Diamond Giveaway: Am I Missing Something?

Through the Topps Diamond Giveaway site, I continue to receive offers of cards like this:

For one of these:

Clearly I'm behind the game here but not only do I think the diamond die cuts are not particularly appealing to the eye, I'm not about to deal vintage cards like these for shiny new goofiness. What gives?

I will however deal my '73 Terry Forster, '76 Pete Varney, '77 Bruce Kison, '78 Rico Carty or '99 Andres Galaragga if I ever get same year/earlier year offers involving Reds, Tigers or Cubs I need.  

Nostalgic Wax: Why I Returned To Card Collecting After A 27-Year Break

Several years ago I discovered my old late '70s/early '80s sports card collection in my mom's basement. I packed them up and gave them a brand new home. My basement. And there they rested for a few more years.

Many, oh-so-many, years ago I had given up baseball cards. I think I was 14. I'm not sure why I packed away what had meant so much to me - probably the start of high school and new interests. Well, one new interest.

Girls came into focus right about then. Yeah, I'm going to go ahead and blame girls.

I had discovered baseball cards at age 9; football cards roughly a year later. The Hostess cards found on the bottom of packages of Twinkies and King Dons provided my gateway to the hobby.

With the cards in my own house, and because I'm a fairly orderly person, the long-neglected collection in the basement nagged at me. I needed a sense of order. I finally felt compelled to sort through them - and sort and sort and sort.

I loved doing it. Memories came flooding back. I remembered being 10 again. And, I learned a few things.

First, I apparently had snagged a few packs in 1989, 1990 and 1994 but I have no recollection of doing this. It was clear that the love I had for the hobby frittered at some point in 1983.

Second, I realized that after more than a quarter century of living, I liked reconnecting with the person I was all those years ago. It's probably impossible to understand if you're not a collector but something about those old cards that had passed my fingers countless times as a kid made me feel great. Not necessarily young again but, yeah, a little younger. It brought me a little comfort and a lot of peace to look through those cards - particularly the '78s that I first collected.

But another set kept calling for my attention.

At some point in the late '70s, maybe 1980, Gramps bought me a sack full of 1976 Topps at a garage sale likely not far from my grandparents Ohio home. The cards, if memory serves, had been stripped of Cincinnati Reds, my team, but there were probably close to 300 in the sack. It included randomness such as seven Bill Buckners and six Jim Wynns.

I hope I showed my appreciation to Gramps but the sad truth is I didn't understand these cards at the time. Maybe I couldn't figure out the obvious question of why there were no Reds. Plus, I had a deep connection to the cards I ripped from wax, the '78s and '79s. These '76ers were interlopers. Who were these players? They were sooooo old.


Older and, arguably, wiser now, I've fallen in a big way for 1976 Topps.

Which brings me to my third revelation that occurred upon uncovering my collection; a strong desire to finish what my grandpa started for me so many years ago.

I must build the complete 1976 set.

In the past few months, I've had great fun picking up cards from this set at area card shows. I've even added several of the missing Reds.

Once settled next week after an out-of-state move, I'll post my favorite cards from this set with the caveat that they'll be chosen from the cards I now own. There are plenty I still need - and plenty to trade to others chasing this set.
I grew close to my grandparents in my 20s. I had moved from Texas to within 30 minutes of their home in the last four years of his life. I know Gramps would have liked not only that I'm getting reacquainted with the cards in that old sack but that I'm finally chasing down the rest of the set.

Football Common Reminder Plus Trade Post

...and the trades just keep on rollin'. In hopes of clearing out as many trades - sometimes just sending cards - before I pack up my cards for the move, I've sent 20 packages out in the past 7 days. I really enjoy trading.

But before I get to one small trade, for the three gents who requested my '79-'83 football cards, thanks for helping me clear out room. These aren't the best cards, as I mentioned, but hopefully everyone is getting a few they're happy to get. And, your team claim puts you at the top for those teams if I decide later to purge more of the gridiron collection - which will mean better condition cards and more star players.

Now, for the deal, The Lost Collector sent along a handful of assorted cards for my team collections. AJ's blog is just great and we've arranged a few deals in just three months. We're to the point now, I think, that when one of us gets a mailer, the other knows it's our turn - rather than the traditional trade modus operandi.

Thanks yet again, AJ. Slade and hopefully more will be on the way before long.

Cool Cards From Things Are Funner Here

Trading friend Julie over at Things Are Funner Here surprised me with a collection of Reds and Tigers to complete our second deal. Julie went above and beyond the call here. She included a couple of dozen swell cards. I just have time right now to show off a pair.

Adam Dunn seems like such a throwback player. This card suits him well.

I have no idea yet what set this is from but it's another card I think is cool and Miguel Cabrera is a favorite of mine. I love unique cards such as this.

Thanks Julie for the extras. If anyone has found their way to Julie's blog, take a look. She always has something interesting to say and it's fun to stop by.

Cool Cards From My Sports And Sports Cards!

Jeff, over at the newly built My Sports and Sports Cards blog, and I worked out a trade after I commented on one of his posts recently. It turns out he's a Hoosier - and, of course, in a week I'm returning to my Hoosier roots!

We worked out a deal and I was stunned to see the great assortment of Reds and Tigers he sent my way. I continue to be amazed by the thousands of cards I had no idea existed, thanks to my 20-year hiatus from the hobby. Jeff sent me a little bit of everything including an Austin Kearns bat relic and a Tigers prospect Dan Fields numbered (apologies no scan of it right now).

I cannot stress enough how great it was to open this mailer. Jeff went above and beyond.

The scan here of Eric Davis does not do justice to what I received but I'm posting it because I'm a big Eric Davis guy (although I've yet to add him to my large PC list) and love the fact he played for my two favorite teams.

I can only hope that Jeff is even close to as happy with the package of cards he's getting.

Thanks again Jeff. Meanwhile, I'm now gathering some old Colts for you per your comment on the previous post.

Football Cards Must Go

If you can answer "yes" to any or some of the following, then you're possibly in luck.

Do you collect football cards from the '79 to '83 era?
Are you looking for set fillers from those years?
Are you looking for team set fillers?

I collected football cards as a kid but haven't since the '83 set. I've already separated the Steelers - my lifelong team of choice. I also set aside some of my favorite cards from the era.

Here's the thing: If you read my blog, you know that we're about to move from our house. It sold.

Congrats Potch!

Hey, thanks. It was a long haul but we're relocating to be near family so our little one has that more strongly in her life.

Wow, you're a family man? Who would've guessed? You struck me as a real meatball who doesn't care about anything but himself.

Hey, you're getting me off track.

Sorry, but you strike me as a bit of a narcissist. You've taken to writing about yourself in the third person in recent posts. I hate that.

No worries.

Anyway, so this is a shot in the dark but I'd love to send a good 100 to 150 football cards packing. I don't need anything in return. Then, the remainder will fit nicely in the box I've reserved for them.

No, I don't want to get a bigger box. 

This is not a football card but the Big Hurt, not surprisingly, played the game at Auburn U.

So, if anyone would like some from a particular year, team or teams, let me know in the next day or so. Thanks!

Contest! My Blog Name! Need Lady Cards! Exclamation Points!

Trading friend Ryan G. over at This Card Is Cool is running a cool contest. Take a look:

http://thiscardiscool.blogspot.com/2011/06/congratulations-you-may-already-be.html

I enjoy Ryan's blog a lot - so much so I "borrowed" his backdrop, I later realized. Speaking of my blog, I've given thought since I started it to changing the name entirely. The name I picked on a whim one night was suggested by my lovely wife - sort of an inside joke. She didn't think I was going with it but I typed it in there to crack her up and voila!

What do you think? Change it to something reflecting my collecting interests or Midwest location or something playing off my other interests (literature, running, history).

Speaking of history (wow, I'm really stream of conscious this morning) can anyone suggest a set that has a lot of history cards (presidential, perhaps) or where I could go to find cards depicting women who have achieved in some (any) field? The latter would be to set aside for my daughter for when she's a bit older. If anyone has such cards they don't want, let me know.

I grabbed these guys (below) at the LCS the other day and it got me thinking along these lines.