Cards from The Junkie, Part 2

So, my job interview is over. It seemed to go okay, although I am not particularly optimistic about my chances. My friend on the inside, who was part of the interview team, mentioned afterward that some of the other candidates had industry experience, which I don't. He said they those candidates had their own weaknesses, and indicated that I am still in the running. So, now I have a two week wait to actually hear the outcome. As I said, I am not optimistic, so it is back to the long, slow, humiliating grind of looking for jobs. I have to remind myself that I made a deliberate choice not to look for another job with my previous employer, and in the long run, I am better off leaving a company that is slowly dying, but it is small consolation.

What has been big consolation, though, has been the pack of cards I got in the mail the other day from dayf over at Cardboard Junkie (and another surprise package I got yesterday from Night Owl. But more on that later.) I am breaking my Junkie package into three posts, in order better milk what limited posting material I have available. Previously, I showed the sweet sketch card he sent me. Today, I am going to show the cards he sent that I needed for sets I am building. He was under no obligation to send me any cards, so I am quite appreciative that he took the time to scour through my want lists.

For my 2001 Topps Heritage set:


For me 2002 Topps Heritage set:



For my 1976 Topps set:







There was actually a number of other 1976 cards he sent, but I have put them in the binder already, and I forgot to get a count. Suffice it to say that these above were the stars of the show. Cards of star players that are in great condition. While Randy Jones isn't a huge name anymore, he did have two outstanding years with the Padres in 1975 and 1976, winning 20 and 22 games respectively and finishing second and first in the NL Cy Young race (also respectively.) That this card came between those two stellar seasons makes it extra special, even if Beckett doesn't agree. I don't give a rat's ass what Beckett says. I love this card. And, by the way, that isn't a crease up at the top, the right of Randy. That is a dog hair. I really need to clean around here.

These cards were awesome and would have made me very happy all by themselves. But, dayf wasn't done. More tomorrow.

Ponies!

A while back, dayf over at Cardboard Junkie asked his readers for pony artwork. So, as I described in this post, I made him a custom card front based on the 1976 Topps Big League Brothers card, using a picture of two of my horses. He asked what I wanted in return, and I suggested a few Heritage cards.

Well, his package came in today. And there was more than a few Heritage cards, as well as a selection of 1976 Topps (the set I was working on when I got laid off). All I can say is, again, I am overwhelmed by card bloggers generosity.

I don't have time to do a more comprehensive post on what he sent because I am trying to get myself prepared for a job interview on Friday. I will hopefully get something up over the weekend. I will, however, show the star card in the package.



I am guessing Applejack and Applebloom are two characters in My Little Pony. I like how this card riffs off my custom creation. Well, "riff" probably isn't the right term. This card has too much awesomeness to be considered derivative. Let's say, dayf took my germ of an idea and made it his own. This card is going to go into my super vintage/relic/general awesomeness card binder because this card belongs there. I am putting it next to my Hector Noesi auto card:



If I read the expression on Hector's face correctly, he seems to be saying "Sweeeeet!!!! I like ponies!" So, everybody is happy.

Quick Thoughts on the Pettite Signing

Over the last few days, the Yankees blogoverse has lost it's collective shit over the signing of Andy Pettite to a contract. I suppose, since I have just gotten back into following baseball over the last couple years, I don't have the long history with Pettite that others do. And, I suppose that is the point. I will grant that he had a pretty nice, if abbreviated, year in 2010. But you have to go back to 2005 to find the previous year that he pitched really well.

From my perspective, the reaction to the signing is nothing more than an irrational outpouring of sentimentality for the years of 1998 to 2000 when the Yankees were last a dynastic team. Pettite is 39 years old, has been out of the game for over a year, and was effectively done with his 2010 season by mid-July. I suppose I could be wrong, and I hope I am, but I don't see much good coming from this.

The Yankees came into Spring Training with a pretty solid starting rotation. C.C. Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Michael Pineda, and Ivan Nova are all solid. Phil Hughes and Freddy Garcia were expected to fight it out for the fifth spot. Hughes is coming off a horrid 2011, but still is a talented young arm. Plus, he should be pretty cheap through 2013. Garcia is the odd man out. I would expect him to be a steady, if unspectacular, pitcher this year. But, the Pettite signing makes him expendable.

My best guess is Andy will be handed a rotation spot sometime in mid to late May and will hold it down all season despite putting up A.J. Burnett-like numbers. In the mean time, Hughes or Nova will be reduced to being the long man and Garcia will be traded to some other team, where he will continue to do a workmanlike job all season. In the end, Yankees fans will be able to wallow in nostalgia for the heady days of the late 20th century while handing away games down the stretch to the always competitive Red Sox and Rays.

Again, I hope I am wrong, but I think this will end poorly.

GEICO.....

So easy, even Jayson Werth can do it.

Multiple Trade Post

Has it really been over two weeks since my last post?

*checks front page*

*whistles*

Yep, it has. Luckily I do have something to post. I am still swore off buying any cards until I find another job, but it is getting harder now that Heritage is on the shelf. When last we talked, I had been expecting an offer on a job. However, I know now that it fell through. The company had a down fourth quarter and since the position hadn't been budgeted for, it was put on hold until later in the year. Luckily, there is a different position in the same organization that has been budgeted for and they are moving forward with the staffing process. Since the hiring manager for that position was part of the team I interviewed with previously, I got a free pass on the initial, by-phone screening interview and am moving right on to the face to face interview on March 30. So, I have a bit over two weeks to get myself prepared.

But, let's not waste time on such trivialities. There are more important things to deal with. Like a trade post!

As you may have surmised, I am a huge Heritage fan. I've decided to put all the Heritage sets together. You can look at my want lists over there.

*jerks head towards right sidebar*

If it wasn't enough to work on the regular 2011 Heritage set, I have also taken on the 2011 Heritage Minor League set. I've complete the 200 card, non-short printed part of the MILB set and now have to complete the 50 card, short print subset. Luckily, Ted over at Crinkly Wrappers had a duplicate of one of the short prints I needed:


Montgomery is a KC Royals pitching prospect. He has had nice statistics all the way up through AA ball, but seems to have gotten roughed up a bit while pitching for AAA Omaha last year. I would guess he'll be back at Omaha this year to polish his game.

My next trade was with Anthony at Get The Bat Off Your Shoulder. Anthony had shared that he keeps track of his cards with an MS Access database. Since I have used Access extensively at work, I asked if he would share it with me, since I am in desperate need of a way to get organized. He was generous enough to send it to me, but wouldn't take any cards in exchange for it. So, I proposed a trade. I helped him with 2011 Update and Lineage, and I got more help with 2011 Heritage.







Four inserts and a short print. Shhhhhhweeeeet! I am really psyched about these. I am getting a lot closer on 2011 Heritage. I might just have to make it a priority once I get back in the game. So, until next time, whenever that is, take 'er easy.