3 cards.  But finding a Schmidt RC at a decent price has been very tough, and I imagine that will continue for the foreseeable future, unless I get lucky.  I also have the Dwight Evans RC to pick up as well, so the '73 set will probably wait until sometime into 2017 before it's done. 

There are only 14 cards remaining on the 3 want lists on the almost done page.  2 of which I have already bought from the '64 set.  Maybe my next goal will be to wipe out that page entirely before I get another set close enough to move onto the page.

We'll see how that goes...

Thanks for reading, Robert

One down, 9 to go

One of my long term collecting goals will be to complete each of the O-Pee-Chee sets from the 1980's, beginning with the 80-81 set and moving right on up to 89-90.  Some of the sets I have bits and pieces of starts, there are a couple that I may only have a card or 2 of, and there's a couple that are just about done.

With the black Friday sale at COMC recently, I finally decided to get the last card I needed for the 87-88 OPC quest.  As it almost always is with older sets, the final card or 2 ends up being a star or some other valuable card in the set.  In this case, it was card #53, Wayne Gretzky.

What I decided to do is scan each of the pages to show off this morning.  What I found while going through each one is that the set is very colorful, meaning that the majority of the photos feature the players in their road uniforms (I'm guessing about a 80-20 ratio). 

Enjoy!

The last card for my 88-89 set is the Hull RC.  Then I get to sit down and see where I am with the 89-90 set (I know those cards are around here somewhere...).  The 80's for me will probably be my all time favorite as far as hockey goes, it was a real run and gun game then where it wasn't uncommon to see teams hit double digits in goals on a given night. 

While these sets may not be as nostalgic for a lot of you compared to 60's or 70's baseball, I will never get tired looking through any of the 80's hockey sets. 

It's about what you like, right?

Thanks for reading, Robert