I guess I've been sending out good karma lately...???

So, due to the group break and other factors, I haven't been able to post trades and random stuff I've gotten... I'll start with the highlights from a bunch of free cards that Jaybarkerfan sent my way. I'm not sure what I did in life to deserve such kindness but I got a HUGE packages of Astros cards... here are some that I was extra happy to see:

 A nice selection of past (first six) and current/future Astros... That one on the bottom middle is actually Wandy Rodriguez, yea he stole some younger kid's identity in order to appear younger, what's new... hopefully the bottom three are mainstays in the line-up for years to come but I have a feeling Wandy is going to get traded this off-season if Ed Wade stays around... Thanks Wes! Your generosity is noted... if there is ever anything you see on my blog that interests you, please speak up!

Next up is a trade with Kevin over at The Diamond King. I THOUGHT we were doing a 1-for-1 relic card swap, as I sent him a Tony Gwynn relic card, and what do I get? The awesome Bagwell relic shown and about 20 random Astros and Nolan Ryan cards! I'm not complaining, but I just continued to be amazed by the blogging community. I guarantee you that a lop-sided trade like this would never happen within the physical walls of a card shop and I LOVE that about our group of friends here online. We look out for each other and if we have something that someone else will value more, we just send it and know that it'll come back from someone else along the way. Thanks Kevin, for reminding me that there ARE good people in this world (too bad they are all baseball card bloggers and not politcians...)

 The Bagwell relic is just sick, as are the base and serial numbered cards Kevin included! Awesome!

Speaking of generosity, I'd be remiss to not include my good buddy Andrew. I don't remember exactly how we got connected online, maybe it was FanBro.com... but regardless I got an e-mail the other day that simply asked to verify my physical address, that he had some cards for me. I was thinking, "Sweet, some random Astros and maybe a few cards from my want list!" Well, I was more than amazed when I opened the package to find some GREAT cards!

 Nice vintage Astros... those rookie stars never panned out, but then again we're talking Astros baseball, what's new?

A SWEET Joe Morgan ORANGE SWATCH!!! WOW! Ok, everyone should know by now that I'm not fan of Mr. Morgan, his views on baseball or his claims of racism in the Astros organization, but that's a pretty card! The Pence is a refractor numbered to 499 and I am definitely a fan of the Martinez auto. I think he's got a nice career ahead of him!

A finally he send along some Gypsy Queen from my want lists! If anyone isn't aware, I'm trying to collect the mini's set as well as the base! I'm getting closer and closer on each! Andrew, you're a good man, I do appreciate it! I hope you can get in on one of my group breaks soon as well (he sent a note saying he hopes to get in on one). Thanks again friend!

Next up, some cards from the good guys over at Community Gum. I sat in on them busting a bunch of Topps Finest boxes and kept prodding them to pull a Brett Wallace auto... well, in the end I got pretty much a team set of the base plus what I was hoping for! Thanks guys!

 One Pence is a base, the ohter is a refractor... I think the one on the right is the base...

 Brett's A.D.D inspired autograph. The guy is just too busy to write out his full name I guess... who knows, but I have wanted one of his auto's and finally got one! Sweet!

Alright, so Saturday morning I made it over to the LCS, BigHitSportscards and did some set searching to find Goodwin, Gypsy Queen and mini's. I managed to knock about 35 cards off my need lists which made it productive in and of itself. However, after busting the 2 boxes of Chrome in the last break, I've decided to collect the set because I like the look of the cards. Anyways, I made a trade deal to get a box but they had to order it (so I'll be busting my own box of it either early this week or Saturday), meanwhile they had a handful of packs still on the shelf so I snagged them up. Amazingly, I got both of the remaining autos that were in the box, plus a sweet printing plate:

 That's Jake McGee of the Rays. Eduardo Nunez may be an auto to hold to see if he has future value, as he's a nicely hyped Yankees prospect. The Aaron Crow card is just sick. Numbered /50 and just a sweet looking autograph! Any Rays collectors? Anyone got a Cubs plate of any kind to swap for this one? I ask this because while I was in the shop, a guy was busting about 20 boxes of Bowman Chrome (I'm not exaggerating, he throws serious cash on cards) and he pulled a Brett Wallace black plate and said he'd trade it to me for a Cubs plate if I could find one... well, I'm putting out the call, if you'll trade me a Cubs plate of any sort, I'll greatly appreciate it!

Finally, a package arrived Friday that I'd been waiting for since April from Topps... my Gypsy Queen auto redemption from Frank Robinson...

An AWESOME auto from an AWESOME set... Gypsy Queen, to me, is the cream of the crop from 2011 Topps' offerings. I love it. I wish it wasn't so scarce right now. I buy whatever I can whenever I see it. It's borderline addiction level right now. I'm even considering having my card budget for next year key in on Gypsy Queen only in my attempt to complete the sets I'm working to complete.

On that note, I am going to throw this idea out there... on the poll I put up, the most votes were for a case break of 2011 Gypsy Queen. Now, I've broken down the complete set by team. A case currently runs about $1900 for 10 boxes. I've weighed the teams by total cards available and possible hits... I would need to sell all 30 teams + there will be a slot dedicated to the Gypsy Queens & Will & Kate possibility. I would probably buy this slot myself as I'm trying to collect them all. I need to know specifically how many people would be interested in this. The top range of prices would be around $130 for a few select teams and as low as $28 for the Indians. Anyways, if you'd be interested in this style of break let me know. Thanks everyone!