In the summer of 1991, I accompanied my parents on a business trip, to south Texas. Dying of boredom, and having a small amount of cash in my pocket, I sought some form of entertainment in the corner store down stares. I had no idea what I was looking for and I can’t even remember the thought process that preceded my purchase, but it was here that I bought my first packs of baseball cards. I had never followed baseball, so I only knew a handful of Texas Ranger players. Among the packs I opened was the great Nolan Ryan, so I was sure I had something of value. When we returned to Dallas, my dad and I made our way to the local Card Shop to find out what else I might have. The cards were 1991 Leaf packs, and along with a handful of cards worth $.50 a piece, I landed a Frank Thomas 2nd year card that was valued at $8. I was hooked.
When I turned 16, I got a job at Salerno Italian restaurant as a bus boy, and the money I made went straight to the Card Shop. I became a student of the wax pack memorabilia, and became a fan of the sport. I spent countless hours on my bedroom floor with thousands of cards, boxes and plastic binder inserts to maintain and evaluate the value of my cards. My friends and I spent the night at each others’ houses on the weekends with cards in tow to make the best trades for the cards we felt would increase in value. I have rookie cards for Ken Griffey Jr., Jose Conseco, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, and more. I had my eyes set on a Cal Ripken Jr. Topps Rookie Card, then worth $80. To date, I still don’t have one, and it was the one card that I always wanted in my collection.
After graduating high school, my passion for collecting cards waned and my love for eating and having electricity kicked in. Over the years since, I have splurged from time to time and bought a box of cards to enjoy, but I really haven’t purchased any in the past 5 or more years. I playfully refer to my childhood collection as the “Juiced Collection” seeing as how nearly all of my boyhood heroes were on steroids.
This Christmas I decided to ask for baseball cards, and my wife was gracious to get me some. I felt like a kid again sitting on my sons “soft spot” on top of our hard wood floors. I landed a couple of cards above the $10 range and a fistful worth between $1-5. What a thrill. I have a bit more than 20,000 cards, which to some is not very many. My plan since high school is to one day open a card shop of my own and sell all of my cards. I have a feeling that it might look different from what I once envisioned.
I’d like to thank my mom and mom-in-law for not throwing away my cards.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Up in the Air
As I write (and post) this blog, I am riding at 35,000 feet, and pondering what I have to offer the world below. The mountaintops are dribbled with snow like melted sugar on cinnamon roles and I can’t decide if I want to ski them or eat them. The other day I saw a TV show that highlighted a restaurant in Texas that had birthday-cake-sized cinnamon roles. I can’t seem to get them out of my mind.
I don’t like to make room for regret, but as I look at my life so far, there are a couple of opportunities that have passed me by that I would like to have again. I have detailed a few below. In no way has my life been less than for lack of these experiences, but I do wonder what it would have been like.
1. I wish that I would have tried to play football in school. Looking back, the reason I didn’t was nothing less than obvious. As freshman in high school I was 5’1” and 90 pounds soaking wet. My sophomore year I was 5’2” and maybe 100 lbs. It just wasn’t my bag. I ran cross country, but man I was a good little athlete. I didn’t let my size stop me in any other sport. I actually grew my junior and senior years in high school and went out for baseball, but there’s really nothing to write about that. I think I could have made a good little corner on the football team. In all of our pick up games I was really good at giving the other teams receiver just enough room to look open, but also keep them close enough to sneak in for an interception or to bat the ball down. I was fast. I might have also been a good kick returner. I was really good at making people miss. I played my share of pick up tackle football games, and I was pretty successful at running the ball back for a touchdown once or twice a game. Either I was pretty good, or everyone else was awful.
2. I wonder what it would have been like to go to college out of town. I was real involved in church activities, and worked several jobs, but sometimes I wonder what my experience would have been like away. I imagine I would have worked harder to finish school in 4 (or 5) years, and that studies would have been way more important to me. I know that I would have loved the experience and the necessity of making new friends and rely on them as a part of my family away from family. I wonder to what decisions I would have made differently without the pressure of everyone knowing my parents. I don’t expect I would have been a wild child, but no doubt I might have had some different experiences to talk about. Plus too, I might have an alma mater (I don’t think I spelled that right) that I was proud to call my own. Sorry Mean Green.
3. I think about this one all the time. I wonder what my life would look like now if I had joined the military right out of high school. As I sat across from my military recruiter one overcast day nearing my high school graduation to decline their offer, I felt like I had made a decision I would never look back on, but I couldn’t be more wrong. I imagine I might have much more discipline, and a much different view of my life than I do now. I would certainly know what it means to put my life in the hands of a group of men and women in a way that I will likely never experience as a civilian. Shows like “Band of Brothers” or “Blackhawk Down” really tap into the emotional center of my being. I feel like I could have made a difference somewhere. I kinda wish it was a requirement for all men and women before they went on to college.
Well, enough of that. Hope you had fun wandering around in my brain. Until next time, do you have any opportunities you wish you had back?
I don’t like to make room for regret, but as I look at my life so far, there are a couple of opportunities that have passed me by that I would like to have again. I have detailed a few below. In no way has my life been less than for lack of these experiences, but I do wonder what it would have been like.
1. I wish that I would have tried to play football in school. Looking back, the reason I didn’t was nothing less than obvious. As freshman in high school I was 5’1” and 90 pounds soaking wet. My sophomore year I was 5’2” and maybe 100 lbs. It just wasn’t my bag. I ran cross country, but man I was a good little athlete. I didn’t let my size stop me in any other sport. I actually grew my junior and senior years in high school and went out for baseball, but there’s really nothing to write about that. I think I could have made a good little corner on the football team. In all of our pick up games I was really good at giving the other teams receiver just enough room to look open, but also keep them close enough to sneak in for an interception or to bat the ball down. I was fast. I might have also been a good kick returner. I was really good at making people miss. I played my share of pick up tackle football games, and I was pretty successful at running the ball back for a touchdown once or twice a game. Either I was pretty good, or everyone else was awful.
2. I wonder what it would have been like to go to college out of town. I was real involved in church activities, and worked several jobs, but sometimes I wonder what my experience would have been like away. I imagine I would have worked harder to finish school in 4 (or 5) years, and that studies would have been way more important to me. I know that I would have loved the experience and the necessity of making new friends and rely on them as a part of my family away from family. I wonder to what decisions I would have made differently without the pressure of everyone knowing my parents. I don’t expect I would have been a wild child, but no doubt I might have had some different experiences to talk about. Plus too, I might have an alma mater (I don’t think I spelled that right) that I was proud to call my own. Sorry Mean Green.
3. I think about this one all the time. I wonder what my life would look like now if I had joined the military right out of high school. As I sat across from my military recruiter one overcast day nearing my high school graduation to decline their offer, I felt like I had made a decision I would never look back on, but I couldn’t be more wrong. I imagine I might have much more discipline, and a much different view of my life than I do now. I would certainly know what it means to put my life in the hands of a group of men and women in a way that I will likely never experience as a civilian. Shows like “Band of Brothers” or “Blackhawk Down” really tap into the emotional center of my being. I feel like I could have made a difference somewhere. I kinda wish it was a requirement for all men and women before they went on to college.
Well, enough of that. Hope you had fun wandering around in my brain. Until next time, do you have any opportunities you wish you had back?
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Pastor Pete's Challenge
This week our pastor challenged us to look into 2011 and write down the things we hope God will do IN us this year and THROUGH us. So here is my list, short and spontaneous as it may be.
IN me:
I pray that God gives me a contentment and/or sense of fulfillment in my job, or lead me to another one.
I pray that God will help me to be more gentle, and less volatile when things don't go the way I expect.
I pray that God will make me the husband and father I am meant to be daily.
I pray that God will give me a desire for exercising, and becoming more healthy.
THROUGH ME:
I pray God will give me the words to sing and notes to write for Out of Shadows and their listeners.
I pray that God will speak truth and life through me to my friends, family and colleagues.
I pray that people would develop more of a passion to know Christ more intimately in response to my interactions with them.
I pray that God will give me the wisdom to use to lead my family as God intended.
IN me:
I pray that God gives me a contentment and/or sense of fulfillment in my job, or lead me to another one.
I pray that God will help me to be more gentle, and less volatile when things don't go the way I expect.
I pray that God will make me the husband and father I am meant to be daily.
I pray that God will give me a desire for exercising, and becoming more healthy.
THROUGH ME:
I pray God will give me the words to sing and notes to write for Out of Shadows and their listeners.
I pray that God will speak truth and life through me to my friends, family and colleagues.
I pray that people would develop more of a passion to know Christ more intimately in response to my interactions with them.
I pray that God will give me the wisdom to use to lead my family as God intended.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Twelve Days
Recently I took the opportunity to shower my wife with gifts. While I have moments of creativity in our marriage, this idea came surprisingly easy, and thankfully with the proper amount of time to pull it off. This year I gave her a "12 Days of Christmas". I first Googled the title of the song to find a complete list in order, so that I could use it as a template. I found that there were several variations of the song which gave me a little leeway to arrange them in the order I wanted. Obviously I did not get everything on the list as it was sung, but I tried to capture the spirit of the lyric so as to keep in theme. The following is the order I used and what I got her. Clearly, these gifts are tailored to her liking, so other gifts may work for other people.
1st Day Partridge in a pear tree - I got her a pear
2nd Day Turtle doves - I got her a box of Chocolate Turtles and a bag of Doves chocolate
3rd Day French hens - I got her a hen mug from Crackle Barrel and a La Madeline gift card
4th Day Calling birds - I got four of her best friends to call her
5th Day Golden Rings - I got her 5 wreaths of gold tinsel (Wal*Mart and returned them) and Fable III an Xbox360 game she wanted.
6th Day Geese of Laying - I took her to the Blue Goose Mexican Restaurant
7th Day Swans of Swimming - I gave her a coupon to a trip to South Padre Island
8th Day Maids of Milking - I gave her a Chick-Fil-A calendar
9th Day Ladies Dancing - I gave her a Wii game "Just Dance 2"
10th Day Drummers Drumming - Really wanted to get her the drummers, but had to settle for a $15 iTunes gift card (enough for her to purchase 10 songs)
11th Day Lord of Leaping - I gave her a gift card to get a pedicure
12th Day Pipers Piping - I gave her an iPhone 4
Clearly, I had to manage money to pull this off. I had to spend more money in some places, but I did Days 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, and 10 all under $20 a piece. Seven will clearly cost me more later, but later is better. Days 5 and 9 combined for about $90 after taking the wreaths back to Wal*Mart, and I consider Day 6 a wash because we had to eat anyway, we might as well have eaten at Blue Goose. Day 11 was the cost of a pedicure (that is under $30), and the iPhone not surprisingly was the most expensive gift. The presentation of Day 12 was really what tied it in to the day. It turns out you can go to any Up In Smoke store and they will give you empty cigar boxes. I used one for my gift box, and bought two corn-cob pipes for about $15 and hot glued them to the top in a cross. All of these gifts were accompanied by a card and put in multiple locations including her stocking, under the tree, in the bathroom, in the car, etc. I tried to vary it up to keep her on her toes. Maybe someone else can use this again. Hope it inspires you to think out of the box.
1st Day Partridge in a pear tree - I got her a pear
2nd Day Turtle doves - I got her a box of Chocolate Turtles and a bag of Doves chocolate
3rd Day French hens - I got her a hen mug from Crackle Barrel and a La Madeline gift card
4th Day Calling birds - I got four of her best friends to call her
5th Day Golden Rings - I got her 5 wreaths of gold tinsel (Wal*Mart and returned them) and Fable III an Xbox360 game she wanted.
6th Day Geese of Laying - I took her to the Blue Goose Mexican Restaurant
7th Day Swans of Swimming - I gave her a coupon to a trip to South Padre Island
8th Day Maids of Milking - I gave her a Chick-Fil-A calendar
9th Day Ladies Dancing - I gave her a Wii game "Just Dance 2"
10th Day Drummers Drumming - Really wanted to get her the drummers, but had to settle for a $15 iTunes gift card (enough for her to purchase 10 songs)
11th Day Lord of Leaping - I gave her a gift card to get a pedicure
12th Day Pipers Piping - I gave her an iPhone 4
Clearly, I had to manage money to pull this off. I had to spend more money in some places, but I did Days 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, and 10 all under $20 a piece. Seven will clearly cost me more later, but later is better. Days 5 and 9 combined for about $90 after taking the wreaths back to Wal*Mart, and I consider Day 6 a wash because we had to eat anyway, we might as well have eaten at Blue Goose. Day 11 was the cost of a pedicure (that is under $30), and the iPhone not surprisingly was the most expensive gift. The presentation of Day 12 was really what tied it in to the day. It turns out you can go to any Up In Smoke store and they will give you empty cigar boxes. I used one for my gift box, and bought two corn-cob pipes for about $15 and hot glued them to the top in a cross. All of these gifts were accompanied by a card and put in multiple locations including her stocking, under the tree, in the bathroom, in the car, etc. I tried to vary it up to keep her on her toes. Maybe someone else can use this again. Hope it inspires you to think out of the box.
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