New Arrivals

After the wife and I got home from our vacation in South Dakota and Colorado, I had a pile of card packages waiting for me.  I was like a kid opening presents on Christmas morning. 

My Luke Hochevar card collection more than doubled after all was said and done.  I had won two "lots" of base cards (one with 13 cards and the other with 9 cards).  I also added a handful of autograph cards and serial numbered cards to my collection.  Here are some highlights from my haul.

These first two cards are some nice autographs that I bought.

The top card is a 2008 TriStar SignaCuts Autograph card serial numbered 3/5.  I was mildly disappointed that this one was a "sticker" autograph and not a "cut" autograph like the name of the card might suggest.  (The difference?  The "sticker" kind is an autograph on a clear sticker that is attached to the card.  The "cut" variety is an autograph on a piece of paper that is "cut" and placed inside the card.  Not a big difference, but a difference none the less, especially considering that there is no picture on the card.)

The bottom card is a 2008 Upper Deck Premier Signature serial numbered 37/45.  A sharp looking card in my opinion.

These next four cards are also quite nice.

The top left card is a 2008 Topps "Rookie Stars of 2008" Chrome card serial numbered 166/1959.  It is super shiny and is one of the few cards that lists his hometown as Fowler, Colorado (rather than Denver, CO).

The top right card is a 2006 Bowman Sterling "Prospect" Refractor Autograph card serial numbered 15/199.

The bottom left card is a 2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes Grey Autograph card serial numbered 21/50.  This card is fun because I have four other "parallel" cards from this set, each one with a different background color -- Green, Brown, Black, and Yellow.  They look great together as a set.  And looking around eBay, I see that there are one or two more that I need to complete the series.

The bottom right card is another 1/1 card that I've added to my collection.  It is a 2010 Topps Series 2 "Yellow Printing Plate" which was used in the printing of the base set (which would explain the lack of color).  The "card" is basically a sheet of aluminum metal.  I'm in the process of adding all of the cards in the series for which this printing plate would have been used.  I have the basic base card.  I also have another 1/1 Platinum card coming that my wonderful Mother bought for me (and I'll be sure to post a picture of the card once it arrives).  Some people might wonder why I'd want such an unattractive card.  That's easy.  Because I'm the ONLY person with that ugly card.

 Once my collection started taking shape, I decided that I needed a way to display the cards because keeping them in a pile on the kitchen table just wasn't cutting it.  I looked around on eBay for display cases, but they were all either too expensive or too bulky.  I decided to build my own display and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out.  Here is a picture of the finished product in action holding my current cards.

On the top row is a ticket stub from one of the many KC Royals games I've attended.

The middle eight rows are my Hochevar cards.  (Notice the colorful series of cards I was talking about above in the third row.)

The bottom two rows are my favorite basketball cards, including some Micheal Jordan, Shaquille O'Neil, Karl Malone, a 1992 USA Dream Team card (the first cool card I got out of a pack when I was a kid), and a bunch of John Stockton Jersey cards (the very bottom row).  I may need to scan the basketball cards some day.

My wife and I discussed where the best place to hang the display in the house and it was decided that the basement would be ideal.  I think we made a wise choice.

(The display is on the wall behind my drum kit and my electric guitar and amp.)

Because the display turned out so well, I've decided that when we're done with law school and get moved into our next house, I'm going to turn one of the rooms into a "Man Cave" and decorate the walls with numerous displays like this one.  Then I can get my 225 other John Stockton cards out of a binder and out into the open, where every card should grow old.
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SONG:  "I and Love and You" by the Avett Brothers -- One of the great things of having a sister who is hip to the music the kids are listening to these days is that she tips me off to great songs by great bands.  Like this one.  Awesome song.

TELEVISION:  Chuck: Season 2.  I'm finally catching up on Chuck.  I enjoyed the first season, but lost track on it.  I've been watching Season 2 on NetFlix and the one thing that has caught my attention is that this show has a great soundtrack, probably as good if not better than Scrubs.  (Although Scrubs focused on Indie music and Chuck has a lot of 1980s Pop Rock.)  Also, it's a fun show.  And, were it not for my friend Andy, I'd have never known that the Chuck theme song is the instrumental part of "Short Skirt Long Jacket" by CAKE (which is a GREAT song, by the by).

LOOKING FORWARD TO:  August.  I'll be attending a wedding of a friend and his lovely fiance.  I will also (hopefully) be playing in the Omaha Metro Golf Championship for a second year.  This year it's being held at the Council Bluffs Country Club, which should be fun.  I also hope to use my "Tee It For Ten" card to play The Player's Club of Omaha and Arbor Links Golf Course in August.  Also, by August, our local farm market should be keeping us well fed with farm fresh produce.