Domo Arigato: Greg @ Night Owl Cards

If you read this blog... then I know you're a follower of Night Owl Cards. I've been a huge fan of his blog for a while now... and last month... I read one of Greg's posts which talked about how collectors voted the 1989 Topps Randy Johnson rookie card as the 54th best card of all-time.

In short... he didn't think the card should be on the list and neither did I. However, I left a comment saying how much I liked this card... mainly because it's a HOF rookie card of an Expos player.

Greg quickly responded that he would send me 5 of them for free. I appreciated the offer and told him that one was more than enough.

Well... today in my mailbox was a package from Night Owl Cards. Inside was the Johnson:

I actually purchased this card a few weeks earlier off of COMC and had totally forgotten about it until I received my shipment from them. I'm not complaining though... it's a rookie card of one of the greatest pitchers in recent years.

Greg also threw in a bunch of other stuff for my personal collection:

1982 Topps Stickers

I loved buying these when I was growing up. In fact... I'm 100% positive that I owned the Rickey Henderson on the right. It's just one of those cards (or should I say stickers) that stands out from my childhood memories.

1989 Topps Sticker Backs

I'm a huge fan of oddballs... and this fits the bill. I vaguely remember seeing these in the late 80's... but I'm not sure how they were distributed. However... it's safe to say that this is a new addition to my A's collection. Over the years... I've slowly filled almost three 800 count boxes full of A's cards. Thanks to Greg... I have 7 new additions.

2005 Bowman's Best Travis Chick Autograph

I've never heard of this guy... but he's in a San Diego Padres uniform... and it's autographed. After doing some research... it looks like he spent part of 2004 and 2005 in the Padres minor league system. Last year he was in the Rangers organization but was granted free agency this past November. Either way... this card is staying in my Padres PC.

2005 Upper Deck Legendary Cuts

Tony Gwynn is my favorite baseball player... and I have a binder with almost 900 different Gwynn cards. This was not one of the one's I had... so I was stoked to add this one to my 2005 page.

2010 Topps Chrome Target Exclusive Refractors

I love this card for two reasons... it's a Jackie Robinson card... and it's a refractor. I know the Johnson was suppose to be the main card in the package, but I'd be lying if I said this wasn't my favorite card in the lot.

Other Jackie Robinsons

Before today... I had twelve cards in my Jackie Robinson PC. Now thanks to Night Owl... I have seventeen.

Out of his whole care package... a whopping twenty cards... the only cards I already had were these five:

1991/1992 Pro Set

When the San Jose Sharks were established in 1991, I instantly fell in love with them. So... it was only natural for me to build their inaugural team set... which I still have today.

1990 Hoops

The Magic Johnson checklist card is one of about 50 Magic cards that I have sitting in a Lakers box. Originally, I thought it was a new addition... but when I went to put it away... I noticed I already had one in the middle of my stack.

Be assured that these five cards won't go to waste. My students are huge Sharks fans, so tomorrow one of them will be excited to get these. As for the Magic... I think I'm going to put it in a stand and place it in my classroom, since the card is a work of art and looks like it's meant to be displayed.

Thanks a million Greg for this generous package. I totally forgot that you were going to send me the Randy Johnson, so this was a pleasant surprise. This weekend, I'll go through my boxes and see if I have any Dodgers from your wantlists. So expect a package sometime next week... with something to say thanks for your generosity. Keep up the amazing blog!

Everyone else... I hope you're having a great week. Only two more days until Winter Break! I'm so excited... I might actually get around to pulling off some trades over at Sports Card Forum.

Sayonara!