Free Stuff Finale

I honestly feel like this whole "Free Stuff Friday" thing has jumped the shark. It started off as a very generous idea by Jon, and it was nice to see other bloggers take the ball and run with it. (Rod has really outdone all of us.) However the number of bloggers making claims far outweighs the number of those who offer up something for others to claim.

It's frustrating to see a blog post that takes time and research and creativity get a smattering of comments while a "Free Stuff" post draws dozens. It's disheartening to see comments from people who haven't visited a certain blog since the last time there was a giveaway. And it's aggravating that Fridays on the blogosphere have become one big race to see who can claim the best stuff first. 

I'm guilty of it, too. I've been looking forward to Fridays, checking blogs to see who's offering what. I'm getting competitive with other collectors and resenting those who simply claim all the available cards for a given sport. I try to be mindful of this when I comment - only claiming cards that truly fit my collection, deferring to others even when I get there first, and writing a meaningful comment that shows gratitude. 

Some bloggers (myself included) aren't reading the fine print. Jim (GCRL) offered up some great cards but they weren't quite free. He was just looking for a little help with his want list, a la Nachos Grande. Which reminds me... my wantlist tab has been updated. Hint hint nudge nudge wink wink. 


Anyway.. you're not here to read my complaints. You're here to claim some cards, am I right? 

I've moved "Free Stuff Friday" ahead a day because I'm off tomorrow and I will be venturing out to the post office to ship out trades and claims. I had planned on doing one more round of Free Stuff next week but I'd rather get this all out now while I can.

Please claim up to eight of the cards scanned below and indicate if you do not want me to ship your cards out tomorrow (I know Billy is holding off on receiving mail; not sure about anyone else.) 

We finally get an actual legit sporting event tonight! I'll be watching as much of the NFL Draft as I can, for three things in particular:

• There was talk that the Dolphins would Tank for Tua last year but they played hard down the stretch (3-2 in December) and they might end up getting him anyway at #5. I hope they do. If Tagovailoa is still on the board when the Panthers pick at #7 it will get interesting. 

• This draft is loaded with impact wide receivers. The Packers are in desperate need of a play-making pass-catcher to pair with Davante Adams... so they're probably going to end up taking an offensive lineman from Iowa :/

• The Las Vegas Raiders have two picks in the first round, #12 and #19. I'm not usually interested in the Raiders but I'm curious as to how they will kick off the Vegas era. It's a key component of my next post. Hint. 

I'd be happy to hear your thoughts on the NFL draft - if you're not in a hurry to claim cards ;)

Again, please make sure to indicate if you do not want me to send your claims tomorrow. I'll have no trouble sending out PWEs but if you've claimed more than 12 cards total and the scene at the local post office is too much to handle I might have to break them up into multiple envelopes rather ship in a bubble mailer. (I should probably do that anyway to save money.) 


Thanks for reading!



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