A Mixture Of Mail Days

The mail days I get don't come as many as they used to.

I only get a few handfuls here and there.

I used to blame my lack of funds, but, I think now I am more to blame the way of the hobby society has turned.

Trading has always been the centerpiece on how I add cards to my collection. With the lack of traders and a big chunk of the hobby being focused on money and the next big thing, this has really put a dampen on my trading. Twitter which was my hotspot for trading has gone colder than ice. There is either people who don't trade, people who are asking for too much or people looking for newer stuff within the last two years I don't have since I can't afford to rip wax. All of this together has made trading for me impossible. 

Trading with bloggers has cooled way down as well. Most don't have football or non-sports and others trade directly on TCDB which I have had zero success in doing. It doesn't like my approach of wanting to send pictures instead of having to upload an entire trade account which would take me weeks to months of time I don't have. When I have mentioned my approach to the TCDB members when I have tried to trade on there, I have been greeted by rude members which has driven me from the sight because of that. I still use the site for my collections, just not for anything else.

Trading on Facebook is a no. Full of scammers. Trading on Blusky I haven't really established myself there and it feels way too political.

Trading in person isn't an option. Nobody collects here. My father is only looking for stuff to flip now so he isn't even an outlet anymore.

With all of this being said, when I do find a trade mate and get a mail day, I truly treasure it.

Here are a couple recent mail days I have gotten,

First up a trade with fellow blogger Dions IP Auto Only blog. Our trade had a nice mix of sport and non sport.

My second mail day is from a Twitter stack seller. I won $10 worth of funds to use at his sale and I used them wisely.

 

I needed a nice Shough for next year, because you just never know.

My first Carter relic and a team color match.

And I wasn't going to let this Knicks card slip by.

The final mail day was a RAK from a fellow Twitter member I have known awhile. I don't remember his @ sadly for this post.

(Nabers 1/1)

Likely rookie auto!

and a Dart Chrome rookie!

Well, that does it. It's all I have for now to show off until the mail day drought ends.

Hope everyone has a fantastic Friday and let me know in comments where you like to trade.

The Latest Grady Box

It's like Christmas multiple times a year when I get the latest Grady Box.

Long time Facebook friend, Twitter Friend and blog reader Grady recently sent me the latest greatest mail day.

It was a Chewy box packed full of....

Blasters?

Nope. Well, empty packs but those boxes had plenty of...

 

Cards!!!!

Stay tuned as I try to figure out the best way to post all of these. I may post every card in the box as single card posts for the next few months or I may post some of it in chunks. I will have to think it over.

What mail days have arrived for you recently?

Twitter Has Me Piled In Mail Days

It's fun getting mail days and it's fun getting them all at once, but being a blogger and blogging them all in a good time frame, not so much.

I know a lot of bloggers especially are not really fond of the whole Twitter scene, but I really like it. I think it all depends on what type of people you follow on there if you will enjoy it or not. I just don't follow anyone. They have to be specific to what I like. I mean, why wouldn't you follow someone specific to what you collect or have the hobby's best interest in mind?

Recently I was a recipient of some freebies via @NGTCollectibles Sunday giveaway thread. Sadly, unlike most of the ones I have mailed to in the past, I am actually going to thank my givers even though I am a tad late.

@gingersnap4004 had this DK Metcalf up for grabs and I needed this one for my rookie PC, so I asked nicely if I could have it and he sent it. Thanks man!

The next mail day was supposed to be a one card grab from that thread for the EX set I am building but he ended up sending three more towards my set chase. This has gotta be right up there with the greatest looking base sets all time. I may have to do a ranking on that some day.

Thanks @Alindz99 for the set help and especially the bonuses!

The final mail day I need to catch up on from Twitter is my first trade from @goingdeepe who had some NY Giants relics he thought I could use.

Well, he was right. I don't turn down any Giants relics no matter the player.

Really cool die cut jersey number of Rueben Randle

Ron Dayne. Been adding a lot of Daynes recently, not even on purpose.

And another Dayne. I was always back on forth on him whether I was a fan or not because his play was so up and down.

Another Rueben, this time without the number die cut sauerkraut

And we finish it up with another Randle.

Rueben by far is my biggest "hits" PC I have for the Giants. Nobody is even close.

Thanks for the first time trade David. Hope to do more down the road.

As this article shows, Twitter can be a great place. I do understand some of the bloggers that do see the dark side of it, I just flip through or unfollow those types so I don't have to see it. But, Twitter is basically what you make of it and if you use it right, it can be quite a positive experience.

Does Twitter Help Expand Collecting?

Has Twitter helped the hobby expand and grow?

I feel like for myself it has.

Ever since I discovered the social media giant five years ago, I would say 90% of my trading has come from there. Not from Facebook. Not from forums. Not even from the blogoshere. It's all from Twitter.

Here is just a SMALL sampling of what I have added thanks to Twitter trades,

   

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Remember, this is just a few of the cards I have added in trades. I strongly believe I never would have been able to add these if it wasn't for Twitter.

I have also won a few contests that have added to my collection too. I will say though, I ONLY ENTER CONTESTS IF THE CARDS FIT MY COLLECTION. All other contests or the concept of winning a contest just to win, I won't enter.

One of the coolest mailings/winnings I ever got was from THE Deltha O'Neal. The actual player sent me this for guessing a correct score in his NFL Contest. How awesome is that?

I think hobby friendships grow on there daily. I have met a great group of people I never would have met elsewhere and especially where I live without collectors around. These are people I talk to on a daily basis as well. They support you, you support them. They are like family.

Interaction on Twitter is also amazing. Once you get established on there, how fast that happens depends on how much you post and what topics, discussing the hobby with other collectors is fun. Not just the hobby either, sports, life, etc. Just have fun and discuss what you want to. I am however a tad more quiet to myself and don't give up a lot of personal information. A lot of people do including selfies at the hospital, pictures of kids, etc. I just feel that collecting and personal lives are two different things in my eyes but I don't judge those who share more. I just don't.

I definitely share my blog (which is where 3/4ths of my views come from) and hobby thoughts on there. Also the occasional asking of Fantasy Football advice and my ranting of NY Giants and it's great to hear the reaction and the conversations that occur just from this little bit.

For some, Twitter is a place to sell cards and some are really successful and it comes without the fees. How much better does it get? I don't sell any on there because I don't sell any in general so I can't tell you how that experience is. But, others can let you know. I also don't buy from Twitter either, but, that's mainly because I don't have the funds to. There are definitely some trusted sellers on there.

I can't say all of Twitter is good though. I have seen many, many friends of mine lose out on trades or buying items because there is always that sour apple that has to spoil the bunch. For the most part, I would say things are positive. I would strongly suggest before buying off from anyone or trading with anyone especially if you are new to Twitter, go to someone you know and trust and get their thoughts on the person you are trying to trade or buy from. That's what I do and I have yet to have a bad experience.

If I hadn't come across or started using Twitter, I am pretty certain I wouldn't have some of the cards I have, been given the opportunities in the hobby I have or most importantly, made the great friends I have. You would be amazed how much friendships, even long distance ones can mean.

How about you? Do you have a Twitter account? Do you use it for the hobby? Ever had a good experience in trading or buying on there? Sell cards on there? Let's here it in comments!

Mail Day From NJSENSASIAN'S CARDS

A week or so ago, @DJSeneseiNJ on Twitter contacted me and said he found some NY Giants cards to send me just because. I wasn't going to say no of course and provided my address.

Yesterday, a good stack of Giants arrived so let's take a gander.

Some 90's fun in this mix including Thomas Lewis who follows me on Twitter by the way :)

 

Travis Beckum rookie, I expected a lot more out of him but the Giants haven't really had a dominating tight end since the other guy in this group in Shockey played. He was a fierce competitor on the field for sure!

 

I haven't ever seen these. Great looking cards and got all of my Giants favorites.

 

Parallel too. Really nice looking set.

 

Some other Giants I haven't seen in the game ones. My first ever Dusty Zeigler add.

 

I always loved this base card and only Upper Deck could capture something like this. I hope that Odell will be doing this in 2017 :)

 

Hamptons! And to my surprise, a new one in the Rhett/Hampton! Yesssssss! Hampton 411.

 

And to end the mail day, another auto for my Giants autograph collection. Well, I call it an auto but some may call that a scribble. Wow, his signature will probably go on the list of worst all time.

 

 

Overall, a HUGE thank you to @DJSeneseiNJ for his generosity in sending me these. If you have Twitter and don't follow him, I suggest you do. He has contests and likes to interact with other collectors.

Thoughts on my mail day are welcomed in comments!

Custom Card Mail Day, Check Out This Oscar Taveras!

This is a long overdo mail day shout out.

I recently stumbled upon a custom card maker, Matt Yerkes (One Star Chewing Gum), on Twitter who hosts contests and sells the cards that he makes. He recently designed this pretty sweet card of Oscar Taveras before his tragic passing and didn't feel right selling it so he gave it away.

This arrived a few days later.

I think his work is pretty impressive. This wasn't the only card I have seen of his work. I have checked out the others that he has posted and they look great as well. Maybe some card companies should take note of his designs.

Thanks again goes out to Matt for the card  I never owned a custom card before so this card will have its own special place in my rookie PC.