Top Blog Moments- IT'S A LIST, LOST COLLECTOR

Remember that time the Lost Collector wrote a post about how lists were lame, and it rubbed Night Owl the wrong way?  That was funny.

I'm happy to say that for as much grief as I give AJ (The Lost Collector), I consider him a friend and one of the best people I've met as a result of this blog business.  

So before my last post tomorrow, in honor of AJ, I wanted to stroll down memory lane and list out my Top 9 favorite blog moments from the last three years.  Why 9?  Because 7 ate 9.  Wait, no that's a punch line to one of my 4 year old's jokes.  Why 9?  Because.... I couldn't come up with 10.

Here they are, sort of ranked and sort of not:


#9 : Auctions/Gifts From Cleve:

Obviously auctions at Cleve's were a major part of my blog.  My involvement with Cleve's won't end with the ending of the blog thankfully.  And I'm still stunned by some of the incredible cards that Cleve has given me over the years:

Yes that's a Triple Threads dual autograph book card of Evan Longoria and Josh Hamilton.  It is indeed.

I guess these aren't directly tied to the blog, but they are so nice and Cleve is so awesome that they need to be on the countdown.



#8 :  Dayf sends me the best card I ever received from another blogger:

 

As you may recall, I made a lazy, half ass attempt to get George Will, my hero, on a card in Allen & Ginter.  It went nowhere, but did result in me receiving a custom made Will A&G card, courtesy of everyone's favorite Cardboard Junkie.

#7:  AJ Gets Ranced:

Speaking of exchanging cards between bloggers, I was very proud of what I sent AJ after he made a smart ass remark about some tainted cards I had opened.  His post is perhaps my favorite post related to my blog from another blogger.

I also want to send a kudos to Cardboard Catastrophes for the best title of a post about a trade with me:  Paper Products From a Paper Product.  That was brilliant, and Jeff is a fantastic writer and generous dude.

#6:  Etopps Scandal:

This is as close to fame in the baseball card world as I ever got.  I was mentioned on eTopps message boards and it led to a mild scandal.  It's a weak 15 minutes of fame grant you, but it's mine.

#5:  Hot Dog Tournament:

I know this was a stupid bit on my part, but it was a blast.  My stomach didn't appreciate it, and I won't do it again, but it was fun to write.  It's also been fun to re-live all the matchups and the controversies that occured.  What a thrilling tournament!

#4:  The Becky Bridwell Interview:

I was pretty of proud of this one.  It's as close to journalistic "work" as my blog ever got.  Adventures of Napkin Doon is not interview-centric at all, but the interview with Oriole's prospect Parker Bridwell's mom was fun, and she was an awesome person to correspond with.

#3:  Doon Discs:

This was a totally stupid spoof of phiten discs, but it was a wonderful creative release.  I was also able to use artwork from stuff I received from AJ and Dayf to make the "discs".

#2:  My Collecting "Food" Pyramid:

 

Other than my first Big Fun Game, this post was one I got the best response to early in my blogging days.  I think the analogy still holds up for me as a collector.  In fact, the comparison of junk wax to candy was spot on for me personally, because I'm getting to the age where splurging on either really makes me feel like crap.  I think it was my best "contribution" to the "blogosphere."

#1:  George Will Sends Me An Autographed Card:

Sure, this is number one for purely selfish reasons.  But getting an autographed card from George Will, and having his assistant tell me he was amused with my letter still gives me chills.  Best autograph I have by far.  This alone was worth starting the blog.


I'm sure there are a few things I'm forgetting that should make this list, but for now, that's it, that's the list. 

Cleve's Auction Night: The Experience In Pictures

I didn't plan on attending Cleve's auction in person this week.  There wasn't a whole lot of stuff that held my interest, and the weather was cold and the Lovely Wife had come up with wonderful new soup recipe that I was anxious to try. 

But, I had it in my mind that I needed to put up one final auction post, and needed to be there and give you a better idea of what Cleve's, and his auctions are like.  That's how much I care about you folks!

A while back, Cleve's underwent a bit of a remodeling project.  He put up all new signage, and a big notice in the front window advertising the weekly Tuesday night auction.  The signage and the store look great!

The crowd tonight was smaller than normal, but still decent, with about 20 people showing up.  There's Cleve facing us on the left. 

Basically there are a couple of areas to browse before the bidding starts- the glass cases and the "goodie" table.

Usually, this goodie table contains complete sets, misc boxes and a few non-card related items.  This week, there were about 10 different junk wax era complete sets available, some binders with misc. cards, a couple of boxes of comic books, and a box of LPs (on the far right). 

Cleve usually starts the auction off with the goodie boxes, and then moves to the single cards.  In between, he holds a weekly drawing for a $25 credit.  It's just for the people that show up in person for the auction, which I why I've never won it.  I usually just submit write in bids since my work schedule and family duties prohibit me from attending much.

I have never once seen that dude behind the counter smile, and I've only heard him speak a couple of times. 

Typically, there are about 250 auction items a week.  This week was bigger than normal at around 350.  But again, not much of it did I want.

I managed to pick up a few things though:

I'll list the items along with my grades:

1989 Bowman Factory Set $2  A:  I know 89 Bowman isn't popular, but I kind of like it, and it's a complete set.  For $2?  Come on!

1983 Topps Wade Boggs  $4  A:  This strengthens my 1983 Sampler Album Page tremendously.  I just need the Sandberg and I'll have all of the key 1983 rookie cards.

1967 Al Kaline  $4  D:  I'm giving myself a D not because it's a bad card, but because I already have it!  It's up for trade if anyone is interested, or I may put it up on Listia.

I hope everyone has enjoyed my frequent Cleve auction posts.  I'd say these auction were good for about 20% of my blog subject matter. I'll probably still show some cards on twitter from time to time.

Cleve's Auction Night: Anyone Like Pins? Padre Pins?

I hope so, because I have a whole stinking bag of 'em after this week's auction:

Now, the question you shouldn't be asking is "Why in the hell would you buy a bag of San Diego Padre Pins?"  You shouldn't ask that because it's not specific enough of a quesiton.  See, it's a bag of San Diego Padre pins for season ticket holders for the 1991 season.

Then, the question you shouldn't be asking is, "Why in the hell would you buy a bag of 1991 San Diego Padre season ticket holder pins?"  You shouldn't ask because I don't really know.  I guess I did it because I have a very humble pin collection that I would love to get into to a larger degree someday.  I'm hoping my little girl will think they're cool and want to do it with me.   So I figure I can trade these off for other pins at some point.  I have a couple of bags of Gateway Computer Winter Olympic pins with that same goal in mind.

Besides the bag only cost me $3.  I guesstimate there are about 50 pins in the bag, so I spent just over a nickel a pin.  I'll probably put a couple up on listia, and of course will be happy to trade you kind folks for any, and I do mean ANY pin you might have to spare (I really like corporate logo pins BTW).  So it wasn't a stupid purchase, so there.


Grades: 

Bag O' Pins:  $3  A-  Sure I didn't need these, but value is value.

Cleve's Auction Night: 1985 Topps Set

It was a beautiful sunny day, the summer of 1987.  My friend Joey and I were wrapping up a fun afternoon at a card show in Amarillo, Texas and were getting ready to head home.  As we were leaving the show, Joey decided to live on the wild side and bought a pack of 1985 Topps for some ridiculous (at the time) price I don't remember what.  But he was convinced he would pull something great from that pack.  He couldn't wait to get home to rip the pack and opened it right there in his truck in the parking lot.   Lightning struck, and struck big:  he pulled an Eric Davis rookie card.  At the time the Davis rookie booked for some ridiculous amount, like $80 or something if I remember correctly.  We both went berserk,  bouncing and screaming in our seats,  because we were both broke high school kids and this was like winning a small lottery for us.  Plus, well, we were dorks.   But we didn't care what anyone who saw us might have thought and we celebrated vigorously.

For years and years, I coveted that Davis card, plus many of the cards from 1985 Topps.  It was a set I desired for many years but never could afford.

Years later, my day of glory and destiny arrived last week when I won a complete, mint and bound 1985 Topps set at Cleve's Tuesday auction for a measly $15 on a write in bid.   Fifteen bucks.  I mean, fifteen bucks for an almost 30 year old set that has already been placed in 9 pocket pages.  I picked it up Saturday at Cleve's, and the first card I looked for was the glorious Eric Davis rookie:

Listen, do not harsh my buzz and remind me that I could get this card for a quarter on sportlots.com now.  It's still a bad ass card.  In fact, I get that the whole reason I could get this set for next to nothing these days is because the "hot" cards that drove this set years ago are no longer that desirable.  But they're still big deals in my little mind.  Let's stroll down memory lane:

There are several cards that I imagine people first think of when they think of 1985 Topps.  The Mark McGwire rookie surely is one of them.   Yes, I know this star has faded, but I'm still glad to have it.  Speaking of faded stars, here are a couple of pitchers that surely should be Hall of Famers had they not done themselves in for various reasons:

But there is no shortage of HOFers in this set.  One of which is Kirby Puckett's rookie below, a fine looking card.

At worst, 1985 Topps is worth having because it's a great looking set.  It's simple, colorful, and has lots of great names.  I'm thinking of calling Joey and telling him about it.

Grade:

1985 Topps Set $15  A+:  It's a set I've always wanted, the cards are mint, AND someone already went to the trouble to put all 792 cards in pages.  That alone is worth what I paid for it!

Cleve's Christmas Auction Lone Win

I'm sad to say I didn't win the 1952 Bowman Stan Musial I wanted.  It went for about 20% more than what I was comfortable bidding.  I'm glad I was outbid by a decent margin.  If I had lost by 5 bucks or something I would have been agitated to no end.

But I did get the other item I bid on:

I don't yet have an autograph of Adrian Beltre in a Rangers uniform, and I guess technically I still don't.  This is more like an autograph of him in Ranger pajamas, but it's still awesome! 

A Look At A Few Things From Cleve's Christmas Auction

And I won't be able to afford any of it.  Well, almost any of it. 

Let me take a step back.  I assume most of you who read my blog know that my LCS has a weekly auction that I either attend or submit write in bids for,  and I've come home with some great things over the years.  Every year, Cleve- the owner, has a Christmas auction that features some unreal cards and collectibles.  Most of this stuff goes for big money.  This year should be no exception.  I won't be bidding on any of the "big" items, except one:
 

 I figure this is my best chance to get a Stan Musial for the 1952 Bowman set I decided to start building.  So I put in a big bid on it and have my fingers crossed.

The only other card I bid on was this Adrian Beltre auto. 

Otherwise, I won't be chasing the other stuff, but I won't let that stop me from showing you the goods.  There are about 300 items up for auction, and below are some that I thought were worth sharing:

 This 1954 Wilson Franks Ted Williams is pretty rare I believe.  Cleve expects this to be one of the highest priced items of the night.

I'm really tempted to call and put in a bid on this tobacco card.  I don't remember the details on it, but it's a beautiful card.

And of course, there are tons of Mantle cards and an autographed bat:

And a few other goodies that would be great to have if I were rich:

I've never seen these Topps "Push and Pulls" but they're very clever, and I hope Topps redoes these with Archives sometime.

 Greg Maddux auto

Wish me luck on the Musial!  I doubt I post again until after Christmas, so I send my best wishes for a wonderful Holiday season to you all!

Cleve's Auction Night: Cleve Strikes Yet Again

Those that follow this blog know how big a part of my collection comes from the weekly auction at Cleve's Collectibles in Springdale, Arkansas.  You also know of the many times Cleve has surprised me with a generous, and completely unexpected gift of cardboard. 

He did it again this week.  Behold this 1934 Diamond Stars beauty:

 

I had put a bid on this card, simply because I thought it was cool looking, and because I don't have any cards from the 1934 Diamond Stars set.  The card has a some writing on the front and back, so I thought I might be able to get it at a good price.  Besides the writing, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the card- no crease, tears or holes.  And though he's not a household name, Myer was nothing to sneeze at as a player.  He had over 2,000 hits, was a 2 time All Star and led the league in hitting in 1935.

I went in to Cleve's today to see if I'd won anything for the week, and to look at next week's cards up for auction.  I was thrilled when I saw the Myer card with my bidder number on it.  I tried to find the  write in amount so I could remember what I bid on it, and instead saw a nice note from Cleve saying that this card was on the house.  I tried to talk him out of it, but he wasn't hearing it.

Unbelievable!  I'm once again blown away by Cleve's kindness.  I'm truly speechless about this.

I did have another win- a pair of 1969 Topps cards for my Sampler Album:

My 1969 page is now full, and has lots of great names on it.  I'll have a post about it sometime soon I hope.

Grades:

1969 Topps Robinson & Marichal  $4  A+  Come on, $2 each for these guys?

1934 Diamond Stars Buddy Meyer $0  A+  Is there a higher grade I could give than an A+? A+ Infinity?   Cleve is too much.

Cleve's Auction Night- $11 HOFers

I did something Tuesday I hadn't done in a while: spend a leisurely 30 minutes shooting the bull with Cleve at Cleve's Collectibles, my LCS.  By the sheer volume of mentions of Cleve's I've had over the course of this blog, that might sound a little surprising.  But typically, I'm darting in during a lunch hour, checking the weekly auction fodder, saying hello to Cleve and some of the regulars, and then getting on my way. 

But the Lovely Wife is in wine country right now, my kids were both in school today, and I had taken the day off from work.   I understand 30 minutes really isn't that long, but it was a mountain of time compared to what I've had lately for this hobby.

I had put in a few write in bids last week, but had 0 expectations that I had won anything.  I didn't even ask about my results when I came in and started looking over this week's stuff.

So when Cleve said, "By the way, you won the '61 Banks and the '62 Robinson," I was stunned and surprisingly overjoyed.

These are great adds to my Sampler Album:

I have to make yet another disclaimer- these are not nearly as mis-cut as my scanner says they are.  Both cards are in outstanding shape.  There are no creases and the corners and surfaces are quite good.  It felt great to win a couple of superstar vintage cards.  I know they aren't super expensive in book value, but I love em anyway.

Grades:

1961 Ernie Banks:  $6  A+  I'll take this deal every day

1962 Brooks Robinson $5  A+  I'll take this deal every day

Cleve's Auction Night: Back To The Goodie Box Days

Not only has my blogging come to a near stand still, my bidding activity at Cleve's auctions has been nearly non-existent.   I suppose that is no coincidence.  I've been putting in a few write in bids, but have been on quite a losing streak to a bunch of "card-blockers" who manage to out-bid me at the last minute.

Thankfully, my losing streak came to a halt this week with some solid auction wins, starting with a fantastic 1997 Bowman set, already in a binder:

Whoever made this wasn't messing around.  The "1997 Bowman" is print, not stickers.  I'm happy with this win, not only because I think it's a nice set, but because the work of putting it in a binder has already been done.  There are some nice rookies in this set:

Beltran

R.A. Dickey- although the value of this has dropped this year I think.  For a while it was a pretty hot card.

And my favorite:  Adrian Beltre

There are several other good rookies to show (Halladay for one), but I'll move on to my other wins.  Like this:

I may have overpaid on this ($4), but I don't care. 

The Puig was the only single card I picked up this week.  Besides it and the 97 set, I picked up my first goodie box in a long time:

I've been avoiding goodie boxes lately, mostly because 90% of the cards in them are junk, or things I simply don't need.  But this one looked very interesting so I put in a bid.  I was pretty surprised I won, mostly due to the inclusion of some the cards you immediately see in the picture.  Namely:

3 over sized A&G cabinet cards.  I don't have any of these.  Aren't they sort of hard to get?  And the players are really good- Cabrera and Cano.  The Roller Coaster card is really cool too, but has a small crease in one of the corners.  I paid $7 for the box.  The cabinet cards should about cover that don't you think?  Plus there was this:

This 1985 Donruss Puckett rookie is not as mis-cut as my scanner makes it out to be.  In fact, it's in very good shape.  I figure I got my money's worth with the above 4 cards right?  Right?

Among the rest of the some 200 cards were some decent player lots:

These were the lots of players I happen to like, but there were also around a dozen cards each of Clemens, Garciapara, A-Rod and Bagwell.

 Grades:

1997 Bowman Set in binder:  $6  A :  This set has a ton of great rookie and base cards.  It came complete in a nice, neat binder ready for the bookshelf.

A&G Puig Rookie  $4  B :  I have little interest in Puig, but I figure I'm not going to get this card any cheaper.  At least until a couple of months from now.  Crud, I should have waited on this one.  Oh well.

Goodie Box  $7 A+:  The cabinet cards are cool, and there is enough good stuff to spread around to my binders, listia and trade packages (most everything is available for trade).

I'm not totally back alive and kicking yet in this hobby, but Tuesday's auction helped get some momentum back!