Month: September 2010

I Like Big Cards (I Cannot Lie…)

I picked up some BIG CARDS over the past weekend. No, not big as in expensive. Big as in physically big, like this 8″ x 10″ Be A Player Portrait card of Cam Ward. Yes, it is a sticker autograph, but Ward is hard to get an autograph from through-the-mail.

I might have to find more of these 8″ x 10″ autographed cards.

I also picked up a lot of 50–count ’em 50–2005-06 Beehive Jumbo cards. These measure in at 5″ x 7″. Here are a few of my favorite cards from the stack:

Luc Robitaille
Martin Brodeur
Bobby Clarke
Phil Esposito
Grant Fuhr
Jaromir Jagr
Roberto Luongo
Corey Perry

I’m not sure if I’m actually going to build out this Beehive set. The jumbos were issued one per pack, and there’s like 150 of them. And a few of these were doubles, which I’ve put up on my  Singes for Trade page.

Review: 1991 Louisville Hockey Stick Cards

Odd, oversized cards of NHL superstars

1991-92 Louisville Mark Messier 1991-92 Louisville Pat Lafontaine

Not much is known about these two hockey cards. The backs are blank, and there is no copyright date on them. The cards measure 4″ x 6″ and feature former NHL superstars Mark Messier and Pat Lafontaine. Each is in an All-Star Game uniform, and at the bottom it reads “Louisville” – the manufacturer of the hockey sticks that Messier and Lafontaine are using in the pictures. Continue reading “Review: 1991 Louisville Hockey Stick Cards”

Blackhawks Training Camp Fest 2010

On Saturday, September 18, I attended the Chicago Blackhawks Training Camp Festival. For five bucks, we could watch the first day of training camp. My friend Heather had an extra ticket for the 100 level section. Though I was initially lukewarm to the idea of getting up early on a Saturday morning, I let curiosity get the better of me;  I’ve never seen an NHL practice before.

Surprisingly, I had a good time. I got to see some new ‘Hawks–and ‘Hawk hopefuls. Several former Blackhawks were signing autographs, and some memorabilia dealers were there too.

I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking… Continue reading “Blackhawks Training Camp Fest 2010”

Review: 2010 WHA Hall of Fame

Remembering 12 of the rival league’s greatest players

2010 WHA Hall of Fame #2 - Pat StapletonFounded in 2009, the World Hockey Association Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization that honors and remembers the defunct league and its players. In July 2010, the WHA HOF released a 10-card set commemorating 12 of the league’s former players and one trophy. Continue reading “Review: 2010 WHA Hall of Fame”

Sports Card Girl Strikes Back

Three weeks ago, I wrote an article entitled Sports Card Girl is a Scam. In it, I raised some questions about  new card blogger SportsCardGirl–real name allegedly Brandy Ruth–and the legitimacy of “her” online business.

Some bloggers agreed with the points I raised, others disagreed, and most didn’t really care. But Sports Card Girl…well, “she” tried to bully me. Which is ironic given this August 25th exchange on Twitter:

captainbohica: wow. care to respond to this accusation @SportsCardGirl ?
http://tinyurl.com/255bep8 #collect

SportsCardGirl: @captainbohica wow I appreciate someone taking the time to write about me!!! So much of that is wrong it’s not even funny.

SportsCardGirl: @captainbohica that guy can think what he wants. Shame on him for trying to make it even harder for a girl collector, no wonder there’s few

So, Sports Card Girl said that “she” appreciated the free publicity, that I was wrong and that I could think what I want.

But later that same day, “she” sent me this email, accusing me of defamation and threatening to take legal action…

From: Brandy Ruth
Date: August 25, 2010 at 11:39 PM
Subject: your blogI just wanted to drop you a note and let you know that I am kind of shocked you never even tried to talk to me in person before trying to slam me online. You are WAYYYYYY not even close to the truth with this post.Either way, you are entitled to your opinion and I won’t bother trying to justify anything I do to you. I am just a simple girl collector who has my own viewpoint on things and don’t expect you to feel the same way about things as I do.

I wanted to contact you and ask politely to remove that post since it is dangerously close to Defamation.

You are also in violation of Copyright Infringement law. I will give you 24 hours to remove the infringing images/properties. If you do not comply then I will have my lawyers proceed with the appropriate legal course.

I feel that bloggers should have the right to their thoughts, however trying to hurt someone is not cool. I am not trying to push you around, but you if we can’t just be civil then I will be forced to take the legal route.

B

(Bold added by me for emphasis)

This is all wrong for three reasons:

1. Viewpoint. I did not attack any of “her” viewpoints. I just raised questions about the legitimacy of her business and the security of her website.

2. Defamation–with a capital D, no less–is being libelous. Calling Joe Schmoe is a liar without proof is defamation. Saying that Joe Schmoe–or Brandy Ruth–writes grammatically poor English and has an unsecured website is not libel because they are proven facts.

3. Copyright Infringement: “Her” images that I used in my previous post are not Copyright Infringement (again, capitalized for some reason) because they fall under fair use, which means that you are allowed to use copyrighted works for purposes of review, criticism or news reporting…or even parody.

Since I had done nothing wrong–and she had done nothing to address any of the issues I raised in my article–I decided to ignore her email. But 5 days later, I was threatened again:

From: Brandy Ruth
Date: August 30, 2010 at 9:10 AM
Subject: 72 hour noticeThis is to advise you that you are using copyrighted and protected material on your website/blog. Your illegal use of My Logo, Images and Likeness at http://puckjunk.blogspot.com/2010/08/sports-card-girl-is-scam.html is originally from my website/blog called SportsCardGirl.com at http://blog.sportscardgirl.com. This is original content and I am the author and copyright holder. Use of copyright protected material without permission is illegal under copyright laws.Please take the following actions immediately:

* Remove the copyrighted material immediately.

I expect a response within 72 days to this issue. Thank you for your immediate action on this matter. If no action has been done within 72 hours, this matter will be forwarded to my copyright lawyer who will then take the needed action.

SportsCardGirl.com

(Bold added by me for emphasis)

Again, I don’t know why words like My Logo are capitalized. And how much time do I have-72 hours or 72 days? I don’t think Sports Card Girl knows for sure, either. In “her” first email, “she” threatened to send “her” lawyers (plural) after me; now it’s just one copyright lawyer. If “she” really did have one or more lawyers, then they’d probably draft a better letter than this one.

It gets better. A few minutes later, “she” also emailed the company that hosts my website:

From: Brandy Ruth
Date: August 30, 2010 at 9:25 AM
Subject: Copyright InfringementThe site hosted by your company: puckjunk.com is infringing on my copyrighted materials and needs to be removed.The post is on blogger, however his main domain is promoting this copyright infringements.

Puckjunk.com points to:
http://puckjunk.blogspot.com/2010/08/sports-card-girl-is-scam.html

The owner is the same and he will not release his data for us to send him a cease order.

The articles he is infringing on are:

SportsCardGirl.com Custom Logo (not stock)
My photos, and graphics
My video stills
My site screen-shot with graphics.

All of these are the offenders and need to be dealt with by the owner. Let us know if you need me to have my legal team contact you.

SportsCardGirl

“All of these are the offenders…” Wow, I guess her lawyers / copyright lawyer / legal team didn’t proofread this message too well either.

Obviously, my web host took no action, because no law was transgressed. And the emails stopped after that. But like I said before, I have to call people on their bullshit. I am not vindictive, but I don’t take kindly to threats, either.

In closing, I would like to reiterate a few important points to my fellow legitimate bloggers:

1. Using an image for purpose of review, criticism, news reporting–and even parody–is not copyright infringement, as those are protected by fair use.

2. If you are going to threaten someone with legal action, make sure you know the law first.

3. Defamation is when you write/say hurtful or incorrect statements about someone–not when you write/say something factual that they disagree with or don’t like.

4. When someone gets mad at what you said or wrote, but does not address the issues you raise, then you are probably right.

 

Put Away 10 Cards per Day

“An empty table can be a card collectors best friend. A full table, his worst enemy.”

– Sun Tzu, The Art of War*

That said, in a moment of clarity, I decided to take all of the cards that were cluttering my designated “card table” in my Room Of Hockey, and throw them in a two-column shoebox.

Now, I have a clear table–limitless potential!

But I also have a box of stuff that needs to be sorted and put away. A box…of CHAOS!

I wonder how these things happen. A year ago, I used to sit at this same table and open packs, or put cards into pages. I had the space to do that.

Then the table became overrun with hockey cards…

  • Numerous cards pulled for trades that never happened
  • Unopened packs of Stadium Club from 1999
  • A stack of Classic Hockey cards I picked up last summer at a small card shop downtown
  • Cards that were meant to be sent out for TTM autographs, but never were
  • Old, used top loaders that can be used for trades or as card dividers
  • An insert set of Upper Deck Scoring Predictors from the mid-1990s
  • Some 1990s promo cards
  • A Ryan Kesler Young Guns rookie card
  • Numerous odds and ends 

Behold, this Box of Chaos: 

So, I am going to attempt a new collecting habit. 

Instead of putting things on this table and never dealing with them, I am going to put them in this box.

And each day, I am going to put away at least 10 cards. Maybe more if they are all from the same set.

Sure, that sounds like a chore–but it still beats “real” chores like taking out the garbage, washing dishes, walking the dogs, doing laundry or making the bed.

* – Just kidding…Sun Tzu never said that. 

In other news, I rented a space at a neighborhood Art, Craft and Collectibles Fair over the weekend. I was hoping to cash in on what is left of Blackhawks Mania, but not too many people were interested–even those wearing ‘Hawks apparel. I did manage to unload a few 2010-11 Victory base sets, and a few low-end ‘Hawks cards. But my biggest seller over the weekend was Star Wars action figures. I guess in Chicago, Darth Vader is still more popular than Patrick Kane.

Seven Savard Autographs FTW

This past Saturday was an awesome day for my autograph collection. Former Blackhawks superstar and Hall of Famer Denis Savard was signing autographs at Super Low Foods in Elmwood Park, and I got a bunch of stuff signed. 

Super Low is a small grocery store chain in the Chicago suburbs. I have no idea how they scored Savard to come to their store. And Elmwood Park is a small, insignificant suburb that borders Chicago. I lived in Elmwood Park from 1986 to 1993. My sister R.J. still lives there, and luckily for me she shops at Super Low every week.

About two weeks back, my sister found out about this autograph signing when she saw a picture of Savard, nestled between the sweet corn and the 79-cent pasta…

This was the best photo of Savard they could find?

My girlfriend Shellie, sister R.J. and her boyfriend Chris came along too, to help get a few things signed for my collection. We got there at 12:15 pm, and only 10 people were in front of us. The event was very under-publicized–I think it was only mentioned on this flier–so not many ‘Hawks fans showed up. Maybe 60 or 70. Because of the low turnout, everyone was allowed to get 2 things signed. 

R.J. and I each got an 8″ x 10″ photograph signed by Savvy. The ‘Hawks are her second-favorite team (after the Pittsburgh Penguins), and she used to watch hockey with me when we were growing up.

The four of us also got some cards signed…

1982-83 O-Pee-Chee – I now have 73 cards signed from this set, including 11 Blackhawks.

1986-87 O-Pee-Chee – I am working on getting all the ‘Hawks cards from this set signed.

1988-89 O-Pee-Chee – I have the whole team set autographed. But the Savard card I originally got signed as a kid was autographed in pen. This card replaces the one signed in pen.

2006-07 Blackhawks Team Issue – I have 22 out of 28 cards signed from this set. At the time this card was issued, Savard was the Blackhawks head coach.

2009-10 O-Pee-Chee – An awesome card. It says LEGEND at the top. While Savard’s play was legendary when with Chicago, he had some good years with Montreal too. This card looks especially great signed in blue.

2009-10 Champ’s – Last year’s Champ’s set had a classy design. This is the first card I got signed from that set. I have a stack of extras, so I’ll probably try to get more cards in this series ‘graphed.

Savard signed a photo and card for me.

So, after less than an hour waiting in line, I ended up with 7 autographs from one of my favorite players from my childhood. An Epic Win For The Sal.

As usual, Savard was very friendly. In all the years that I have seen him at signing events (going back to 1989), Savard has always been a class act, talking to fans and thanking them for coming. 

I thought about getting in line to get more cards signed–the line was really short, it was barely past 1 pm, and Savard was scheduled to stay until 3 pm.

But I decided not to be so obsessed with autographs (like I was at the Blackhawks Convention last month). After all, I got 7 things signed by a Hall of Fame player. I thanked my lucky stars for that, and the four of us went to lunch.

Photos by Chris Marsh.