When 15 feels like 50...Wax as a drug?

it was on this 31st day of October back in 1995 that my Grandmother died.

Fifteen years, but it feel like so much longer

She raised me from age 10 after my mother died. She was a great woman and shaped me into the person that i grew up to be.

BOrn and raised in Flushing New York, i was born to a married couple that although were in love, just got married way too young. they were 20 when they got married in 1969, and 22ish when they had me in 1971

their marrage didnt work out (not shocking really) and i stayed with my mother. we lived with her best friend and her son John, who would go on to become my first best friend named John (there were three). i saw my father sporadically after my folks split.

The four of us lived together in an amazing apartment. This is where i had my first wax experience. either my mother or johns mothers boyfriend at the time brought John & I a box of Star Wars Series Two to spilt in half, 18 packs each! and so the "evil" seed was planted i suppose

then after a few years the apt was no longer available, and we have to live in separate apartments, but in the same building complex, which was cool.

then my mother got sick and eventually died from her illness.

being the only child that my Grandmothers children (she had two) had, i went to live with her and my grandfather.

same area, so i didnt need a new group of friends. But John (#1) had moved and it would be many years until i would speak with him again.

it was then that i met John (#2) and Cory, who is still my best friend to this day.

My Grandmother was retired when she took me in, but that wasnt going to stop her from doing her best, which she did, imo. She was a strong willed, humble woman that always though of others before herself, in every aspect of life. a true role model

of course, im not typing out all the details, because it smy blog and i dont have to :oP

back to the wax. it was the year 1985 and thats when the serious addiction to wax came to be born.

Four or Five packs (money permitting) of 1985 Topps Baseball, monday to friday, during 7th grade school. i got to learn the "sequence" that lead to me pulling my favorite card, Dwight Gooden's rookie card. Charlie Moore, still remember that 25 years later, pretty crazy

that fall i really loved cards and was all about Topps Hockey as well. my favorite player at the time was Billy Smith. i bought pack and pack and box and box of 1985 topps hockey, but never got a billy smith. i bought some more and some more, eventually it had to have been about 5 boxes worth, but never got one. it was later on that i found out that (for reasons i still do not know) Billy Smith was not in the set! lol

it worked out for the best in the end though, as those 13 Lemieux rookie cards served me well to resell over the years. although i wish i had held on to one, oh well. Hey, those packs are now ONLY "$20" each, i should try one for old times sake! LOL Heck, '85 Baseball packs have held their own even with McGwire and Clemens' downfalls. Those are @$3 a pop. a few years ago, a friend of mine sent me 5 packs of the baseball, but i didnt pull anything of note. but damn it was FUN to rip those!

So yea, wax as a drug. i think it could be argued that it IS a drug like thing. soooo addictive indeed.

i wish that Topps would go back to using actual wax, but the times they are a changed, and that will never happen.

well, this has gone off track somewhat.

i still cant believe its been 15 years since my whole outlook on life changed.

10.31.10

Weather: Sunny, 56, very WINDY
Did you walk today?: yes
If So, how far?: 3.25 miles
Weather During Walk: WINDY
Overall Walk Performance: ok overall, good head wind for more workout
Current Mood: grouchy
How is your diabetes today?: its there

10.30.10

Weather: Crisp 45, not as cold as 45 sounds
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3.25 miles
Weather During Walk: good, very light wind
Overall Walk Performance: good today
Current Mood: eh
How is your diabetes today?: eh

10.29.10

Weather: cool, 54, windy!
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3.25 miles + Target (they do not sell medical bracelets)
Weather During Walk: windy, cold
Overall Walk Performance: good today
Current Mood: ok
How is your diabetes today?: ok

10.28.10

Weather: Sunny, warm. mid 60's
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3.25 miles
Weather During Walk: good
Overall Walk Performance: eh, very sluggish today
Current Mood: ok
How is your diabetes today?: blurred vision today

10.27.10

Weather: Raining, 65, gusts of wind
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 2 miles. cut it short when the rain got harder
Weather During Walk: started out overcast, then rain developed
Overall Walk Performance: good until the rain started
Current Mood: ok
How is your diabetes today?: ok

10.26.10

Weather: 65, Overcast, threat of rain, slight wind
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3.25 miles
Weather During Walk: Chilly, light wind
Overall Walk Performance: sluggish, not enough sleep
Current Mood: feeling tired
How is your diabetes today?: ok i guess

Today is 9 months since diagnosis

Wax and waiting it out...

ive been tracking some different wax boxes the last few weeks

Topps Football has dropped significantly, im sure that Topps Chrome coming out has a lot to do with that, but....

Hobby boxes are @$30 and Jumbos are @$56 now. thats a significant drop from release prices, especially for the Jumbos, which were in the low to mid 90s at release

it makes me wonder with 2009 products (of all sports) and going forward, will this down price trend continue, or will the wax dry up and go bye bye?

10.25.10

mid-to-high 60s, PCL, breezy

Yes

3+ miles

decent walk, fairly windy

diabetes is ok, cold limbs today, bs running low

10.24.10

60, nice, pcl
yes
3+ miles + Target (fruitless)
Walk was good, weather was nice
sad today
slight blurriness

10.23.10

Low 50s, sunny, light clouds
Yes, walked 3+ miles today
Weather was good, slight breeze
Walk was good
feeling so-so today
cold limbs, i have to eat lunch

10.22.10

cold today, 50 but 40s with wind.
did my 3+ miles
walk was sluggish today
ok mood
cold limbs today

is it working yet?

well?

testing

10.20.10

Weather: Very nice, mid 50s, but wasnt cold

Did you walk today?: Yes

If So, how far?: 3+ miles

Weather During Walk: fantastic

Overall Walk Performance: ok, a little sluggish

Current Mood: ok

How is your diabetes today?: ok today

10.19.10

Weather: Partly Cloudy, very slight breeze, 54

Did you walk today?: Yes

If So, how far?: 3+ miles + Target (fruitless)

Weather During Walk: good, not much breeze

Overall Walk Performance: good today

Current Mood: ok

How is your diabetes today?: ok, a little lightheadedness, headache

10.18.10

Weather: Party Cloudy, 54

Did you walk today?: Yes

If So, how far?: 3+ Miles 

Weather During Walk: Nice, light breeze 

Overall Walk Performance: ok

Current Mood: eh

How is your diabetes today?: eh

10.17.10

Weather: Clear Blue Sky, 54 really nice out
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles, plus Target (fruitless trip)
Weather During Walk: fantastic
Overall Walk Performance: ok, feeling the effects of four days of yard work
Current Mood: pretty good
How is your diabetes today?: hand is incredibly dry, but thats probably from the yard work as well

10.16.10

Weather: Incredibly Windy, 54
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: strong wind throughout, mostly head wind
Overall Walk Performance: ok
Current Mood: tired
How is your diabetes today?: cold limbs, but im thinking thats because of the heavy winds

10.15.10

Weather: WINDY!!! cold, low 50s
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: COLD. Head wind most of the way
Overall Walk Performance: Good
Current Mood: OK
How is your diabetes today?: numbers are low today.  doing yard work the last three days have lead to the lower numbers imo

10.14.10

Weather: Nice, Cloudy, low 60s
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ Miles + Target ($5 Snowtrooper! score!)
Weather During Walk: a little windy
Overall Walk Performance: sluggish due to being tired from yesterday yard work
Current Mood: ok.  late entry because of more yard work today
How is your diabetes today?: BS is low today, cold feet especially

10.13.10

Weather: 55, Crisp
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: Crisp
Overall Walk Performance: Very Good.  New Sneakers!
Current Mood: Tired
How is your diabetes today?: ok.  Just did 4 hours of yard work, pretty tired

10.12.10

Weather: mid 60s, overcast. chilly
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles + Target
Weather During Walk: chilly
Overall Walk Performance: ok
Current Mood: blah
How is your diabetes today?: blah

10.11.10

Weather: 70, partly cludy
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: nice, not much breeze, a little warmer then the last few days
Overall Walk Performance: good
Current Mood: ok
How is your diabetes today?: feeling a little light-headed today, cold hands

10.10.10

Weather: Clear, 57
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: Clear, crisp, not too breezy
Overall Walk Performance: decent, tired legs
Current Mood: OK
How is your diabetes today?: hands and feet are cold today

i need to break my eBay addiction

the time has come to budget myself when it comes to eBay.  its just something that i have to do, theres no other choice.  With work now done for the winter, the funds just arent there. 

i recently joined rebelscum.com and i know better then to go up in the attic and mull through my star wars figures upstairs.  i know what that does to me, and that aint good! haha

its a great site for Star Wars Toy Collectors.  its really fun to read and see theur collections.  some of them are really mind boggling. 

too many hobbies are not good for one man.

10.9.10 - Happy Birthday Johnny!

Weather: Clear, 60s
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: Clear Blue Skies, not much of a breeze
Overall Walk Performance: Ok, kind of in the middle, better then yesterday
Current Mood: OK
How is your diabetes today?: OK today, eyes are a little dry

10.8.10

Weather: High 60s
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles + Target
Weather During Walk: brisk, very clear blue sky. very nice out
Overall Walk Performance: Good
Current Mood: Good
How is your diabetes today?: Better today then yesterday

Graded Cards, what are they? and how come you like them so?

i get this question from time to time.  there is no right or wrong answer when it comes to collecting anything really.

but i will answer it.

There are three "grading companies" out there that are worth using.  thats not just my opinion, but the opinion of most everyone that i know.  Each have their own pros and cons.

BGS:

Pros: Hands down the best protection for your card.  their cases are the best.  Their Slab actaully survived Katrina.  They are the leader in sales as far as post 2000 rookie cards go (in top grade, naturally), and have a stronghold on Cards released after 1980

Cons: if your modern card grades lower then an 8.5, the label they use to put the grade on is almost insulting.  its made out of flimsy paper (8.5 and above get a nice looking metal insert) and just looks as though they are punishing the submitter for the lower grade card. 

PSA:

Pros: They have an amazing registry program that has many many many members building their sets under such programs.  What does this all mean? it means that if you have a high grade old card of even some scrub, you're going to find a nice payday for it.  the set collectors are known for driving up the price for what is known as a "low pop(as in population)" PSA Holder.  its been known to turn a $1 common into a $300 PSA Slab.  PSA also has a stronghold on cards from post WWII to 1980

Cons: Really flimsy Case.  The case is pretty fragile.  Dropping one is pretty much a crap shoot if it will break or not (so dont drop them! lol)

SGC

Pros: Hands down the best customer service out there.  MEGA user friendly.  Their Slabs take a bit of getting used to, but i am a fan.  They have the market for pre-WWII cards.


Cons: The demand for modern SGC cards is luke-warm at best (great for collectors, but not for sellers)
Sets with black borders (ie.1971 Topps Baseball) tent to suffer eye-appeal wise in a SGC Slab, due to the SGC slab being based on a thick black border that houses the cards.

====================================================

For the most part, given two identical cards placed on a table infront of you, you really wouldnt be able to tell the difference between a BGS 9.0 and a 9.5if the cards were not already graded.

im going to use the most popular modern rookie card for this example.  that card is the 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr Rookie Card.  There is NOTHING rare about this card, im pretty sure that there are literally millions of them out there.  Does that mean its not a "good" card to have? absolutely not.  it just means that it will not have tremendous value sometime down the line.

a quick look at ebays completed listings show that a BGS 9.0 sells in the mid $40s (and has for a number of years now.  when i was doing my own grading research (over 5 years ago) this card was selling in the $50 area, so not bad)  and BGS 9.5's are selling for $130ish.  (interesting, since when i was researching them 5 years ago, 9.5s were selling closer to the 250ish area, damn that economy i suppose)

Now, just as there is no right or wrong way to collect, everyone has their own way of doing so.  Some people only want gold labels (9.5 or better) in their collection, and those people have no problems spending more for what they want (since its a fact that 9.5s sell for more then 9.0s).

When *i* got into slab (slang for graded cards) collecting i didnt (and still dont lol) have the wallet for most of the gold labels and i had to made a decision.  Sure i could get the Gold Griffey and be satisfied, or i could go for the 9.0 Griffey and have more funds to pick up other graded rookie cards that i might want in my collection.

thats the jist of how i got into graded rookie card collecting.  Hopefully that made some sense to you people out there :)

10.7.10

Weather: Clear and windy today, in the 60s
Did you walk today?: Yes
If So, how far?: 3+ miles
Weather During Walk: Crisp, swirling winds
Overall Walk Performance: "ok" today, somewhat sluggish
Current Mood: ok
How is your diabetes today? : visions a little blurry, and a little light headed today, woke up nauseous, but that has passed.

i believe im going to run some errands at the store today, food shopping most likely

Diabetes Athletes List

Just want to have this list somewhere...

Nick Boynton - Hockey Player - Boston Bruins
Bobby Clarke - NHL - Philadelphia Flyers
Jay Cutler - NFL Football Player
Chris Dudley - NBA - New York Knicks center
Rick Dudley - Hockey
Curt Frasier - NHL - Chicago Black Hawks
Walt Frazier -  NBA - New York Knicks
Joe Gibbs - NFL - Washington Redskins coach
Bill Gullickson - MLB - Cincinnati Reds Pitcher
Dave Hollins - 1993 Phillies World Series Third Baseman
James "Catfish" Hunter - MLB - Pitcher, Baseball Hall-of-Famer
Jay Leeuwenburg - NFL - Indianapolis Colts Lineman
Mark Lowe - Major League Baseball
Adam Morrison - Basketball Player, Gonzaga University
Brandon Morrow -Seattle Mariners Pitcher
David Pember - MLB - Milwaukee Brewers
Toby Petersen - NHL - Pittsburgh Penguins, Dallas Stars
Dan Reichert - MLB - Kansas City Royals
Ron Santo - MLB - Chicago Cubs legend
Mike Sinclair - NFL - Philadelphia Eagles
Kendall Simmons - NFL - Pittsburgh Steelers
Jerry Stackhouse - NBA - Dallas Mavericks
Jack Tatum - NFL - Oakland Raiders, The Assassin
Michael Taylor - MiLB Phillies, Blue Jays, A's
Everson Walls - NFL Football player
David Wells - San Diego Padres Pitcher
Wade Wilson - NFL player and Dallas Cowboys quarterback coach
Dmitri Young - MLB Outfielder, first baseman

Type 2 Diabetics, Baseball Players and overweight people

There is a huge misconception that if someone is "fat" then the reason that they have or developed type 2 diabetes is because they are fat.   That simply is not true.  there are plenty of "skinny" people that have type 2 diabetes and plenty of "fat" folks that dont.

In doing some research about famous athletes with diabetes, it seems that most of them are Type 1's.

The two that ive come across that are type 2 are David Wells and Dmitri Young.

Both players are fairly known in the baseball world, as well as the baseball card world.  Both men are also pretty portly, to put it nicely.  Both men were also diagnosed while in their 30s well after they were well established baseball players.  if i were to guess, id guess that their lifestyle is what lead them to become T2's.  not only is ones lifestyle conducent to becoming Type 2, but also ones family heritage.

Obviously i do not have any access to either of these guys family tree, but if "D" runs in the Dmitri Young Family Tree, one has to be concerned about his bothers future, Delmon Young is a budding star with the Minnesota Twins.

I like Graded Sports Rookie Cards, and I have Diabetes

Trying to get my blog off the ground, so to speak.

i collect graded rookie cards across all four sports and i have diabetes.

i dont often capitalize my "i"'s or use apostrophes, thats how i roll :)

im going to use this blog to, get this....blog.....yes, true, but also talk about my daily things and such.

as i mentioned before, nobodys going to read this but me, and it will be like a record of ongoings, going foward.

Kid A released October 2nd, 2000

holy moly that just doesnt seem right, now does it?


How are you? im ok, thanks for asking, thanks for asking.