Doug Jones Music Video Producer

Today's post is for round 1 of the Nachos Grande Blogger Bracket Challenge where 'The Prowling Cat' enters as the #12 seed.  Being a college basketball fan I embrace the #12 seed, and look forward to trying to overcome a strong writer in 'The Diamond King'. Doesn't it seem like every season in the college basketball tournament a 12 seed beats a 5 seed, and then goes deep into the tournament? The Blogger Bracket Challenge will be no different. Look for this cat to pull off the upset in round one

Seeing the card initially got me to thinking what is Mr. Jones doing there with a video camera? This is when I remembered an old rumor I had heard back when this card was made. The rumor at the time was Mr. Jones was a music video producer on his non-pitching days. He would hang out near the batting cage, locker-room, rain-delay's or any other location baseball players were dancing.

When he began his career Doug was sneaking around dugouts looking for any dance routines he could feature in a music video..

It was then Doug noticed even the groundskeepers liked to show-off their dance moves.

Things progressed as Doug produced his first music video. It was then he started to notice that word was getting out whenever he went to a baseball game. Baseball teams were working together on routines hoping it would lead to an appearance in one of Doug's video's.

 

Word of Doug's work spread so fast that even in other countries they would dance hoping for that one opportunity of being spotted by the great Doug Jones.

Then the day came when Doug created what he considered his masterpiece. With the help of the Harvard baseball team.

Happy with his work Doug hasn't been seen at anymore baseball games for years with his video camera. Will he come out of hiding, and attempt to revive his career in music video production? The rumors are he has accepted there won't be another Harvard video. That Doug has peaked, and video's like his masterpiece come only once in a lifetime.  Only time will tell...

Today Was A Good Day

While I put today. The reality is the day I am talking about was Friday. Work was a little slow, and I've been doing everything to stay, and save my vacation time by not leaving. Friday was just too tempting as I just wasn't feeling it. So when the offer came I was out the door faster than they could ask who wanted to leave.

Coming home I thought about how I've been thinking about heading south to Eugene, and hitting the card shops. With nothing better to do I took the chance, and headed on down. Arriving in town I had to hit the Goodwill first, and saw a few things worth considering. There was a garbage can with a huge Wizards logo for the MLS team. A Seattle Mariners lunchbox (which I totally forgot about or I might have bought it). Then last was a Mike Sweeney in a Eugene Emeralds uniform bank. In the end I decided to leave empty-handed, and save my money for the card shops. This was a decision that would pay off in some sweet cards.

Going into the first shop I was full of hope. Last time in this shop was a weird experience that ended with me wondering if I'd ever want to go back. Things were like a trail where I had to be very careful not to knock over boxes I was forced to step over. The store was still fairly messy, but no stepping over boxes this time so it was an improvement. The owner never really acknowledged me I felt which added to the down visit. My hope was that maybe giving it another go it would pay off with some needed hits to the wants. This paid off right from the start. Busy with another customer I started to kind of wander while he did his thing. While waiting I looked down to see a box with a few 1994 Classic Gold. Knowing I needed just one last card to complete the set I looked up the number on my wants, and started the search.

I need to put it in the set, and count it out once its in there. Always have to make sure no gremlins snuck in, and either took cards out or stopped me from putting them in. Right now I'm basking in the glory of completing my fourth set for the year. Hopefully I can get atleast one more done before the year ends.

Finished with the customer he asked what I was looking for. Deciding to go with something fairly simple I went with a new self created subset.

2010 Upper Deck Ballparks

This completes just over half of this set. Not too bad being I just added it to the wants. Hopefully I can ring this set up fairly quickly as I enjoy these type of sets. I've always been a fan of the baseball stadium, and cards dedicated to that are high on my lists.Second I went with another subset that has some baseball stadiumness to it.

2007 Opening Day

At this point I though I'd see what he wanted for the cards I already had. He added it up, and came back with the amount I had planned to spend so this adventure was over. The good news is he was much more pleasant than my last visit. This might lead to another stop in there at some point in the next six months at the most hopefully.

Not finished I had to make another stop in the other card shop in town. Other than one card it was a dry stop. The great news is the one card was something big.

I don't spend much on baseball cards. What I do spend doesn't go into purchases like this one. Rosario cost the exact same amount as all the other cards I got at the first shop. Something inside me just said spring for the card, and add an autograph of one of your favorite current players. So in the end I'm pretty pleased, and glad I took the day off.

Oregon Ducks vs. Oregon State Beavers Bobblehead Style #3 (We have a winner)

This last Friday the final edition of the Jackson Stores bobbleheads came out for the Oregon region. As luck would have it I was able to get off work early, and went by to get the bobbleheads. I say luck as I went back later to try, and pick up another set for another co-worker of the wife. This second trip was three hours before I would have normally gotten off work. The Oregon Ducks bobbleheads were all out, so no second one for her other c-worker. I did get the first ones for the wife, and her friend that got the first two Ducks. One thing you will notice is that the pictures are of the bobbleheads still in their boxes. This is because I decided to not get a bobblehead for my collection this time, but I am still picking a winner.

Puddles has gone through some changes from his original look. As most people know Puddles was once actually Donald Duck from Disney. Things have changed for Oregon's favorite duck as he now has his own look. This allows him to make more appearances as Disney didn't allow the school to use Donald for these. Graphics still use the old version sometimes, and falls under the original Disney, Oregon agreement.

Benny has gone through some changes of his own lately. Not long ago he was very cartoon looking, and kid friendly. Then he went through a faze of what was known as the angry beaver.  Not a popular look for the beaver he has now finally found a middle ground.

AND THE WINNER IS...

  

This was a very close contest if you ask me. Puddles has a decent look that at first I was thinking about announcing as the winner. Then I looked at Benny, and well... He has a chainsaw, and that is just plain bad-ass. With Benny carrying the chainsaw I thought it was best not to mess with him, and announce him as the winner. 

This means in a recap that the Beavers have won the first ever Oregon Ducks vs. Oregon State Beavers bobblehead challenge. The Ducks won round one with Dion Jordan winning over Jordan Poyer. In round two we had a close decision with former Beaver Marcus Wheaton beating Kenjon Barner by a fantastic catch in the endzone. Closing out the challenge Benny took down Puddles with the chainsaw. Hopefully these did well enough this year that Jackson's does them in our area again next season. I know Boise State has been getting them for years so maybe we can start getting that in our area.

Biz Cards The Collection- Portland, (OR) & Salt Lake City

Not a whole lot to share other than business cards today. I will throw out a reminder that if you haven't voted go to Nachos Grande, and throw in a vote for your favorite post about the cards we were given. The voting for round 0 ends tonight.

Portland, Oregon

In 1978 the PCL was looking to expand, and gave that franchise to the city of Portland, Oregon. The team would remain in town until the end of 1993. Due to contract problems with the city over revenue issues team owner Joe Buzas decided to relocate the team to Salt Lake City. Among the revenue problems were how to share the profits from ticket, and food sales. The move to Salt Lake City was brisk as Buzas was still negotiating a deal with Portland while others claim his Salt Lake contract was already signed. In the end both sides never came to an agreement, and the team moved to Utah.

Filling in came Single-A short-season baseball in the name of the Bend Rockies. With the Beavers moving Rockies owner Jack Cain who lived in Portland decided to move his Northwest League team from Bend, Oregon. Many doubted the move as Portland was thought to be too big for short-season baseball. For the six seasons the team were in Portland it was a huge success.

In 2000 The Albuquerque Dukes were looking for a new town to call home, and decided on Portland. The one obstacle The Portland Rockies willingly agreed to step aside, and make the move to Pasco, Washington for the start of 2001. Retaking the name Beavers the team would remain in town until the end of 2010. Forced out of town as the city of Portland won the rights to an expansion MLS team. The agreement came with the rule the teams stadium would be a soccer, and football only stadium. This left the Beavers homeless, and wondering what would come next. One possibility was to tear down Memorial Coliseum, and build next to the current Rose Garden. A group fought claiming the coliseum was a historic landmark, and in the end won the battle. Another site was met with objections by the local homeowners who didn't want the extra traffic baseball would bring. After everything would shake out the team would be forced into a move to Tucson for the start of 2011.

Salt Lake City

Making an agreement with Salt Lake City that he would move his team to Utah if they built a new stadium. In 1994 Joe Buzas relocated his Portland Beavers to Salt Lake City, and renamed the team the Buzz. At the time the belief was Buzas named the team using his last name, and adding a Z. Instantly the move from Oregon paid off as the team broke a 48 year old attendance record.

Changing names due to a trademark lawsuit filed by Georgia Tech who's mascot is named Buzz. The franchise went with the new name Stingers for 2001. That same season a new affiliation with the Angels was formed. In 2003 another change was coming for the team. Owner Joe Buzas died, and the team was sold to Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller

In 2005 once again the Stingers were going through another name change. Press releases announced the team was looking to return to Salt Lake's baseball roots by using the city's first ever franchise name in the Bees. Going with the change were new colors, uniforms, and a new logo. Sadly in 2009 Mr. Miller died from complications of type 2 diabetes. Currently the Bees are owned by his widow.

Biz Cards The Collection- Nashville & Memphis

Before doing the weekly Saturday batch of baseball related business cards. I'd like to start by saying that the Nachos Grande Blogger Bracket Challenge round 0 has closed. According to the Nacho voting should be opening up at some point today. Once you finish reading here go check it out, and vote for your favorite posts. There's some great stuff that was written about the card we were given. Now how about we check out some business cards.

Nashville

Created in 1978 as a Double-A team in the Southern League. The Sounds started as an affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds a relationship that lasted for only two seasons. The change moved the team over to the Yankees for the 1980 season. The team from that initial season is rated as the 69th greatest minor league team, but failed to win the league Championship. Losing in the West Division Championship series to Memphis. After three more seasons the relationship ended as ticket sales declined. Another change was the team joined the Triple A American Association, and signed as a Detroit Tiger affiliate. This relationship was short-lived as well. Moving back to the Reds then later the White Sox.

By 1998 more changes were coming. The American Association was no more so the Sounds joined the PCL. Going into the new league was a new affiliate in the Pittsburgh Pirates. Lots of other changes were made with a new logo, color scheme, and uniforms. This time frame for the franchise was a rollercoaster with good seasons followed by bad. One of the highlights of this era was in 2003 Nashville pitcher John Wasdin pitched the second perfect game in PCL history.

At the end of 2004 the Sounds once again moved onto another affiliation. This new relationship which continues to this very day is with the Milwaukee Brewers. Starting in 2005 the team went big by winning the league title. 2006, and 2007 the team remained successful by winning their division title. 2008 wasn't as kind with the team finishing  with its second worst record in team history. More up, and down seasons have followed including 2013 in which the team had its worst season ever finishing with a 57-87 record.

Memphis

 Created as an expansion team in 1998 for the St. Louis Cardinals. Since day one the team has stayed with that affiliation, and will for atleast a few more seasons due to their current contract. The Redbirds have won three conference titles with two of those resulting in them becoming league champions. The 2013 season ended with a disappointing 69-75 record, but second place in the PCL Northern Division.

 

A Batting Practice Fastball

Just a couple days ago I was one of the many people who signed up for a contest the blogger Nacho Grande is having. This isn't just one of your typical sign up, and a randomizer picks a winner, and you walk away with a cool prize. No, this is one of those contests that takes some skill to win. Despite this major roadblock to me winning I decided that it would be fun to try. Thinking this would take every ounce of skill I had to go deep into the contest. I still just had to do this, and challenge myself to see what I can do.

Then Nacho threw all the names in the randomizer, and came up with groups. Our first groups were to see where we will be seeded in the first round of writing. Nacho posted the groups, and the cards for our inspiration. It didn't take long for the first participant to write about his groups card. Seeing what he had, and the results a drop of sweat fell from my forehead. He did a good job with a Carlos Lee card. Thinking I was doomed in only the first round I started going through the rules, and then down the listing of groups along with their card. Then I saw my name, and a surprise that put a smile on my face a mile wide. My card was...

A Seattle Mariner! All I could see was that sweet logo staring me in the face. Did I just get thrown a batting practice fastball in my first card? If you are any sort of a reader to this blog you know that the Mariners are my second favorite team. While the Rockies are my favorite the Mariners are a close second. Due to us living in Oregon, and all the Mariners things I buy you'd think my favorite was the Mariners.

 Simply put I was in the batting cage, and the Nacho had just tossed me a fastball right in my sweet-spot to drill into the seats. I lined myself up, and was ready for the swing. Then reality began to set in. I gave the card a closer look, and that is when it hit me.

 Who the heck is Franklin Gutierrez? My first thought was to go into the Mariners binder, and see if there was some sort of card for this Gutierrez guy. Going through what I had here is what I found.

Nothing! There has to be a card in here someplace. The scrambling began harder as I went through the few spare cards that aren't binder worthy. Still there was nothing. Maybe the Nacho knew I was a Mariners fan, and wanted to toy with my emotions. I know what happened I thought to myself. He just took some random minor leaguer, and created a Mariners card for the guy. This was some cruel joke he was playing on me. Well I will show him! I will dream something up, and still turn on that batting practice fastball.

That is when the wife walked over, and looked at the computer screen. Noticing the card she asked why I was writing about Guti? Fascinated I came back with a quick "He's a real player"? With most the lights out except for one that is when she started to tell me a story that flashed me back to being a kid. Back to the days when we would sit outside in the dark, and tell scary stories. Only according to her this story was real, but we used to say they were real when we were kids making them up.

WIFE::Not very long ago the Mariners had a player nicknamed 'Death to all flying things'. This man could track down anything hit in the air to the outfield

ME:: Ken Griffey Jr? I thought his nickname was 'The Kid'.

WIFE:: No, not Junior! This was a different player.

DAUGHTER:: Death to whatever! I bet he rode around on a horse using his baseball bat as a weapon, and had vampire bats all around him... LAME!!!

With that the daughter got up, and left the room shaking her head repeating "That is so lame" over, and over again.

ME:: So does he?

WIFE:: No! That would be stupid, and not real either.

ME:: I was just checking.

WIFE:: So do you want to hear about Franklin Gutierrez or not?

ME:: Yes.

WIFE:: Then let me finish.. So, the Mariners had this centerfielder whose nickname was 'Death to all flying things'. When playing the field he could track down anything that was hit in the air. He was amazing to watch. His only problem was much like the guys on the current team he couldn't hit. Whenever he came up to bat most of his hits would be pop ups in the infield. It was sad too, because if he could have just hit the ball on the ground odds are he could have ran it out for a single. Then a couple years ago he started having stomach problems, and getting other injuries too. Since then he's just kind of disappeared.

ME:: That is spooky!

WIFE:: No! Disappeared as in he's always injured so he's always gone.

ME:: I knew that!

WIFE:: Right! So that is the story of Franklin Gutierrez. Such a shame too as he showed a ton of potential.

ME:: Sounds just a little to unbelievable to me if you want to know. Maybe I'll just e-mail the Nacho Grande blog guy, and ask him who that guy is, and where the card came from.

Steelers, and Bengals Return

Today is going to be a simple, but effective post. In the mail over the weekend I got in two returns from the artelopes project. Sadly before mailing out the first return I didn't do a scan of the envelope. So imagine if you will the team name written across the middle of the envelope, and the three colored diamonds behind the word Steelers. Now that you have that in your mind here is the return.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers sent me four of these schedules. It's a decent looking schedule, but unfortunately I'm not a Steelers fan. The entire point of this artelope was the usual business card. The Steelers didn't add a business card in the return so this goes as a failure that I'll have to keep working on.

Cincinnati Bengals

This goes as another of those good returns. The Bengals sent three of the schedules on the left, and four of the schedules on the right. On the bad side the point was to add a business card for the Bengals. While I'm not a fan of the team, the tiger is my favorite animal. Adding the Bengals business card is one I really want. This means the return was a failure, and another team that I'll have to try again in the future.

Sorry about keeping it simple today. I spent most the day running errands, and then doing more artelopes. With bowl season coming up I'm working on writing some of the bowl games to add their cards into the collection. On the plus side Nachos Grande is running a bloggers contest. Look for a post with my featured card coming on Thursday or Friday. Until then go to his blog, and check out what others have done so far.

I Got Raz'd

After going out on Friday night I came home to a sweet surprise. I say surprise, but really it was something I had been waiting on. Just what I was waiting on wasn't as sweet as what came. The box was part of a trade with Chris who runs the blog 'The Raz Card Blog'. Not long ago Chris had a post about buying a pack of NASCAR cards. In the post he was bummed as there were no cards of his favorite driver Tony Stewart. Not being a fan of the guy an e-mail was sent offering up 8 or so cards of Stewart.

While it took a few weeks, maybe longer. Chris hit me up saying he would love the cards, and wanted to know if I had a wantlist or blog someplace. Letting him know where to look he checked this blog, and noticed i was building 2013 sets. Having a good sized group looking for a home I was in, and the trade was born. What he sent was more than I ever expected.

This is just a small sample of the greatness of 2013 cards contained in the box. I know by now we have all seen everything that is 2013 Opening Day. Keeping that in mind I thought why not show off some of the celebrations cards. Being I felt just like the guys on these cards when I cracked open the box, and started going through the cards. All the celebrating was due to Chris finishing up the base part of my 2013 Opening Day. Included with that was doing some serious damage to the subsets. I've been wanting to do some work on the Opening Day set, but my closest Target haven't had packs for awhile, and that stopped the progress on the set. Now all that is left will be tracking down the inserts.

Opening Day wasn't the only set Chris gave some love too. He hit the flagship set pretty hard. 51 hits to this set was the damage when he was finished. Sadly the flagship has been getting neglected in my collection more than any other set. I did buy some 'Chasing The Dream' cards recently, but outside of that is has been my forgotten set.

Seeing that I live in Oregon which is Mariners territory. Chris included some cool looking Mariners cards into the mix. The four above are just a sampling of what he sent for the Mariners. These are just my four favorite players from the Mariners batch so they get the blog time. Put me down as one of the guys who was bummed when Morse was traded. I do realize that it needed done as the outfield was too packed. Its just a bummer to see him having to move on. Sometimes it's strange how we get bummed to see guys who go that when I signed him I was asking why they needed him. The Mariners had a full outfield, and for some reason signed outfielders in the off-season. Can someone explain to me the thinking that goes into signing older players for a position you are deepest at?

As a Rockies fan I saved the best for last.. For some strange reason Rosario is the one guy on the team I like the most. Following in a close second is Juan Nicasio who I keep hoping will get it together at some point. Hopefully Wilin can keep producing, and become a top notch catcher. He had a decent 2013 to build on for future seasons.

Once again. Thank you for a great box of cards Chris. Expect my cards sometime this week as I've had to wait until today to mail my half out. I can only hit the Post Office on Monday's, and it seems like last Monday was some holiday. For the rest of you go check out Chris' blog 'The Raz Card Blog'.

Biz Cards The Collection- Tucson (part 2) & Fresno

If you read the Saturday post you know why I am doing this as two parts. If you didn't you should scroll down, and catch up. It's an interesting story on baseball in Tucson the last just under twenty years. Today it finishes up, and moves onto how all this effected baseball in Fresno.

Tucson

With the Sidewinders making the move from Tucson to Reno. The Golden Baseball League an independent league was forced to leave Reno. Much like the earlier move when the team from Phoenix relocated to Tucson. The Reno Silver Sox traded places with the Sidewinders, and relocated to Tucson. The move for the GBL to Tucson was short-lived as the team would be once again forced out of its home stadium as another team came calling. In late 2010 the team announced they would be taking the 2011 season off to allow another team to move into town for the one season. Once again things got weird as in July the team announced they would be playing one last game as the city had given the team an eviction notice. Their lease was terminated to allow the new team to make Tucson their permanent home. In November the Toros, and Tucson agreed to a settlement with the Toros getting $300,000. Soon afterwards the Toros announced they were folding as a franchise.

Being forced out of Portland, Oregon. The Padres had an agreement for a new stadium closer to their MLB affiliate in Escondido, California. While waiting for the stadium the team made another agreement to play the 2011 season in Tucson before making the move to Escondido.Things in Escondido fell through as the city, and state battled over revenue for the stadium. With the deal gone, and an owner no longer wanting the team. The team stayed in Tucson while new ownership could be found. Hoping to find a Tucson buyer, and keep the team in Arizona, no one stepped up. Three other buyers came forward, but all wanting to once again relocate the franchise to another state. Finally in July of 2012 the team was sold to a group from El Paso, Texas. With plans to move the team to El Paso, but no stadium. The Padres once again remained in Tucson for the 2013 season. With the El Paso stadium almost completed, and set to open in 2014. The Padres have moved once again leaving Tucson without baseball.

Fresno

Forced out of Tucson by the Phoenix Firebirds move in 1997. The Toros headed west to the city of Fresno, and became the Grizzlies. This brought baseball back to the city for the first time in ten years, and first time in the PCL since 1906. Going through many different owners initially the latest, and current came in 2005.

Since taking over the team things have been going strong for the Grizzlies. Logo changes, many great promotions,and a new mascot have led to the team getting tons of recognition in the minor league ranks. Adding to the mix is the team remains affiliated with the San Fransisco Giants. Playing in a great looking stadium as well should help keep the team going strong for years.

Biz Cards The Collection- Phoenix & Tucson (part 1)

Today's Saturday post is a little later than usual. While I was going to get into what happened that made it a late post, but then I started to write this post. As I got into it things started to change, and the post was scraped. This is an interesting turn of events that I just feel was worth scraping what was already written, and tell the story in order. Its amazing how much I learned from starting this to where I am ending up. I will also say if you read today's you need to come back tomorrow for the entire story..

Phoenix

 Playing in the Pacific Coast League from  1966 until 1997. During the team entire history in Phoenix the team was a San Fransisco Giants affiliate. The team was such a success in Phoenix that the town was awarded an MLB franchise for the start of the 1998 season. With the new team moving into town the Firebirds were forced to relocate. This is where the entire story starts to get wild. The Firebirds decided to move south to the city of Tucson There was only one problem with this move. Tucson already had a triple A team.

Tucson

Playing in Tucson from 1969 until 1997 the Toros were the current team in Tucson when the Firebirds decided to relocate, and replace them. This came about in the form of a swap. The owner of the Firebirds, and Toros swapped franchises so that the new team could keep its current structure in place. This would allow the new team to keep its staff, and facilities without starting from scratch.

With the new ownership came the change of affiliates, and a new name. Wanting to have a name associated with their MLB franchise the name Sidewinders was chosen. Despite all the newness things weren't all sunshine, and roses. The team was met with a disgruntled fan base, and terrible attendance. Deals between the team, and Pima County didn't help the situation. After only a couple seasons the team was sold in 2000. The new ownership attempted to fix the problems by running more promotions one of which were weekly fireworks. In the end this was only a band-aid as the team was still losing money, and experiencing tons of problems. Eventually the problems would be too much as at the end of 2008 the team would relocate to Reno. In another strange turn of events, this move forced another team from its home stadium.

My Love Hate Relationship With Weather

I've been sitting here the last couple days sore as heck. Part of this is my job being so physically demanding. The other I feel is due to the weather, and it getting colder outside. How cold has it been getting? I had to actually scrape ice off the windshield on Tuesday. While I was getting myself ready this morning I got to thinking about the weather. Part of me had the thought of how cold its been lately. The other got to thinking about being a kid, and my love hate relationship with the weather.

Growing up we lived in Utah, and around this time of year we would have 1-2 1/2 feet of snow until March. I remember a few times going out trick or treating in the snow. It was usually a short night as the cold, and wet just got to be to much. Throw in the having to shovel all the snow out of the driveway, and I hated snow. The bright spot was doing this chore for other people paid pretty good so it wasn't all terrible.

My love was as kids if it was anything we loved to do it was go sledding. This was one of the great things about growing up with mountains all around you. A sledding hill wasn't very far away. As I got older, and could drive even more sledding hills became accessible. I say sledding, but we were with everyone else in the living dangerous crowd. Most of sledding was actually riding an inner tube down the hill. I say dangerous as they claim that tubing is the most dangerous way to sled. They always claimed it was that more injuries were from tubing than any other sled. I always thought, and still do til this very day the stats were skewed. When we went out there might be 50 kids on a hill, and 40 would have tubes. So it would only be natural that if anyone was hurt odds are it would be on a tube.

This brings us back to the hate again. All that time spent enjoying the snow is catching up to me. Throw in a bunch of other crazy things we did as kids. I'm a wreck, and the first hits of cold air brings it all out. The good news is it'll get better as the coldness stick around. The bones will get used to the change, and if I can avoid a cold or the flu life will be grand. Until next spring when the warm weather will catch me off guard for a few days.

Oregon Ducks vs. Oregon State Beavers Bobblehead Style #2

This last Friday the second of the three bobbleheads for the Oregon Ducks, and Oregon State Beavers were released. Waking up early on Friday as I was told by the store manager I could buy them at 5:45 on my way to work. I left home early with the plan to get the wife's, and her co-workers on the way to work. Then I would pick her up the Kenjon Barner, and my choice of Barner or Wheaton on the way home. That was the plan. As plans go they never seem to work out as planned, and this was no different.

Walking into the store I grabbed the required two 20 ounce soda's, and then two bobbleheads. As I begin picking up the bobbleheads the cashier informs me that they can't be purchased until 6:00. He follows with it being a hard set time with no exceptions. I tried talking him into it by saying that I was told last week I could get them the few minutes early it was. He wasn't budging as he claimed Jackson's which is the parent company said not until 6:00. Bummed, and worried that these two might be popular enough that just getting the initial two after work might be the impossible dream. I headed to work hoping that maybe I could get off early, and get them that way. The dream died early as I was stuck for the day.

Leaving work at the usual time I made my way to the store. The great part is this convenience store is on the way home so all this extra stuff wasn't a terrible inconvenience. Walking in I was greeted by a sight that had me excited, and nervous at the same time. The excitement was for the fact that there were two of each still sitting there waiting for me to buy. The nervous was you are only allowed to buy two so this meant my odds of getting the one I wanted was slim. Adding to the craziness was I had to make sure I got the Wheaton as there were a bunch of Jordan Poyer's still floating around mixed in. Grabbing the required soda's, and then bobbleheads I made my purchase, and was on my way.

Saturday morning we had errands to do which required going past the Jackson's/ On our way past the store the wife brought up the idea of stopping to see if they had my bobblehead. Happy that she brought it up I was more than ready, and stopped in. To my surprise they had two of each bobblehead sitting there waiting for me to buy my choice. So here they are....

Drafted in the 6th round by the Carolina Panthers. Kenjon has only appeared in one game this season making one catch for five yards in the week five loss to Arizona. How long before he finally gets a shot to make his first carry is anyone's guess.

The bobblehead itself isn't bad looking with the home whites. The silver colored duck feathers on the helmet, and Kenjon carrying the ball in typical running back style. Comparing it to the Dion Jordan who was last times winner. I like this bobblehead more than that one.

Drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round. Wheaton has appeared in four games, but only caught a pass in one of those games. Week four against Minnesota, Wheaton caught three passes for 26 yards. During the game his right pinkie was broken requiring surgery. Since then he has been inactive while the injury heals.

Much like the Barner bobblehead, Marcus is in the home white uniform. Something about the home uniforms on these just look better to me. For some reason they just seem to bring out the logos better to me than the green, and black uniforms on the first weeks bobbleheads.

AND THE WINNER IS...

I just love the look of Marcus catching the ball right in front of the corner pylon. Both are cool bobbleheads, but the foot down making the catch just in the end zone sold me. The great look of the Ducks uniform made it a tougher choice than it should have been. Kenjon doing the carrying the football thing seems like a basic running back pose to me, and lost out to the tough catch. 

If you couldn't tell by now from reading the post, and looking at the pictures I did cheat though. I ended up getting one Kenjon Barner, and one of Marcus Wheaton for the collection. They look real good sitting on a shelf that has become my football related shelf. Now all I have to do is hope my luck hold out when it comes to getting the mascot bobbleheads in two weeks.

Artelope- Sometimes Simple Does It

One of the many things I show off on this blog are my envelopes to various sports teams or as I call it artelopes. With most I have been going bigger, and bigger in hopes of getting the best response. Sometimes such as with my latest return I thought keeping it simple might get the results. I was right as the return was exactly what I was hoping for when sending out this envelope.

The idea behind the envelope was to pay homage to the simple white helmets the team wears during white out football games. The daughter kept trying, and trying to get me to color in the" C" red, but in the end I held strong. Personally I think it turned out alright with just one thing taking away from the design. I need to get better at drawing lighter when doing my initial sketching. Its tougher said than done as sometimes I have to go a touch darker in the sketch. All part of the learning experience we are going through in doing these. With that being said lets see the haul.

They sent four different covers out of the seven confirmed schedules that are currently known. I don't know if they will be doing as they have in past seasons, and having two or three sponsors for each cover. I'm going to say no as the collector who lives in the area hasn't found any. The one thing missing which isn't a big deal as I will be mailing the BearCats for basketball schedules soon. They didn't send a new business card from the Athletic Director. I was hoping to update the collection as Cincinnati has joined a new conference in the American Athletic Conference. Still not a big deal as I mail them for schedules all the time so eventually it will happen.

Biz Cards th... AHHH Screw It!

Usually today is one of the two days this week I post a few of the baseball team business cards in my collection. That is the usual plan of attack on this blog, today isn't a normal day though. Going the honest route here as I pride myself on being honest as much as possible. I just don't feel like doing the 'Biz Cards The Collection' today. Something in me wants to go a totally different direction today as things are different today. I want to show some baseball cards, and mix it up this Sunday.

Why the mix up you ask? Instead of the usual trip to the thrift store on weekends or some other show. I am going to spend my day playing with baseball cards, and organizing the hobby room. Not only will I be putting cards in some of those sheets I picked up last weekend. I will see if there are some cards looking for new homes with other bloggers.

Speaking of cards looking for new homes. There is a reason I picked Jacoby Ellsbury as the cards for this post. Rumors are floating around that there is a possibility that Ellsbury might be looking for a new home this off-season. One of the favorites for that new home is with the Seattle Mariners. While I'm not going to get too excited as this story seems to get played out every off-season in this neck of the woods. We hear about how the team is going to fight for a superstar only to later learn their offer wasn't really as good as they claim or the player went to a contender for less money. More often than not its the offer wasn't that great when broken down.

Hopefully this time it will be different for two reasons. The first reason, Jacoby is from around this area so a return in a Mariners uniform would be awesome. The second is the Mariners really need a franchise player to sell tickets. A player who is from the area as that player would be huge for the team. A signing like Ellsbury might actually get me to see more than the one game we watched this season. I won't get to excited though.

Well I guess its time to go play with cards.... Whew that was easy!!

Biz Cards The Collection- Round Rock

Sorry, but this will be one of those fairly short posts. I usually write my posts the night before, and have a time set for them to pop up the next day or on Saturday, and Sunday's case in the morning. Friday was a busy day in sports for me as I sat here going between the BearCats versus Temple game, and the NLCS. Due to this the blog became secondary to writing about business cards. This morning we are about to head out for breakfast, and run some errands. This just adds to the shortness of the post. Anyways who wants to hear all my excuses? It's time to see a business card.

Round Rock

Created in 2005 the Express were once known as the Edmonton Trappers. Purchased in 2003 by RSR sports which consists of Nolan, and Reid Ryan, and partner Don Sanders. The Idea of the purchase was to relocate the team to Round Rock, and affiliate with the Houston Astros. The affiliation would last from 2005 until the end of 2010. The team would then change to a new affiliation in 2011 with the Texas Rangers. This came as the group was part of the Rangers new ownership. The Express name comes from Nolan Ryan's name during his playing days of "The Ryan Express".

Well Sheets! What A Beaching Ending!

If you are one of the people who reads my gibberish on a daily basis you remember the original Well Sheets! posting. If you don't or just plain forgot then here's the rewind.

 Back on the 17th of September I was making one of the weekly Goodwill stops that keeps this blog running with bobblehead, baseball cards, or whatever else I buy that particular week. The big part of the trip was the purchase I didn't make, and was rethinking over, and over again in my head. Wanting to start the process of organizing the collection better. With the main part of this organization being putting the cards in sheets so I can enjoy the collection. Why collect baseball cards if you can't look at them every so often, and enjoy them was my thinking. Before being able to put cards in sheets I needed the sheets to put them in.

 That was the purchase I didn't make. While there I came across a baseball card binder that contained around 40 or so pages. The problem was the pages all looked a little beat up to me. Despite the look of these pages I was thinking about the possible money saved, and buying the book. I wasn't completely sold so before making the purchase I asked the daughter what she thought. Giving the pages a look over she felt a few, and talked me out of buying the album. Listening to her I put it back knowing deep down that it was the right choice. Still that decision was haunting me as I wanted to put cards into pages. I was desperate enough that when I went to the card show recently I almost bought some there. I looked at the choice, and decided in the end it wasn't worth it. I didn't know the brand of these sheets so I passed.

Still I needed sheets, and I needed them now. I was becoming desperate as I haven't had the chance to get to the card shop I enjoy going to due to errands keeping me away. The entire ordeal had me changing the way I went through Goodwill. Instead of just going to the first aisle I would give a glance towards the binders as I passed by. This was the new going through the store method until this last Saturday when this sight caught my eyes.

That's right a Pro Set binder. Seeing this bad boy I made a beeline right to it without hesitating for one second. I wasn't going to risk it being gone while I walked through the two aisles on my way back. The best part of this binder is it was full of nine pocket pages. Not only was it full, but these pages are in excellent condition. Doing a count of the sheets I came up with 100 sheets that I can use to put cards in. This doesn't include the off brand sheets that made their trip straight to the garbage can. Included were cards that inspired the beaching ending.

Inside some of the pages was a bunch of 1992 Beach Sports cards. I haven't pulled the cards out to see if it is a complete set or just partial, but I'm guessing its complete. It includes eight prototype cards, and four holographic cards as well. Sunday had me too excited putting cards into pages that I didn't start taking the beach cards out yet. More than anything I'm thrilled that this story has a happy ending.