30 Day Baseball Card Challenge

Saturday, March 30, 2019

Baseball Card Therapy

Time heals all wounds.

Okay... I'm sure that many people out there would argue against this.  I'd be more inclined to support this statement if it was:  time heals some wounds.  In fact, I'd say that time has had a way of healing most wounds I've personally encountered.

I'm still going through the grieving process, I've got to admit I'm in a much better place mentally than I was three weeks ago.  As I've mentioned before... family, friends, and work have provided a lot of support and distractions.  But that's not the only thing.  Baseball cards have played a role in the healing process, which includes making a few card purchases, busting some boxes, getting back into the routine of blog post writing, and of course reading and commenting on your blog posts.

Yesterday, I enjoyed another sports card therapy session when I got home from work.  I had a few hours to kill before my buddy and I were gonna grab dinner, so I locked myself in my office, organized my desk, put away some stacks of cards that had been sitting on my floor for over a month, scanned some cards, and opened up a pair of PWE's from fellow bloggersAdam @ Cardboard Clubhouse and Jim @ Cards As I See Them.

I received Adam's PWE either earlier in the week... or possibly the week before.  One of the things about having a lot of stuff on my mind is that I tend to lose track of time.  I didn't want to do a rush job on it, so I set it aside until things settled down.

The first card I noticed was this 1973 Topps card of Catfish Hunter:


Obviously, I appreciate any vintage card of Catfish where he's photographed at the Oakland Coliseum.  However it's the photo of him hanging with two dogs that caught my eye.  Although I don't own one myself, I'm a huge fan of our four legged friends.


Last weekend, I went to see Superpower Dogs at the San Jose Tech Museum's IMAX Theater and was really blown away at how loyal and intelligent man's best friend is.

Anyways... getting back to the Catfish that Adam sent:


I learned how Mr. Hunter acquired his nickname.

Next up was this 1982 Donruss card of Billy Martin:


I love this card!  It's a piece of my childhood and captures Billy doing what he did best:  argue with umpires.

The third card that stood out was this 2017 BBM card of Taisuke Yamaoka:


I have no idea who this guy is, but he shares the last name of one of my closest friends.  As soon as I saw this card, I thought of her and my nieces... which immediately made me smile.

In addition to these three cards, he also sent me these:


Thank you AdamSorry it took me so long to open it up.  It helped me take my mind off of things yesterday, which is very much appreciated.


Next up was a three card PWE from Mr. GCRL.  Inside was a card on my Most Wanted List, but let's see the other two cards first:


I'm a huge fan of the 2008 Topps card design and back when this card was released, I gotta imagine this was a pretty popular card since Iwamura and the Tampa Bay Rays were headed to the World Series that year.

The Ichiro is from his 2001 MLB rookie season.  This insert card is from an Ichiro tribute set that came from a special 3 card pack which was inserted into 2001 Upper Deck Rookie Update boxes.  I now own four of the fifty-one different cards in the set.

Last, but certainly not least is this card...

1964 Topps #550

Back in September of 2016, I added this tribute card of Ken Hubbs to my Most Wanted List after I wrote a post on tribute cards dedicated to athletes that passed away during their playing careers.  This Hubbs represents one of the earliest In Memoriam cards that I know of.


The back of the card summarizes the story of the plane crash that took Hubbs' life back on February 15th, 1964.  Other than this baseball card, I didn't know much about the Chicago Cubs' second baseman.  But I was bummed out when I discovered that he was only twenty-two years old when he died.  That's so young and very sad.

Anyways... I don't want to end this post on a sad note.  I'm very thankful that my mother had the opportunity to spend eighty-four long years with friends and family.  I'm also very lucky to have spent forty-six of those years with her.

I'm also truly grateful for both of these very generous PWE's.  Thank you Adam and Jim!  Baseball card therapy might just be the best thing for me outside of spending quality time with family and friends.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

11 comments:

SumoMenkoMan said...

Awesome care package for sure and some really unique cards! I have never heard of the In Memoriam cards until now.

Johnnys Trading Spot said...

"Sports Card Therapy Session" does have a ring to it..... Quick copy right it..

Nick said...

I've lost count of the number of times I've used baseball cards as therapy. Something about sorting and organizing them soothes the soul.

bbcardz said...

Time heals all/most wounds = It's a very gradual adjustment process

But of course you know that. We all go through that unpleasantness at one time or another. But it's good to know that people are there for you. btw, awesome cards!

Billy Kingsley said...

After I lost my dad in 2002 collecting cards was pretty much the only thing that brought me happiness. At least a third of my collection was collected between 2002-04, when I started to feel burned out.

acrackedbat said...

spot on Fui! Sorting is relaxing, even comforting to me. I often think it's the "control" factor. I am in charge, putting everything in its proper place. One day at a time - one card at a time - friend.

CaptKirk42 said...

I tend to agree with the assessment of time healing some wounds. However sad to say the wound of losing loved ones to death does not heal completely. I think it is more you get used to the loss. For me my dad died in 1990 of a heart attack. My mom died in 2007 circulation problems and ultimately a blood clot in the lungs. Most days I get along fine, but on occasion there are days when thinking about them not being here puts me in a big bout of depression. What others have said about cards being a form of therapy is spot on. Now if we (you and your readers) were stamp collectors, gardeners, scrapbookers, crocheters or whatnots those hobbies/pasttimes would be our therapy I believe. I also believe that losing ones mother is more difficult than ones father, and the reason is the 9 months of shared existence. We developed inside our mothers there is some kind of connection there even if it is just some psychological imagination of a connection.

Big Tone said...

Hobbies definitely help in dealing with bouts of feeling down.It got scary for me once when not even the hobbie was doing It.Luckily I got through It but It's tough.Hang In there Fuji :)

Collecting Cutch said...

Cool cards, but the way you reflect on life is so inspiring. Thank you for sharing so much about yourself in all your posts. Keep staying positive buddy!

Sean said...

This is a bit late (I was away from blogging for a few weeks and just got back), but I am so sorry for your loss. Its good that collecting (and blogging) help us get through terrible losses like that!

Fuji said...

sumomenkoman - i think the first one i came across was the bart giamatti card from the 90t set. the others i learned about from fellow bloggers

johnnys trading card spot - maybe i'll change my blog's name to it ;)

nick - lol. sorting and organizing can definitely be relaxing... but it can also be stressful depending on the situation

bbcardz - yeah. in this case, it has got a little easier with each passing day. i think it'll hit me again in a few weeks when we have my mom's service

billy kingsley - sorry to hear about your father billy. i'm counting on cards, friends, and family to get me through this tough time

julie owens - right on. one day at a time indeed.

captkirk - well put kirk. i was thinking that myself. while things have gotten easier with time, i know there'll be times when she'll be heavy on my mind/heart. as for the mom thing... you could be right. i know i was closer to her for one reason or another, but the last few weeks my dad and i have really bonded. it's one of the silver linings... i guess.

big tone - thanks. i know there'll be tough times. i'm very fortunate to have a strong support system in my life.

collecting cutch - lol. the reason i started this blog was to use it as a diary of sorts. hopefully i'm not annoying my readers about talking about my mom so much, but it is what it is.

sean - thanks sean. everyone's kind words have helped. it's nice knowing that even my readers are a part of my support system.