The COOLEST Advent Calendar Ever!

Our hobby community is pretty darn special.  All you have to do is read a few blog posts or watch some YouTube videos to witness just how remarkably generous collectors are to each other.  I find it even more fascinating that we often sent these care packages to each other knowing there's a good chance we'll never even meet the recipient in person.

But every now and then, I'll have the pleasure of meeting a fellow blogger in person.  One of these guys is Ryan (a.k.a. SumoMenkoMan) over at Japanese Sumo Wrestling Cards and Menko.  We haven't hung out in person since the start of COVID, but that will hopefully change sooner than later.  In the meantime, we keep in touch through text messages.

A few weeks ago, he let me know about a box he was sending my way and explained that this care package was a little different.  There were twenty-five mini packages inside designed to be opened one per day during the first twenty-five days in December.  In other words... a sports card advent calendar.  How cool is that?

Unfortunately... the first few weeks of December were crazy busy and I didn't get around to opening the box up until a few days ago.  Without spoiling the surprise, let's just say I was blown away by the generosity and creativity of this care package.

Let's kick things off with the note that was sitting on top...

In the digital age we live in... I truly treasure hand written notes like this one.

Now let's start tearing into those PWE's.  Since it's probably hard to see what he wrote on each of the envelopes, I summarized it...

Day #1: A Little Ho-Ho-Ho to Kick Off December

2016 Panini Black Friday #SC

I'll happily add a new card to my Santa Claus PC.

Day #2:  Close Enough to Your Birthday

Twenty-six days after my 1st birthday, Nolan Ryan set the single season strikeout record which still stands today.

Day #3:  From One Fuji to Another

A New Mount Fuji Collectible = Pure Awesomeness

Day #4:  Old-School Prospecting

1988 Score #640

Score sure made Tony's little brother sound like a future star on the back of his rookie card.  Unfortunately anyone who hoarded copies of this card won't be getting rich off his career anytime soon.

Day #5:  Ultra Pro Goodie... Protect Your Cards

You can never have enough protection.  Never.

Day #6:  New School Prospecting

2021 Leaf National VIP #VIP1

Pretty sure your future is bright if you're a YouTube sensation named Blaze, you're 19 years old, and you already have a trading card.

Day #7:  We Gotta Get You to Chicago...

2021 Leaf National VIP #VIP2

Blaze might have a cooler name, but I'm guessing Spencer has a brighter future.

Day #8:  Time to Read & Relax

These are probably the coolest looking bookmarks I've ever seen.  It's hard to tell from the scans, but these colorful bookmarks depicting kabuki actors are printed on "refractorish" paper stock.

Day #9:  Rare Air & Big Cards

2020 UD Goodwin Champions NSCC 5x7 #NSCC-1

Not often I receive Michael Jordan cards in care packages... especially oversized ones.  And a National Sports Card Convention exclusive to boot.

Day #10:  Higher Learning According to Rickey

1990 Donruss Learning Series #7

I vaguely remember seeing one of these Learning Series cards on someone's blog.  I'm very happy to add this to the Rickey binder.  This acquisition has also opened my eyes to a Tony Gwynn card missing from my collection.

Day #11:  He's Always Watching...

1991 Kicks #98

The early 90's were the heart of the Junk Wax Era... but it can also be considered the Smorgasbord Era because there was a trading card set made for just about any topic you could think of.

This card was part of a karate set... and it's super unique.  I've never seen this card before, because if I had... I would have remembered it.

Day #12:  Amazing... Enough Said.

2019 BBM Amazing! #A08

Yeah.

Simply speechless.

Day #13:  Not Sure What's In This...

2021 Panini The National Pack

This appears to be a VIP pack from the 2021 National.  Ryan wasn't sure what was inside, so here are the contents:

I love show exclusive stuff and can appreciate multi-sport checklists.  It'll be interesting to see which of these athletes eventually become superstars.

Day #14:  Just Because...

1958 Australian Stamp?

No explanation necessary.  I will happily add this to my growing collection of stamps.

Day #15:  Bet You Don't Have One of These...

1958 Japanese Stamp?

You're right, Ryan.  Never seen this stamp or anything like it before.  And I scoured the internet and couldn't find out anything about it either.  One thing is certain... it's awesome!

Day #16:  Japanese Women's Pro Wrestling Rocks!!!!

2020 BBM True Heart #005

She's straight out of a Japanese horror film and going straight into my Japanese PC.

Day #17:  Holder Value > Card Value

2018 Bowman Draft Chrome Sky Blue Refractor #BDC-49 (#'d 213/402)

I guess Hiura's card values have softened since he's struggled the past two seasons... but I haven't given up on him yet.

I'd much rather have this shiny refractor than ten brand new magnetics.

Day #18:  Let 'er Rip!

2015 CPBL Pack

Sorry Ryan.  I didn't have it in me to rip open this very unique pack.  It's headed into my unopened pack collection.

Day #19:  Good Luck.

2021 Topps Series 1 Pack

This pack on the other hand was meant to be busted.  Inside was this low numbered parallel:

2021 Topps Mother's Day Pink #160 (#'d 03/50)

I'm very happy with this pull... even if I know little to nothing about the guy featured on this card.

Day #20:  Pack Fresh!!

2021 Topps Series 2 Pack

Very cool to see Tatis Jr. on the front of this pack.  Here are the two key cards I pulled from it:

2021 Topps #357

2021 Topps DH Debuts #DHD-10

Pretty sure this is my first Darvish card with him featured with the Padres.  And I'm not the biggest fan of the Braun, but I scanned it for those who like current Topps inserts.

Day #21:  Almost There...

2021 Topps Update Pack

Rounding out the unopened packs of Topps is this Update series pack.  I was happy to pull a shiny parallel of a guy I've actually heard of:

2021 Topps Update Rainbow Foil #US265

2021 Topps Update Platinum Players Die-Cut #PDC-60

Cheesy or not... I won't complain about adding another hall of famer to my insert binder.

Day #22:  She's Such a Badass!

2021 Topps WWE Pink Women's Division Roster Auto #A-AS (#'d 011/150)

Yes she is... and so is this card.  I just hope the WWE starts utilizing her on a regular basis.  She's the only reason I have any interest in the sport.

Day #23:  A Little OC, But I Had to Rescue It for You!

1983 Fleer #360

Nice.  Off-centered or not, I will rescue any and every Tony Gwynn rookie card in existence.  This card is awesome!

Day #24:  One of the Greatest!!!

1991 Star Pics #65

For most of the 90's and 2000's... Brett Favre held the title of being my favorite NFL player.  These days he still ranks in the Top 3 of all-time.

Day #25:  The Grand Finale

I gotta admit, I caught a glimpse of what was under the wrapping paper as I pulled it from the shipping box.  That being said, I was super excited to see this:

1996 Topps Baseball Set

I totally wanted one of these sets back when they were first released twenty-five years ago.  Then last weekend, I was reminded of this cool product on Pepino Man's YouTube video.  And a few days later, I had these four mini Mickey Mantle cereal boxes sitting in front of me.  It's a Sports Card Christmas Miracle!

Hey Ryan... thank you so much for this sports card advent calendar.  The thought and creativity you put into this Christmas present will forever be appreciated and never forgotten.  Not only did you add some fantastic cards to my collection... it also provided me with several hours of entertainment.

My only regret is not opening this package back on December 1st... and slowly revealing the presents as originally intended.  Regardless... this has to be one of the coolest ideas I've ever seen in regards to our hobby.

Hopefully this also provided entertainment for anyone who took the time to read this post as well.

Merry Christmas everyone!  Happy Saturday and sayonara!

People Come and Go

People come and go.  I learned that at a very young age when one of my best friends moved away.  It sucked.  That happened right around the time when Rickey Henderson was traded to the New York Yankees.  That sucked too.  In 6th grade, my teacher left on maternity leave at the end of the year and we were stuck with a sub.  That  wasn't as bad as saying goodbye to Rickey... but it sucked too.

Over the years... family member, friends, co-workers, students, principals, Starbucks baristas, flea market vendors, favorite players, and just about every other category of people in my life has seen a fair share of people coming and going.  That's just the way it is.

A few months ago, Jeremy over at Topps Cards That Never Were announced that he was leaving the hobby.  People come and go within our hobby all the time.  I accept that.  But that doesn't change the fact that he'll be missed on the blogosphere.

I'm happy for him, because he left on his own terms and it sounds like he'll be happier making this change in his life.  That's what really matters.

Two days after his farewell post, I received a PWE from him in the mail.  Inside it contained a thoughtful, handwritten note that was much appreciated as well as these three Oakland A's cards:

2021 Topps Royal Blue Walmart #46

2020 Topps Gold #474 (#'d 1360/2020)

Being an A's fan, I've had more opportunities than the average sports fan to get used to people coming and going.  Jesus Luzardo was shipped off to Miami in July, while Canha recently signed a deal with the Mets.

2020 Stadium Club Chrome Wave Refractor #240

Puk is still representing the Green & Gold... for now.  However I'm not holding my breathe.  It wouldn't surprise me if he's gone within a year or two.

1991 Allan Keyes' Sports Card Price Guide Prototype #P3

People come and go all the time.  Heck... even the all-time strikeout king left New York, Anaheim, and Houston to wrap up his career and retire in Arlington.

I realize that some of my posts can be long-winded, which is why I appreciate every fellow collector and blogger who has taken the time to read these posts.  Jeremy was one of those people.  Which is why he knew how much I appreciate magazine cards and promos.

This card combines both of those interests.

I'm assuming, he'll never read this thank you post... but just in case he does...

Thank you Jeremy.  

I truly appreciate you taking the time to support this blog.  I know I enjoyed reading yours... and exchanging care packages with you over the years.  Hope things are going well with you and your family.

As for me... I know I've been away from the blogosphere myself.  But I assure you, I am not walking away from the hobby.  In fact, I've actually been spending a lot of my free time sorting cards, organizing my collection, and cleaning out my garage (where I store part of my collection).  In fact... that project is now officially in the rearview window.

Does this mean, I'll be returning to the keyboard on a regular basis?  Probably not.  The past two days I've enjoyed opening up Blogger, reading some recent blog posts, and leaving comments.  This will hopefully continue into the new year.

But the days of me writing three or four posts a week are in the past.  I'm not going to say that routine won't re-enter my life at some point, but right now I'll be content with one post a week.

Today... I'm spending the day opening up care packages that date all the way back to October.  Plus there were some cards I acquired earlier in the year that I'd like to share with you.

2017 Topps Allen & Ginter Box Topper #BL-CS

I know box toppers can be annoying to some collectors due to storage issues, but not me.  I'm always willing to adopt any unwanted oversized cards.  This one arrived in my mailbox over the summer.  It was sent to me by Reader X and there were plenty of other goodies in his care package, so I have no shortage of writing material.  I figured Seager ties into this post nicely... since he recently bid farewell to the city of Los Angeles and Dodger fans around the world... to hang out and play in Arlington.

Like I said... people come and go.

Happy holidays everyone!  Thanks again Jeremy and Reader X for providing the cards seen in this post.

Happy Wednesday and sayonara!