Collecting Goals for 2012

I hate New Year's Resolutions. They end up being pie in the sky goals that never really happen, and then the next year, the people make the same resolution. And the vicious cycle continues. But, goals for the year, goals are a good thing. Goals are a bit different, in my mind, because they are more tangible than "resolutions". So, without a due, I present to you

HENCHMEISTER'S COLLECTING GOALS FOR 2012!

1. Fully organize my Player Collections with pictures/scans. I have already started this one with my Ryan Kalish PC, but now I need to start doing this for my Wakefield and Ellsbury PCs.
2. Add at least 20 more cards to my Ryan Kalish PC. The current number stands at 27. His stuff can be had pretty cheaply, so this shouldn't be too difficult. I've been pretty lucky this year in being able to pick up a lot of his stuff pretty cheaply (due to injury, I should add), but that might not continue if he gets the starting right field job in June, or whenever he comes back. Hopefully I can pick up his 2008 Chrome Auto before that.
3. Add at least 30 cards plus an Auto/GU card to my Tim Wakefield PC. The current number is 44. This has been sort of surprising to me, as I have made a fair amount of progress with this collection. For whatever reason though, I haven't picked up a "hit" of his. I think I can do better next year.
4. Add at least 50 cards plus an Auto/GU card to my Jacoby Ellsbury PC. The current number is 31. The Eclectic Ellsbury Collection started out very slow, but in the last month or so, it's finally picking up steam with a couple of big trades. His stuff is easily available, so I don't think it will be that difficult to hit 81 by the end of next year.
5. Scale down my collection. I'm gonna be honest, I have way too much stuff. I think in the next week or so, I need to host a giveaway so I can get rid of some stuff. I should also make a few trades to bring in stuff I actually want. And, I need money, so I've started to sell a lot of stuff. But, seriously, I need to get rid of my unwanted cards.
6. Stop impulse wax purchases. Unless it's for a set I need, I don't need it. I don't have a lot of money to spend in the first place, so I shouldn't spend it on cards I don't need or will have any use for.
7. Start an interesting set collection. I just want to start a set that's different from your typical base set. I've been think about doing the 2010 Upper Deck Portrait insert set, or the 2009 Heritage Clubhouse Collection relic set. Both should not be too expensive.
8. Chip away at my wantlists. SEND ME 2010 UPDATES!
9. Be a better blogger. I'm prone to laziness, as you can tell. But, it's not that difficult to put together a 100 word blog post. Of course, it may not be the most quality material, but it still should be good.

So, these are my goals. Hopefully I can stay focused this upcoming year and continue piecing together a solid collection. See you in 2012!

The Junk Blog Presents...

A Very Bruin Christmas.





















Merry Christmas to All!

HJB Masterpieces Card #15

Card #15 - Matt Barnes



Finals are currently eating my soul right now, so no real time to make any new posts. So I give you a new HJB Masterpieces card: Matt Barnes. First round pick by the Red Sox. My current investment. UConn product. I should get back to studying...or procrastinating.

Want to See The Kalish Kollection?

Here you go!

Yes, I've created a Photobucket album for my Kalish Kollection. I have photos (not scans, but I will get scans when I get home for summer) of all Kalish cards I currently own. I will update it when I receive something new. The Kollection is always a work in progress, but it's looking pretty solid so far. Go ahead and check it out!

I will add my Wakefield's and Ellsbury's at a later date.

I'm Violating My Own Moral Code of Baseball Cards

I find collecting enjoyable. I don't look at it as dollar signs and monetary value, I look at it as fun. See what I can get to expand my collection, while spending as little money as possible and selling off what I don't want. I don't like to look at cards as investments or money making devices. I feel it takes the fun out of collecting.

However, I have violated this "policy" as of today. Today, I learned that I am the highest bidder of a Matt Barnes autograph, from the recently released BDP&P. I have wanted to avoid having baseball cards as investments. But, I am currently very cash strapped. I'm making a little money here and there, but there is no sustained income. So, I have decided to start a Matt Barnes Stash (as they call it on FCB). Barnes, out of UConn, was selected 19th overall by the Red Sox and looks to have a promising future. Plus, his base autos average under 10 bucks right now. Now, this won't be a big stash, I don't have the budget to acquire 15 base autos, 10 refractor autos, 8 blues, 5 golds, 3 oranges, 2 purples (yes, they have purple refractor autos now), a red, and the superfractor. It will be something like a handful (3 or 4) of base autos and maybe a refractor. Hopefully it's enough to profit and be able to keep one.

I know, I'm violating my own moral code of baseball cards. BUT I NEEDZ TEH MONEYZ! Now excuse me while I return to school.

7 Packs of 2008 Goudey

A trip to the LCS yields these:



Chippin away at this set. Veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrryyyyyyyy slooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwly.

Killing a Group Break

I'm back! Finally! With actual cards!



My recommendation: check out Mojo Break NOW!

HJB Masterpieces Card #14

Card #14: Rob Gronkowski



GRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been sick on and off for the past 2 weeks. But hopefully I can post my most recent pickups in a video one of these days. And by recent I mean pretty much 2 months worth....

HJB Masterpieces Card #13

Card #13: Carlton Fisk



I must think good thoughts after what happened. Well, the Rangers and Tigers did help my cause as well. But this helps too. Even though I wasn't alive then, I can still appreciate this.

HJB Masterpieces Card #12

Card #12: Tim Thomas

YOU KNOW WHAT RETURNS TOMORROW?

HOCKEY!

GO BRUINS!

HJB Masterpieces Card #11

Back from depression. Sort of.

Card 11: The Top Gear Cast



I just got into the show this year. It is fracking AWESOME! And I'm not even a car fan. I'm even watching it now, which inspired me to make this card. A triple auto of these guys would make my life. Hmmmmmmm...A&G? Maybe? Possibly?

Anger

Full. Blown. Collapse. So. Painful.

I'm so mad, this is all I can type.

In other news, Go Bruins.

I'm done. I need sleep.

Carl Crawford is a waste of money.

HJB Masterpieces Card #10

Card #10 - Lonnie Chisenhall



I've become so frustrated with the Red Sox, I've started putting players from teams outside of Boston in this set. Already. It comes down to Game 162 tonight in Baltimore. PLEASE JON LESTER, DON'T SUCK.

In the meantime, Chisenhall will hopefully become my mainstay at 3rd base on my keeper team. A mid-season acquisition for me, he's been solid on a team that has sucked kinda hard this year. Hopefully I can turn it around next year.

HJB Masterpieces Card #9

Card Numbah 9: Sox Prospect Will Middlebrooks



The current everyday Red Sox are making me waaaaaaaaaay too angry right now. So, here's a card of a potential future Red Sox (he's not affecting the outcome of games, so he doesn't piss me off). Middlebrooks came on strong this year. He was a middle tier prospect last year, and now BOOM! Top 5 with ease. Of course, the Sox kinda have no one in the system presently, so it isn't hard. But, trust me, he's pretty good.

HJB Masterpieces Card #8

Card 8: Ray Bourque



Guess who just started their preseason two nights ago?!?! Alright, I don't care either. If there is anything more useless than the preseason...I haven't found it yet. I'll get back to you on that. Oh, and wake me up when the real defense of the Cup commences.
Ray Bourque? Oh, maybe just one of the best Bruin defensemen ever. Behind some guy named Orr, me thinks.

HJB Masterpieces Card #7

Card #7: Troy Brown



I told you I would update semi-daily. Football has started, so I decided to make a card of a great Patriot. He did everything. Return kicks, catch passes, play defensive back even. He will never be widely remembered around the league, but he will always be a great Patriot.

HJB Masterpieces Card #6

Card #6: Rajon Rondo



In all honesty, I kinda dislike the NBA...a lot. If you told me you would give me 50 bucks if I could stay on the same channel and watch an entire NBA game on TV, I couldn't do it. It's so painful. SO PAINFUL!!! That being said, Rajon Rondo is my favorite Celtic (or Paul Pierce...I can't decide). The plays he can make are nuts. Can someone buy me season tickets to the Celtics or Cavs so I can become a basketball fan again? Thanks!

As all of you know, today is the 10th anniversary of 9/11. I was only in 4th grade at the time, but I was able to understand quite a bit about the situation. I remember the next day was non-stop talk about the attacks. All of it is a bit fuzzy, because it was never on the forefront of my mind. Today, 10 years later as a college sophomore, it has come more to the forefront. To all of those lost 10 years ago today, may you rest in peace. The 12 mile long run I did today (tendonitis and all) was in honor of all of you.

HJB Masterpieces Card #5

Card #5: Danny Woodhead



Stolen from the Jets! Hellz yeah! This is the most recent guy to come out of nowhere and into the Patriots running back system. I really hope this guy has a another good season, and that he's not on of those one-year wonder types.

Is It Just Me...

Or did Topps really overdo it with the parallels in Topps Chrome this year? Let's see we have:

Base
Refractor
X-Fractor
Purple
Blue
Orange
Black
Sepia
Gold
Red
Atomic
Super
Canary
(Along with '96 Chrome Inserts and more Heritage Chrome)

SERIOUSLY TOPPS, WHY THE FUCK DO WE NEED ELEVENTY-BAZILLION PARALLEL SETS?!?!?! THIS DOESN'T HELP ANYTHING!

HJB Masterpieces Card #4

Card #4: Adrian Gonzalez



Theo has had his fair share of poor decisions as GM. But, he has sure as hell had his winners too. Take this guy for example. .341 average? 103 RBIs? I'd say Theo found a winner here.

HJB Masterpieces Card #3

Card #3 in the set: Tom Brady.



I don't care if he sports long hair that makes lose his manliness, the dude can throw a hell of a lot of touchdowns. Oh, and he won 3 Superbowls. You know, no big deal.

HJB Masterpieces Card #2

Card #2 in the HJB Masterpieces Series: Peedy



Three words to describe this:

THE LAZAH SHOW!

HJB Masterpieces Card #1

Ok, so in my tired state of mind last night, I posted a preview of my new custom card set: HJB Masterpieces. So, here's a bit more of an explanation and whatnot.

-There is no limit to how big this set can get. I've already thought about how much awesomeness I can pack into the checklist that I've set the checklist size to as much as I want.

-I do like the design of UD Masterpieces (I've never busted any, but I like it). So, I've given the cards a rough pastel on canvas look. No borders though. I am inept at that type of Photoshop.

-The main focus will be Boston sports, but I will add others as necessary. Including non-sports stuff as well. No Yankees though. Yankees are forbidden. Always.

So, here's card #1 in the checklist that I showed last night: Brad Marchand

The Little Ball of Hate made my life during this past playoff run. From completely pissing off the Sedin twins, to scoring goals and making plays in key situations (see Game 7, Stanley Cup Finals), to rapping to Black & Yellow at the parade. You want proof?



I will update this (for the most part) daily. Stay tuned for more!

Custom Cahds?

The latest and greatest custom card set is here. Well, sort of.

HJB Masterpieces



Simple design + Canvasy look + Boston sports (and others when necessary) = Awesomeness

More updates later.

My Return to Ohio

Yay Ohio!

Oh, and here's an update of the recent trades/purchases I've made.



Here's to an end of the laziness!

Score?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Ladies and gentlemen, it's back!



Well, not til late October. But, still!

SCORE

FRACKING

HOCKEY!!!!

It better be about as awesome as year. Get ready for massive amounts of Score breaks.

Info here

BLAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!! - I'm Lazy

Seriously, why am I so lazy? I did this video like 2 weeks ago. Anyway, here's a recap of a recent 2008 Goudey box break.



Oh, and my wantlist is up for that set. And it is massive. So please help.

And, for good measure, here is a recent recap of some Kalish and Wakefield stuff I picked up.



I seriously need to take photo of that triple auto, that thing is redonkulously awesome!

And now, an end to this laziness. Finally.

How the Youth of America are Corrupting the Hobby

Courtesy of the FCB Forums....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xPNL4by4kk&feature=player_embedded

Someone explain to me how this kid can afford a box of Bowman and I can't afford a box of Series 2 Topps. I call shenanigans.

My Wantlists are Up

Good lord, I need a lot of this year's Topps set.

Anyway, my wantlists are up (to a degree, more to come later). The link can be found at the top of the page, next to my Kalish Kollection and Wakefield Collection. Hit me up if you want to trade.

Bruins Tribute and Retail Packs

And, you know what, let's watch Game 7 with Dave Goucher and Bob Beers with the call.



Makes me feel good every time!

The Most Glorious Post About Cards Ever

No seriously, it is. Stale Gum's one and only Chris Harris, as only he can do, has compared cards to drugs. Maybe the best piece of cardbloggery ever written. And, you should go read it RIGHT NOW!


No, seriously, you should.

Special Annoucement

We interrupt our regularly scheduled cardbloggery to bring you a special announcement...






















YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES
YESYESYESYES!!!!!!!

Oh right, and do you need any further proof of Tim Thomas being God?





I rest my case.

A Trip to the LCS: Golds, Twinks, and Tim Wakefield

Some local card shops leave something to be desired. Not mine. Kenmore Collectibles is, in my opinion, the best run card shop in the Boston Area. The owners really know how to connect to the collector: reasonable wax prices, lots of cheap singles, sales and discounts, and so on and so forth.

So today, with a little extra time on my hands, I decided to make a run on the LCS. Here's the stuff I picked up while there.



Note to all: I Collect Wakefield (with a C, the Kollecting is reserved for Kalish). Just decided yesterday to start collecting the Ol Knuckleballer, so here's a start to my collection. Now up to whopping 6 cards! Woo!



I think I might go after the entire 2010 A&G Mini Set. I just really like the design of these cards. Now, I only have 348 of 350 to go; I only have this and Vernon Wells. Fun...



A Sonny Gray chrome for $.50? Eh, what the hell! Might be able to make a buck or two down the line. I've heard that he is the shit, but time will tell.



Now, this was an interesting find. For 3 bucks, a gold refractor of a guy that is hot this season. Morton is 6-2 with an ERA under 2.5 for the Bucco's this year. Think I can crack 5 bucks on eBay with this thing? (Yeah I'm selling it, I need money!)

I also bought I rack pack of 2011 Topps Series 1 while there (I figure the hobby wax was probably too expensive to buy, but who cares). I pulled this from the rack:



Yes, this is a David Price waste of space sparkle variation. I don't understand two things: why Topps makes these and how they are popular. It's only a little photoshopped lens flare,

WHAT'S THE BIG FRACKIN DEAL?!?!?!

Returning to cardbloggery, this was gonna be it from card shop, but the owner threw in a bonus:



These here are hobby store exclusive inserts. The owner said he usually distributes them one at a time, but he gave me 10 of them: Aaron, Pujols, Longoria, Heyward, Posey, Braun, Cano, Mauer, Howard, and Hamilton. I think these are kinda interesting inserts, very simple. Nothing overly special, just simple. I think I might go after the full set of these, so if you have any, shoot me a message and we can work out a deal.

And, if you're ever in the Boston Area, make a run over to Kenmore Collectibles, located on Commonwealth Ave in Kenmore Square in Boston, only a 5 minute walk from Fenway Pahk!

Oh, and short Bruins update: Alex Burrows is a tool and Tim Thomas is still God.

That is all.

Here They Come

First 8-1

Then 4-0


Yes folks, the series is even. Game 5 tomorrow!

Meanwhile, can someone please flatten Alex Burrows and Ryan Kesler?

Oh, yeah, and Tim Thomas is still god.

Game 1: Oh God.......

So promising....


Then a goal happened....


With 18 seconds to go....


Why?!


That being said, Tim Thomas is still god.

Day 3 from Nationals

Ok, so this happened this past Saturday. Yeah, I'm lazy, go figure.

Day 3 saw the final day of competition at the 2011 Outdoor Track & Field National Championships. Good news with that: 1. No decathlon or heptathlon events to slow things down in the afternoon. 2. All events are final. 3. Competition ends at 5. We ended up leaving at about 7:30, but it felt like the day went a lot quicker.

3 members of OWU Track & Field competed on Day 3. Emily Amburgey competed in the high jump, clearing 1.62 meters, but finished in 17th overall. Kat Zimmerly finished 15th in the 5k. And, folks, OWU has an All-American! Ethan Freet ran a 52.15 in the 400 meter hurdles to finish 3rd overall, in the nation. Congrats to Ethan and the rest of our OWU competitors!

The Race of the Day is a bit of a toss up. Both of these races were really impressive because both of the winners carried out distance doubles and won: the 800 and the 5k. In the 800, Nick Guarino of SUNY Fredonia, who had already won the national title in the 1500, had a hell of a showdown with Ben Scheetz of Amherst in order to win the title. It came down to the last 100, and Guarino was able to hold off Scheetz to win. And, in the 5k, Mike Spain of North Central, who I've previously mentioned and won the 10k, was 5th with 250 meters to go, and absolutely flew in that last 250 to win. Oh, and 1-2 in the 5k was the same as 1-2 in the 10k (go figure).

Well, it was a hell of fun time to host Nationals. I've never been around so many redonkalous athletes in my life. I wish some day I can run at National meet, but for now, hosting will suffice.

And, again, congrats to All-American Ethan Freet!



Back to our regularly scheduled cardbloggery.

Day 2 from Nationals

Smart me. Skipping out on work to watch trains on Day 2 of Nationals. Seriously, waiting for nothing to happen is boring as hell. Not much really happened anyway on Day 2 except for Field Events, the end of the decathlon and heptathlon, lotsa prelims, and the 3k steeple. Only one of OWU's finest competed on Day 2: Sarah Bechtel in the pole vault. She cleared 3.39 meters, but fell short of All-American honors. Those vaulters can go ridiculously damn high.

Since, I missed most of the races from the day, I give the race of the day to the Men's 3k Steeplechase. It was a very close race for the entirety, but with about 600 to go, Dickinson's Kent Pecora got accidentally pushed into the infield for 5 steps or so (note-you're only allowed 3 consecutive steps on the infield otherwise you are disqualified). Pecora then proceeded to act like he was shot out of a cannon, absolutely flying in the last 600 meters to win. Officials ruled it was incidental contact that caused this, and that Pecora would not be disqualified. My pick to win the race, Nick Kramer of Calvin College, finished 3rd.

More to come from Nationals!

Day 1 from Track Nationals

Hosting Track Nationals = awesome. The amounts of free stuff you get are ridiculous. So far, I've racked up 2 t-shirts, a polo, a draw-string bag, a water bottle, and some other assorted crap. I also bought some other shit as well. Again, not every day you host nationals. Working Track Nationals, especially during the down time = frackin boring. I have never been as bored as I've been in my life. We essentially had to stay in the muddy hospitality tent with shitty views of the track waiting for our next assignment, which I could have to wait an hour for. Eventually, I got so bored that I went and ran errands, and it's a good thing cause the skies opened up and let forth a hell of a downpour while I was gone. And, I wasn't there. Winner = me.

Oh, yeah, there were races, throws, and jumps as well. 5 OWU athletes competed on Thursday. Cara DeAngelis ran in the 1500 preliminaries, and was unfortunately 2 spots from making the finals, finishing with a time of 4:37. The 4x400 team of Sean Patrick, Matt Martin, Ethan Freet, and Silas Jolliff finished 14th out of 16 with a time of 3:17, a disappointing end to the season after claiming All-America honors in Indoor (good news though, 3 out of 4 of them return next year). Freet also ran in the preliminaries of the 400 hurdles and finished in the 4th fastest time of 52.57 seconds, making it to the finals on Saturday.

The race of the day yesterday was, of all things, the men's 10k. I know, you're thinking "how the hell can 25 laps be interesting, especially laps 3-22?". Of course, being a distance runner helps. But, I seriously couldn't turn my head away from this race. From the outset, Eric Kleinsasser of Occidental took a large lead for the first 7 or 8 laps. Of course, common wisdom of 10k says that "he who takes a large lead early in the 10k will die hard". And, what do you know, he dies and the pack catches him! The pack remains pretty much intact until about 3200 meters to go (or so), when Mike Spain of North Central and Thomas Breitbach of Wisconsin-Eau Claire break away from the field. Now, usually the winner of the 10k is usually settled with 1200-2400 meters to go. Not today folks. The longest race on the track, 10,000 meters, 25 laps, is settled...

IN THE LAST 200 FRAKCIN METERS!

Yes, a sprint down the last 200. Mike Spain won with a time of 29:58 (which is not even his fastest). Being in the stands and watching, it was ridiculous.

Day 2 of Nationals coming tomorrow!

2011 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track and Field Nationals

This Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, Ohio Wesleyan, the school which I'm currently attending and getting an education from, is hosting the NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field National Meet! YAY FAST RUNNERS! Being a member of the OWU Track & Field Team, this is a big deal to me, and to the entire team. Not everyday that you compete for a school that is hosting a national meet, such as this.

The best sprinters, runners, throwers, jumpers, and vaulters from DIII Schools across the country will compete at OWU's Selby Stadium. But, screw them, we only care the OWU athletes competing in this meet. Turns out, we got 8 of them; 4 men, 4 women. So, here's a breakdown of each runner, what they have accomplished, and what event(s) they are racing/jumping/throwing in this weekend.

Starting with the men:

Ethan Freet, SO, London, OH

Freet, at the 2011 NCAC Conference Meet, dominated the sprinting events, winning the 55 Meter Dash, the 200m, the 400m, was a part of the winning 4x200, and winning 4x400 teams. For the entire season, Freet has been close to the top in every event he ran in. It's safe to say he's a boss.
Freet will be competing in the 400m hurdles and the 4x400.

Speaking of the 4x4, here is the rest of the 4x4 squad:

Matt Martin, SO, New Brighton, PA


Sean Patrick, SR, Delaware, OH


Silas Jolliff, SO, Cardington, OH


On the women's side:
Emily Amburgey, SO, Germantown, OH

Amburgey qualified for Nationals in indoors for the high jump. She also won All-NCAC Honors in indoors and outdoors for the high jump. She also has competed in the hurdles and long jump this season.
As you can probably guess, Amburgey will compete in the high jump.

Sarah Bechtel, FR, Bellefontaine, OH

Bechtel won the pole vault in both the NCAC Indoor and Outdoor Conference Meets. Her highest vault was at 3.55 meters. She also competed in the hurdles this year.
Bechtel will compete in, you guessed it, the pole vault.

Cara DeAngelis, FR, Norton, OH

DeAngelis has been very under the radar (kinda because one of her teammates steals the spotlight from her, but more on that later), but has become one of the strongest distance runners on the OWU Team. She won the 1500m at the NCAC Outdoor Conference Meet, and took 2 3rd place finishes in at indoor conference. She also hit NCAA Provisional Qualifying times in the 1500 and 5000m.
Cara will compete in the 1500m this weekend.

Kat Zimmerly, SR, Edinboro, PA

What hasn't she done? Kat was All-American in Cross Country this past year. She won the mile and 3k at the indoor conference meet, and won the 3k steeplechase at the outdoor conference meet. She has school records in everything it seems like, 3k steeple, 5k, and then decided to set the record in the 10k.
Kat will compete in the 5k.

Stay tuned for more information and updates from the meet!

Timothy James Thomas, Jr.

He is the goalie-god. Nuff said. Game 6 Wednesday in Tampa!

The Great Ryan Kalish Chase: Episode 3

We're back with another episode. Since my last Kalish update, his prices have tanked. Kinda helped by his partially torn labrum in his left shoulder, which happened on a diving catch. Not good to see him go down, but it's helping me with buying his autos cheaper!

I went through a Kalish buying skid, though. When you're short on money, you kinda don't want to spend money on any type of cards, even if they are of the guy you are crazy-collecting. During a double Ebay Bucks day, I decided to throw a dollar twenty-five at his Bowman DP&P Rookie Card, then threw my Ebay Bucks certificate and 2 cents at his Bowman Platinum rookie card. Note-Bowman Platinum is not all that it cracks up to be, in my opinion.

Then, as you know, prices tanked on everything his. So, I decided to make a run at an auto. I made a couple of runs at some assorted autos: 09 Bowman, 08 EEE, 11 Topps; nothing too serious though. But, the only one that I made a serious was his 08 Bowman Signs of the Future Auto. It's not the greatest design for an auto, but I'm happy, it's another Kalish Auto.

Final Price: $3.60

Even his low numbered shit fell hard. There was a 2010 Sterling Gold Refractor #'d/50 available for $.99 with no bids with about 9 hours to go. Of course, I decide to throw a bid at it. And, I looked to have the winning bid into the last minute. Then some jackass made a last minute snipe and won it for $1.83. SCREW YOU JACKASS!

More Kalish shenanigans to come, as there are more cards on the way!

I Kollect Kalish

Just wanted to make it known to the world.

What's Wrong With the NBA?

Haven't posted for a while, but there is something, not necessarily card related, that needs to be posted. *Disclaimer* - I am from Boston, but I do not mean this as being a sore loser for the Celtics losing.

Is there anything wrong with the NBA? Really, did I just say that? There can't be anything wrong with the league, it has everything going for it. Stacked teams a la the 80s Celtics and Lakers, endless amounts of superstars, their athleticism is off the charts, the Memphis Grizzlies of all teams knocking off the Spurs, showing that there are signs of parody in the league. Yup, they have everything going their way.



Yup, Arnold said it, the NBA is not all it's cracked up to be. The NBA is not about fundamental basketball anymore, it's all about flashy dunks, highlight-reel layups, and rainbow 3s. In other words, it's become a SportsCenter Top 10 Plays show.

Basketball is completely unwatchable. The game is boring. I even tried watching March Madness and got bored, and I usually love March Madness. The NBA has more talent than college, and it's even more boring than the college game.

Why is it? Basketball does not have a good rhythm to it like it used to. In the early 2000s, the game had a flow to it that today just seems to be lacking. In all honesty, though, I really can't explain it. I was much younger then, only 9 or 10, but I still enjoyed the game. It's turned into a street game on the court. Everyone is so talented and athletically gifted, but there is also a lack of fundamental basketball it seems. So while there are some great games, there are also plenty of games that are just plain sloppy. I personally don't want to watch sloppy basketball most of the time, I want to watch good games.

The NBA needs to be watched in person. The only basketball game I attended last year (2010) was a Celtics - Trail Blazers game in Boston. I thoroughly enjoyed that game. It was exciting, I got into the game quite a bit, and it was an extremely sloppy game! If you told me that I had won Celtics Season Tickets for life, I'd be very happy and probably become a fan again. But, when I go home and watch it on TV, the game is painful to watch because of the sloppiness. And, since Celtics tickets are now so expensive, and there are no teams in Central Ohio, I have to watch games on TV.

Super teams are a part of the NBA's culture, always have been, always will. But there is one team that has put an extremely bad taste in my mouth and has aided in my lack of enthusiasm for the NBA: the Miami Heat. Sure, I got a little excited when Boston put together their Big 3, but they at least did it the right way, no TV specials or bullshit. LeBron, D-Wade, and Bosh put themselves above the game and basically said we're better than everyone else and we're gonna beat everyone else. They're proving that they can beat everyone else now, but when the biggest superstar in the league goes on National TV to announce where he will play and then a giant party ensues on South Beach where they say they will win 10 championships and what-not, you gain a lot more haters than supporters (me being one of them).

Which leads me to LeBron, possibly half of what is wrong with the NBA. Memo to LeBron: grow up. Everyone one knows you are one of the greatest basketball players on the planet, but could you please stop acting you have been wronged by America and need to prove something to us. You put this upon yourself. You took an hour-long special on ESPN to announce to everyone, including the teams you interested in signing with, where you would play basketball this season. You helped create the unnecessary introduction of the 3 Amigos on stage in South Beach. You keep blowing up your Twitter feed with immature and unnecessary comments about redemption and karma (Twitter should be outlawed in 50 countries by now, but anyway). You sort of apologized to Cleveland fans by saying your sorry how "this" all happened. And, you also go down to one knee and look very emotional after beating the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semis.

Sure you are a great player, but leave the bullshit at the door. If you want to be better than Jordan, you have to act like a man. I know you're smart, just act like it. Man up, and say the way you went about the Decision was a stupid decision and that you are very sorry to the people you have pissed off. That so difficult? And, I pose this question, if the league's premier superstar is immature and arrogant as they come, what kind of image does this pose with the rest of the league?

There is one last thing wrong with the NBA: the national coverage. ESPN does a pretty job with covering baseball, and I love Matthew Barnaby and Barry Melrose covering hockey, but they are awful in their coverage of football and basketball. Plus, their image of turning into CNN for sports isn't helping them either. They get too swept up in talking about legacies and how great this one play was and what-not. I really don't care. Give me the basic stuff, no twitter feeds, no touch boards, no opinions from both sides, just the basics and maybe a little extra coverage from special events. Then cut to baseball highlights. And their national game coverage is just as horrendous, they seem to have no grasp about what they are explaining to their audience. Give me Gorman and Heinsohn any day over what they have.

So, what's wrong with the NBA? Well, I just gave it to you.

I'd be interested to hear reactions to this, feel free to leave a comment. But, please, do not say that I'm pissed off about the Celtics losing (because I'm not really a Celtics fan), or that I'm ranting against LeBron James (sure as hell looks like it, but I'm only pointing out that he's immature and doesn't know how to handle the spotlight).

Back to regularly scheduled cardbloggery.

On Location Pack Break - 2011 Topps Heritage from Liberty Collegiate Invitational

I did this a week ago, but didn't get to post it til now. School really gets in the way some times.



SP, Inserts (not including the Yaz), and the Chrome are for trade.

The Great Ryan Kalish Chase: Episode 2

I promised I would make my rounds on eBay looking for Kalish autos. And, I have. Now, I come to you with good news and bad news.

Bad News:
The 08 Bowman Chrome auto is slipping out of my grasp ever so slightly. I had one lined up for a steal at less than 10 bucks, $8.50 to be exact if I remember correctly. I had the high bid into the last minute, and I was about to celebrate my victory of this steal. Then, 2 or 3 last minute swipes came in, rendering me virtually helpless.

My high bid: $11.00
Final Amount: $15.00

Bastards.

I would check the completed listings on occasion just to see what the autos were going for. Some were selling for under 10 bucks. Why did I end up bidding on one that got swiped for 15 and I could've had one for a third of that? WHAT THE FUCK'S UP WITH THAT?!?!?!?!?!?!

Even base cards were at times absurd. Bidding on his Bowman Platinum base card with a $.99 starting bid,

Final bid: $3.32

Why would you ever want to pay over 3 bucks for a base rookie in a shitty product? AGAIN, WHAT THE FUCK'S UP WITH THAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

There is good news. I did happen to pick up a piece to add to the collection. No, it's not the 08 Chrome auto, but it's pretty decent, and it's a Kalish auto. Check this bad boy out:

Yes folks, that is a Ryan Kalish auto from Topps Pro Debut Series 1 (that overpriced Minor League stuff put out at the beginning of last year)! It's not the Chrome auto, but it's still a Kalish auto.

Final price: $8.59

Scoreboard me!

In the next episode of The Great Ryan Kalish Chase, we will continue to hunt for the 08 Chrome auto, and some other less expensive stuff in the jungles of eBay.