2015 Goal Accomplished

Well, not one of my Top 5 goals.

A "I hope to accomplish this also" goal. Here's what I said:

Though I doubt I will have the money, I would like to add a certified Bryce Harper auto to the collection. I would also like to add a Mantle to my collection (any Mantle - I'm not picky), but I don't know if I will be able to afford it.

It isn't the Mantle that I added.

I snagged this guy:

It's the 2011 Heritage Minors Real One auto of Harper, numbered 34 of 154 (an eBay 1/1!!!). I've always liked this card, just never thought one would hit my price range.

I know what you're thinking: "Judson, bro...you said that you would have to cut back on cards once you started school! What gives?!?!"

Well, before I left my last job, I was able to close a couple deals that netted me a bit of cash, a small part of which was put away for cards. So I grabbed this one and I'm looking at a few others. This one, though, is far and away the most expensive, but I still spent less than $140 on it. I can sleep at night, so I'm okay.

Anyway, life as a PhD student has been...interesting. I teach a class that the students don't want to take. That's interesting. I am in class till 9 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. However, I have already been asked to work with a team requesting a $20 million grant (that number still blows my freakin' mind), and I will also be on the team that does the research if we get the grant. So that's cool.

So keep an eye out. I have more cards to share, but I wanted to show the Harper off a bit. I hope everyone is well out there!

Pretty Good Day At My New LCS

I visited my new LCS today, Lone Star Sports Collectibles. It's a pretty nice shop. I bought a box of 2013 Bowman Chrome and 2014 Bowman. To say that I did pretty well might be a huge understatement.

Each box promises one auto per box. Both of my boxes had two. I wound up with four autos out of two boxes!!!!

Even more awesome: three of the four autos had color, the highest being numbered to 50.

So what did I pull???

From 2014 Bowman, a Lewis Thorpe blue wave auto numbered 7 of 50. I also pulled an Enny Romero orange wave auto, numbered 8 of 25!!!

From the 2013 Bowman Chrome box, I snagged a Cameron Gallagher base auto. The big hit of the day is the Adalberto Mejia purple auto numbered 3 of 10!!!!

The Gallagher is up for trade, but I haven't decided on the others. Feel free to make an offer, but I don't want to make it seem like I am trying to move these guys.

Holy Crap, A New Post!!!

So, I haven't blogged in a while. By now you know that I decided to get my PhD and I have little to no free time. Turns out, teaching is actually work and reading is quite essential.

But hey, I'm not one to give excuses. But I guess that qualifies as one.

Dammit.

Anyway, I picked up a new card for the Martinez PC. Let's take a look:

It's the silver version of the 2014 Pro Debut auto. This one is numbered 15 of 25.

Sadly, that's all that's new in my collecting world. Life has been good here though. Outside of all the aforementioned work, I've put together a quality group of friends outside of school to be my support group. I even found a young lady I enjoy spending time with. Don't think too much into that - my schedule is crazy and school has to come first, so we are just spending time together when we can. Nothing more.

Quick alert: if you have no interest in talk about faith, go ahead and stop reading now.

Still here? Cool, I really appreciate that. I started another blog as a spot for me to discuss some things related to my faith. I'm calling it "In The Shadow Of His Grace" and you can visit it here. This is my way of venting about how I don't really fit in to the churches I've attended. If you feel the same way, I hope you'll join the conversation! If not, no worries - I hope to still talk cardboard with you! And don't worry, this will be the last time I mention it on this blog!

I've Been MIA!!!

The move has officially occurred, and I have just been waiting for the cable guy to show up and fix my internet and cable. I got tired of waiting and fixed the internet myself, so now I can share with you all that I am, in fact, alive.

But I really don't have much to say, cardboard-wise. So let me update you on what #WalletHarry has been up to.

#WalletHarry got to meet a Big Ass Bull on the move today...he thinks it would make one hell of a steak dinner! pic.twitter.com/mxgbzyqymV
— My Cardboard Habit (@cardboardhabit) January 9, 2015

#WalletHarry took in the scenery of West Texas earlier. #WalletCard pic.twitter.com/sxbNSzqpIF
— My Cardboard Habit (@cardboardhabit) January 9, 2015

#WalletHarry helping me set up my new office. #WalletCard pic.twitter.com/sgKlZzyZSn
— My Cardboard Habit (@cardboardhabit) January 11, 2015

A New Matty H. For The PC

I've been watching this card for a while - even before I decided to start the Harry PC. The seller had it listed for $40 or Best Offer. I made a couple offers I thought were reasonable, but was shut down. After waiting about three months, I offered again and finally got it.

"What card?" you ask?

This card:

It's the state coin variation from 2013 Gypsy Queen! This one is numbered four of five. I've always thought the cards were neat, even though it's kind of a cheesy idea to put a coin in a card. I just kind of assumed the coin was glued in....

But it isn't! It's encases in plastic and moves freely "inside" the card. Cool enough to keep this simple mind entertained!

Speaking of Harry, if you haven't noticed already, I've added an "Adventures of #WalletHarry" page on the right-hand side. You can click on it to get a link to every #WalletHarry tweet I put out! You can also click on the link below my Twitter handle on the upper right. I plan on posting a lot, so get ready. I know some people may think this is all cheesy, but I think it is incredibly fun and I can't wait to look back on it all in 50 years!

A Trade Post LONG Overdue

Sometimes, I just fail miserably as a blogger.

I fail at showing my appreciation for the cards I receive from other bloggers.

One of these bloggers is Jeff of My Sports Obsession.

I sent Jess some AJ Pierzynski cards that no longer fit in my collection, not expecting anything in return. Jeff would have none of that. He sent me back a padded mailer stuffed full of goodies.

Like an idiot, I didn't scan the cards in. I just took photos of them with my phone (hence the reason I forgot to post). There were a ton of awesome cards - including a Darvish ice! - that will fit into my collection!

But wait - there's more!

More Darvish, a Cruz Heritage Chrome, and (though you can't rally see it) a Profar Future's Game relic card!

That's incredible!

Jeff, I can't thank you enough for the cards, and I am truly sorry it took me so long to thank you on the blog!

Wallet Card: The Craze Sweeping America!

In case you haven't heard by now, Gavin, a.k.a. Mr. Baseball Card Breakdown and the blogosphere's current trendsetter, came up with a great idea last Friday: stick a card in your wallet, carry it with you for a year and take pictures of it in interesting locations.

I was down with Flat Stanley, so naturally I'm going to be down with this.

My biggest problem was going to be deciding which card to use for this Great American Experiment.

Well, that really wasn't a problem at all. I didn't want vintage because I wanted something in pristine condition so I could see just how much wear and tear my wallet would cause. I obviously had to choose a Ranger, and I had to choose someone I was a fan of. Hmm....bingo!

Let me introduce you to #WalletHarry!

This is the card that I will be carrying with me for the next year. Wallet Harry will be traveling with me as I start my new journey back in the world of academia.

I made my announcement last night via Twitter:

My Wallet Harry for @breakdowncards contest! Keep a lookout for Harry to make appearances on Twitter! pic.twitter.com/z34ZDlfHoZ
— My Cardboard Habit (@cardboardhabit) January 5, 2015

I very nearly trimmed Wallet Harry to make him fit better in my bifold, but ultimately decided against it. I'm pretty sure at the end of all of this, I am going to send Wallet Harry to PSA to have him graded and slabbed so that I never forget this upcoming year. Hopefully it will be a year filled with good memories.

And can you imagine the look on the PSA grader's face? "Why in the hell is this guy sending a 2014 Heritage Matt Harrison in for grading when it's in this terrible condition?!" Hahahahahahahaha!!!!

Anyway, I'm creating a spot on the right-side menu bar just for Wallet Harry so you can keep up with his escapades! He's already made an appearance this morning!

#WalletHarry chillin' at the desk one last time before everything gets packed up. #WalletCard pic.twitter.com/BKHHRka5Qc
— My Cardboard Habit (@cardboardhabit) January 5, 2015