Seriously... I'm not a big wrestling fan... anymore!

Most of my friends and family always ask me, why did you become a teacher if you're always going to teach summer school. It used to be for the money. Then, I did it to keep me from being bored and lazy. Well, today I realized the real reason.

It goes back to last Thursday, my last day of instruction at my summer school. The whole day, I couldn't wait to get home and just relax. Next thing I know, I'm checking email and I notice that Pittsburgh Sports Wholesale sent out their weekly specials.

Like a little kid, who has no self control... I notice that they're selling cases of 2008 Tri Star TNA Impact for under $150 and each case has 30 guaranteed autographs. So, I head over to TNA's website to look at the checklist and a bunch of wrestlers I watched years ago catch my eyes. I start thinking... if I buy this case, I'm going to pull autographs of Sting, Kurt Angle, Kevin Nash, Booker T, Scott Steiner, and Jeff Jarrett. Seriously... I have no idea what I was thinking... but I remember calculating the odds and figuring that I'd get most if not all of these guys... and all for around $150.

Next think I know, I'm adding three boxes of 2008 Tri Star TNA Cross the Line boxes and clicking "check out". One week later, it has arrived at my doorstep and I'm stoked. No joke, I was like a kid at a candy store. Last night, I was sitting in my office with 33 boxes of wrestling card surrounding me and I was on cloud nine.

Before I describe what I pulled... let me give you a description of the box breakdown. Each Cross the Line box contains one pack and each pack contains 25 cards. One of those cards is guaranteed to be an autograph. The TNA Impact boxes are similar, but instead of 25 cards they contain 35 cards per pack. Same thing, each box/pack is guaranteed one autograph.

Now, let's get things started. I figure I'd open the three boxes of Cross the Line first and save the case for later. Since I'm not a big fan of wrestling... remember me saying this because I'll say it again later... I don't care about the base or inserts. My only concern are the autographs and here's who I pulled: Karen Angle (ex-wife of Kurt Angle, now engaged to Jeff Jarrett), Alex Shelley (never heard of him), and Lauren (never heard of her, but at least she's hot). First thoughts... nothing special... but who cares. These were the three boxes I bought to put me over the $150 mark, so I could get free shipping.

Next up... 30 boxes of TNA Impact. I'll make this sweet and simple. 30 minutes later, my office is a disaster with cardboard, styrofoam, and wrappers all over the place. Sitting in the middle of the mess is me and the results of my impulse buying. 30 autographs. No Sting. No Booker T. No Kurt Angle. No Scott Steiner. Out of the 30 autographs, I recognized only 4 names.

I pulled two Don West autographs (one of my hobby idols), two Christy Hemme autographs, two Jeff Jarrett autographs, and three Kevin Nash autographs. The rest are a bunch of guys and girls I've never heard of (but at least a couple of the girls are cute).

How do I feel about this case break? Well, at first I was disappointed. I really, really, really, really wanted an autograph of Sting (I think I'll end up buying one if I can find it for the right price). However, I'm going to use this experience as a life lesson. Hopefully, I'll remember this the next time I'm about to buy something I don't really want/need. Remember, I'm not really a wrestling fan. Those days are in the past and I should have thought about that before I clicked "check out".

The good thing is I've added a couple of autographs to my PC. I'm keeping a Nash, a Jarrett, and a few of the ladies autographs for myself. The rest will be added to my newly created wrestling tradelist. Maybe I can end up trading these to a wrestling fan for some Packer or Lakers autographs I need.

So to everyone who wants to know why I teach summer school every year... It's because if I'm not busy teaching lessons, I end up buying crap that I don't need off of the internet. Thank goodness, I need to report back in 10 days. Hopefully, I'll be able to show enough self-discipline and keep myself from making any additional impulse buys.

I love the 80's (Baseball Edition) #2 - Dale Murphy

When I was growing up, most of my buddies loved Dale Murphy. But, I couldn't stand him. It's pretty simple. He was one of the best in the game and he didn't play for the A's or Padres. Throw in the fact that I tend to swim upstream when everyone else goes with the flow and there you have it. I hated Dale Murphy.

Things changed though in the 90's when Murphy decided to hang up his cleats. I was able to look at his lifetime stats and appreciate what he brought to the game. Simply put... I was shocked by the numbers.

Statistically, he dominated the 80's. During that decade he was in the top ten in almost every single batting category except: batting average, stolen bases, and on-base percentage. Here's a breakdown of where he ranked amongst his peers:

Home Runs - 308 (2nd - Mike Schmidt had 313 during the 80's)

Runs - 938 (4th)

Hits - 1,553 (5th)

RBIs - 929 (2nd - Eddie Murray had 996)

Slugging % - .491 (10th)

These numbers landed him on the National League all-star team 7 times. He also won back to back MVP awards in 1982 & 1983 and won 4 consecutive Silver Slugger awards (from 1982 to 1985).

He may have been known as a hitter, but Murphy could field too. He won 5 consecutive Golden Glove awards.

Off the field, he's always had a reputation of being a positive role model for people. He won the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award in 1985 for his character and integrity both on and off of the field. In 1988, he won the Roberto Clemente award which is given annually to a MLB player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement, and the individual's contribution to his team."

One of coolest stories about Mr. Murphy was published in a 1983 Sports Illustrated article. The article mentions a story about how he went into the stand to visit Elizabeth Smith, a 6 year old girl who lost her hands and a leg after she stepped on a power line. After giving the girl a cap and shirt, the girl's nurse asked if he could hit a homerun for her (reminiscent of Babe Ruth). He ended up hitting two homeruns that day.

In 1993 Dale Murphy officially retired from baseball. During his career, he played for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Colorado Rockies, and the Atlanta Braves. In 1994, the Atlanta Braves honored him by retiring his #3 jersey number.

Mr. Murphy may never be my favorite player, but he's another reason... I love the 80's.

Redemption Card Experience #1: Aaron Rodgers/A.J. Hawk Dual Auto

Redemption cards... There are some people who actually enjoy the thrill of the "wait", however most people probably prefer to pull the actual card.

Personally, I'm a little bit of both. Of course, I'd love to have the card right in my hands immediately after pulling it from a pack. However, I understand (or maybe have accepted the fact) that redemption cards are here to stay and choose to make the best out of a situation.

So, when I received this Aaron Rodgers/A.J. Hawk dual autograph redemption card from a custom mystery pack on YouTube... I was pumped. I didn't have the actual autographs in my possession, but in my mind... autographs of two of my favorite current players would be worth the wait.

I immediately redeemed the card (in November 2009) and it told me they were waiting for one (or both) of the athletes to finish signing the card. And so the waiting began.

After 6 months, I actually forgot about the redemption until someone on Sports Card Forum contacted me to see if I ever received the card. I immediately called and they told me that Rodgers never sent in his autographs. Upper Deck asked me to send in a replacement request. In the request, they asked for a list of players who I deemed acceptable as a replacement. I knew it was a longshot, but I requested Bart Starr or Brett Favre, along with a bunch of other Packer legends.

Here's what I received:

Card #1: Dual Auto of Brian Cushing & Rey Maualuga

Card #2: A.J. Hawk Patch Autograph

Now, I know this is debatable... but I personally wasn't happy with the replacement. Sure, the Hawk is sweet and I'm pumped to have it. However the Cushing/Maualuga dual just didn't do it for me. I would have preferred to have a quarterback as a replacement.

So I called it in and pleaded my case, which was simply... Can I trade in the defensive dual auto for a single autograph of a quarterback?

Long story short, Upper Deck told me to keep the dual autograph and that they'd send me a bonus autograph guaranteed to be a QB. Well, on Saturday the card arrived.

Bonus Card: Eli Manning Autograph

Personally, I'd rather have an Aaron Rodgers' autograph over all three of these cards. But, I'm not complaining. The Hawk autographed patch went into my PC the day it arrived at my house. The Cushing/Maualuga dual autograph should be decent trade bait to USC collectors. And the Eli Manning... well... it's the first Eli autograph I've held, so it too will be entering my PC.

Thank you Upper Deck for your generosity and understanding.

Domo Arigato: G_Moses @ The Basketball Card Blog

The Basketball Card Blog is one of the best blogs in the blogworld. It contains everything from current hobby news to updates on his Murad basketball set. There are only a handful of blogs that I check on a daily basis and this is one of them.

Recently he celebrated his 300th post by busting a box of 09/10 Panini Court Kings. He decided to give away all of the cards from the break (except for a sweet Alonzo Mourning autographed box topper, which he's planning on having a contest for) to readers of his blog.

I was lucky enough to receive these three beauties:

Kevin Love base card #5 (#'d 162/450)

Joakim Noah base card #82 (#'d 065/450)

Eric Maynor autographed rookie card #149 (#'d 434/649)

So head over to The Basketball Card Blog and check it out. It'll definitely be worth your while. And thank you G_Moses for the awesome card and congratulations on reaching your 300th post.

Play at the Plate Contest

Are you interested in winning a free blaster box of 2010 Allen & Ginter? If so, head over to Play at the Plate's blog. He just posted his 500th post and is celebrating by holding a contest. The contest is simple and involves you guessing which autographs he owns from the 1999 SP Signature baseball set. So head on over there right now! He posts some really interesting articles on baseball cards. Best of luck!