Plenty of Fun & Generosity

When it rains... it pours.

I received three more packages in the past seven days.  This week's theme?  Giveaways.

Package #1:  Gavin's 4 Year Anniversary Celebration

Last month, Gavin celebrated four years of blogging by hosting a white elephant themed giveaway and I was one of fifteen lucky participants.  I chose the 4th prize with the 6th pick and was awarded with a nice stack of vintage baseball cards:

I was excited when I drew this prize package, but figured it would get stolen at some point.  In the end... the Cardboard Gods were looking down upon me and I walked away with several new cards for my vintage binder.

Gavin didn't stop there... he also sent a nice stack of Steve Carltons:

This is quite possible the single largest contribution to my Lefty collection.  I was able to add ten new cards to my insert, parallel, and oddball binder.

If that weren't enough... he also included a stack of Oakland Athletics:

I was blinded by the shine coming off of these cards.  I'm just not sure Sonny and Sean will be around in Oakland much longer.  Either way... all of these cards are staying here in my collection.

Package #2:  Top 10 Cards Contest

At the end of April, Collecting Cutch held an interactive contest where he asked bloggers to show off ten favorite cards of their favorite player.  Of course... I dedicated my post to Tony Gwynn.

The grand prize was a beautiful Craig Biggio Topps Dynasty autograph, which was won by Raz over at The Raz Card Blog.  However... Brian hooked up anyone who participated in the contest with a nice consolation prize package.

I was awarded a stack of Oakland Athletics that included this super thick Sweet Spot Signature of Dan Haren:

Gold ink with gold stitches.  Wow... that's a beautiful card.  There was also my very first Jemile Weeks relic:

I'm a big fan of autographs and memorabilia cards... but I'm an even bigger fan cards featuring Kurt Suzuki.  Brian also included this Gypsy Queen mini parallel of my favorite Japanese American catcher:

Rounding out the package was my very first Andrew McCutchen police issue card:

I love me some regional oddball issues... especially when they feature MLB logos.

Package #3:  Ricky Russo

The last package isn't from a blogger.  It's from a YouTuber.  I'm sure some of you are already subscribed to his videos.  However if you aren't, I highly recommend you check him out.

Ricky takes box busting to the next level.  I've never seen anyone rip open as many sports card boxes.  And I'm not talking about low end stuff.  He opens everything.

I kinda live vicariously through his videos, because there's no way I'd ever be able to afford some of the stuff he opens.  Plus he entertains his viewers by talking to us through his videos while he's opening packs.

And as an added bonus... he's one of the most generous collectors around.  He loves hooking up people who comment on his videos with cards.  This week, I received this Hershiser card in the mail:

One more thing you should know about Ricky is... don't call him Rickey.

Thank you Gavin, Brian, and Ricky!  All three of your packages are much appreciated.  Gavin and Brian... you'll be receiving a thank you package one of these days.  As for you Mr. Russo... let me know when you're coming out to the Bay Area.  The first sake bomb is on me.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

King of the North

Anyone else looking forward to the Season 7 Game of Thrones premiere?  It's been over a year since we saw Daenerys and her dragons depart for Westeros.  But this post isn't about that.  It's my next submission to Tony's 30 Day Baseball Card Challenge.

The card I'm using for the 18th Challenge is part of my COMC order, which hasn't arrived yet, so I'm leapfrogging it.  Today I'm going to tackle the 19th Challenge: A favorite card from a country other than the United States.

I've been looking forward to writing this post since I first saw the list of challenges, because I have a whole collection dedicated to Japanese baseball cards.  I even had a card already picked out... but after thinking about it... I've already written about it twice.

So I decided to go in a different direction.  Instead of heading west across the Pacific... I went north of the border into Canada.

Since I returned to the hobby in 2008, I've developed a deep appreciation for vintage O-Pee-Chee baseball cards.  The main reason is because they're something different and much less abundant than their sister company to the south.

My favorite O-Pee-Chee cards to chase are the rookie cards, which if you're interested... you can read about here.

However today... I wanted to show off my 1983 O-Pee-Chee card of The Stolen Base King:

The 1983 Topps card design has always been one of my favorites... and back then Rickey was my favorite player.

The card is almost identical on the front with two exceptions:

#1:  The Topps logo has been replaced with O-Pee-Chee.

#2:  The O-Pee-Chee added Voltigeur next to Rickey's position.

On the back, you'll immediately notice the lighter colored card stock that is often associated with O-Pee-Chee baseball cards.  In addition to that, most of the text has been written in both English and French.

Due to the additional text, they were forced to reduce the size of the text and one of the 1982 highlights was edited out.  If you look closely at the bottom you'll also notice in the fine print that this card was printed in Canada, while the Topps version was printed in the U.S.A.

Well there you have it.  One of my favorite cards that wasn't produced here in the states.  What about you...

Are you a fan O-Pee-Chee baseball cards?  Do have a preference between the two sister companies?

I hope you all are enjoying your week.  The past week or so, I've been very busy trying to binge watch the first six seasons of Game of Thrones in hopes of being ready for Sunday night's premiere.

Happy Thursday and sayonara!

Do Not Touch or Smell!

Graded cards.  Some people like them.  Most people don't.  Well... at least according to the people who commented on my "graded card" post six years ago.

I was somewhere in the middle back then and I'm somewhere in the middle right now.

When it comes to vintage... especially my 1956 Topps hall of famers... I prefer them to be slabbed.  I know... I know.  The plastic case prevents me from touching and smelling my sixty-one year old piece of cardboard.  However three things ultimately swayed me to turn to the dark side:

#1:  Peace of Mind (in regards to authenticity and alterations)

#2:  Protection

#3:  Resale Value

Before I'm bombarded with hate... let me assure you that I have no immediate plans to sell any cards... especially this specific collection.  But if I ever need (or want) to, I personally feel it's easier to sell a graded vintage card than a non-graded one.  And based on my research and bidding history... I feel that they've held their value over time better than most of the stuff I purchase.

With that being said... let me introduce one of my latest additions to my 1956 Topps Cooperstown collection:

I was hoping to win this auction for less than $100, but four bids within the last minute was the difference between $86.86 and the my high bid of $104.  Add an additional $4 for shipping and I walked away spending $108.

Remember the shopping spree that took place back in early June to help me cope with my best friend moving to Oregon?  Well this purchase was part of it.

Sure it's a lot of money to spend on a single card... but I could have easily spent that much at a nice steak house or on a hobby box of this year's Archives baseball.  In hindsight... I'd take the Mays over either of those things.

What about you?  Given the choice between a 1956 Topps Willie Mays, a $108 gift card to a steakhouse of your choice, or a hobby box of 2017 Topps Archives (you're required to bust)...

Which one would you choose?

I have really wanted this card for awhile now... and it's nice to cross it off My Most Wanted list.  The Koufax from this set has replaced Mays... however due to a stricter hobby budget... it's more likely I'll target the Whitey Ford or Yogi Berra next.

Happy Tuesday and sayonara!

The Other Hobby

The biggest Japanese festival in San Jose is the annual Obon festival.  Traditionally it's a time of the year when people celebrate and honor their ancestors.  The festival takes place in the heart of San Jose's Japantown.  People can go and enjoy the dancing, delicious food, carnival games, bingo, taiko drumming, and temple tours with friends and family members.

I've been going to this festival for as long as I can remember.  I even volunteered at the Obon a couple of years when I was a Boy Scout and a few years in the bingo booth as an adult.

It takes place this weekend... and unfortunately... it's way too hot to go.

So today... I'm hanging out and binge watching Game of Thrones, and there's a chance I'll build this:

I've actually built a few Star Wars Lego sets over the past few months.

It's sort of my other hobby.  At first I thought it would be cool to display some of the more popular ships from the Star Wars universe in my office or classroom.

But I quickly discovered it had a hidden benefit that's actually addictive.  It has a therapeutic effect that makes me relax and helps me take my mind off of things when I'm stressed out.

The first ship I built was Yoda's Jedi starfighter, which I wrote about here back in March.

Lego Set: 75168 Yoda's Jedi Starfighter
Year: 2017

# of Pieces: 262

Build Time: 60-70 Minutes

Lego Set: 75173 Luke's Landspeeder
Year: 2017

# of Pieces: 149

Build Time: 50 Minutes

Luke's landspeeder was my 2nd build.  I purchased this set when I bought Yoda's ship, but waited over a month to build it.  After it was finished, I was really impressed with the design.  It reminded me of the original Kenner landspeeder from my childhood.

After I built this set, I decided to target Anakin and Obiwan's Jedi interceptors, because I felt that they'd look cool next to the Yoda starfighter.  Unfortunately both of these sets are retired, which means the prices went up.

However patience and eBay allowed me to grab each of them for under $30 shipped.

Lego Set: 75135 Obi-Wan's Jedi Interceptor
Year: 2016

# of Pieces: 215

Build Time: 60-70 Minutes

Out of the two, this was easier to find and was a little more affordable than the Anakin.  I was able to find a brand new one for $16.45 (+ $10.55 shipping).

Lego Set: 75038 Jedi Interceptor
Year: 2014

# of Pieces: 223

Build Time: 60-70 Minutes

I spent awhile looking for a reasonably priced set on eBay, but never found one sell for under $35 shipped.  I eventually settled on a "used" set.  I took a chance and hoped it was in decent condition and it paid off.

Lego Set: 75153 AT-ST Walker
Year: 2016

# of Pieces: 449

Build Time: 90-100 Minutes

I've always been a big fan of the AT-ST, so when Toys R Us had a sale on some of their Star Wars Lego sets back in April and this one was included, I had to grab it.  At that point in time, this was the most challenging set I'd built.

After this set, I took a couple of months off from building.  However I did buy a few items from Lego.com during their Star Wars Day celebration and received this R2-D2 set for free:

Being the collector that I am... I ended up keeping mine sealed.  However my buddy gave me one of his as an early birthday present.  Last weekend, I decided to put it together.

Lego Set: 30611 R2-D2 Promotional Giveaway
Year: 2017

# of Pieces: 70

Build Time: 20 Minutes

For being a giveaway item, this set is pretty sweet.  I'd recommend grabbing one for any R2-D2 fans out there.

Lego Set: 75172 Y-Wing Starfighter
Year: 2017

# of Pieces: 691

Build Time: 135 Minutes

Oh man.  I'm sure this is a simple set to veteran Lego enthusiasts, but I struggled a lot with this build.  But in the end, it's truly a great looking ship.  This was one of the sets I purchased from Lego.com during their Star Wars Day celebration sale.

I still have two more sets waiting for me to build:

If things go as planned, I should be building the Droid Escape Pod right around the same time this post is published.

In the meantime...

What are some of your hobbies outside of collecting cards?

I hope all of you are enjoying your weekend.

Happy Sunday and sayonara!