The State of the Collection or How to Subcategorize a Cards Purchase in Detail

Gather 'round the ring of fire, boys and girls. It's time to have a heart-to-heart, a soul-to-soul if you will. This tale will astound and confound you. And then it will turn around and make complete sense.

I am part of a contingent of folk that are called collectors.  In this internet age, it's a very simple process of see card, click on card, buy card.  This is especially true when a some promotion is occurring like free shipping or dehydrated cookies with every purchase or event tickets to go wild turkey riding (may or may not be a real thing).

The smattering of cards I;m about to present represent some of the many different directions that I have been pursuing in my collection over the past 12-18 months.  The only thing that they have in common is that they are all cards of the collectible variety.

Mike Schmidt 2012 Gypsy Queen Club: What compels us to pick up multiple cards of the same player if it's a different color, adds a border, changes size, or has a photo variation. As you can see, I went all in on the Mike Schmidt contingent.  This satisfies multiple levels of the Phillie collector in me: Schmidts, 2012 Phillies, Phillies minis.....triple check.

2012 Topps Gold Rush Redemptions: Typically, from each Topps flagship set, I choose one insert set to collect. When I received my gold rush redemption pack in the mail, I was really struck by the design of this one.  It is overwhelmingly gold and best represented that year's Topps edition for me.  So, I went about collecting the 50 card set.....and then, curses!  There's a second series set, and I am now missing 6 cards from there....and they're all big names: Trout, Harper, Darvish,etc....I think I need some help.

Junk Wax Era Phillies Inserts: I've begun filling in those insert cards of the Phillies that I could never pull from a pack as a kid. Witness the 1992 Fleer Team Leaders Dykstra...holla back.  Snagging the 1993 Team Pinnacle with Daulton and Pudge (I-Rod) was also a nice find.  I always wanted a Team Pinnacle card, and now I have one; 1:90 packs was a steep pull in '93.

2011 Phillies Crazy Collection:  Yes, that is the official name of this particular collection segment.  I went hardcore after Phillies from 2011 sets, even more than I normally do.  I have obtained an entire binder worth of cards including parallel sets and every base card from every issue released by Topps.  Let's see how many cards with the same photo I could get.....base Topps, base Topps diamond factory set, Topps Opening Day, Topps Chrome, Topps Chrome refractor, Diamond anniversary parallel, Cognac parallel (liquorfractor)....that's 7 cards of many Phillies from the flagship set with the same image.  I think I need counseling. Only 19 more cards to go (or 24 if you count those impossible to find mini variation cards from 2011 Gypsy Queen) for this monstrosity of a collection. It will be a great story one day.....as I end up wearing goggles staring blankly at a painting of a red hat.

1994 Flair Inserts: As a side project, I am trying to put together the 1994 Flair master set.  There are no parallels, and I have both A-Rod rookies in my possession (both pulled from packs, score).  I was really thrilled to get these hot glove cards.  Remember when die-cuts were all the rage with many shapes and interesting patterns?  You should, since it was just last year when this craze got started again.  Have you noticed that fads and fashions are cyclical? But, if there's one thing that will never go out of style, it's the word "hot".  I call everything hot, don't you? (/sarcasm).....In all seriousness, I was thrilled to be able to acquire the Maddux. Unfortunately, I still need the Ripken and Griffey for this set.

As a card blog, I find I don't talk about my collection that much.  Here's a glimpse of one slice of The Other World pie, mixed with boysenberry, it just might be a crowd pleaser.

2012 Topps: A Last Look of the First Look I Had or Jumbo Boxes are Full of Cards

We're all looking forward to the 2013 collecting season (coming January 30th or so to a theatre near you).  The 2013 Topps set offers the promise that the upcoming collecting season will be full of familiarity and twists as well as nostalgia and commemoration.

For the first time, I opened a jumbo box of the ubiquitous flagship product; I will not be doing this again.  I was swung by the siren song of gold rush wrapper redemptions (check out my wantlist; I actually am trying for that set!) and promise of inserts, inserts, and gold....delicious gold. Gold like honey to drizzle all over the collection boxes and leave them begging for more.   That might have been gratuitous, but you get the idea.

Here is how opening a jumbo box goes:

1. Hey, look at the size of those packs; I can make a new Bay Bridge with those packs.
2. There's a relic....that card is thick.  Check out all the metal on that card; I wonder if it's magnetic.
3. How many more timeless talents inserts are there?  Can't I make a mural of these instead of collect them.
4.  Halfway through the box now,  I only have 5 pack rips left.  That makes a sad.
5. I'm noticing a theme with the insert cards.  Why are they all erased at the bottom?
6. A duplicate?  From a box in this house?  30 duplicates in a row from the same pack?  You go back in there and sit in the naughty corner until you change into non-duplicates.  Think about being individualist in the post-modern sense....that should do the trick.
7. It's over....there's a big stack of cards.....and no set to chase.....the end.
8.  What do you mean I need 4 more wrappers for the wrapper redemption?!?

Here's what came out of the pack ripping thoughts....

 

Trevor Cahill Golden Moments Auto: First thought: It's an A's auto of a player not on the A's....I prefer Jarrod Parker.

Elvis Andrus Golden Moments Relic: First thought: You are not a Phillie, why do I care about a relic like this?

Derek Jeter World Series Pin: First Thought: Cool card; I'm glad a star like Jeter is one my collection haunter

Trevor Plouffe Black Parallel: Low numbered card alert! Break out the bacon fat!

Minis!!-but not as fun as the Kimball champions from the year before; I will not be getting all 150 this time.

Timeless Talents insert: They were both Chicago team shortstops and are Latino....third straight year of an unliked concept.

Mike Moustakas Gold Futures: A prospect laden set to show that Bowman isn't the only game in town.  What's that? Bowman is the same game? Well, forget it then.

Phillies mini!  The quest is at an end.  Plus, retro uniform!

Mini photoed minis!- These are nice cards, almost wish they were the base cards from this year....I've probably said that already.

Roy Halladay mini-I had a similar reaction with the Howard except I might have jumped left instead of right.

Joe DiMaggio Golden Greats:  This was the most annoying insert set of all.  Redundancies and a large card set makes for it being largely incollectible.

Paul Molitor Gold Standard: 3000 hits is a gold standard.....even used to be good enough to get in the HOF on the first ballot.

Howard Gold Sparkly: I like shiny Phillies.

Polanco Gold Sparkly: I like shiny Phillies redux.

Ichiro Golden Moments: Correction, this was the most annoying insert.  Is that floating team logo for real?  Also, there were 3 series and a mini card version of this insert set?  Can we get these all stricken from the record?

I didn't show any base cards, but I do have them all...

Anyway, time to look forward, not backward....happy collecting season 2013....

The Gold Rush Arriveth

I also sent away for a pack of the Topps Gold Rush wrapper redemption. Who knows, it may be possible to strike it rich with 5 card redemption packs of cards....who am I kidding? Shiny or golden cards have been number one in collectors' hearts since 1992. Let's rip open the pack and see if there was anything to get excited about, sell all my land, and move to Alaska (or Duryea, PA).

 Mitch Moreland-Texas: Not that exciting, but at least he was on a pennant winner.

 Carlos Gonzalez-Rockies: The Coors Field extraordinaire (.999 OPS at home and .757 OPS on the road) is also golded up.

 Dennis Eckersley-A's: It looks like my scanner put the Eck askew, but it works with his sidearm throwing motion.

 Brett Gardner-Yankees: The newest Yankee speedster...still probably not going to hit leadoff, probably was the best fielding outfielder in the AL in 2011.

Josh Hamilton-Rangers: The 2010 MVP needs to get back on track by staying healthy and resisting the urge to slide into home plate head first into a catcher.    Even with that, he still only had 33 less plate appearance in 2011 compared to 2010.

So there it is, a pack of cards received in the mail...this may have been the reason I got a 2012 Topps box, one never knows.  Incidentally, this is the only insert set I'm pursuing from series 1 (besides the requisite Phillies).  What can I say, a collector's life boils down to choices....otherwise, there's just cards piled up in all corners of a living room, unsorted, and scattered.  Maybe I need a real gold rush to hire someone to take care of all the stuff I don't take care of.....now there's a redemption card idea.