Get to Know Me!

The blogosphere is such a fantastic way to compartmentalize our lives.  That way, none of the messy "other things in life" spill onto our like-minded passions.  Since this blog is specifically devoted to my cardboard addiction, I thought I would take time on this itty-bitty page to tell you more about how I started collecting, as well as who I am outside of the cardboard world. 

First, about cards: 

I started collecting at the age of 9.  My first cards were actually two years before this, in 1987 before I knew anything about them.  I opened up a pack of 1987 Topps, and so did a friend.  I pulled a Jose Canseco, and he pulled a Todd Worrell.  He seemed very interested in swapping.  I declined the transaction, and stuck the cards in my dresser drawer until my love for baseball started.  I was captivated by one player, the player whose card I had kept:  Jose Canseco.  I loved Canseco, and I loved the A's.  They were on their way to crushing every team in baseball in 1989 and ended up winning the world series by sweeping the Giants.  They did it in such dominating fashion, that it has been aptly named the most boring world series in history by many.  The next year, they lost, and the year after that, the Twins/Braves made it.  I wasn't even interested in that series ... which turned out to be one of the most exciting ever!

I ended up being quite the baseball card dealer jr. as I was always interested in wheeling and dealing.  At the age of 9 or 10, I was already online (can you believe it? dealing online in the late 80's / early 90's?) using a program called Prodigy.  I had a "rolidex" of "clients" with hand writen notes on the deals I had made with them.  Each day, I had a line of packages going out and coming in for the mail man.  Then, Prodigy started charging for use, and that ended.  In junior high, I would go to stock up on packs of cards from the neighborhood corner store, and stuff my binder with packs of cards to sell to the kids at school at lunch.  They would eagerly hand over their lunch money to bust a few packs open.  That was about the only bright memory I had of 7th grade. 

In highschool, I lost that lovin' feeling toward cardboard, which gave way to friends, girls, youth group activities, and cars.  It wasn't until about 3-4 years ago when I picked it back up.  I had learned that they had new cards with autographs and pieces of the player's game worn jersey right on the card.  This was mind-blowing to me, and I decided to indulge myself by purchasing (at too high of a price, mind you) as many jersey cards and autographs as I could.  These were a far cry from the packs of 1989 score and the boxes of 1991 donruss that I had indulged myself from a few decades ago.  I also decided to collect every set of baseball cards from 1980 to 1990 to relive the good memories I had as a child. 

I quickly learned that I am not an accumulator - I have more leanings to that of a dealer (yes, I emphatically said as a child that I wanted to be a baseball card dealer when I grew up).  Not for the money though - I just enjoy the "find".  I love finding a great deal and documenting it.  I don't love keeping the cards for too long.  I am not an accumulator, and to me, no card is sacred.  Why?  Because a piece of cardboard sitting on my desk (whether it be a Jordan fleer rookie, or a Lincecum autograph) is money that could be spent on another fantastic deal.  To this day, I have no cards that I had as a child, or even as I had when I started collecting again.  Wait, scratch that - I still have my Jose Canseco collection.  I don't believe much cash is tied up in those cards currently :) 

So, here I am - someone who LOVES cards, but not necessarily keeping them for too long.  Just like baseball, I'm a much bigger fan of an awesome game or feat, than of any particular team. 

Now, about my life:

I am a follower of Jesus Christ.  As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord!  He has blessed us richly beyond all comprehension.  Here are some of the ways he has blessed me:

I am 33 years young, though at times, my back makes me feel 63 when getting out of bed.  I have been married for over 12 years to the love of my life (who has a blackbelt in being beautiful and blogging), and have 11 year old boy who is the apple of our eye.

I am the owner of a small website development firm, and have been running it from my home for the past 13 years.  If you need any web or graphics work, I'm your dude!  Shoot me an email and I would be happy to provide you with a quote. 

A big accomplishment in my life was losing 100 pounds.  I did it the old fashion way - running/working out and not eating as much junk anymore.  I now am a fairly regular runner.  I am slow, and I may go a few weeks without running from time to time, but that is the main source of my exercise...aside from lifting huge boxes of cards!