The Purest form of a Movie Trading Card

I was recently asked by my friend @whitebobafett, "In your opinion, what is the purest form of a movie trading card as far as what's portrayed: a movie still, set photo, studio photo or some sort of illustration."  

What a question!  Please weigh in below in the comments, but here is my response.  

When I started collecting cards in the late 1970's, there were certain cards to which I was especially drawn.  In baseball cards, I wanted the cards that showed the action of the game.  I didn't really care for the cards where the player posed for the camera.  That didn't seem authentic to me as a kid.  I don't mind those as much these days, but my eyes are still drawn to the action shot.  Take for example the two cards here from the Topps 1994 series 1 set.  The posed Eric Karros card #115 versus the Ivan Rodriguez card #165 which shows Rodriquez in a throw to second base with his mask still in the air after being flung off during the throw.  The posed card just can't hold up to that action!  When I get sports cards, my expectation is I want to see my sports "heroes" in action shots.  Nothing against Eric Karros or the photographer, it just doesn't hold up.  

                        

My opinion is the same for movie cards.  The cards which garner the most attention of my eyes are the shots from the movies.  For my example of this, I am using cards from the Empire Strikes Back (red border) from 1980.  Fortunately for me and a reason this set is one of my favorites, almost all cards are action/film cards.  The set opens with 11 "Star File" cards that have several posed shots.  While I find the back of these cards to be interesting with information, the front, except for Boba Fett, didn't really do much for me as a kid.  If  I wasn't a completist, I would have traded these cards away for others like the Star Destroyer chasing the Falcon (see below).  Now that is action!     

So to answer the question, the action/movie still cards are, to me, the purest form of a trading card.  Those are the cards that take my mind back to the film.  They place me back into the theater or my living room where I first experienced the characters, ships, settings, and conflict.  It returns me to the dialog or the explosions or the ships flying through space.  I don't have a problem with the poses or the amazing art cards, but they don't create a return to the story for me like a movie still card does.  

The Value of Minecraft

My wife bought me an X-Box One several years ago for Christmas.  She knows that I love to play games and that my X-Box 360 was becoming an antique in terms of video game systems go.  I don't typically play that many games, but when I do, I really dig into them.  I have spent hours with Star Wars Battlefront II and Skyrim, but the game that changed gaming in my house is Minecraft.  

I realize that Minecraft isn't a new game, but when I introduced it to my daughters where they were at the time 6 and 10 years old, it became the top activity in our house.  At first, we just spent a lot of time wandering around and trying to stay alive in the survival modes.  As we continued to play, I started noting that my girls were getting more creative and trying different things.  I found that in their creative worlds, where there isn't any danger of starvation, mobs (monsters), or falling into dangerous things like lava and where resources fully accessible, they were trying new things with different resources.  Since most games and activities they had played were very directed and basically laid the path out in front of them or they were told what to do by the game, the fact that exploration became the norm for them in Minecraft was nice to see.  

Early on all three of us would look for some inspiration for cool things to build, so I bought some Minecraft books.  It was pretty awesome when I would come in the room and they would be pouring over the books talking about different building designs or figuring out how to craft certain potions or trying to figure out what the best strategy is for defeating an Ender.  That was pretty heartwarming, and it made me realize the educational value to Minecraft.  My girls were seeking out external resources like books and YouTube videos.  They were even evaluating resources without really realizing the skills they were developing.  When searching for good YouTube content, they were comparing the quality of video and instruction.  They even said there were a few they came across that had a lot of swearing (I am sure there are more than just a few), so they decided that those might not be especially credible.  They said who would try to teach someone and swear at them while doing it?  That made sense to me, so I encouraged them to find more channels that fit their style.   

Both of my daughters were making science and math connections when trying to figure out which type of stones or other resources mixed best with others.  They were figuring area and volume when building houses and trying to figure out how many blocks they needed to mine in my survival world.  My youngest daughter sat down this week to play and wanted me to see what she was working on.  She had created an elaborate underground system of hallways. She was explaining to me how a sticky piston works and how she was applying it in a hallway to push a light block into view to illuminate a corridor.  Watching her experimentation and trial and error is satisfying, because not only is it fun to play and watch what she has built, but also because I am watching her thinking and learning process.   I also really appreciate the art and design applications that go in to the game too.  They both have played with the color of different bricks in building to create a certain aesthetic.  

Minecraft offers all of us the opportunity to develop collaboration skills as well.  My first realization of this was when the three of us were trying to figure out how to defeat a skeleton spawner.  We discussed strategy and we all shared our ideas on how to approach this task.  Of course, it usually played out where they would go running off leaving me to deal with all the skeletons, but at least it started with a plan.  We've also done some mining collaboration as we were working on some different projects.  We discussed who would go where to cut down trees and collect dark oak and birch tree wood while the other would head underground to find granite and someone else would start crafting tools and building materials.  

Besides being a fun game that offers us new experiences every time we start playing, it offers so many learning opportunities.  My favorite aspect of the game though is how it gives me a way to connect with my daughters.  It gives us a common language.  It also gives us experiences that we can be proud of in some cases and laugh together in other cases.  This has been an unexpected value of Minecraft.  

Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight's musical guest...

 "Ladies and gentlemen, Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band" or add any other famous musical guest.  I look forward to those words on Saturday nights.  Saturday Night Live has been a staple on NBC for the entire memory of my life.  Early memories of SNL include Gilda Radner, John Belushi, Dan Ackroyd, and many others from the original cast, and I remember  Rosanna Danna, Mr. Bill, "Cheezburgas," and the Samauri.  But once I hit my teen years in the mid-80's, I came to look forward to a special segment of Saturday Night Live, the two performances of each episode's musical guest.  My love of music comes from many sources, but one that still resonates with me is the musical guest performances on SNL.  

SNL has introduced me to many artists on the show like The Cars, Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians, Living Colour, and Sinead O'Connor or more recently Greta Van Fleet and Dua Lipa.  The SNL musical performances give us a peek into performances of some of the greats like Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Prince, R.E.M, Lenny Kravitz, and so many more.  Most recently, Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band gave a performance on the famed stage as it was decked out in lights and wreaths for the Christmas of 2020.   To see Bruce and the band live is a bucket list item for me, but SNL brought the performance right into my living room.  

What is it about the SNL musical performances that jolt me with energy, comfort me with joy, and make me feel like everything is cool?  The energy is easy, it's music!  Not just any music, but the best music in the world.  Look at those bands and artists mentioned above.  Just do a search for "SNL Musical Performances" and you will find dozens maybe hundreds of websites that discuss top 10 artists and top 10 performances on SNL.  In general, music moves deep down inside of me and while I will listen to just about any music, live music moves me most.  Of course, live in the terms of being in the audience while the music is created is the pinnacle, but any live performance is special whether you are seeing it live on the television or recorded live.  When the music is live it isn't just listening to a song, it is experiencing the music itself, hearing things you don't hear on a recording like a spontaneous cheer of the crowd at a certain lyric or heavy beat or something in the performance.  The visual performance is also part of the experience.  Seeing the band, the artist, the crew along with lights and video effects or just the stage dressing adds to the appreciation of the music and performance overall and brings energy along with it. 

The Saturday Night Live stage is legendary in my mind, and I think it is what brings me comfort while watching.  We have watched artists perform from that stage for decades.  I can close my eyes and see different performances that have taken place there.  They are like ghosts of the past that bring greatness to those who will perform this week, next season, or seasons to come in the future.  My favorite view of the stage comes at Christmas time when the stage is decked out for the holidays like it was for the recent Springsteen performance.  Such a warm feeling that brings comfort to me and a clear sense of nostalgia not only for the holidays but for the comfort that SNL and the musical performances will be there every year.  

Everything is cool.  SNL has always been a feature of the weekend.  When I was a kid, it was the excitement of staying up late with my older brother and sister laughing when they laughed and checking out the new tunes hearing some of the songs of artists my brother played on his record player.  In college, we would wait to go out until we saw the musical performance.  SNL was the gateway to the night.  As an adult, it is a different kind of gateway to the weekend.  It is time to start thinking about what the next week will start to look like.  The musical guest performance may be the last time in the weekend where I can release myself to something like a song or a message or a bizarre performance.  It is late, time to let the weekend energy burn off into some laughs and then an unforgettable meaningful performance.  Everything is cool for this hour and a half.  

The performance that inspired me to dig into these thoughts was the recent episode that I mentioned above.  Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band delivered a strong message in the performance of these two songs.   It is a celebration of life and a recognition that those who have gone before us are there waiting for us.  In Ghosts he sings, "I make my vows to those who've come before, turn up the volume let the spirits be my guide, meet you, brothers and sisters, on the other side."  Then they go into a classic E Street Band jam with a "cheers to us" finish.  It is beautiful, all brought to us from the legendary stage of SNL.  Enjoy!  

UPDATE 7/4/21

I apologize.  The videos that originally accompanied this post are no longer available. 

  

Top 10 Disney Collect Insert and Award Cards 2020

This week I want to highlight my Top 10 Disney Collect 2020 insert cards.  Like my Star Wars Card Trader Top 5 post, I am filtering my collection to the 2020 cards looking at Epic, Super Rare, Rare, and Uncommon cards.  I am also including award cards for this list.  I am only looking at cards that are in my personal collection, so there may be cards in your collection that you have that are not in mine.  I would enjoy hearing what your top 10, 5 of just favorite cards are for 2020, leave a comment below with those or tag me on Twitter @draftline with images of your favorite cards. 

10.    Princess and the Frog-Characters - Doctor Facilier *Rare

Dr. Facilier may be my favorite Disney villain.  I especially like this card because it is a 10th-anniversary card for the film, and it has Facilier in a unique bayou/swamp setting.  

9. Phineas & Ferb - 104 Days of Summer - Award *Uncommon

In 2020, we needed all the laughs we could get around our house, and Phineas and Ferb brought those funny times.  We loved collecting this set and this award card seemed to be the cherry on top.   

8. Daily Disney - April 30 International Jazz Day - Uncommon

I have really enjoyed the Daily Disney set in 2020.  While another Daily Disney shows up in my top 10, I chose this one because I really like the way classic jazz is portrayed with the classic Disney characters.  Something about this card resonates with me.  

7. Princess Charisma set - Rapunzel - Uncommon

This card brings two of my favorite things together all wrapped up in a card, Rapunzel from Tangled and the comic format.  This also was a fun set, but I had to choose the card from my favorite Disney Princess film.  

6. Onward Quest Collection - Majestic Overlook - Uncommon

I really enjoy the look of this card.  It reminds me of all the enjoyment that comes along with watching the movie Onward.  I didn't really plan to watch this film, the trailer didn't appeal to me, but when Disney Collect held a Watch Party in the middle of the stay-at-home order in the spring of 2020, our family sat down to watch.  My daughters and I opened the app and collected cards as we were amazed at how much we enjoyed the movie.   

5.  Daily Disney - August 8 International Cat Day - Uncommon

This card is just a whole lot of fun!  Anyone who listens to CWK Pour-Over knows that the Aristocats is one of my top Disney animated films, so when Disney Collect threw in a Daily Disney for International Cat Day, it was the cat's meow.  

4.  Tilt Quotes, series 1 - Elsa - Award - Rare

This was an inspiring set with quotes from some really powerful characters like Vanellope from Wreck it Ralf, Jasmine, Mulan, Tiana, and Merida.  I could have chosen any of those cards for this spot in the Top 10, but I went with my favorite of the group, who happens to be the award card, Elsa.  

3.  Glitterball Collection 2020 - Rapunzel - Common

In all of the card apps, I really enjoy the holiday cards, but this set really stood out to me.  They are colorful, and I really like the art of the princesses.  If you got all the variants (ornament, die-cut, motion) for each princess, you received an avatar and 15,000 credits for each. 

2.  Princess Ink Black & White Series 1- Rapunzel - Uncommon

Rapunzel is popular on my list.  This might not surprise listeners to CWK Pour-Over, since Tangled is my top Disney animated film and made my top 10 films of all time.  I really like this black and white sketch card that I feel captures a moment in time for Rapunzel. I just wonder what it is that she is turning her head to see.  It is wonderful.  

1.  Princess Ink Black & White Series 2 - Cinderella  - Uncommon

As mentioned above, I really like this set of Princess Ink sketch cards.  Rapunzel was set to take the number one spot until I remembered this black and white sketch of Cinderella.  This card is stunning and it is my top card of 2020 in the Disney Collect App.  

Top 5 Chrismas Songs

 As heard on the CWK Pourover, here are my top 5 Christmas songs:

5. Santa Claus is Comin to Town performed by Bruce Springsteen (1985)

This song, besides being performed by the legendary "Boss," will always remind me of my childhood and the good times hanging out with my brother.  He introduced me to Rock and Roll and some of the greats like The Boss.  My brother would always get a kick out of Springsteen when he couldn't stop laughing at all the "Ho ho ho's."  Classic performance!

4. Christmas Time is Here by Lee Mendelson and Vince Guaralaldi (1965)

Who doesn't love the Charlie Brown Christmas special?  This program and this opening song to the show wrap up all the feelings of Christmas to me.  It makes me feel nostalgic, it gives me serenity, and it brings me joy.  When I hear this song on the radio, all those feelings come back to me.  

3. It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Andy Williams

The hot start to this song brings images of the city all decorated in lights.  I picture holiday shopping, and happy people carrying packages on a snowy night through the streets of the city.  It might be Michigan Avenue in Chicago. The title says it all with the uplifting performance of Andy Williams, when I hear this song, I know Christmas is here!  

2. Silent Night performed by Bing Crosby (1945)

Take one of the most beautiful songs of the holiday season and add one of the most memorable singers of the last 100 years, and you have a song that can change a life.  When I was young, WLS radio in Chicago would play Christmas music from noon on Christmas eve to Midnight on Christmas day.  This was

1. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas performed by James Taylor (2002)

There are certain songs that resonate with us all year round even though it is a "summer song" or a "break-up song."  This is my Christmas song that stays with me every year.  The lyrics "Let your heart be light, from now on our troubles will be out of sight" speak to me, because I am a person who tends to let my troubles stay with me.  In this Christmas time and anytime really, I need to "be light."  

I hope you all have a Merry Little Christmas and a Happy Holiday in 2020.  And as I think about all of you, I can't help think about the lyrics, "Faithful friends who are dear to us, gather near to us, once more."  Let's use this time to come together in peace for the good of all of us.  

The Krayt Dragon

I have been wanting to share some of my thoughts on season two of The Mandalorian, but I have had a difficult time wrapping my brain around on where to begin.  So, I would like to start with a little monster fun and the Krayt Dragon.  The Mandalorian dons his armor and gathers his "army" to battle with one of the greatest monsters in Star Wars Universe.   

To succeed in this task, Din Djarin needs some help.  He finds an ally in The Marshal of Mos Pelgo, Cobb Vance.  Vance has a suit of Mandalorian armor that appears to be formerly owned by the famous bounty hunter Boba Fett, that The Mandalorian wants to return to its rightful owners.  Cobb Vance offers the armor as a reward if the Mandalorian helps to defeat the dragon. In addition, Din Djarin uses his knowledge of the Sandpeople culture and language to recruit a tribe of Tuskin Raiders to assist in this battle.  Everyone wins if the dragon is defeated, Din Djarin gains a suit of Mandalorian armor, Cobb Vance and the people of Mos Pelgo get peace from the dragon and a newfound truce with the Tuskin Raiders, and the Tuskin Raiders in addition to territorial peace, get a huge supply of meat.  The stakes are high for this epic battle.  

 

We as fans, finally, get to see the lair of this creature and it's massive size.  I was surprised at how quickly the dragon could travel underground during the battle to come at its attackers from different angles.  It even burrows up into the hill to emerge from above where it sprays some sort of bile acid onto the attackers, a breath weapon, I suppose.  This was unexpected if not a little gross!  I enjoyed the "scream" of the creature.  Now I finally understand why the Tuskin Raiders, who were rummaging through Luke Skywalkers landspeeder, ran so suddenly from the mock Krayt Dragon call that Obi Wan Kenobi created in Star Wars: A New Hope.  In the end, Din Djarin makes a sacrafice to save "his people" as he lures the Krayt Dragon to swallow himself and a Bantha loaded with  explosives.  A few moments later, Din Djarin uses his jetpack to fly out of the mouth of the dragon to remotely set off the explosives to slay the dragon in a dramatic fashion.  The battle is won; the hero saves the day.  We also get a quick peek at a celbratory discovery by one of the Sandpeople as they are harvesting the meat of the dragon.  Was that a legendary Krayt Dragon pearl that we learned about in the Knights of the Old Republic stories?   

This was a cinematic monster episode that portrays as Din Djarin as the brave knight, literally, in shining armor.  I like this image.  So far we have seen the Mandalorian as a bounty hunter, a gun fighter, a shadowy infiltrator, but this is a keystone battle as a knight for the good of a society.  I have to wonder if this is a change for Din Djarin.  Has picking up and caring for The Child changed his thoughts on what the galaxy has in store for its people?  I don't know, it is something to think about, but for this experience, we need a mythical creature like the Krayt Dragon.  Monsters play such an important role in storytelling.  They give us the antagonist we need to bring out the best in our hero.  Here it seems this monster helps to highlight the heroic qualities of the Mandalorian.  

What are some of your favorite monsters of Star Wars and what do they add to the story of our heroes in a galaxy far, far away?   

Top 5 Star Wars Card Trader 2020 Insert and Award Cards

I have written several posts about Digital Card Trading recently, but this week I want to highlight my Top 5 SWCT 2020 insert cards.  I am filtering my collection to just the 2020 cards, and looking at Epic, Super Rare, Rare, and Uncommon cards.  I am also including award cards for this list.  I am only looking at cards that are in my personal collection, so there may be cards in your collection that you have that are not in mine.  I would enjoy hearing what your top 5 or top cards are for 2020, leave a comment below with those or tag me on Twitter @draftline with images of your favorite cards.  

5. In Disguise - Standard - BB-8 in disguise as a First Order Waste Bin *Uncommon

I really liked this set, but this card stood out, because it was unexpected and it made me laugh.  

4.  Valentine's Day 2020: Red - Millennium Falcon *Rare

There is something about Chewbacca spreading the love.  

3. Original Artwork: "Poe Dameron" by Derek Laufman *Award Card

If Poe Dameron wasn't cool already, this artistic rendition screams "Poe Dameron is cool!" 

2. The Mandalorian - From the Outer Reaches - Bounty Hunter *Rare

I just love the vintage feel of this Mandalorian set, but especially this particular card of our favorite Mandalorian.  

1. Topps Women of Star Wars: Myrna Velasco as Torra Doza *Super Rare

The Women of Star Wars set might be my favorite set of the year, but I find the art of The Resistance to be really cool, colorful and fun.  I really like the color in this card.  I like the confident stance of Torra Doza, and I like that I was able to get a digital signature of the electric Myrna Velasco!  

Did you like this list of top 5 cards?  Let me know, and I will continue with a series of Top 5 2020 cards in other Topps Digital Card Trading apps.  What are your top SWCT inserts and awards of 2020?  

Digital Card Trading: Part 3: The Community

Part of the fun of collecting cards as a kid was trading doubles or trading a fist full of cards for the one "holy grail" card that you wanted because it was a certain Chicago Cub player, or Boba Fett, or that final card to finish a set.  Trading gave a whole new value to having duplicates of cards.  There were really only two things to do with a duplicate card.  One was to put it in the spokes of your bike to make that buzzing sound that made us feel pretty cool, or the second was to trade those cards with friends.  

I never really thought of community much as a kid, but the friends we hung out with as kids were our community.  This, being a part of a community, is part of the fun digital card trading. We find a few people who are really fair traders, we make a few trades and we start creating a community.  Even better, the community isn't limited to who is in your neighborhood or school, it could be anyone around the world who shares the passion for cards like you do.  

Topps Digital Card Trading seems to understand this and has created ways for us to easily make connections.  We have the ability to search user names and follow friends and fellow card traders.  When we follow someone, we have the ability to see their collections and a couple different lists: a wish list and a trade list.  Most importantly, we have the opportunity to trade with those we are following.  This is the best way to have fun and finish sets.  I found that when I started building my followers list, my set completion jumped.  When I found my community, I have found that we are all pretty generous.    

Another way that Topps Digital Card Trading started building community was with "Watch Parties."  The first watch party my family took part in was the Disney Collect party for Onward.  Both of my girls downloaded the Disney Collect app and as we watched Onward, we collected the cards that dropped, and then we traded to complete the set that accompanied the Watch Party.  During the movie, we watched the community comments, and I was super impressed with how positive the community was in talking about the movie.   We had such a good time that when it was announced that there would be a Frozen II watch party, we were on board.  We started collecting as many credits as we could, so we could go crazy buying packs to finish the set during the film.   I have noticed that the watch parties have crossed over to Star Wars Card Trader, Marvel Collect, and Slam.  I really appreciated the efforts of the Bunt team to do watch parties during the MLB playoffs this year.  I watched more MLB playoff games than I normally do, to take part in the conversation with other fans of baseball.  

Finally, card collectors have built their own communities on social media.  One such community that connects to SWCT was started by the host of The Rebel Base Card podcast, Greg McLaughlin.  He created a community on Twitter around the hashtag #cardsquadron.  Greg often does a Friday check-in, to connect with his community and keep the conversation going.  It is pretty common for a newcomer to the app to join the card squadron and ask for a little help getting started.  Everyone jumps in and sends trades.  When sets are about to be completed, the community helps out with making connections to help members finish the sets.  Every now and again, I get random trades in my favor from members of #cardsquadron just because.  If SWCT is your thing, search out #cardsquadron and you will quickly discover the community, and you will be a part of one of the most positive and helpful groups out there.

When we are looking for positive ways to connect to others, the Digital Card Trading communities connect people with similar interests.  This is a fun way to build a collection and celebrate fandom with others who share our passions.  Get out there to collects and connect!  Have fun.  

What are some communities you are a part of through Digital Card Trading or even with print cards?  Who do you trade with?  What other ways do you celebrate the community of card collecting?  Share your thoughts, experiences, and ideas below.  

A Daily Reminder from "The Child"

 Some days it is just too much.  I'm sure we've all been there at some point this year.  Some days it is just too much toxicity in social media, on other days it is too much division in politics.  Some other days are just filled with too much responsibility or too much stress.  Whatever it is, we need Chewie to put up the front deflector shield to protect us from the onslaught.  The truth is Chewie is not sitting next to us, and we don't have the Millenium Falcon's deflector shields to protect our front.  When times become overwhelming, we seem to lose hope.  

This week a good friend of mine gifted a tiny figure of The Child to me.  As seen in the picture, it is a recreation from an episode in season one when the Mandalorian, IG-11, Cara Dune and Greef Karga are trapped in a cantina while being assaulted from the street by an Imperial garrison led by Moff Gideon.  Gideon sends an Incinerator Trooper with his flame-throwing weapon into the cantina to finish off the Mandalorian's team.  When the flames blast into the cantina, The Child steps up and uses the Force to deflect the flames back upon the trooper.  It is a climactic moment as The Child saves the team for the moment, and we all took a deep breath as they get a moment to regroup.  

I set this little figurine on my desk below my monitor because he is quite cute.  Besides being cute, he also reminds me that when the toxicity, stress, overwhelming responsibility come at me, I can handle it.  I can use the Force in me to decide to not participate in comments or become emotionally involved in controversial issues.  I can use the Force in me to decide that I'm not going to participate in social media until I feel better and more prepared to face it.  I can use the Force in me to take the stress of the day and find a positive way to break my tasks apart and tackle them one at a time.  I can use the Force in me to say "no" sometimes, and that's okay.  

There is so much in this life to bring us down.  Look for the positive in every situation, but when it becomes overwhelming, think about The Child and how he uses the peace of the Force to face the worst.   

Digital Card Trading Part 2 "Hoarding"

The Topps Digital Card apps have become a big part of my life as I carry those apps on my phone with me
wherever I go. Which means I also get to carry my card collections with me everywhere as well.  Notifications let me know when new sets or new cards of marathon sets are released.  It is great!  I get to celebrate some of my favorite things from Star Wars, Marvel Comics, and baseball.  I get to share the fun of card trading with my kids with the Disney Collect app, and I get the sheer joy of cracking open packs in an app that doesn't necessarily appeal to me in the WWE SLAM app.  I still don't know why I collect those cards except it is just fun to open packs and see what's in there!  

I noticed a certain culture develop in the Star Wars Card Trader app pretty early.  It is a culture where people try to collect as many duplicates (or dupes) of a certain card.  This practice is called Hoarding.  I don't know why, but I found myself looking for a card that was my favorite to try to hoard for the fun of it.  If you take a look at my BATTLEJUMP SWCT account in the 2015 set, I attempted to hoard Darth Maul.  My attempt got me to 695 copies of this card.  I will say this is quite a small hoard as I have seen many card hoards in the upper 1000's, but I would not be surprised to see some hoards over 10,000.  This is a really interesting and in my eyes a fun and silly way of collecting.  For a few years and sets, I would find a card or two and start collecting as many as I could.  Then, I started collecting and hoarding teams.  One year I collected all the Rebels, then stormtroopers, etc.  Of course, the more cards I try to "hoard," the more difficult it becomes to accrue a large number of those cards without spending a ton of time trading.  

I have started using this concept of hoarding to try something new with my collection.  I don't actively go out and trade for as many of certain cards anymore (okay maybe a little), but I use the workshop to help shape and curate my collection.  For example, in my CYCLELIBRARIAN account in the current 2020 card sets, I am collecting as many of the animated (Clone Wars, Rebels, Resistance) cards as I can. 

Then, to get those cards to the top of my collection, I "workshop" any base cards that aren't animated to try to get those to drop below all of my animated cards, and when I look at my collection, I choose to look using the duplicates settings, so the cards with the most dupes are at the top.  

I know this is all pretty silly, but it makes for a fun way to curate your collection and it brings some fun to collecting "just" the base cards.  So, here is one more thing I am playing with the Disney Collect app.  In the base tier 1 collection, I have been able to separate my curated dupe collection from the rest of the collection by a large span of cards.  There is a 30 card separation between my top dupes and the rest of the collection.  So now using the Workshop, I'm going to start putting in order my favorites of the "favored" cards.  It is one more level of curation so that my very favorite card is at the top and then in descending rank they will show up by the amount of dupes each card has.  For example, right now I have 136 Kristoff cards, 128 Sven cards, 122 Elsa, 116 Olaf, and 107 Anna cards.  I would like Elsa and Anna to be at the top of my collection. 

So I will probably trade to get Anna's count up and then start workshopping Kristoff and Sven so they drop below the 122 count.  Wow!  That's a lot of work for Tier One cards, but, hey, they are Tier One so why not have some fun with "throwaway" cards now that I have the award for the set.  

What do you think?  Do you hoard cards in the digital card apps?  Do you hoard print cards?  What do you think of using the idea of hoarding and the workshop to curate a collection?  Leave a comment and let me know what your largest hoard or card count is.  Want to trade?  Check part 1 of my Digital Card Trading posts for the card apps that I am in and follow my user ID's.  Have fun!  

Digital Trading Cards Part 1

 I love trading cards!  I have collected trading cards on an off since the 1970's.  Over the last 5-6 years, though, my trading card fascination has taken a new turn as the Topps Company, who happens to be my favorite trading card company, has moved into digital card trading.  

Star Wars Card Trader was the first digital card trading app to which I was introduced.  I was at the Indiana Comic Con with my friends from Coffee with Kenobi, Dan Zehr and Cory Clubb, when I downloaded it and entered into a new world of card trading.  I will never forget standing in lines at the Indianapolis Convention Center collecting Star Wars cards with Dan and Cory while figuring out all the different aspects of digital card trading.  Since then, I have added Huddle, Bunt, Marvel Collect, Disney Collect and most recently SLAM.  

I plan to write more about digital card trading here on Seeking Positivity in the Galaxy because there are so many positive aspects to card trading.  If you are interested in trading with me in any of the apps mentioned above, I would enjoy swapping some cards for fun and for collecting sake.  Here are my user names:  

Bunt:  BATTLEJUMP

Disney Collect:  BATTLEJUMP

Marvel Collect:  CYCLELIBRARIAN

SLAM: CYCLELIBRARIAN

Star Wars Card Trader:  JEDIGROSS

I am almost always up for a trade of dupes, and you can look at my base card collection to see what cards I tend to "hoard."  Actually, "hoarding" will be the topic of my next post on digital card trading.  What card apps do you actively collect?  What are some of your favorite features of the card apps by Topps?  Leave a comment below.    

 

Top 5 Things I Love about Halloween

 Here is a seasonal Top 5:  My Top 5 Things I love about Halloween

1.  It is the gateway to the Holidays!

2. It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown

3. Costumes

4. Backyard bonfires

5. Spooky Stories

What are your favorite things about Halloween?  Leave a comment below!  

A Simple Connection to Community

Early in the Pandemic and quarantine like many people did, my family quarantined in our house and we took pleasure when we could get out of the house to walk or bike ride in our neighborhood.  In our area, we were transitioning from winter to spring, so not only was it needed for us as a family to get out of the house, but the weather was changing for the positive. 

During these many walks and bike rides, I came to realize that we were taking advantage of an infrastructure that is so key to the development of a healthy neighborhood, sidewalks!   I watched as dozens of people in our neighborhood were taking advantage of the sidewalks.  It made me think more about these slabs of concrete that stretch along the streets in our front yards.  I am thankful for the leadership and planning of our community and the thousands of communities across this country that have made the investment in neighborhoods.  These sidewalks and trails in our towns help to connect us.  After returning to work with a new school year, I have started taking advantage of the paved bike paths that crisscross our town by riding my bike to work every day that I can.  I have found that this has helped me to be more productive and positive as I start a new day.  I have encouraged others that I work with who live in town to ride to work and a few have done so.  This has created new relationships among colleagues and given us something in common besides just work.  

Take a step back and look at these connected paths that line the streets of your neighborhood.  Look at the people who walk these paths for exercise, walk these paths with their pets, walk these paths to get to work.  These are the people of your neighborhood.  Throughout the pandemic, kids and families in our neighborhood have become creative using sidewalk chalk to leave inspirational messages, art, and even obstacle courses.  If you don't have sidewalks, advocate for them as neighborhood and community improvement.  Are your sidewalks crumbling or not lit at night?  Advocate for them to help people get out and enjoy them more.  Are there bike paths or bike lanes in your town?  Advocate for them to improve the health of your community.  

Take a minute to look around for the positive in your neighborhood.  What are some of the things that have been around "forever" that may be underutilized or may be used every day that bring people together?  Thank your leaders for those things or advocate for them to bring them
to improve the life and safety of your community.  

What brings people together in your community?  Comment below with the positive infrastructure in your community and how it brings people together.  

The Star Wars Book Expand Your Knowledge of a Galaxy Far, Far Away: An Initial Reaction

I received the notification that my Amazon package had arrived!  I ran to the front door and there it sat, a box about the size of a book.  I looked up and down the street as if I thought some little Jawa may come and snatch it right out of my hands.  I stepped inside and tore the box apart and inside was the hardback, blue-covered, DK published book with a black shadowy Death Star and in yellow letters across the front, The Star Wars Book!  This school librarian and Star Wars fan has been waiting months for this to arrive!  

My first question was, how do I read this?  Is it a cover to cover read?  Is it a look in the index and find the good stuff?  Is it a flip through the pages looking at the great art and photographs?  Hold that thought, but the first thing one must do is pop open that turntable, dust off the CD player or connect your Bluetooth speaker and fire up some John Williams Star Wars music.  My choice happens to be the Rise of Skywalker soundtrack, but choose what you want.  

First, I was surprised at the size of the book.  It is smaller than most Star Wars DK books, and I like it!  It fits on my bookshelf really well with all the other Star Wars books, and it is easy to carry around and hide under the table at Star Wars trivia nights.  Wait, what?  Seriously though.  It is a great size for small curious hands but made for big hands to read.  

The next thing I noticed was the unique organization of content.  The book is broken down into six chapters based on topics from the saga, and each topic is given an essay treatment.  The content is deep which is quite unique for a DK book.  Thumbing through the Table of Contents reveals some eye-catching chapter titles like "Science and Technology" and "Galactic Governments and the Dissidents." Most chapters begin with an introduction to the subject at hand, which is a nice touch.  These introductions are quite informative and interesting to read for new fans and experienced fans alike.  Then the chapters are broken down into smaller subject areas that, like the chapters, offer a unique look at the saga.  There are lots of smaller info boxes that break down information even deeper, as well as famous quotes from the saga, some really cool timelines, and of course the pictures and images.  

So how did I read this book?  I first flipped through the pages looking at the pictures.  What other way is there to start a book like this?  As I was flipping through, I made mental notes of pages of interest.  Then I went to the chapter on "Galactic Denizens" to learn more about the underbelly of the galaxy.  Why not, right?  There is a section on the Mandalorians and another on The Mandalorian, Din Djarin.  I am ready for season two of the Mandalorian now!  I went back to the Introduction of the book, and then browsed the Index.  Yes, I looked at the Index.  What else would one expect of a librarian?  

As a librarian who sees books circulate through many hands, the only thing I wish about this book has nothing to do with content. It is the one thing I wish about all DK books, and that is in the build of the book.  DK is famous for the colorful shiny pages and stunning design, which this book has.  As a librarian, I wish DK invested in a stronger binding to keep those beautiful pages in the book.  It is not the end of the world though, and it most definitely should not discourage anyone from purchasing the book and adding it to their Star Wars collection.

Overall, this is a classic, must-read with an updated, comprehensive, fresh look at the galaxy.  Pablo Hidalgo, Cole Horton, and Dan Zehr have put together a compelling read that we, as fans, will come back to time and time again.  This book will likely end many friendly disagreements over certain details of the saga, but at the same time, it may spark a few conversations as well.  As a librarian, any time we can find a resource that can be used to support an idea or give evidence to build a case, it is a solid resource.  This is a great book that you will come back to many times.  Always visit your local retailer to pick up a book like this, but if it does get delivered to your home, watch out for those little Jawas scavenging around.  

Indiana Jones Connecting Generations

This was originally published on The Bearded Trio Website September 25, 2020

A few weeks back, I sat down to introduce Raiders of the Lost Ark to a new generation of my family: my thirteen-year-old daughter.  While I have seen the film probably a couple dozen times in my lifetime, I haven't watched it myself in probably 10 years.  So, I was excited for another viewing after quite some time, and I was excited to see the film with my daughter who was experiencing it for the first time

I had forgotten how wonderful this movie is with the cinematography, the music, the story, and of course the acting.  But, what really made this movie for me during this viewing was one moment.  The moment is in the scene where Marion is taken while she is hiding in a basket.  Indiana is running through the street trying to follow her screaming voice.  A great moment when Indiana runs into the market and sees all the same baskets, but that wasn't the moment. It is the set-up for the moment.  I really wanted my daughter to experience the moment the crowd splits to reveal the "swordmaster" the same way I did when I was her age.  This moment captivated me as a kid.  The moment Harrison Ford shows Indiana's exhaustion for one more obstacle in this chase then reaches to his side to easily draw his pistol to eliminate the "swordmaster" who is swinging that sword around so dramatically, just caught me off guard with pleasure and theater fun. Who in the theater didn't laugh and clap?  

As the moment approached in the movie, I kept watching my daughter's face to see if she was following the tension of the chase as I had as a kid.  She smiled and rolled her eyes when he runs into the market with the hundreds of other baskets just like the one he was chasing with Marion in it.  She saw the humor in that, I thought.  I was on the edge of my seat as Indiana comes around the corner to the crowd splitting.  I saw her eyes focused on the opponent who was swinging the sword around so threateningly.  The moment I'd been waiting for, Indiana Jones reaches for his pistol and fires.  I held my breath as she smiled, chuckled, and started to laugh at the moment.  She looked at me to see me smiling and laughing right along with her.  Success!!!

I was relieved.  The movie had pleased her in that moment just as it had me at the same age.  I was so happy, that I sat and watched the rest of the film in complete satisfaction.  She enjoyed Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, just as I had.  

These are the moments that we parents look for when raising our children.  The moments we get to share; the moments that connect our past with the present through our children's experiences.  I am thankful for Indiana Jones and all the other stories that help to make those connections between generations.  

Top 5 Comics I look forward to reading each month

This is a list that will change frequently, I am sure.  These are the Top 5 comics, both print and digital on Marvel Unlimited, that I look forward to reading each month.  

5. Star Wars (print) - cruising right along I am just enjoying it

4. Aero (Marvel Unlimited) - hanging on to see where this goes

3. Fallen Angel (Marvel Unlimited) - the X-titles are grabbing my attention

2. X-Force (Marvel Unlimited) - I've always enjoyed this title with Cable or without him

1. Amazing Spider-man - the build-up to issue 850 is captivating if not a little dark and scary

Obviously, these are all Marvel titles.  I have always been a Marvel guy, but not because I have anything against DC or any other company.  Marvel just seems to captivate me and always has.  In fact, an honorable mention would be IDW's Star Wars: Clone Wars title.  

What are you reading that has you looking forward to a visit to your Local Comic shop each month?  Leave a comment of your Top 5 or a few of your "can't wait to get your hands on" comic titles.  

When things seem uncertain...

A couple weeks ago, we were shocked to look out on the back patio where we have a hanging basket of flowers to discover that the flowers had died.  We swore that we had just watered the hanging basket, yet the entire basket had dried up. 

Alas, I put the basket on the ground to await the next garbage day.  It was nearing the end of the summer and even though the flowers were sure to have several weeks to continue offering beauty, it was a nice basket of flowers for the majority of the summer.  Well, I forgot about the basket of flowers when garbage day came, and it wasn't until the next week that I remembered to head back to the patio to pick up the basket and toss it.  To my surprise, two flowers had, apparently, revived themselves and had two flowers and several buds going.  I was shocked!  So, I hung the basket back up and we are now enjoying the hope that something beautiful can come from something that was so hopeless.  

I will take this reminder with me as I head into the remainder of this year.  Even though so much has gone wrong and so much is not the way it was supposed to be, we can create newness and beauty.  It is possible to move forward when so much seems uncertain.

Top 5 List: Top 5 Colors

Hi everyone it's Kaleigh from Sistercast! If you don't already know who I am, I have a YouTube channel with my sister and we call it Sistercast. Come check us out!  

In my opinion, colors are what make the world beautiful! Colors are important for so many different things! Some things that I do every day where colors are important are arts and crafts, knitting, painting, gymnastics, etc.

Arts and crafts:

Colors are super important when doing arts and crafts, because when doing an image collage (like in the picture), I had to think about what colors would look good together and I had to decide 

how I needed to space the colorful pictures and the simpler pictures.  

Colors are extremely important in painting because when you might be blending colors together to make like a sunset you would need to know the color wheel and warm and cool colors to know which colors would mix well and which colors would not turn out so great. 

Now lets actually get into my top 5 colors! Here is my Top 5 Colors list:

1. Pink

2. Yellow

3. Blue

4. Purple 

5. Green

Pink and yellow are my all time favorite colors because they both give me a happy feeling, like yellow reminds me of the sun and summer. Pink gives me a happy feeling. Yellow and blue also somewhat connected to each other because they both remind me of a summer day. The blue is the bright  sky and the yellow is the amazing sun! Purple is on my top 5 because it reminds me of plants and flowers that are really pretty. The color green made it on my Top 5 list because it reminds me of plants and growth. I also really like to go on hikes with my family in the forest.  

What are your favorite colors and why?  Leave a comment below and check back next week for our Top 5 List!  

Top 5 List: Top 5 Baseball Players

This list challenge of Top 5 Baseball players was given to me by my daughter, and she would not really put parameters around it.  So, I went with my Top 5 Baseball players I would have watched in my lifetime.  So here is the list:  

1.  Greg Maddux

2.  Mark Grace

3.  Dave Winfield

4.  Jack Morris

5.  Anthony Rizzo

It is a tough list to make because as I'm typing I keep thinking Wade Boggs, Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Thomas, Mitch Williams, Brett Saberhagen, Ozzie Smith, Alan Trammel, Ichiro, Charlie Hough, Tim Wakefield, Will Clark, etc.  It really isn't fair, but that's my list!  Greg Maddux is by far my top pitcher and player.  Even though I saw him lose many games, I always knew the Cubs or Braves had a great chance to win when he was on the mound.  He was a pitcher that didn't rely on the heat, but rather he relied on cunning and outsmarting the hitter with amazing movement.  You rarely saw Maddux shaken on the mound and late in his career, I enjoyed watching him in the dugout mentoring young pitchers.  

Mark Grace and Anthony Rizzo have protected first base at Wrigley field the majority of my time as a Cubs Fan.  They both are amazing at defense and while Grace is an overall better hitter, in my opinion, I like their approach at the plate.  Grace was more about the extra-base hit where Rizzo is more about putting the ball in play with an eye to helping the ball exit the park.  

Dave Winfield was just impressive.  Besides being a great guy with a great attitude, he was an amazing athlete.  Coming out of college in Minnesota he was one of six players to ever be drafted by three major professional sports teams (Minnesota Vikings NFL, Atlanta Hawks NBA, San Diego Padres MLB).  I liked Winfield's presence on the field and his home run hitting power.  He was also aided in longevity in the league because of the designated hitter rule.  Winfield lasted a long time and slowly crept up many statistical record lists.  

Jack Morris was an amazing pitcher.  I will never forget the pitching performance he made in game 7 of the World Series for Minnesota.  He pitched a 10 inning complete game to close it out for the Twins.  He was the kind of pitcher who didn't look for the best ERA or pitching stats.  Morris wanted to put his team in a position to win a game.  It didn't ever seem to matter to him whether it was a 1-0 win or a 11-10 win.  He pitched to keep his team in it.  

So, there you have it!  The first Top 5 in my Top 5 series.  What do you think?  Who are your Top 5 Baseball players?  Do you have some other Top 5 topics you would like me to rank?  Leave a comment.  

The Top 5 Series (Intro)

So, my oldest daughter and I have started to challenge each other by asking random "What's your top five..." questions.  Stay tuned here for our topics and lists with some explanation I'm sure.  If you have a Top 5 list for us to do, post it in the comments.  

Review of Broken Bear by Frankee White and Adam Markiewicz

I enjoy attending small, local comic conventions because it gives me the opportunity to meet and talk with

local authors, artists, and vendors.  I recently had the opportunity to meet with Frankee White, an author from the Chicagoland area, and we talked about his debut graphic novel, Broken Bear.  He very quickly sold me on the book when he told me there were lots of monsters in the story.  I like monsters. 
The story is about a girl, Selm, who is squire to a legendary hero.  As they enter a swamp, Selm becomes tempted to power by a swamp hag.  When Selm takes the bait to a fast rise to power, she discovers that sometimes choices like these, lead to a longer path.  She goes on a fantastical but lonely journey and discovers who she has become.
Frankee White did not disappoint when he said there would be monsters!  There are a lot of monsters both good and bad and some in between.  The story moves along quickly while giving the necessary detail.  The art and story match up well to make for a really solid fantasy read.  This is a fun book that I recommend for any reader who enjoys a good adventure which includes monsters and pretty cool fantasy settings.  And the last page (seen right) sets up what appears to be even more "fun" creatures.  Broken Bear is told by Frankee White and Adam Markiewicz, colors by A.H.G. logo and design by DC Hopkins, cover by Adam Markiewicz with color assists by Melanie Darling.  Broken Bear is published by Caliber Comics. 
I also might note that Frankee White has a comic series, 20 Fists, that issues #2 and 3 are currently on Kickstarter.  Check out 20 Fists, a comic "about fistfights and bad romance" written by White, art by Kat Baumann and lettering by DC Hopkins.