Category: Thoughts

The Hobby of Confusion

As a longtime sports card collector, I’ve often taken for granted the information that I’ve picked up over the years. I run into a lot of former collectors that are my age that want to get back on the hobby. And I find that really cool. But inevitably, they have a lot of questions and as they begin to ask them, I totally understand why!

There are several reasons I see people wanting to jump back in. Cards have been making a nice mainstream comeback with social media, documentaries, podcasts, and television shows. For example, I’ve really enjoyed MLB Networks “Carded”. I even saw a baseball card commercial the other day, and it felt like 1992 all over again.

For those old collectors from the 80’s and 90’s that experienced the Junk Wax Boom, it reminds us of a simple time when we would rip packs from the local drug store and look up their values in the monthly Beckett release. We’d scour the show calendar in hopes of one being close enough for us to talk our parents into going. There is a lot of nostalgia in collecting sports cards.

But just like any boom, when the hobby started to fade into an abyss of products, overproduction, and baseball strikes; many of those collectors walked away and got involved in other hobbies. Hunting, fishing, golf, baseball, and especially girls, became more important than the cardboard from when we were 10-15 years old.

While many walked away, putting cards away for good; some of us never strayed too far. While the day to day buying, trading, and sorting was pushed aside, I kept my cards and was still watching sports religiously. I hung on to the idea that maybe those Griffey’s would blossom into Mickey Mantle prices one day so it couldn’t hurt holding on to them for a while.

I went cold in 1994. I picked up a stray pack here and there. I bought a lot in 1998 chasing Peyton Manning. Then, 1999 was a really nice rookie class for the NFL. Lebron caused me to drop a little change on packs in 2003. But I don’t think I officially un-retired until the great search for the 2006 Alex Gordon Rookie Errors. I jumped back in with both feet and I haven’t looked back since.

Because I never left completely, I was aware of changes and innovations like grading, the early proliferation of autographs, and the introduction of parallels/variations. But overall, there wasn’t a total culture change in the hobby over those years. The hobby was just sort of humming along; off the high of the junk wax era and well ahead of the future COVID explosion.

In 2020, the hobby as we know it changed immensely. Values were through the roof, grading was a top priority, retail products were flying off of shelves, and influencers were popping up in all corners of social media to tout “investment buys/sells” and sell you their method for making money in the hobby.

I’ll never forget 2020. There was the Project 2020 craze, the introduction of NBA Top Shot, cards from the junk wax era selling for hundreds of dollars again, and people fighting in Target over $25 boxes of retail Score Football. Why? Because those $25 retail boxes were selling for $75-$85 on the secondary market. Boxes that were $100 just a year before suddenly became $600-$700, and high end boxes exploded into the thousands!

It was an absolutely crazy time; especially for those of us that had been in the hobby for any reasonable amount of time. It was weird to go from being able to buy just about whatever you want to being priced out of even the lowest tiered products on the market. I’m not complaining because I still bought cards, but it was a big change and made me rethink how I was going to spend my money. No matter what happened, I was not going to drop $200+ on Score and Donruss base products. But that didn’t stop others from doing it. And to each their own.

I did try to hone my skills in singles buying and focused more on cards that I wanted for my collection as opposed to cards that were hot at the time. One thing I’ve learned in life is that supply and demand has its ebbs and flows and when prices skyrocket, patience is usually a virtue. So I didn’t go out and get secondary market blasters and jump into overpriced retail breaks just to scratch the card itch. I found what worked for me and I stuck to it.

Since cards exploded in 2020, I have seen more and more older collectors come back. Locally, people know me as the guy who collects sports cards. Online, I have my “DubMentality” junk Wax persona. And I’ve been fortunate to appear in Beckett and a couple of other publications that helped me get my name out there. Because of that, I do end up in a lot of conversations with collectors trying to re-enter the hobby. And those conversations are generally always tough because a lot has changed since 1990 and it can get quite confusing.

So I thought I would write about a lot of what is discussed in those conversations. Maybe it will help somebody who stumbles across this post. Or maybe somebody can help me explain the hobby better than I’m doing it right now. In the end, I want people in the hobby and I want them to know as much as they can as they start to spend their hard earned dollars. Some of this may seem harsh but you have to know the truth.

Your 80’s/90’s collection from childhood is not worth much money.

I told you this could seem harsh. And this may sound surprising coming from me. But if you’ve followed me for any reasonable amount of time, you know I place a different kind of value on the junk wax era. So don’t go throwing your cards away. You likely have some really cool cards that I own myself. They just didn’t turn out like we thought they would when we were planning our retirement as 15 year olds.

There are a few reasons why these cards aren’t worth much. But the main one is production. There is simply no scarcity to 1988 Topps Baseball, 1990 Hoops Basketball, or 1991 Score Football. There are even a few sets that have been rumored to still be printing. I’m looking at you 1990 Pro Set!

So you may have a ton of Jordan, Griffey, and Montana cards. But unless you have a few specific ones that aren’t that easy to find, you have some cards that are worth a few dollars. Some of us love to own and show off those cards from our youth. I could open 1989 Donruss until I pass out. But to me, it is a card collection; not a trust fund.

All too often, I talk to collectors from my era and they want to know how much their old star cards are worth. The cold truth is that every major rookie from that era can be had for about $30 or less. There are a few exceptions like the ‘89 Upper Deck Griffey that is about $50, and some sought after sets like early to mid 80’s football, 1989 Score Football, or 86-87 Fleer Basketball. But on the whole, you can buy any rookie what you want for less than a trip to Outback – Tony Gwynn, David Robinson, Barry Bonds, Shaq, Emmitt Smith, Bo Jackson, Don Mattingly, Cal Ripken, Frank Thomas; you get the picture.

So as much as it pains me, you’re not going to jump back into the hobby and cash in on your childhood collection if you’re 35-45 years old.

What should I buy at Target/Wal-Mart?

As will be the answer to multiple questions, it all depends on your end game. There are products for kids, products for collectors, products for prospectors, and products for the investor.

If you want to get your kids into collecting, there are a few products that they may enjoy. Think Triple Play circa 1992. Of course, some kids may like the regular sets and that’s cool too. But Topps Big League and Topps Opening Day are very cheap options and provide all the big players plus some fun extras like mascots and pictures of stadium eats.

If you’re just a person that likes to collect, there are plenty of options for you. I like Archives and Heritage because of the throwback designs. A lot of people like Gallery for the artist renderings. There’s Donruss Football, Hoops Basketball, Topps Baseball, and many others. if you’re all about the players and cards, you just need to find the design you like.

If you’re prospecting, just look for the name Bowman. There’s Bowman Baseball, Bowman Chrome, Bowman Platinum, Bowman U Football, Bowman U Basketball, and probably others I’m forgetting. Those Bowman 1st Cards are all the rage with the prospectors.

And finally, the investor is a hot button issue in the hobby. I’m not here to judge on that for this article. I’m just here to put out some information to the folks that want to jump into collecting. The money making products are pretty limited to Prizm, Optic, and Select. And that’s strictly NBA and NFL. I’m not here to say that there aren’t cards worth any money in the other products out there. But these are the most sought after with the modern day collector. But the Pro Prizm releases are superior to the Prizm Draft releases.

Should I get my cards graded?

Well, it depends. I’ll start off by saying I do very little grading. I will buy graded but I can count on one hand the amount of times I have submitted my own cards for grading. And when I have, it’s been of the group submission variety with my local card shop. But I ONLY group submit with my local shop. You have to trust the submitter 110% to turn over your cards and money to them.

I’m not very good at grading with the eye test. I have thought something was a 10 and it came back at an 8. I thought something was a little off center and the surface came back at a 6. I haven’t guessed at all and it came back at a 9.5. It’s so subjective that I just send in what I think looks good and I just accept what it is when it comes back. That’s why I don’t submit a lot. Plus, the process is a little cumbersome to me. I’d rather spend my time sorting instead of filling out forms.

But enough about me and my preferences. There is a lot to like about graded cards. The encapsulation is something I like about vintage and junk wax. It preserves the card in its present state and is much more protective than toploaders and the like. And depending on how you want to present the card, each of the big graders provides a different label. PSA is the long standing leader in the hobby. But many collectors like BGS, SGC, and CGC. There are others but I don’t venture outside of these four.

The older the card, the more you can expect lower grades. If you have a 2022 card that grades an 8, you’re better off not grading. But if you have a 1962 card, your best case scenario may be that 8. No matter the year, pulling 10’s is sheer luck, trust me.

Different products present different challenges too. You may have a great looking 1989 Griffey Upper Deck but the hologram on the back could be chipped. Modern Prizm is notorious for being off centered. 1989 Fleer sometimes looks like it was cut with a jigsaw. The shinier the card, the more you worry about surface. The thinner the stock, the more you worry about the corners. Grading can be overwhelming.

So there isn’t a catch all answer to the question of whether to get your cards graded or not. In simple terms, if you have a card that comes back a 10 (or 9 for older cards), you can enhance the value of your collection. But there is a lot to consider if you aren’t certain you have a mint card. When it comes to grading, just do what you want to do. If you want to encapsulate your card and take a chance on the grade, knock yourself out.

What is this “breaking” I keep hearing about?

One of the biggest changes from when we collected back in the 80’s/90’s is the sheer number of ways to get your product. There are shops, eBay, social media, online retailers, apps, you name it. But there is also a way to get what your are specifically looking for in a product. You just have to be prepared to pay the asking price and take a chance.

Breakers have introduced a way to get your hands on what may otherwise be considered too expensive if you were just buying on your own. Take a hobby box of 2023 Prizm Football. You could go out and buy a box for about $1,000 and you can have every card in the box, good and bad. But if you don’t have $1,000 to spend on a box of cards, you can let somebody else spend that $1,000 and you spend $60 or so and get all the cards from your favorite team. You may get lucky and hit an autograph. Or you may get a kicker and 5th WR. It’s a gamble. One that some enjoy taking and one that some can’t handle.

Just like anything else, if you’re going to step into breaking, you need to find somebody that you can trust. There are some great breakers out there; Buck City, Midwest, Crackin Wax, Deep Fried, Top Shelf and many others. But there are also a lot of fly by night breakers that hit the scene and last about a month. Just know who you are spending your money with. Maybe watch some break streams for a little while and see where you may feel most comfortable. But again, no matter who you go with; it’s a gamble.

Where do you buy your cards?

Would you believe me if I said, “it depends”? My first look is always the closest big box. They have the most reasonably priced options if I’m looking for a small rip. They only have modern so if I’m feeling nostalgic, that option is off the table.

Second, find a local card shop that you like. My local shop isn’t so “local” but it’s worth the trip when I go. Middle Georgia Sports Cards is about a 2 hour drive but the service and selection make it an easy trip. Charlie Heinisch and his family run the shop and I would trust Charlie with my entire collection. The shop has unopened boxes from the 80’s to brand new releases. There is football, baseball, basketball, wrestling, soccer, pop culture, and even pickleball as of my last trip. There are jerseys, helmets, supplies, and tons of singles to peruse. If you can find a shop like that, it will be your number 1 resource.

eBay is always an easy option because it’s at your fingertips 24/7. Gratification is delayed with shipping though. You can buy your cards on a Saturday and it may be then next Saturday before you can hold them in your hands. But availability on eBay is unmatched anywhere else. If it exists, you will find it on eBay. Research the seller though before you spend your money. Seller feedback, the length of time they have been selling, and the listing itself can give you effective background information to make an informed decision. But with eBay; you are at the mercy of the seller and postal service, always.

There are other online retailers I like to use, like Dave and Adam’s, Steel City Collectibles, Alt, and COMC to name a few. There are auction companies like Goldin that can give you an opportunity to buy higher end stuff too. Fanatics is starting to offer more and more online as well.

Art by Josee Tellier

When it comes to jumping back into the hobby after a long hiatus, you just have to understand that there have been changes and innovations that you’ll need to learn about. It’s not like it used to be. And that’s a good thing. Sure, I miss the simple times of buying .50 cent packs at Rite Aid and sorting them in my binder by value in the price guide. But I can still do that when I want to. But now, I can also see somebody’s collection from 1,000 miles away. I can see hobby artists turn some of the most iconic players and moments into sports art. I can talk with likeminded collectors on the other side of the world. Back in 1991, my hobby talk was limited to the other side of the neighborhood.

There are some parts of the hobby that aren’t for me. I’m not an investor. I don’t break often. I don’t grade many cards. But there are plenty of collectors that do all of that stuff. The fun part about opening up to the hobby in 2024 is the ability to find your niche. Whatever you like, there is a place for you. You just have to find it.

But if I can stress anything to collectors coming back, or even brand new collectors. Making money is not easy. The collectors who make money buying and selling have spent years honing their craft, developing contacts, establishing their reputation, and learning by trial and error. While some people have made money, plenty have lost it. So don’t come back with the mindset that you are coming back to make big bucks. While that is a possibility in the hobby; it takes a lot of knowledge, a lot of work, and a lot of luck. Like any other hobby, you have to be good at it or you have to be ready to learn how to become good.

My goal in this great hobby is to break even. If I can find a way to enjoy the sports cards I’ve always enjoyed and somehow break even with my spending, that is my ultimate dream. I’m still working on that because the spending always seems to outweigh any money coming in. It doesn’t help that I want to keep all my cards so I rarely sell. But I’m more of a collector than anything else. But I’ve found my corner of the hobby and I’m happy here. So no matter the reason you’re coming back or joining, make that your goal. Find your corner of the hobby and enjoy!

Happy Collecting!

Dub

Remembering A Smile

How do you make sense of something that doesn’t make sense? One of the things we learn as young children is the principle of causation. You know; touch a hot stove and you get burned. I learned that I couldn’t swallow ball bearings, or jump down a flight of stairs, or climb up a chest of drawers. The results were never good.

But sometimes, causation gets thrown out of the window. Sometimes bad things happen and there is no real explanation. There is no answer to the question, “why?” There is no level of understanding to be found. And that is hard to accept. We all want to know why this thing has happened.

The thing about those really difficult “why’s” is that you can never really prepare for them. Sometimes you can see them playing out and still not be ready. We always think there is a tomorrow that we’ll have to face. But eventually, that tomorrow becomes today.

My family has had to face two of those “today’s” in the last 10 weeks. I lost my dad on October 1, 2021. He had been sick for over a year. He had his ups and downs but he had been sick. Yet, I still thought I had time. The morning he died, I was headed to my parents’ house to stay the weekend. I knew about the possibility. But I didn’t accept it. I kept thinking, “we still have tomorrow.”

A few months after my dad got sick, my uncle was diagnosed with the same brutal disease as him, albeit in a different form. A disease that we had very little experience with as a family took hold of two of the most important/influential men in my life. There were three men in my wedding party; my dad, my brother, and my Uncle Greg. And within months of each other, dad and Greg were both facing the same difficult battle.

In June of 2021, for my dad’s birthday, we gathered together for what would be the last time as a family. Dad was in good spirits. Greg was there; tired but laughing and talking about fun memories. We took this last photo that I’ll hold dear for the rest of my life. I look at it often. I remember it vividly.

In 3 short months, we lost my dad. Ten weeks later, we have lost Greg. Selfishly; I ask why? Why did we lose two great men in the same season? Why did they have to go through what they went through? Why did this have to happen? I’ll never have an answer to any of these questions.

I can only try to honor their memory in the way I walk through this life moving forward. I wrote about how important dad was to me HERE. If you haven’t read it, I ask you to do that – just to understand what kind of a man I was blessed with as a father.

As for Greg, though he was my uncle, he was sometimes like a big brother to me. He was closer to my age than he was to his own brothers. He was about 15 years younger than my dad and only 9 years older than me. He was still in high school when I was about to head to middle school. When most kids were looking up to high schoolers they didn’t know, I had Greg.

He was a star in baseball and football. He was a great basketball player. He was funny. He was tough. He would let you think you were going to beat him at something and then turn it on at the last minute. He taught me how to race bikes around my granny’s house. He taught me wrestling moves on the trampoline. And he even tried to convince me that Auburn was better than Georgia.

Greg was the unintentional reason that I met Alicia for the first time. He was the head of the city recreational fields and had me making some extra cash as an umpire while I was in high school. And my wife, as I’ve written about before, was almost tossed from a game for arguing with me about being out at first base. I didn’t know her before then. We would start dating a year or so later.

I remember going to my first men’s softball game when I was about 15. He played for the “Dodge Boys” with several of the guys from his high school team and I don’t remember them losing very often. Like my dad and Uncle Speedy, Greg knew how to handle himself on a baseball field. I worked scoreboards, umpired, and played bat boy for some of those men’s teams and I know it’s where my passion for weekend softball came from.

Greg loved his high school alma mater like me too. He played football at Mitchell-Baker where he won “Best Hands” one year as a wide receiver. When he graduated, he wore the mascot gear (a big eagle) for a couple of years. In the late 90’s, we started doing the stats for the team and traveled together all over the state of Georgia for a few years.

We watched the coaches lose their minds in Fitzgerald. We experienced elation at Greene-Talieferro. We experienced heartbreak at Cedartown after watching a 12-0 season. We watched one of the craziest plays ever in Early County that we laughed about the last time we talked. We really did experience it all on those Friday Nights. I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything in the world. And I’ll never see a Mitchell County game the same way again.

We saw our share of Eagles Basketball too. We went to Macon every year the Eagles made the Final Four during the 90’s, which was a lot. We saw them win a State Title and we saw them not make the playoffs. Alicia was with us the night he got a chicken sandwich from Wendy’s in Perry. We got about 10 miles up I-75 when he thought he bit into a cold tomato. Turns out it was an uncooked chicken breast. Salmonella was no laughing matter; but we laughed.

I watched the 1993 Suns/Bulls finals at his house. We pulled for the Suns because Barkley was from Auburn. I watched the A’s in the World Series at his house because he loved “The Bash Brothers”. I stayed all night to watch the George Bush/Al Gore election and one of the last things I said to him was, “we have a developing situation in Broward County.”

I played softball on the same field in Baker County with Greg the last time he played. I was at first and he was at second. He demolished his achilles and hung em up after that night. I kneeled over him to check on him. The guy I watched from the dugout when I was 14 had played his last grounder with me on the field beside him 25 years later.

We gathered on Sundays at my parents house to watch NASCAR. We all had our drivers and we were relentless with each other. Dad was an Earnhardt guy. Greg liked Gordon. My guy was Tony Stewart. My mom liked the Labonte brothers, and Alicia was a Sterling Marlin fan. We all put our $5 on the TV Stand at the beginning of the race with the driver who finished highest winning the pot. We really bashed each other during those races.

But if I had to pick one memory that stands out more than any others, it would be the 1997 Auburn/Tennessee SEC Championship. Greg asked me to go with him and I was excited for a few reasons; although neither of those teams are on my favorite list. First, I had never been to an SEC Championship Game. I was only 20 at the time and wasn’t traveling around to major sporting events. Second, I had the chance to watch Peyton Manning play. And finally, it was a trip with Greg so it was a no-brainer.

We got a hotel in downtown Atlanta and took a fairly short cab ride to the dome. Our first issue arose pretty quickly. We found out the tickets we had at the top row of the lower section didn’t have physical seats. We had a spot that was actually for wheelchairs. We would wind up sitting in metal folding chairs at the top of the section.

The game was exciting, with Tennessee winning 30-29. Auburn had several chances during the game but couldn’t quite close the deal. That’s when Greg coined the nickname for Karsten Bailey; “No Hands”. He had some critical drops in the game and anytime he said “No Hands” over the years, I knew exactly what he was talking about.

After the game, we decided to take the Marta back to the downtown area where our hotel was. It was my first experience and was quite a ride with hundreds of drunk college football fans. When we got off of the Marta, we walked and we walked and we walked. Remember, there were no cell phones with GPS back then. I had zero experience in Atlanta and just knew we were staying in a Holiday Inn.

After we walked in circles for what felt like an hour, we finally gave up and picked up a cab at a red light. We told the driver that we were going to the Holiday Inn. He took an immediate right at the light and stopped, about 20 yards from where he picked us up. He turned around to Greg and said, “that’ll be 8 bucks Holmes.” A 30 second cab ride that took us 20 yards was $8 (in 1997). When I tell you we laughed about that 20 years later; believe me, we got a lot of miles out of that story.

I am blessed to have these memories of Greg. We spent a lot of time together over the years. We experienced a lot of laughs and a lot of sadness over sports together. He was there on stage with me at my wedding. He was there at my graduation for me. He was there with me on the softball field when we were old men.

And he’ll be with me forever in my heart. I’ll never understand why he’s gone at 53. I’ll never understand why my dad left just 2 months before him. I don’t know how somebody is supposed to feel after experiencing this kind of loss in such a short period of time. I’m sad, I’m anxious, I’m reflective, and sometimes I’m just lucky to feel any emotion at all.

I know I’m not the only one. Everybody in my family is dealing with this in their own way. My mom is facing it. My granny is facing it. Brothers, Sisters, Aunts, Uncles, Nieces, and Nephews are facing it. Greg has a daughter and son that are going through the same thing I have been going through. We are all facing this moment with each other but it’s hard not to feel alone in it at times too.

I am just thankful I had the life I had with them. I am thankful God gave me the family he gave me. I couldn’t have had a better father than Dewey Shiver. And there could never be another Greg Shiver either. I’ll see his smile forever. He had the biggest smile. Somehow, we will go on. We will never forget; but we will go on.

J-Dub

One Day Farther Away

I’m in a bit of a weird place right now. There’s been more introspection lately. That’s saying something for me. I spend a lot of time in my own head and emotions. But more so lately than ever before. I don’t really know where it’s leading but I’ve always been one to just let it pull me along. In a life where I have to have so much control, it’s the one aspect of my personality that I let drift.

I couldn’t think of a better word to describe my mindset when I get like this; other than drifting. And for good reason I suppose. I read once that “drifting” was when you “make a decision by not deciding.” That seems appropriate. I’m not moving forward and I’m not going backwards. I’m just drifting.

That’s where I’m at right now. I’m just living day to day and letting it unfold. It’s been both good and bad. I lay down a lot of nights wondering if what I did that day really meant anything at all. But then I lay down some nights and my mind is totally at ease; which isn’t a normal occurrence for me.

And before you think this is a cry for help; let me assure you it isn’t. This is all a part of my current introspective state. I’m trying to figure it all out. I’m not suffering in my own thoughts. I’m finding out a lot about myself. Some of the things I like and some I don’t. But that’s a part of reconciling who we are, I suppose.

My passion for nostalgia has been hypersensitive lately too. As a part of putting life in perspective, I think a lot about where I came from and what experiences make up who I am. I’ve spent a lot of time over the last couple months in and around the house I grew up in. It has changed a lot over the last 35 years and some memories are less vivid than others. But when I’m there, I always end up seeing something that makes me feel something I haven’t felt in a long time.

Sometimes it’s as simple as pulling a 1989 Score Ron Gant baseball card in the bedroom I grew up in. Or listening to the ceiling fan I installed myself when I was 16 or 17 years old. It’s still the only room in the house with a fan. I know that’s probably weird; but it’s a memory. It’s something that puts me back in a small moment in time when I wasn’t carrying all this weight around (mentally; before you crack a fat joke).

Sometimes the memories aren’t so simple. Sometimes I have to seek them out. I’ll ride around the neighborhood in my dad’s golf cart and stop in front of a house where I played basketball. Could be a house where I spent the night with a friend and we played Nintendo all night. Or sometimes I’ll just walk around the yard itself and mentally picture the baseball diamond in the front yard or the extension cord I stretched around in the backyard that made a 3 point line for my basketball court.

The memories may come from driving over to the old Legion Pool, or the building where the old Video Superstore was, or the softball field where I played with Corey, Jared, Jason, David, and other friends. I don’t know how many times I’ve driven really slow around my old middle school and showed my daughter where I traded baseball cards on the playground or played basketball. She doesn’t really care all that much anymore but she humors me.

Every day that passes takes me farther away from those memories. I don’t want to ever lose them. So I constantly remind myself of them; even if I’m repeating them over and over to people that get tired of it. It’s just who I am. I never want to lose the experiences that shaped me. So if I write about the same thing from time to time, be like my daughter and just humor me, please.

I know that when you lose someone, you go through some weird stages. Maybe that is what this is. I’m thinking so much about old memories. Those memories lead me down a path that holds other memories. Then I start to think about how long ago some of those memories are. Some of the people from those memories are gone. I don’t want the memories to go too. So I find little ways to tie them together. And sports cards have been a major conduit for those memories. That’s why they remain so special for me.

Sometimes it’s a tangled web of memories but it works for me. For instance, I’ve told the story about the 1990 Fleer Mark McGwire card that always makes me think of my grandmother. That card has sent me down so many roads. I pulled the card at my parents house not long ago and I had to drive out to the apartments where she lived much of my childhood. The apartments were owned by my great uncle, which unlocked memories. I had an aunt that lived there, which unlocked memories. Sort of like a reverse butterfly effect.

I ripped a box of 1990 Pro Set Football recently. Of course, that led me to Tecmo Super Bowl; which unlocked memories of sleepovers with friends and family. Those sleepovers unlocked memories of getting in trouble for staying up too late or watching horror movies I shouldn’t have been watching. I keep those memories alive today by playing NBA 2K with my cousin and his boys late at night when my kids have gone to bed. The same cousin that would stay up with me until daylight playing Coach K Basketball on the Sega Genesis.

I’ve written about the 1989 Topps Orel Hershiser that always reminds me of when I opened a pack of cards when my dad told me I couldn’t until we got to the lake house. He took the pack and I didn’t get it until the weekend was over. All I could think about was the Hershiser I saw on the back of the pack. But when I see that card now, I think about spending time at the lake – fishing and skiing.

1989 Bowman makes me think about those same lake trips. My parents bought me some packs when we would go to the grocery store in Eufaula to stock up for the weekend. There were also packs at the Pataula Creek Bait Store, back when cards where EVERYWHERE. Pataula Creek was where me and my dad would Crappie fish on the “Stump Row” and keep our eyes peeled for gators. Or we would bream fish along the rocks of the Pataula Bridge until mom got breakfast ready and would come out on the dock and yell for us. Yes, a 1989 Bowman Nolan Ryan can take me there.

I have a couple of 5,000 count boxes that have Atlanta Braves players in alphabetical order. It wasn’t an easy project but I’ve reached a point where it’s manageable when I get new cards in. I go through that box regularly. I skim through Dave Justice, Steve Avery, Andruw Jones, Brian Hunter, Javy Lopez, Sid Bream, and Terry Pendleton. Those cards take me back to sitting in our old dining room eating supper and watching the Braves on TBS. My mom was, and still is, a big Braves fan. We watched them when they were terrible in the 80’s and were rewarded with the great teams of the 90’s.

Our whole family would gather during the playoffs and cheer for the Braves while we yelled at Kent Hrbek, Kelly Gruber, and Jim Leyritz. Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, Cousins; all in our living room yelling like we were in Fulton County Stadium. I’ve watched most of the playoffs with my mom over the last several weeks and it has been such a great experience. This past week, she even found her old T-Shirt with the AJC Headline and photo of the Braves swarming the plate and Sid Bream in the 1992 NLCS. I was there when the Braves went to their World Series in 1991 and I was there last week when they beat the Dodgers to go again.

I’m going through a lot of memories right now. A lot of it is helping me cope with everything going on in life. A lot of it is helping me stay in touch with my roots. A lot of it is helping me reconcile who I am and where I came from. You may read one of my posts about an old baseball card and not think twice about it. But more often than not, when I’m posting a picture of some random, seemingly meaningless piece of cardboard, there is a ton of thought behind it. That piece of cardboard is a door to my past. The year, set, or player usually determines where that door leads. But it always leads somewhere.

I don’t know where I’m going with this other than just putting in writing what is rattling around in my head. I see so much negativity on social media in the card community about who/what people collect and why. You never know the reason behind what they do when it comes to their collection. You may have never thought that deeply into why people collect. But it’s not always about money. Sometimes it has a much more personal reason. Sometimes it is a link to memories that are so cherished that you’ll go out and spend money on boxes of 1991 Fleer when nobody else will.

My only piece of advice in this post is to do things for you and your happiness sometimes. Obviously, you need to care for those around you and make yourself available to them. But when it comes to preserving your peace of mind, memories, sense of self, etc; do that for you. If it means old baseball cards from the Junk Wax Era, so be it. It could mean so many other things to each person individually. Just make it mean something for you. Every day is a step farther away from the past. Hold on to the good times and the good memories. You’ll need them one day.

J-Dub

The Value of a Memory

I’m going to go on a bit of a rant here. I don’t necessarily like doing so but I’ve heard the same comments so much in the last 3 weeks, I can’t help myself. I’ll try to go ahead and get it out of my system and hit you with some nice Junk Wax Photos along the way as a peace offering.

I had the fortune/misfortune of going somewhat viral on Tik Tok with a video of myself opening up a pack of 1987 Topps Baseball. Of course, I was looking for Bo, McGwire, and Bonds. If you collected then, you know why.

I don’t necessarily try to go viral with anything because it comes with both good and bad. I just make fun little videos about sports and cards and usually live with my 10 likes or so. But the combination of wood grain and yacht rock seems to have hit home with the Tik Tok algorithm. As of today, the video is sitting on 828k views, I’ve gained 7,500 followers and picked up 20k likes; all in a few weeks.

I’ll say up front that the overwhelming majority of comments have been pleasant and I’ve enjoyed the successful run of the video. I’ve had players’ relatives, former team photographers, and even former Creed frontman Scott Stapp commenting or liking the post. I’ve also made a few collector buddies and followed several back who have great content.

But there are a few comments that I have received over and over and over.

  • “You know those packs are resealed right?” I am aware that packs from the 80’s and 90’s can very easily be resealed. But I paid less than $30 for a full cello box and pulled two Bonds, McGwire, and Canseco. I did ok.
  • “Those aren’t real packs. Those cards came in wax packs!” Again, I am aware of how Topps released cards in the late 80’s. There were in fact wax packs. But there were also Cellos and Rack Packs. These were cellos.
  • “Why are you looking for those cheaters?” Well, I’m a nostalgic guy. Those were the cards that I wanted when I was a kid. Those are the cards I’m going to look for in 2021. I’ll look again in 2051 if I find some packs. I never even liked Bonds. But if I can pull his 87 Rookie, I’m happy.
  • “Everybody already has those cards. LOL” First off, nothing pushes my passive aggressive button faster than an LOL at the end of a statement that really wasn’t intended to make you laugh. But I have the cards too. Look at my timeline. I’m not some guy just randomly opening 1987 baseball cards hoping to pull those rookies for the first time. It’s just supposed to be fun!
  • “The gum is more valuable than the cards in that pack.” Last but not least, this gem. I am WELL AWARE that a raw Bo Jackson RC is worth about $3. But this is my biggest pet peeve as a proponent of the Junk Wax Era. I don’t collect these cards because of their perceived worth. I know their monetary value but their worth varies from person to person.

This brings me to why we are here today. It’s time to stop telling other people what their cards are worth. Anybody with a smartphone can look up the value of a baseball card and see what the market thinks. But through 15 packs of 1987 Topps; nobody got a bigger pop in the comment section than Cory Snyder. It’s not because it was valued at $50. It’s because it was a player and a name that was universally recognized by collectors from that era.

One thing I’ve tried to repeat in some form or fashion over the last 18 months is to collect what you like. Yes, Prizm Blasters are $100. That doesn’t mean you need to go out and spend that kind of money to be a part of the rush. There are people who weren’t even basketball collectors that jumped into it because it was all over the Twitter timeline so surely it was something that couldn’t be missed.

I do buy modern. I don’t pay secondary market prices. I’m not saying I’m better than you if you do. I’m saying that goes against why I collect. And yes, I love to pull a big card that I might be able to sell to fund more of my collection. But the gamble isn’t worth paying someone else a premium because they got to the shelf faster in my opinion. Again, this is about me.

I collect because it was such a part of my childhood. We lose a lot of connections with our childhood. For me; video stores are all gone, Nintendo games are dust in the wind, my childhood athletes have retired, I’ve grown apart from my childhood friends, and all I have left are the memories. And baseball cards.

Therein lies the worth for me when it comes to 1987 Topps, 1988 Fleer, 1989 Donruss, and countless others. Those cards haven’t changed a bit in over 30 years. The players are the same, the errors are still there, and even the smell of the gum is still sweet. The taste, not so much. Those are tangible memories that I can hold in my hand. And the memory is not just about “Bo Jackson”. It’s about where I was, who I was friends with, and what life was like when I held that card in my hand for the first time.

Baseball cards remind me of a simpler time. I didn’t have a power bill in 1989. I didn’t have a car payment, insurance, or a job. I didn’t have a single person’s life and safety I was responsible for back then. I was somebody else’s responsibility. Times change and the world progresses; those are accepted facts. But I never want to lose touch with who I was and the events that led me to be who I would become.

I don’t want to lose memories of middle school playground trades, exchanging video games with friends, playing ball in the front yard, going fun places with my family, or weekend sleepovers filled with horror movies and Mountain Dew. Those things are childish and immature. But even though I’m 44, I will always have that 13 year old sports crazed, video game lover deep down in my soul. With all of my might, I want to keep a piece of that forever.

The way I do that is baseball cards. Plain and simple. If I see a pack of 1991 Donruss for .25 at an antique store, there’s no way I’m passing it up. The only card in the pack may be a Ray Lankford Rated Rookie but it will take me back instantly. So it is worth it to me; whether you think so or not.

It has been well established that cards from 1987-1994 (roughly) are overproduced. They are cheap to buy. They are still readily available. Most collectors already have them or had them. And no, you won’t be able to retire on your Gregg Jefferies Rookies. I’ve come to terms with all of this. But you really can’t put a price on their worth in my opinion.

Just like your grandfather’s old handkerchief might just be a handkerchief to others. It means something to you because it represents something of meaning. My childhood has meaning. The people in my life during that time have meaning. The memories I created have meaning. And the 1988 Ozzie Smith Starting Lineup card has meaning.

So the next time you see someone enjoying some Junk Wax that you think is (and in fact may be) “worthless”; just keep it to yourself. There is a reason they are doing it. It’s their reason. If you don’t enjoy it, that’s fine. But you don’t have to be the internet hero that you’re trying to be. You’re not breaking news that 1987 Topps doesn’t carry much monetary value. But sometimes, a memory is worth way more than the card itself.

J-Dub

Mingle with the Singles

If you are paying any attention at all to the sports card industry, you know that it is on fire. For those of us in the hobby, we are in unprecedented times. Sports cards are in mainstream media with Grant Hill opening packs during basketball games, players looking for their own cards on social media, and huge sales being covered by national news outlets. My local media even covered the recent Kobe Bryant RC sale!

Everyone in my age range that collected when they were kids are coming back to see what the fuss is all about. I think overall, that is a great thing. There are some huge positives that can be taken away from the recent popularity.

  • Cards that were once popular, but lost traction due to new innovations in the hobby, are coming back. Cards from the 1990’s are becoming very popular again. Rookies from the 80’s are increasing in demand as well.
  • Card values via sales sites are exploding. Values for non-autographed inserts and base cards are selling at all-time highs.
  • Low population graded cards from over-produced sets are huge right now!
  • Values of unopened boxes from the Junk Wax Era are making for great finds at antique shops and flea markets.
  • The hobby community has grown exponentially; which opens up the trade and purchase market for everybody.
  • It has brought back collectors from my era, which is making more memories and conversations come to the forefront.
  • New avenues for delivering and purchasing cards have opened up. Digital, artist renderings, and exclusives are now available to collectors.
  • Social media, podcasts, and blogs are providing wonderful value for collectors today.
  • The graded card market has become a tremendous money maker in the hobby.

As a collector, it truly is a great time to be in the hobby. Unfortunately, the boom has its down-side too.

  • $20 Retail Blasters are being swept up by the cart load and collectors are unable to find these cost efficient options at Wal-Mart or Target. They are being sold on the secondary market for astronomical prices.
  • Hobby Box prices have exploded, making the purchase of said boxes only economical for breakers and high end dealers. A box of Donruss Basketball was around $120 a couple of years ago. Now they are selling for $800+!! I used to be able to go to the card shop, spend a couple hundred dollars, and walk away with multiple hobby boxes. That won’t buy one hobby box currently.
  • Scams and fraudulent sales are up. This comes with the territory. Any time there is an increase in popularity in a retail oriented product, the scammers take advantage. With many new collectors entering the hobby, there are plenty of nuances to the hobby that are unknown and make them easy marks to the unscrupulous.
  • Technology has not caught up to the popularity. Humans are having a hard time beating bots to purchase cards from websites. It is a huge problem within the community that only exacerbates the problem with finding retail products in local stores.
  • Grading cards has become very expensive and time consuming in the hobby.

With every hobby, popular culture item, collectible, etc; there is going to be good and bad. The key is to always find and focus on what makes those things good for you. I am guilty of getting down on not finding products in the wild or not being able to buy a box at the LCS that I was able to buy just two years ago. It is frustrating when a new product is going to be available online at MSRP but I get beat to it by a computer program that someone has purchased. I get it; it can be very easy to get lost in the bad.

But there are multiple areas within the market that are still available to hard core collectors that are looking to scratch their hobby itch. There are some forgotten brands from the 80’s and 90’s that provide access to great players, including hall of famers. Pinnacle and Pacific are brand’s that immediately come to mind. There are some cards from the 90’s that these companies produced that were way ahead of their time. Also, there are multiple releases from the 80’s that were either unlicensed or produced for retail locations that are very cheap.

Trading is at an all-time high. Social media and the popularity of the hobby have combined to give us the ability to network with collectors all over the globe. And every team and player has a collector out there that is looking. I know people who collect the Royals (@bigshep79) and Red Sox (@shanekatz73) and many other teams that will send me Braves in exchange for their collection items. It is a great way to network on Twitter.

Ungraded singles are easy to find and remain reasonably priced. While a graded 1988 Bo Jackson Football RC is really expensive, you can find an ungraded version very cheap. In my opinion, we are giving too much value to graded cards at the moment. That isn’t to say that there isn’t a premium that should be tied to mint condition cards. I just think there are a lot of good condition raw cards that are available for much cheaper than 9’s and 9.5’s that are on the market. In addition, second and third year cards for players are fun to look for.

To that end, I recently made a trip to the LCS for some cards and supplies. I decided to go hunting in the .25-$1.00 boxes to see what I could find. I wound up finding a few cards for a little more than $1.00 but I found tremendous stack of cards to add to my collection and spent a mere $50. You can do that on just about any budget. You can hunt with $25, $50, $75, whatever; and still find some great cards to add.

Let’s take a look at what $50 can score you at an LCS these days!

I know this one is an oddball but I had to pick up this 1976 “Welcome Back Kotter” card for .10 cents. First, it was one of my favorite shows when I was a kid and it was replaying on WGN. I loved it! Secondly, somebody mentioned The Sweathogs a few weeks ago when I posted my old picture of my curly hair as a baby.

I’ve taken some interest in Hockey recently because it is a little more available than the other sports. I was also a big hockey fan during the 90’s, thanks to video games! These “Great One’s” ranged from .25-.50 cents per card so I had to grab them!

Mario Lemieux was almost as good as Gretzky back in the day. He is an absolute Hockey Legend so these .25-.35 cent cards were also must haves!

Though Gretzy and Lemieux were in a league of their own, my favorite player in the 90’s was Eric Lindros. And Fleer Ultra was so good during this era!

How about some basketball? Remember when I mentioned second year cards? Here are several that ranged from .35-.75 cents per card! Who doesn’t love Vince Carter? And thanks to his final years with the Hawks, he counts as PC!

Is there a basketball collector on the planet that wouldn’t pick up 3 Larry Johnson Upper Deck RC’s for $1.00 with no shipping? Grand-Ma Ma is a Junk Wax Hobby Icon!

For some reason, I couldn’t get these photos to load properly; but I think you can get the idea here. These are 3 Alonzo Mourning RC’s for $1.00 per. A bona fide Hall of Famer for $3. Yes, please!

I have shown off this beauty on Twitter but it deserves another look. No photo can do this card justice. Albert Belle has had his issues in his personal life since playing but he was a huge get during the 90’s. I couldn’t pass this up for .35 cents!

Another Junk Wax Legend is Juan Gonzalez. And when I find 1990 Upper Deck RC’s of him and John Olerud, I usually pick them up. You especially don’t have to tempt me with a .35 cent price.

This sweet Mark McGwire Topps Gold was .50 cents. I am not passing up a Topps gold from the 90’s of a Superstar for less than $1.00. I’m just not going to do it!

I honestly don’t remember if this was .50 cents or $1.00 but I didn’t really even look at this price. I knew this was a card I didn’t have so I picked it up. The fact that the border is red (team color match) made it even more appealing to me. But the fact that it is “The Wizard” was enough.

I paid a total of $5 for these 4 legends! I didn’t own these and enjoy collecting all of these players. The Gary Carter was easy because of the Expos logo and uniform. I also can’t believe that I didn’t have this Andre Dawson already. And who doesn’t love Teke and Pops??

Though I already have this Frank Thomas Stadium Club (bird finger), I can’t own enough of them. The kid in me loves this card. I didn’t own this Thomas/Ventura Cornerstones Insert and it is beautiful in person. These were $1 and I had no problem with that price.

Again, this is another card I already owned but, why not? It was less than .50 cents and it’s a second year card of a Braves Legend! Add it to my stack!

More PC for this Braves Collection. I paid a couple of dollars for this lot but these are all great cards. The Graphx and Private Stock cards are very eye catching. The Jones RC was an easy choice and I couldn’t remember what condition my Justice 92 Bowman was in.

This was the big ticket item and it was still very well priced. This is the one that pushed me to the $5o total but I couldn’t pass it up. It is the Sterling Gold with the coating still in tact. It is a beautiful card and it is a 90’s Jordan, which has a huge market right now.

The hobby is on fire right now, there is no question about it. You can get in over your head quickly and you can spend some major dollars before you blink if you are chasing the hot stuff. I break occasionally and buy something that I have to have for my collection.

But there are some things that I just won’t do. I make it a practice not to pay secondary market prices for retail. I am not going to pay someone else a premium to go to Wal-Mart for me and buy the product. I am also not spending hundreds on flagship products like Donruss, Topp, Score, etc. It just doesn’t make sense.

I am also very careful about who I buy from on eBay right now. There is a seller rating for a reason. As we all know, “if it seems to good to be true, it probably is.” Study your seller if you are going to make a moderate to substantial sized purchase.

But what this blog post should show you most of all is that you can buy some really cool cards at very good prices if you open your mind and spend some time in the $1 or less bins. Can I flip these for huge gains right now? Absolutely not. But that is not “collecting”. These cards may one day have more value than they have today. But if they don’t, they will rest just fine in my collection. Or they may even turn into trade pieces when I need to obtain something else I am looking for. Who knows?

Whatever the case may be, take some time to mingle with the singles when you head to a card show or your LCS. I am personally not quite ready for a card show crowd but I see a lot of people on social media returning to those. The bottom line is, if you find yourself in front of some singles boxes, take your time and look at the cards. Remind yourself why you are in this hobby to begin with. It will be fun and worth it! I promise!

J-Dub

What Is A Memory?

If you stop and think about it, our entire life is a memory; except the one second you are living in, right now. That sentence you just read? A memory. Some memories are good and some are bad. Some we learn from and some just vanish without a fleeting thought. But memories make up our almost our entire lives.

This blog is about memories. It’s about things that I did or things that happened to me that made some sort of impact in my life. I do this for me. I appreciate the readership beyond words. But this is for me, each and every post. When I’m feeling nostalgic, I just start writing – for documentation sake, but hopefully, as entertainment for you as well.

Memories fade as the years go by. Well, the memory itself remains; but the details (the when, where, and who) become a little hazy. We also tend to bend memories to our benefit over time. Not in a bad way, but in a way that helps the narrative of our lives flow smoothly over time. Small bits and pieces morph but remain rooted in the basis of the memory as a whole.

Memories are sometimes our only link to people and places from our past. This photo is from the public library I went to when I was a kid. I have driven by it but haven’t been inside in over 20 years. I’m certain that it looks different inside but my memory holds on to what it looked like when I was a kid. I can even smell what it was like back then. It’s a good smell.

I will never walk into this library again and check out a Lewis Grizzard book. Partly because I own most of them; but also, because books are so readily available through so many other mediums. I will never walk in and check out a VHS tape again. I will never go through the newspaper rack again. Unless something crazy happens, I will never have to use the microfiche either. But I can walk through that library any time I want, in my memories. And they will be good memories.

Here is the church I grew up in. The church was downtown, right on Main Street. It was a big church for a small town. It is where I would sit next to my GaGa during Sunday morning services. It is where I was baptized. It is where I played football in the big yard just to the right in the photo. I experienced RA’s, Youth Group, and Choir here. I haven’t been back inside this church since around 1999, when I moved. But my memories are strong when I ride by.

This is my middle school auditorium. It’s been upgraded in a major way and the school grounds are now home to the board of education. But I saw Okefenokee Joe here and saw him hold live snakes and alligators. And I saw Deputy Dawg here as he scared the bejeezus out of all of us with his speech on drugs and crime. I watched and participated in many events in this little theater. The picture looks nothing like the picture I carry in my mind. I will remember it how it was when I was 14, not 44. That’s what I mean by bending the memories sometimes. The room in 2021 is foreign to me. But I have my name written on the past of that room.

This high school has changed a lot since 1995. For one, it used to be Mitchell-Baker High, but now is just Mitchell County High, because Baker has their own school. But it was, and remains, “The Eagle’s Nest”. There are a TON of memories here – both good and bad. I grew a lot from 1991 to 1995. I grew even more after, but that 4 year stretch saw love, heartbreak, new friends, new enemies, playing it safe, pushing the envelope, and just about any other push and pull you can think of. I may never step foot inside that school again. But I think the halls would remember me if I did. I like to think they would. I know I would remember them.

This is just a front yard to many. But this is my front yard. This was the yard where everybody gathered to play kickball, football, and baseball. Whether it was Jason next door, Brewer across the street, or Jim and Rusty down the road; this patch of grass holds more memories than all of the other places combined. We battled on that grass. We ran in the “rare snow” on that grass. My brother jumped in his little pool in that yard. We hooked up speakers and tinted windows in that yard. I worked on Saturday’s with my dad in that yard. That yard is so special to me. When I look out at it, I see the ghosts of the past. That’s not an exaggeration. I can tell you where every bump and hole is in that yard like it is etched into my brain.

Without memories, we become empty shells, just trudging towards our end. Everything ends. It’s the cruel part of this mortal part of life. I’ll never see my Grandaddy again. But I remember going to Western Sizzlin and the Flea Market on Sundays. I’ll never see my GaGa again. But I remember sitting in her living room floor on a Saturday night, eating a bowl of chili. I’ll never play baseball in that front yard again with all my buddies. But I’ll remember a towering left handed home run that we lost to the neighbor’s dog for the rest of my life.

This is where the blog and sports cards come into play. I can tie just about any memory to cards because they were a part of my life during all of the moments I mentioned above. We traded cards at school, I looked at price guides at the library, and we mimicked our favorite players in that yard. I even looked for cards on those flea market trips with my Grandaddy. And as long as I can tie those cards to the memories, I’ll have this extra link to my past. The cards remind me of other events that may have become otherwise hazy. And vice versa.

The set that has the absolute most memory power for me is 1989 Donruss. I’ve written about it here before but it’s time we had a little refresher. The set has gained a little popularity as the card market has turned some attention towards the Junk Wax Era recently. 1989 was a pivotal year in collecting because of players like Ken Griffey Jr, Randy Johnson, John Smoltz, Gary Sheffield, and others. And Donruss was the colorful alternative to Topps while Fleer was a drab gray and Score was all over the place. There was Bowman too, but it has its own little place in history. All of the sets are meaningful to me; but Donruss has a little extra pull for me.

The packs are some of the most beautiful pieces of wax I’ve ever seen. I recognize this more than I would recognize some of my family members that I haven’t seen in a while.

Believe it or not, one of the most memorable cards in the set for me is this Ron Washington. It is one of the least flattering photos in the set but one that always stuck out to me. As fate would have it, as of 2021, he is one of the most beloved Atlanta Braves assistant coaches ever!

The Wizard can be found with a standard base card and a sweet MVP card. These MVP’s are my favorites of the Donruss catalog. I still remember wanting to be as good at shortstop as Ozzie when I was 12 years old. He might be #1 on my bucket list of people I’d like to shake hands with.

If I wanted to be as good as Ozzie defensively, I certainly wanted to be as good as Tony Gwynn with the bat. He was one of the sweetest swinging hitters I’ve ever seen. He made us guys that weren’t the most athletic looking feel like we could make it too. And I mean that in the best way possible.

Eric The Red is another one of my favorite players from the 80’s. He feels underrated but most people from my generation still love him. I used to play with the Reds on RBI Baseball 3 just so I could use Eric Davis.

This one is for all the investors out there. This was our King in 1989. Sure, there was Ken Griffey Jr; but Gregg Jefferies was that guy that we were going to stock up on and hold for retirement. The career didn’t match Jr, but I will always keep every Jefferies I pull.

Another rookie that was highly sought after was Gary Sheffield. He started his career as an infielder but would eventually blossom into a big power hitting outfielder. He even made a stop in Atlanta for a little while. Always enjoy pulling Sheff cards!

This rookie didn’t get near the publicity of Griffey or Sheffield. In fact, Jefferies commanded more as well. But The Big Unit went on to have a Hall of Fame career as one of the most feared left handed pitchers in history. He made a habit out of making the Braves look bad.

Here is the big boy from the set; the most sought after rookie player from the Junk Wax Era, aside from possibly Jose Canseco. Ken Griffey Jr. was a favorite of every baseball fan in the late 80’s and early 90’s. There was nothing to dislike about The Kid, except for that appearance as a bad guy in Little Big League. I owned way more of these than I did the ’89 Upper Deck. But even this card has taken off in recent months.

Even though Griffey was the hottest rookie in 1989, the card that graced the front page of my binder in 1989 was this Jose Canseco. He was an absolute beast during the Junk Wax Era and I couldn’t get enough of his cards. I have always preferred the Oakland A’s cards, with this one being one of my favorites. I didn’t really like the 40/40 card that was included in the set. It didn’t really look like Jose to me.

I will never open another box of 1989 Donruss “for the first time”. But I’ll never lose the memory of the first year that set flowed through my hands. The images, the border, and the packaging will remain crystal clear in my mind’s eye. It may ride a little wave of popularity in the hobby with eyes going back to that rookie class. But it’s always been popular to me. It has always had meaning for me. I feel like it knows me. It knows that my feelings for it are pure. I’m not here for the PSA 10 Griffey. I’m here for all of it. It’s a part of my life and why I write this blog. One day, my mind may not be able to retrieve all of those memories. But this blog will remain (hopefully) and the things that I write about will always be something I can reach out to when I need that punch of nostalgia.

J-Dub

Take A Couple Cards and Call Me In The Morning

There is a lot of hate in the world today. Welcome to 2020, right? I understand that some of the feelings we are seeing play out are valid and some are outlandish. So I am not really here to justify or choose sides in the many battles that are raging in society today. I’ve already made my “statement” on Facebook and Twitter so I’m not going to re-hash it all over again. That’s not the point of this post.

But let’s pretend for a moment that the Book of Revelation is playing out in front of us. I know that some of you are thinking as you read this, “Pretend??” The reason I word it that way is that I understand that there are people reading this that practice different religions and some that don’t practice at all. But Revelation is my reference point for what is happening right now. So for the purposes of this look at “what the hell is going on”, it seems fair. It feels like the end, right?

We are in the middle of a pandemic that has pitted neighbor against neighbor over things like conspiracy theories, whether you should wear a mask or not, whether numbers are being manipulated, and where it all came from. People are being labeled unjustly, attacked unprovoked, and just being overall assholes to each other. Each side is intolerant of the other and brags about being tolerant. I’ll say this – I know people personally affected by the virus and my heart breaks for them, so I am taking it seriously.

We are having 15 second video clips shoved into our eyeballs like we’re in a Tool video; while at the same time being forced to pick a side almost immediately. I’m guilty of it myself. I judge things based on optics sometimes without understanding how we got from “Point A” to “Point B”. That’s the nature of society here in 2020. And it downright sucks. And that means that I suck too. I’m not preaching to anyone. I’m venting.

We are dealing with Saharan Dust overtaking the sky. We are seeing locusts travel over entire oceans to invade Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, South Asia, and South America. Locusts = Revelation, if you catch my drift. We have had earthquakes, murder hornets, wildfires, lockdowns, market crashes, sports season cancellations, Olympic postponements, and cities being torn apart. All of this while we are scared to go the grocery store to get bread because we might bring home a deadly virus to the rest of our family. It’s only July folks.

Here is where I am going with this, and yes, there will be pictures of baseball cards in a moment. In a time when everything around us is burning; instead of reaching out to our neighbor to offer comfort, we are looking for yet another reason to “cancel” them. Instead of texting someone a funny Snapchat video to make them laugh, we are posting a video of a shopper yelling about American Rights over a medical mask.

Instead of reaching out to someone and reminding them of some positive impact they had on our lives, we are reaching out to remind them of something they said in 2005 that may or may not actually be offensive and discounting the last 15 years of their actual lives that may have been spent helping others. Mind you, wrong is wrong and right is right; but finding someone’s low point in life and measuring them by that alone is not how this is all supposed to work.

Now is the time we should be looking at ourselves and not someone else. Now is when we need to make amends for the things we may have done wrong, instead of looking for wrong in others. Now is the time to listen when we need to listen, and talk when we need to talk. We need to reach back to the part of ourselves that only knew how to love. We have an innate ability to care for people around us. Sometimes we just choose not to do that. It hurts like hell, but we keep doing it.

The reason I love baseball cards so much is because they remind me of that time of my life when the world around me was a little friendlier. Some of it was naivety, but I didn’t dwell on the negative in people. If you didn’t enjoy the things I enjoyed, I just went to another part of the playground. I found people with common interests. I wasn’t miserable because I liked shooting marbles and someone didn’t. I found someone who enjoyed it. I didn’t care what race, sex, or persuasion they were.

We didn’t have to walk around with fake smiles when we were 10-12. We were one group for the most part and we all had our own personalities that made us unique. We naturally gravitated towards others that shared common interests and we avoided those that would conflict with our happiness. We don’t do that anymore; we embrace the conflict. We sort of thrive on it.

Baseball cards provide that outlet for me to escape back to innocence. When I see a baseball card from 1990, I don’t see some overproduced, worthless piece of cardboard like some do in the hobby. More times than not, I see something well beyond the card. I see a moment in time. I see a friend that traded me the card or was a part of my life when I first stuck it in a binder. I smell a classroom where we looked at the cards. I hear a voice telling me they would trade me all of their Kevin Maas rookies for a Ken Griffey Jr. That’s a rough voice to hear.

As is a big topic of debate on the Twitters in 2020, I don’t look at baseball cards as investments. I look at them as tiny snapshots from the timeline of my life. Cards from 2020 will be a snapshot too; I just may not ever get that film developed. Yeah, I sell cards to make money to buy more but I have been in the hobby long enough to know that a card is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, right Ben? But cards are not currency for me. They are like looking at an old yearbook.

What do you see here, besides one of the greatest 1987 Topps Baseball Cards ever made? I see a card that was the first card in my binder when I was in 7th grade. And when I was in 7th grade, I had my first school dance, my first real girlfriend, and some of the best friends of my youth. One of my friends, Joel, would walk home from school the same way I would because of where our parents worked. My cousin, Adam, would walk the same way because his mom worked at the ambulance service. We would go to a store called Shiver’s (no relation) and stock up on Now-n-Later’s, Sunkist, and one of those big pickles that were kept in jars at the counter. Good times!

Here is one of the cooler cards from 1988, the great Tom Lasorda. This card reminds me of times at my Uncle Speedy’s house. My uncle was our baseball coach growing up and we would spend days practicing at his house with all the team equipment, nights at the fields (dominating), and then our off time playing RBI and RBI 3. My uncle was an old school baseball player and fan and this card always makes me think of those days.

Here is a gem. This is a .10 cent card all day long but what a memory it stokes. We used to go to Lake Eufaula almost every weekend when I was a kid. Also, when I was a kid, I didn’t necessarily mind my parents. We would stop at a Costco type grocery store and load up on groceries before the weekend and I would occasionally talk my parents into letting me have some packs of cards. This particular time, I got the cards, but was told I couldn’t open them until we got to the lake. I tried to sneak a peek by breaking the back wrapper and was caught. I lost the packs until we got back from the lake. The card I saw was this Hershiser All-Star!

Here is one of my favorite rookies from 1989. Sure, Ken Griffey Jr. was the big one but I searched for Sheff every time I opened packs. There was a kid in my school that said he was a distant cousin to Dwight Gooden. So when I found out the Sheffield was Gooden’s nephew, I held on to this dream that one day I would get them all signed. Autographed baseball cards were hard to come by back then unless you went to games frequently or paid at a card show. This would have been my first auto but it never actually happened. I still have that dream when I see this card!

1990 was a big card collecting year for me. I was also 13 years old, so a pivotal year personally as well. I didn’t know who this rookie was when I pulled this but I would find out in a big way in 1992. After the Braves made their improbable worst to first run in 1991, we made the playoffs again in 1992. Backs to the wall in Game 7, Frankie Cabrera stepped to the plate and delivered the most famous hit of my lifetime. My entire family would gather to watch the games at my house and I can still hear the screams in that living room as we erupted! I would trade just about anything to go back and watch that game. My grandmother was there, her sister, my aunts and uncles. There are three people that were there that night that are no longer with us and when I think of them, that night always comes to mind.

Speaking of my grandmother, this card is one I have talked about many times. It still deserves a mention every time I write a nostalgic post like this. Instead of the boring old candy that we would get from everybody else at Halloween, my GaGa surprised me in 1990 with a couple of packs of Fleer. You could not get much bigger than Canseco and McGwire in 1990. When I pulled this, it was a huge hit! I think it was worth about $3 in Beckett back then. You can have all the candy corn you want; leave me the McGwire! I simply can’t see this card and not think of my GaGa. I miss her so much.

1990 Leaf was one of those crazy sets that caught fire and was like chasing 2019-2020 Prizm Basketball. There were actually a couple of months where every single card had an up arrow beside it in Beckett. Two of my best friends, Jim and Russ, had the full set in a binder. Leaf always makes me think of those brothers and the good times we had. We played ball, went to the lake together, watched Mike Tyson knock out Peter McNeely in 89 seconds, and watched The Dirty Birds make it to the Super Bowl! Leaf will always take me back to those times.

The first full set I ever owned was 1990 Topps and Topps Traded. My parents got me this for Christmas that year. They were always top notch with the Christmas gifts. I got plenty of cards, a Nintendo, race tracks, and every other big Christmas toy of the time. This set will always be about me and my parents. I had it made in 1990 and I really couldn’t have asked for better parents. I didn’t realize it at the time but I was so fortunate to have loving parents that always wanted the best for me. Love you Mom and Dad!

Is there a better collection of Diamond Kings than those from 1992 and 1993? I loved Donruss so much back then. And the Big Hurt was my favorite player that didn’t play in Atlanta. My Uncle Greg was a huge Auburn fan and it made liking Frank a little difficult during football season but this card always reminds me of when I was 15 years old and my uncle was one of my heroes. He isn’t that much older than me and I was able to see him play high school baseball in the mid 80’s, travel with him to play softball in the 90’s, and spend most of the 2000’s arguing over Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon. I was a Stewart guy and you know they didn’t get along real well! But me and Greg did, and this card makes me think of him.

1995 was one of the last years I actively collected before my “hiatus” that we all take during our teens. I was dating Mrs. Dub in 1995 and it was one of the best years of my life! I eventually married Mrs. Dub and we’ve been hitched for 19 years. Aside from the year, there is Griffey. He was just about everybody’s favorite player from the 90’s and I got to watch him play in person just one time; in Atlanta when he was with the Reds. Mrs. Dub and I had seats in the outfield but we moved behind the plate at the end of the game as the crowd thinned out. We got behind home plate just in time to see Griffey lace a line drive into right center field. I can still see that swing and is the only time I’ve ever cheered when an opponent got a hit in Atlanta. Yes, a baseball card reminds me of my wife. And I am proud of it!

See, in spite of all the horrors and shenanigans going on in this world, baseball cards give me a chance to get away. I forgot all about how agitated I was at the beginning. All I want is for us to treat each other kindly. All of the memories I talked about here were fun, light-hearted times that seem so hard to find these days. It’s not hard to think about some good times with old friends or family and try to smile for a minute. It is a lot more fun than bludgeoning each other on social media just to have a brief moment to say “I’m right!”

But based on today’s social media situation, you’ll either enjoy this post or you will try to “cancel” me. Hopefully, you’ll just enjoy!

J-Dub

It Can’t Happen Here

Here we are, April 2020, and it’s been the absolute craziest year of my life. I’d put this 3 plus months up against any 12 month span since the world welcomed me in 1977. That time frame covers the awful accidents as a kid, high school years, college age shenanigans, and adulthood. Nothing compares.

I’m not alone here in 2020. The events that have unfolded have been far reaching and life changing. One of the greatest basketball players of my generation lost his life in an accident. The Gambler passed away. The political landscape is a nightmare. And my city experienced flooding that forced many citizens from their homes and closed schools. All this within the first 90 days of the year.

Then we got hit with this life altering virus that has swept over the world, destroying one country after another. That all started in January but was distant to me because it was way over in China. It slowly started to spread; but I still wasn’t all that concerned because that sort of stuff “just doesn’t happen here”.

I don’t mean that in an arrogant way. I simply mean that we constantly see bad news on TV and it almost never affects us on a personal level. The news is brutal but we usually have the comfort of knowing that we will soon tuck away in our comfortable beds to rest peacefully for the next day.

This is different. We started hearing about Americans on cruise ships that were sick and being held in quarantine. There were some patients being brought back to the US to be treated. There were people doing what they always do, traveling; but unknowingly carrying a sickness that would in fact make it to our mainland.

The West Coast got hit quickly. There was a horrible outbreak at an assisted living center that shook Seattle, and sent ripples throughout the rest of the Nation. This virus was real and it was here. It was still 2,200 miles away, but it was starting to become a little more real for me.

Then, in late February, it was in Atlanta. Only 2 1/2 hours north of my home, we had our first case. In fact, I was in Atlanta that very week. But, in a weird way, Atlanta has always felt a million miles away when it comes to worldly problems. It’s a huge city, with a huge airport, and a huge population; that is in no way a comparison to South Georgia Small Town living.

On top of this being a couple of cases a world away in Atlanta, it was just that; a couple cases. Some people traveled from Italy and had the virus, which is where it was very prevalent at the time. What did I have to inherently be worried about? I’ve been west of Mississippi twice and north of South Carolina twice. And none of those trips were to another country.

I live in Lee County, Georgia, with a population of about 29,000 people and a claim to fame that includes Buster Posey and Luke Bryan. I’ve spent the last 23 years there. I spent my first 20 years in Camilla, with a population of about 5,000. So I’m used to small town living.

It takes me 5 minutes to get to work, I see the same people at the grocery store every week, and I’ve worked at the same job since I was 21. Life has been pretty routine for me, and I like it that way. With that said, in my mind, this virus was going to have to travel all the way from China, through the big international cities, and to small little Lee County, Ga.

The first case for my metro area of 153,000 came in early March. Albany, Ga is the hub of that metro area and where I work. I’m closer to Albany than I am to my own County Seat, Leesburg. But it covers Terrell, Worth, and Baker County as well.

Pretty quickly, we went from 1 case to 6. I remember Monday, March 16, when the case number of 6 was a big deal. Then, by the end of that week, we were knocking on 80 cases. We are talking about 80 cases in the first week! Information was surfacing that the majority of cases were coming from two large funerals that took place in late February.

By Monday of the next week, I was working from home and our total positive count was 125 with 8 deaths. By Tuesday, the number was 150 with 11 deaths. This virus had picked up steam and I was afraid to leave the confines of my own home. We still didn’t really understand the symptoms, how you got it, and how to protect ourselves.

By the beginning of the third week of this pandemic, my small metro area of 153,000 was appearing on charts with China, Italy, and New York. By the end of that week, we had moved ahead of New York based on positive cases per capita, with a whopping 4.1 per 1,000 citizens, which was almost double New York. We were actual proof of the number of cases doubling every 4 days.

Now, on April 4, 2020, a mere 19 days since the local outbreak, we are at 1,197 positives, or 7.8 per 1,000 citizens, almost double that of Wuhan, China; where the outbreak started. Some people may see our 1,197 positive cases and try to compare that to the 56,000 cases in New York and scoff. But remember, New York’s metro area is 20 million people. Albany is 153,000.

This is not to diminish any cases whatsoever. The cases in New York, Seattle, Memphis, Idaho, anywhere….are awful. This virus is brutal. But an area that has been decimated since 2017 with 2 catastrophic tornados, a hurricane, and a flood, is now facing a pandemic with one of the largest infection rates per capita in the entire world.

I don’t know many people who are resting tonight, peacefully or otherwise. This invisible monster, COVID-19, has most of us shaking in our boots. What started as something that “just never happens here” has become something that is destroying “here”.

Life has changed; possibly forever. I’m still working from home. School is out for the rest of the year. You can’t go grocery shopping without a mask and gloves. You can’t pump gas safely. You can’t even open mail without letting it sit in the sun for hours or spraying it down with Lysol and throwing the box or envelope away immediately.

We are stuck in our homes, scared to leave. We don’t have human contact anymore, outside of the loved ones in the home with us. I haven’t seen my mom or dad in a month, which is a long time. I haven’t seen co-workers in 2 weeks. I haven’t hung out with friends since early March. Heck, I haven’t been to Target to buy baseball cards in 3 weeks!

And I don’t see the end in sight, as of tonight. The cases are growing. We are losing people we know personally now. I have family and friends in the nursing field that have to face this daily. Every time I do venture out to get necessities, the streets are a little less crowded. I’m washing my hands so much that my knuckles are cracked and bleeding. And I still don’t know if I’m doing enough.

I’m lucky. I have my immediate family around me. While I haven’t seen my parents, we’ve spoken often. I’m lucky to be able to work from home and still have a steady paycheck. I’m lucky that my kids can play outside where we are. I have everything I need for this situation. But it’s scary. It’s scary for everyone.

People are playing games on Facebook to keep the tension at bay. We are sharing photos from our camera roll, making lists of things we like and dislike, and talking baseball cards on Twitter. But, deep down, we all have this feeling of uncertainty. We all wonder when our lives will get back to normal. We all wonder how much worse it will get before then. And we all hold our breath for the next day’s numbers to be released.

That is what it’s like where things like this “just don’t happen here”. And it’s like that for the foreseeable future. No sports, no concerts, no public events, no eating in restaurants, no going to church, and no Saturday morning trips to Pearly’s. The closest I’ll get to my friends is through the screen on my phone. As the line in “Salt and Shadow” from Thrice says, “we’re never alone but we’re each in our own little cage”. Our friends are “here but half a world away”.

I feel certain that we’re going to get through this. What I’m not sure about is what things will be like when we do. How will the landscape of our nation, and our small town, have changed? How will our economy rebound? How will this scary time affect my children years down the road? How will it affect me years down the road?

While we wait this out, hoping it isn’t the beginning of some apocalyptic time we’ve been warned so much about in film over the years, I’m doing the best to live my life. I’m working, I’m spending time with family, I’m helping herd cattle, I’m living with goats. I’m spending more time on a Kubota than in an actual vehicle. And I’m trying to stay creative with my writing and card collecting.

I had to put all of this down on paper (electronic) because one day I’ll come back and read this to my grandchildren and tell them about the “Pandemic of 2020”. This is truly a once in a lifetime thing. It’s life changing and uncharted waters. It’s all the cliches you can think of but the bottom line is; it’s real. It has hit home. It has shaken foundations. And it’s going to take us all becoming a more caring and considerate community of people to survive it together. If we don’t change as a country after this, we won’t ever change.

Stay Safe!

J-Dub

Forty-Three

There were times in my life that I thought I’d be lucky to make it to 40 years old. It’s not that I live a rough life or have a dangerous job. But I’ve spent way too many moments wondering how I would make it another year, or week, or day. This isn’t a “whoa is me” post but it is a little glimpse into the life of a man who sometimes feels broken.

I’m pretty hard on myself; this is a fact I live with every day. I didn’t used to be this way. There was a time when I was in my late teens and early 20’s where I thought I had the world by the tail. I was living the dream and nobody could tell me any different. The only thing that mattered was the next 5 minutes. Anything beyond that could be dealt with when the time arrived.

Somewhere around 27-28, things started to change. I was thinking about turning 30 and wondering if I was where I was supposed to be in life. I was married to my high school sweetheart, had a good job, owned my own home, and was following the relatively standard path of growing up. But the growing up part was starting to bother me.

While I was married to my high school sweetheart, that meant that I had someone I had to protect and provide for. I didn’t only have myself to worry about anymore. That good job I had meant that I had to be extremely responsible, a good co-worker, and a trusted advisor. And those qualities would determine whether or not I would keep making the money to provide for the woman at the beginning of this paragraph.

Up until this point, I saw my life playing out much like Dante or Randall in the movie “Clerks”. And I don’t even mean that in a bad way. I thought that would be pretty cool! Just hanging out at a job, clocking in and clocking out, but having fun at every turn. I still dream of owning the worlds last remaining video store; and actually making it successful. I was stuck in that early 20’s mindset, even though I was knocking on my 30’s.

At the age of 30, I had my first child, and a husband morphed into a father. Nothing could’ve prepared me for the feelings that came along with that. A tremendous blessing brought with it a crippling sense of inadequacy. I was an overgrown teenager, flying by the seat of my pants, still staying up late playing video games. Yet, I was now responsible for raising and protecting a tiny human being that I helped create. Whoa….

That was a “straighten up and fly right” moment for me. I was the definition of a “helicopter dad” and it was exhausting. I thought about ALL the things I had done as a kid and remembered every warning I had ever heard. “Don’t put that in your mouth”, “Don’t climb on that”, “Don’t go near those stairs”, “Don’t touch that bug”, “Don’t go out of my sight”, “Is she buckled up”, “Does she have a fever”, “What is that rash”, “WHERE IS SHE?” Like I said, exhausting.

You see, I was no longer your average guy who had a kid. I had slowly been developing an anxiety disorder before she was born. But when she was born, it really blossomed. For the first time in my life, not only was I unsure; I was scared of my own shadow. I just knew that there was no way I could be a successful husband, father, employee, and productive member of society all at the same time. I had lost the confidence I carried around 10 years earlier when I thought I was bulletproof.

I now have 2 children and it’s true that the second child is a little easier because of the experience you gained from the first. But you never lose that pressure of being responsible for a mini version of yourself. I have 3 people in my house that I’m ultimately responsible for. Their safety, the roof over their head, the food on their plate; it’s a direct result of whether I succeed or fail at being who I need to be. I know, it’s dramatic; but it’s something I carry daily.

The contradiction to all of this pressure and self doubt is that I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. My wife is still my high school sweetheart. My oldest daughter is still the first baby I held in my arms that was an extension of me. I’ll never forget the connection I felt. And my youngest daughter is the biggest “Daddy’s Girl” in the world and thinks that I am the King of the World! I couldn’t ask for a more perfect life.

But I can’t slow down enough to enjoy it the way I should. There was a quote on “The Office” finale by Andy Bernard, “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.” That can be attributed to many aspects of life but I know that I’ll one day wake up and realize that I spent the “good old days” of my kids growing up being an anxious, obsessive, basket case. They are growing up. I am stricken with fear.

I keep thinking that I’ll eventually snap out of it. And some days seem like daydreams of happiness. Yet, some days I feel like I’m on the verge of breaking down because I can’t handle the pressure. But no matter what, I can’t let my guard down. I can’t cave to the pressure. I can’t fight it either; but I can’t let it get the best of me.

In the end, I know that I just need to be rescued from myself. The fears are somewhat natural but I take them and spin them into reality when I don’t have to. It’s like worrying about a storm, but instead of just worrying, you start making plans for what to do after the tornado hits; like it’s a foregone conclusion. Instead of letting life play out, I just prepare for worst case scenarios.

In reality, I know that if I don’t wake up tomorrow, I have done an admirable job raising my kids. They have everything they need and most everything they want. They know that their dad loves them. They know that I would do anything for them. I’ve expressed my feelings with them. They know where I stand. They know that no matter what storms come, I’m there for them to take cover.

I just hope that is enough; whether I make it to 43 next week or live well into my 90’s. I hope that all of this worrying and staring at the ceiling in the middle of the night was for a greater good. I have to believe that I’m doing what’s right. It’s not easy, but if it makes even 1% difference in life, it’s worth it.

J-Dub

Memories in Pictures

I think part of why I enjoy writing so much is because I am a “visual” guy. When I am writing, or even reading, I can usually get a better mental image of something than when I am listening to it on the radio or hearing someone talk. Along those same lines, sometimes an image from a particular point in my life will stick with me and I can write about those memories using only that image in my head. And really that is my favorite thing to writing about; memories. Does that make any sense?

For example, when I think about Pizza Hut today, these images pop in my head almost immediately. When I was a kid, our “going out to eat” restaurant in our small town was a Pizza Hut. I remember going as a family and playing the table top arcade games while we waited for our order to be ready. I was close in age with my cousin (Adam) and we were huge video game guys. The rotation at our Pizza Hut was Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Joust. I hated Joust! And who can forget the cups and those lights?

Taking it a step further, Pizza Hut also used to do collectible glasses and I bought my wife a Care Bears Glass last year for Christmas just because it was so nostalgic. All of that comes to my mind when I just see that glass or an icy looking red cup. The key for me is that the images link me to a particular set of memories that were fun. As an adult, we sometimes have to hold on to memories from our youth because they take us to a time when responsibility and adult burdens weren’t a part of life.

Anytime I see ANY image that relates to a video store, I feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It could be a random post on Twitter of a membership card or an old Movie Gallery case in my VHS collection from when the store closed. I worked at two video stores when I was a teenager and if it had been a better paying gig, and the industry would’ve remained viable, I would love to still be doing it today. There was something powerful about having any movie at your fingertips. My friends and I watched every new release, every old cheesy horror movie, and every irreverent comedy that trafficked in and out of those stores back in those days. 2019 Dub hasn’t seen a NEW movie in ages. The last movie that I watched from beginning to end was the original Karate Kid about a month ago.

Even though this image comes from another restaurant from my youth, it actually represents some of my first memories of baseball. I started playing T-Ball when I was 4 and have played some form of hard ball every season for the last 38 years. One of my first memories was being sponsored by our local Dairy Queen and getting these helmet sundaes after the game. I think about the field at Centennial Stadium, the dugouts, the concession stand, the teammates, and the coaches. You see a helmet; I see years of summer joy! And because these are a part of the start of my love for baseball, these helmets are partially responsible for my love of baseball cards.

When it comes to basketball, there is no other image that grabs my attention than the original Dream Team. Sure, I was a basketball fan back in the late 80’s when Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were battling on my Nintendo. I worshipped basketball during the “Inside Stuff” and “NBA on NBC” days and I am the guy that will argue with you all day about the game being better then than it is now. But the Dream Team was the pinnacle. This was the first time that so many superstars were compiled on the same team to play for the Red, White, & Blue. The guys in this picture were unbelievable and were transcendent in their sport.

When I see the old imagery of the 90’s Dream Team, it takes me back to playing pick-up games at my buddy’s house (The Parramore Pavilion), in my back yard under a utility light, and in dingy gyms all over my area. I spent my youth trying to shoot like Bird, pass like Stockton, rebound like Barkley, and play defense like Pippen. I never really mastered any of those but I made a ton of memories trying!

Perhaps no image conjures up more nostalgia than this Buffalo Bills helmet from Tecmo Super Bowl. I spent 3 years getting to know the Buffalo Bills because of this game. Their Super Bowls helped too but while I was always tempted to play seasons with Bo, Barry Sanders, and QB Eagles during sleepovers with my friends, the Bills offered the full package. The defense was loaded with Bruce Smith, Cornelius Bennett, and Nate Odomes. And on offense, you could run with Thurman, go deep to Andre Reed, or just move the chains with Don Beebe.

But the bigger part of the Tecmo Super Bowl memory was the sleepover part. We played a ton of Tecmo but we also watched corny horror movies, made prank phone calls, and made drink concoctions with mustard, ketchup, syrup, soy sauce, and whatever else we could find and dared each other to drink it. I know, that’s all immature but that’s exactly what we were; immature. We never really got into any trouble or bothered anybody, but we sure did some dumb things to entertain ourselves. But those are all memories and are all tied to these and other images over the years.

The same thing works with baseball cards for me. There are certain cards that make me stop and reminisce when I run across them in my collection; not because they are particularly good looking cards, though many of them are, but because they are associated with some moment in my life that makes me feel good. Take this 1990 Fleer Mark McGwire. I’ve written about this one before. It immediately takes me back to Halloween Night when my grandmother brought me packs of cards instead of candy. I remember sitting on my living room floor opening these while eating the candy I got from other places. What a night!

Then there is this 1990 KMart Jose Canseco. I remember how I would always try to talk my parents into buying me cards at department stores. Before Hobby and Retail were a thing, you could pick up just about anything at a department store, including store specific sets. Seeing this card immediately takes me back to being a kid in those stores. I would hide in clothes racks, moan about trying on clothes, and put on my sincerest charm when it came to getting some packs.

Here is a card of one of the most underrated players among collectors today. Eric Davis was a true superstar during the 80’s-90’s. But this particular card reminds me of when I used to play RBI 3 on the NES with friends. I always liked to used the World Series Champs from 1990, the Reds. Davis, Barry Larkin, Chris Sabo, Jose Rijo, and The Nasty Boys were awesome! I even remember some of the role players like Billy Hatcher, Ron Oester, Hal Morris, and Paul O’Neill. I think RBI 3 is the second greatest sports video game of all time.

I’ve been to many Braves games during my lifetime, even though I live 3 hours away. I went to a lot more as a kid than I do now that I have kids of my own but I still watch them all of TV. At one of those games as a kid in 1992, they gave out these cards. What I specifically remember about the game that year was a Fred McGriff homer as a member of the Padres. I remember thinking that it would be pretty cool if McGriff played for the Braves. He would wind up in Atlanta a couple years later and I was right, it was pretty dang cool!

A lot of people have their favorite Ken Griffey Jr. cards. But I’m willing to bet that I’m rather unique in my choice. I do love the 1989 Upper Deck rookie and I spent most of my life chasing it in packs. But this 1990 Topps was special to me. The first complete set I ever owned was 1990 Topps as a gift from my parents. I was 13 and immediately took all the stars out and put them in my binder. Probably a rookie mistake but I always loved this Jr. and it reminds me of when I used to sit in my bedroom floor putting those cards in my binder. There were some great cards in that set for a 13 year old; Jr., Frank Thomas, Juan Gonzalez, Nolan Ryan, Canseco, McGwire, and so on.

I missed the boat on 1989 Upper Deck when it came out because there wasn’t a local card shop in my small town. I was able to pick up 1990 Upper Deck the following year on a church choir trip. There was a little card shop in the North Georgia Mountains where we spent a week during that summer. The shop was quite a treat for me and while they had all the new stuff from 1990, they also had a couple 1989 packs. A friend of mine grabbed some ‘89 and I went straight for the new packs. He pulled the Jr. and I pulled this Olerud….I’ll never forget that but I was still pretty happy with the Olerud at the time.

This one is a classic for me. I really loved the inserts in the 90’s and this Dream Team set was one of the best. While a Kirby Puckett card would normally be taboo for a Braves fan, I actually really liked him. I remember making a few trades with a buddy to add this Kirby and a few others to my collection. We sat at the lunch table at school and he couldn’t believe I wanted some Twins player. Still glad I have this one!

You won’t find many collectors that like to keep 1991 Fleer sitting around. I have several cards that are memorable from that set for me. But I grew up, like many others, watching the Cubs on WGN. It was a time when you only got to watch your local team and occasional prime time games. The other option was the Cubs. I watched them in the afternoon while I did my homework (wink, wink) and was a big fan of Sandberg and The Hawk. This card was cool when I pulled it and still reminds me of watching those games. I will always remember getting to hear Harry Carey announce baseball games.

There were two things I really loved in the early 90’s; Frank Thomas and art cards. I was always The Big Hurt when we had homerun derby’s in the front yard while everybody else fought over being Canseco, Griffey, and McGwire. When I see this card, I vividly remember those days in my front yard, trying to smash tennis balls over the boxwood bushes that separated our house from the neighbors. It felt like we had to hit the ball a mile back then to clear those shrubs.

While none of these cards carry any real monetary value, that’s not why I still have them. They have real meaning to me. I see more than the small pictures on cardboard. I see hanging out with friends, making trades at school, sitting alone in my room sorting cards, and learning about the game itself. That is worth more to me than what they sell for on eBay. There is certainly a section of the hobby for me that is dedicated to chasing big hits but when I really want to bring order back to my collecting world, I sort through “the good stuff”. And lately, I’ve needed to get back to the basics thanks to the numerous releases we are seeing week after week. No matter what anybody ever says, I’m a firm believer that Junk Wax soothes the soul!

J-Dub