Puck Junk

The “new year” is not so new anymore. Last year, I posted my collecting resolutions (and did pretty well, I might add). Because writing about them makes keeps me honest, here are my five collecting resolutions for 2013.

1. No more “miscellaneous stacks”
Many times I’ll buy interesting looking cards from the quarter boxes at a card show, but not really know what sets they are from.Or a fellow collector will toss in a few extra cards when trading with me. Over time, these “miscellaneous cards” pile up, but never get put away.

No more. For 2013, I pledge to do away with miscellaneous stacks or miscellaneous boxes (the cumulative result of many miscellaneous stacks). This is time consuming, as I have to look up the card on the Beckett Online Price Guide to figure out what it is. But my desk is practically overrun with cards that need to be put away.

Find it. Figure it out. File it away.

2. Acquire 1,000 Jeremy Roenick rookie cards
I remember when Jeremy Roenick’s 1990-91 Upper Deck rookie card was a solid $5 card, and his O-Pee-Chee Premier RC eclipsed the $10 mark. Even though his rookie cards are nearly “worthless” now, I get a bit of a child-like thrill when I find one in a quarter box at a show…followed by a touch of sadness that the card ain’t what it used to be.

So, I decided that I would “rescue” every Roenick RC that I find, put it in a gold-lettered  “Rookie Card” top loader, and file it away in my collection, where it will be appreciated.

Crazy, right? But it makes me happy, so at the end of the day that is what collecting is really all about.

So far, I have rounded up roughly 500 various rookie cards of J.R.–many from the Score American set. I eventually want to have at least 100 of each RC, including Upper Deck French, Panini stickers and Score Young Superstars.

3. Complete 36 sets in 2013
Last year, I “killed off” 23 different sets that needed a few cards–that’s almost 2 sets a month. I have a 50 page Word Document as my want list (what’s posted here is only a portion), and much of my list is just sets needing a handful of cards.

This year, I want to try and complete 36 sets–that’s a pace of 3 sets per month. January is over, so I’ll have to make up for lost time. But if I take proactive approach, this should be an easy resolution to accomplish.

4. Exercise more
Wait, sorry. That’s for my non-collecting resolutions of 2013. Next up…

4. Sell off or otherwise get rid of some commons / base cards
I’ve been a pretty active hockey card collector since early June of 2006, buying many packs and boxes of different sets. Unforutnately, all those commons and base cards accumulate. Sure, some get used for through-the-mail autograph requests, but most just sit in two-column shoeboxes, waiting to get traded.

This year, I am going to do something with all these base cards from Upper Deck, Score, Donruss, O-Pee-Chee, Parkhurst, Pinnacle and such. I may not get a nickel a card, but I need the space. And having all these extras do not make me younger, more handsome, or more attractive to women. So, out they go! Maybe one of my local card shops will give me a bit of store credit for them, which I will use to buy vintage cards, which WILL make me younger, more handsome AND more attractive to women. (If only…)

5. Get some “Grails”
A hundred bucks might get you one vintage card, or it might get you a hobby box yielding 100 or more cards. I think it is easier for me to justify spending lots of money on new stuff instead of old stuff. I’m going to try and change that up this year, and put my hobby dollars to focusing on some grails. I need a Stan Mikita rookie card for my 1960-61 Topps set. I’d like to get some O-Pee-Chee insert sets from the 1970s, and I still need a lot of cards to finish my 1963-64 Parkhurst set. I will still buy new cards, but I’m going to try and get some vintage grails this year.

With January already gone, I only have 11 months to meet my goals. Wish me luck!

In 2012, I sent five “Collecting Resolutions” for myself. And there’s nothing like a little public disclosure to keep myself honest.

To reiterate, my 2012 goals were:

1. Avoid retail packs en masse
2. Deal with empty boxes and wrappers
3. Check all sets when I receive them
4. Don’t be a hoarder
5. Complete these @#$% sets already

So, how did I do?

Avoid retail packs en masse
During the 2012 calendar year, I bough very few retail packs. If memory serves correct, all I bought was one blaster box (containing 14 retail packs), 1 “fat pack” and 4 “fat boxes.” All were from 2012-13 O-Pee-Chee, which was a set I was actively pursuing. Add it up, and that’s about $65 worth of retail packs. Not bad for a 12-month cycle. Verdict: WIN

Deal with empty boxes and wrappers
When I buy boxes and packs, I usually keep the box top and 4 wrappers to put with the set I build. But I’ve always been bad about dealing with them, so they tend to pile up. Looking around my “room of hockey” right now,  I see about a half-dozen empty boxes, as well as wrappers here and there that need to find a home. So, I’m doing better than last year, but not as good as I can be doing. Verdict: LOSS

Check all sets when I receive them
I’ve been diligent about this. I’ve checked every complete set as soon as I got it, and none of them were missing cards. Of course, if they were, I’d tell the seller right away because I’m checking right away, and not a week (or a month) after the fact. Verdict: WIN

Don’t be a hoarder
I tend to “collect” multiple copies of the same exact card. And by “collect” I really mean “hoard.” In most cases, I really need only one, or perhaps two, copies of the same card. But not 10. I should spend that money on cards I actually don’t have. However, I decided to allow myself to hoard Jeremy Roenick rookies. So, I’m still hoarding, but it is just one card (well, actually 10 different cards if you count all the different brands). Verdict: Draw

Complete these @#$% sets already
Throughout 2012, I “killed off” 23 different sets. Part of it was due to the generosity of those participating in the “One Card Challenge” back in September. I also completed some sets even if it meant overpaying a bit for a card, such as paying 25 or 50 cents for a “5-cent card,” just so I could finish the set and move on to something else. Verdict: WIN

So, I had a record of 3-1-1 for my 2012 Collecting Goals. I’m happy with that.

Now, time to draw up my goals for 2013.