Something old, something new, something graded and something blue

Today, I received two comc packages. Yay ! One from purchases I made on their website a month ago, and another from cards from my mailbox, to which i send my ebay purchases that can't be shipped to France, that I had them forward to me...a month ago.

There's a little bit of everything : Blue Jays, Griffey, nice inserts, vintage, basketball and a few for some of you guys out there. And like I said last time, most of those I had completely forgotten about, considering the amount of cards I've purchased since (and haven't received)...

I can be very easily influenced. Each time I see a cool card on a blog, I'll chase it. So some of those are thanks to you guys.

I was wondering what a commemorative patch was. Since then, I've gotten a couple of Knicks ones, and I'm still undecided about how I feel. They're definitely cheezy, like something that would have its place on my grandmother's chimney.

More for my Slideshow collection. I love Piazza as much as I don't care about Gonzalez. I think I only need 5 or 6 to complete the two sets.

I love all those '93 Upper Deck inserts, especially when there're holograms involved. I'm such a 90s kid. I pulled a couple (the Ryan, Mattingly and Ripken to be precise) at the time, and I'm very happy to add some to my collection. The Mays and Mantle would look way better without that Upper Deck shirt in the background.

More cards for my Iooss and Lovero collections.

Yeah, I know, more 93 UD inserts. Amazing that I'd never picked those up. It's probably pure nostalgia, but those are exactly what I expect of inserts. Nice, simple design, nothing fancy with a strong lineup and that don't come one in every pack.

The Kid knows he's cool.

I wondered what the Hot Gloves inserts looked like. Those aren't the toughest to find, compared to the 94 ones, but I still really like it. I might chase the 94 Griffey one day. Who knows.

 I remember Nick writing about that insert set, and he got me curious. The least I can say is that it's unlike anything I've ever seen !

I'd never heard of that insert set, and was just browsing through comc's Carter cards. Like everything in 94 UD, there's a lot of foil on there, but it looks great ! Plus, it's the electric diamond version.

When Matt sent me an encased Halladay Pristine card, I wanted to know more about the set. And I found that on card Phelps auto for .70cts, so I pulled the trigger (it's very itchy). It doesn't really scan that well, as it looks much nicer in real life. It's all shiny and all.


Ok, next up, VINTAGE !

Some random vintage for my quest to get one card from every post '52 Topps set. Not exactly an impossible one to accomplish.

This one I didn't get at random. It must have been in one of Nick's Frankenstein sets. It's a great photo of a great player.

A wacky card from a wacky set. That halo is such a great idea.

I'll probably end up trying to get as many Munson cards as I can. Obviously, I wasn't around to watch him play (I was born in 1977. In France. I didn't know what a catcher was before 1993), but everything I read about him told a great story. Despite the tragic ending. But at least, the Yankees let him have a mustache.

 Another great player. Another tragic ending. Planes weren't too safe back then for baseball players (and still aren't, as we saw a few years ago). The card is in bad shape, which explains how I got it for $2, but is still a welcome addition to my "iconic cards of iconic players" collection.

I bought it for a very simple reason : the great horizontal picture.

I wanted a Frank Robinson card, so I got a cheap one (he'd still play one year after that, before becoming the first Black manager ever). I wonder why I didn't get his 73 card, as it looks much better. Ah well, it'll be for next time.

Finally, here's the major card of the bunch. a 1960 Topps Willie Mays. It's the most I've ever paid for a card ($17), and I don't regret it in the least. I love it already. Too bad it's been slabbed and encased. I'm not sure yet what to do with it, if I'll try and break it open or not. I'd much prefer to have it in a nice screw down instead. And I hate the idea of giving grades to cards, i don't want to make them self-conscious.

So there you go ! I hope my next shipment gets here soon...