Trade With Matthew

I follow the "Topps Baseball Card Collectors" page on Facebook.  After I posted a few times asking (begging) folks to let me know if they have the two Brooks Robinson patches I need and then posting looking for Chris Davis and Nolan Reimold parallels, I met a kid named Matthew.  Matthew is 10 and is just starting out with his card collection.  I believe I am the first person he actually traded with, although I know he had a couple others cooking with Scott and Andrew.  Matthew admittedly has a lot to learn when it comes to trading cards, but I have tried to give him a few pointers along the way.  He also started a blog, which you can check out here.

So, I got 3 cards from Matthew in exchange for several Carlos Santana (the Indians catcher, not the amazing guitarist) and Yovanni Gallardo cards.  I didn't mind sending him a few extras, as I have no need for Santana or Gallardo.  Surprisingly, I didn't have the above Chris Davis Chrome refractor from last year's Topps Chrome.  This saves me from thinking I already have it and missing it every time I pick up Davis PC needs.

You saw the Bobby Bundy Bowman Chrome at the top; He is the 'other' Bundy in the Orioles' system.  He's Dylan's older brother and a pretty good pitcher in his own right.  The final card in the package is the above Billy Hamilton Bowman Platinum purple chrome parallel.  This is a really pretty card.  I think I'm going to add it to my RC collection and not flip it for anything.

So, I hope everyone gets a chance to check out Matthew's blog and make him feel welcome to the blogging community.  It's nice to see kids continuing to get involved with cards.  It's a sure sign that our hobby will continue into the future.

Last Post From The Card Shop Trip - Bowman Platinum

In my final bit from my trip to the card shop last week, Babe and I picked up some Bowman Platinum.  She pulled this really nice Billy Hamilton Superfractor (?).  I think the card looks really cool and it scanned pretty nice as well.

Also, in some personal news, I passed the second half of the ASBOG Exam (Geology licensing exam).  This means that I am now a licensed geologist.  This is a big deal, it is like the Bar exam, but for geologists.  I have been studying to pass this thing since I took my job in 2007.  I took the first half three times (passing it on the third try in May 2010) and took the second half three times.  Third time seems to be a charm.