Changing The World One Entry at a Time

Our current contest, "Random Packs of Kindness" has been live for close to two weeks now.  I wanted to share BA Benny's entry to our contest in hopes it will inspire more of you to enter, which you can still do up until this Wednesday by 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time.

"Today was the day that I did the good deed you wrote about in this post. Funny part is that I had completely forgotten about the contest until I found a note reminding me of it when I got home tonight. I, along with 3 of my co-workers, was working in a building on Queens Blvd along a very busy part of said roadway. This particular street is very wide and has had several pedestrian crossing deaths over the last few years. We were in front of a building preparing what we needed to pull a length of cable in the building from the basement to the roof when a kindly elderly woman approached me looking for directions to the local subway station. While the station was only a couple of blocks away it was on the other side of the very busy street and she was not the fastest of walkers and had some bags with her from a shopping trip so I figured the best and safest way to get her to the subway was to walk her myself. So now with bags in hand (and some good natured ribbing from my co-workers who I am sure would have done the same thing) I begin to lead this sweet old lady to her destination. It took 2 cycles of the traffic light for us to cross the street due to its width and her slowed pace plus another 15 minutes to go the 2 blocks but we finally got there. I finally led her down the stairs into the station and I wished her a good day as she went through the turnstile toward her train. To me it was no big deal to take a half hour out of my day to help this person and I would certainly hope that somebody would do the same for my mother before she passed away a year and a half ago. There you have it, my good deed for the day."

Reminder about our giveaway

Just before today's games start, I thought it would be a good time to remind everyone that we have a contest running right now.  You still have time to get in on the giveaway.  To check out the details, please use this link.  Happy Football Sunday.  Hope this week's games are better than last week.

New Contest for Free Football Cards or Random Packs of Kindness

Yesterday was awful.  Someone decided to made my life miserable, not because I had done something to them, but because my mere presence stood in the way of their agenda.

I'm not a big fan of people acting like four year olds to get want they want, unless, of course, they are four years old and even then, it can be unpleasant.  That's exactly how this person was acting, like a four year old.  I couldn't just leave to avoid this person, even though I wanted to, I had to be there.  So I stuck it out and tried to take the high road.

Then, just as I was about to "check out" mentally to protect my sanity, someone tapped me on the shoulder.  I turned around to see a sweet, welcoming face.  She told me "you dropped this" and then handed me a ten dollar bill that had fallen out of my pocket.  After thanking her, I turned back to what I was doing and all the problems of the day melted away.

It was not the amount of money that changed my mood, it was the act of kindness that changed my outlook.  The reaffirmation of the potential for the goodness of humanity.  She could have just pocketed the money, I would never have known, but she did the right thing, the thing we all should do.

I was going to do what I normally do with found/recovered money, give it to charity.  Since I never would have noticed its absence, there is no reason to hold on to it.  I believe an act of kindness should result in another act of kindness.  Today, as was I was about to send the money to one of my local charities, an idea came to me.  Perhaps there is potential to extend this act of kindness even further.

I walked into my local Target and decided to pick up the first random packs of cards I saw, up to the ten dollars of recovered money.  Here's what I got ;

1 pack of 2010 Panini Threads Football Cards
1 pack of 2010 Panini Rookies & Stars Football Cards
1 pack of 2010 Panini Epix Football Cards

OK.  So you're saying "how can taking money that was intended for charity to buy packs of cards be doing something for the greater good?"  Well... here's where you come in.  I'm taking these cards and making them the prize in a contest I call "Random Packs of Kindness." There is only one way to enter.  You have to do something kind for someone else.

That's right.  No signing up for a newsletter, no joining a mailing list.  Just going out into the world and making it a better place.  Visit an old folks home, do extra chores to help out your folks, babysit for free for a couple that needs a night out but can't afford it, volunteer at a food bank, sell some of your extra trading cards and donate the money to a charity, ANY ACT OF KINDNESS WILL DO.  Then share what you did with us.  After the deadline has past, we'll take all the participants and random off the prize to one of them.  But in this situation, its safe to say, everyone will win even if you don't wind up winning the cards.

So here are the rules for this contest;

1 - This is only open to people who are a public, visible follower of this blog, a person who "likes" us on Facebook, a follower of allaboutcards on Twitter or a subscriber to our YouTube channel.  This is the only way I can confirm that people aren't trying to double dip with multiple email addresses.

2 - Go out into the world and do something kind for someone else.

3 - By using the comments here on the blog, or writing on our Facebook page, or by tweeting us @allaboutcards or by leaving a comment on our YouTube channel page, TELL US WHAT YOU DID.

4 - At 11:59 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, November 10, 2010, anyone who has completed the three steps above will be entered onto a list.  We will use Random.org to pick a winner from that list.

5 - We will announce the winner sometime around Friday, November 12, 2010 and upload a video of the pack breaks.

6 - We will then ship the prize out to the winner

It will be interesting to see how far we can take this.  Good luck to all and let's make this world a better place.

Contest Winner Announced

We have a winner!  Is it you?





Please subscribe to our YouTube channel to stay up to date on future box breaks and reviews.

Our Contest Is Officially Closed

That's it, no more entries.  All that's left is to pick a winner.  We'll draw for that winner and announce who it is after Monday Night Football.  Enjoy the game and good luck to all.

Last Chance To Win $225 Worth of Cards

Just a reminder, there are only 3 hours left to enter our contest for the 30+ card set valued at over $225.  Follow this link to learn how to enter.

How The Prize Set Came To Be.

YOU STILL HAVE UNTIL MONDAY TO ENTER TO WIN THIS SET, JUST FOLLOW THIS LINK FOR THE DETAILS.

Putting together the set for this contest was fun for me.   I love the idea of a common thread to a series of cards.  So let me explain how it was formed.

Originally, I was only going to take the comments that were based on incidents where “mental errors” or “lapses in judgment” came into play, but I realized that a common error can be just as devastating. 

Being “inspired,” I decided to use all of the comments to form this set, include a few more of my own.  So this set is truly a measure of your participation.  Here are the incidents that lead to the formation of the set.  Each of them links to an article about the play.

Chris Nelson steals home as Nick Masset winds up for his pitch.

Johnny Evers reverses the outcome of a game by tagging second base that Fred Merkle never touched, later dubbed “Merkle’s Boner.”

Milton Bradley throws a ball in the stands after catching what was only the second out of the inning. Larry Walker did the same thing several years prior.

Alex Rodriguez hits an easy out to Luis Castillo, who drops it.  Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira score on the play that changes the outcome of the game.

Mookie Wilson hit an easy ground ball that goes between Bill Buckner’s legs to score the winning run.

Travis Fryman bunts a ball to advance Enrique Wilson and gets to first as the ball hits him in the back.  Chuck Knoblauch argues for an interference call as Wilson rounds the bases and scores.

Pete Stoyanovich has his last second blocked.  Instead of letting the ball sit and the clock run out, Leon Lett tries to down the ball, misses, the Dolphins recover and Stoyanovich gets to kick the winning field goal.  In another incident, Leon Lett starts to celebrate a TD before he crosses the goal line.  Don Bebee knocks the ball out of his hand before he can score. 

DeSean Jackson does the same thing, but doesn’t need someone to knock the ball out of his hands, he does it all by himself.

Paul LoDuca catches Jeff Kent and J.D. Drew in a double play at the plate. Manager Willie Randolph recalled it happen to his team during his playing days as Carlton Fisk caught Bobby Meacham and Dale Berra in a double play at the plate.

Moises Alou goes up to catch what should be the second out of the inning but is prevented by Steve Bartman.  I couldn’t find a card for Steve Bartman, so I substituted a first issue of the Bartman comics.

During the 2006 World Series, Joel Zumaya overthrows a routine ground ball to Brandon Inge.

Jose Canseco lets a ball bounce off his head, over the fence for a homerun.

Torii Hunter dives for a liner off Mark Kotsay and misses.  Kotsay scores on an inside-the-park home run.

Eli Manning escapes a potential sack by two Patriots and throws to David Tyree who makes a miracle catch.

So there you go.  I hope you all like the set.  I threw in the 1960 Johnny Evers cause I thought it was a neat card.  

Good luck to all.  I hope to do more of these in the future.  Once again, you still have until Monday to enter if you haven't already, just follow this link.

Contest Update, Final Set Books at Over $225

Entering phase 2 of our contest, you now have one more chance to win this set and it's simple.  You must be a VISIBLE, PUBLIC follower here of our blog AND you must leave a comment on this set under this post.  The deadline for submitting a comment is Monday, September 27th, 2010 by 8:00 PM, Eastern Standard Time.   If you are following privately and I can't confirm you, it doesn't count.  If you leave a comment and do not follow our blog, it doesn't count.  If you leave a comment on this set under a different post, it doesn't count.  If you leave a foul language or objectionable comment, I will delete it and it wont count.  Got it?  Good!

 OK, here it is and it books for approximately $228.65.  I will go into further details about the set and the incidents that inspired  the set in later posts.  For now, here is a list of the cards that make up this set.

Johnny Evers                  1960 Fleer    

Bill Buckner                   1972 Topps

Carlton Fisk                    1974 Topps

Mookie Wilson               1981 Donruss Rookie Card

Dale Berra                      1985 Topps  Yogi & Dale Berra

Jose Canseco                  1986 Topps Traded Rookie Card

Bobby Meacham            1989 Upper Deck

Travis Fryman                1990 Bowman Rookie Card

Pete Stoyanovich            1990 Pro Set

Don Bebee                     1990 Pro Set

Bartman                          1993 Bartman, Issue #1, Bongo Comics

Alex Rodriguez              1994 Collector's Choice Rookie Card

Fred Merkle                    1994 Upper Deck The American Epic

Enrique Wilson               1997 Bowman

Mark Kotsay                   1997 Donruss Signature Autographs

Chris Nelson                   1997 Modesto A's Grandstand

Brandon Inge                  2000 Bowman Chrome

Willie Randolph  &

Chuck Knoblauch           2002 Upper Deck Yankee Dynasty Memorabilia

J D Drew                        2003 Hot Prospects of the Game Burrell/Drew Jerseys

Paul Lo Duca                  2003 Topps Autographs

Moises Alou                    2004 Sweet Spot Sweet Threads Patterson/Alou/Sosa

Joel Zumaya                   2004 Topps Chrome Traded    

Larry Walker                  2005 Donruss Impressions Materials /Bat

Torii Hunter                   2005 Fleer Authentix Game of the Week Ramirez/Hunter 114/140

Nick Masset                   2006 Topps 52

Louis Castillo                 2008 Allen & Ginter

DeSean Jackson             2008 Bowman Rookie Card

Jeff Kent                        2008 Topps Allen & Ginter Relics

Leon Lett                       2008 Topps Chrome

Derek Jeter                     2008 Upper Deck Ballpark Collection Ortiz/Youkilis/Giambi/Jeter

Eli Manning & 

David Tyree                   2008 Upper Deck Masterpieces

Johnny Evers                 2010 Topps 206 Mini

Milton Bradley              2010 Topps Allen & Ginter

Mark Teixeira                2010 Topps Legendary Lineage Mantle/Teixeira

Good luck to all and thanks for inspiring this set.

Contest Update

Phase one of the contest is closed.  Thank you for the great comments and fantastic response.  There will be one last chance to enter when the set is announced.

I've always depended on the kindness of strangers

Cards.  I can't get enough of them or read enough news about them.  Nothing is better than ripping into a fresh pack of them, or a vintage wax pack for that matter.

Look at that! 15 cards and a 26 year old piece of gum.  YUMMY!

But like Blanche DuBois, I must "depend on the kindness of strangers" to fuel my addiction. (Wiki it if this confuses you)  If there are free cards to be had, I want them, all of them. (Except for those we are giving away in our contest.)  

I was lucky enough to get chosen for a free hobby pack of 2010 Topps Football Cards over at Sports Card Radio.  This is a great site with checklists, reviews, podcasts and a ton more.  It's run by some really nice folks and you should definitely check them out.  They are constantly doing free box breaks in their fan forum.  

Not all the slots in the 36 pack break were covered so I lucked out and was randomly selected to receive an additional pack. JOY!  Here are the highlights of what I pulled.  Let's start with some guys who had nice games Monday night.

Anquan Boldin, who made the Jets secondary look... human and Dexter McCluster who scored his first NFL touchdown on a 94 yard punt return, the longest in Chiefs history.

A reprint of a 1978 Tony Dorsett card, a Tom Brady complete with a 2010 Topps Attax code, redeemable at Toppstown.com.

A Gridiron Lineage with Randy Moss and Dez Bryant (kind of a loose connection on this one) and a ticket to ride the great Topps slot machine, a John Elway Topps Gridiron Giveaway.  And after entering the code I got this.

A 1961 Lindon Crow, DB for the Los Angeles Rams.  Lindon Crow people.  Lead the league with 11 interceptions in 1956, three time Pro Bowler.  OK, well, its from 1961 and its free and that doesn't suck.

All told, I like the 2010 Topps Football release.  Yes, it looks exactly the same as the 2010 Baseball cards, but the pictures are sharp and the cards are well cut.  And did I mention they were FREE!

So thanks to Sports Card Radio.  Check them out.  It really is a great stop on the cyberspace highway.

Contest Update for free cards.

Carlton Fisk, Willie Randolph, Jeff Kent, J D Drew, Paul Lo Duca, Travis Fryman, Chuck Knoblauch, Leon Lett, Pete Stoyanovich, Dale Berra, Bobby Meacham, Enrique Wilson.  

These are just some of the names of the cards that have been added to our contest.

Great comments to all that have submitted so far.  I'm giving you this early preview of the additional cards that I know will make it into the set.   If you don't see the names of the players from your comment, don't worry, I haven't finalized anything yet.  These were just the ones that stood out as complete mental breakdowns by the players involved, making it easy to say yes right away.

The other reason for this post is to let you know these moments can be from ANY SPORT, Baseball, Football, Basketball, Hockey, etc.

Keep those comments coming so this set can grow.

Free Cards!!! Contest!!! Giveway!!!

UPDATE: PHASE ONE OF THE CONTEST IS CLOSED.  CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FINAL SET AND YOUR LAST CHANCE TO ENTER.

“Keep your eye on the ball.”  That’s what every Little League coach drums into their players’ heads.  Good advice in theory, but taken literally, it can lead to your downfall.  Just ask Nick Masset.

During Thursday’s Reds-Rockies game, with runners on first and third, Masset went into his wind-up by raising the ball to his face and waited there like a chess player figuring out his next move.  While he was eyeing the ball, or staring at the ground or slipping in a little yoga meditation, he paid no attention to the runner on third, Rookie Chris Nelson.

Nelson decided, on his own, it was a great time to steal home.  He had never stolen home, or even a base in the majors, but he broke for the plate.  Upon hearing his teammates screaming, “He’s going!” Masset came out of his trance, and with a “which way do he go, George?” expression on his face, whipped around to throw the ball to… second base.

Needless to say, Nelson scored, which broke a 5-5 tie and proved to be the winning run.

BUT what does that have to do with giving away free cards?  I’ll get to it shortly.

Masset shouldn’t feel that bad, at least he doesn’t have a play named after him like Fred Merkle.

It was dubbed the “Merkle’s Boner,” as if the incident weren’t bad enough.  In 1908, with the pennant on the line, the Cubs and Giants in a tied game, two outs in the last inning, Merkle, of the Giants, was on first and a runner that was the potential winning run was on third.  A single was hit to centerfield.   The runner on third scored, winning the game and the pennant for the Giants.  Going from first to second base, Merkle saw the fans start to swarm the field.  He retreated to the dugout without ever touching second base.

The shortstop for the Cubs, Johnny Evers,

noticed this and got the ball, touched second base and after some umpire debate, Merkle was called out, the third out of the inning, so the winning run did not count, which preserved the tie.  The game was called due to darkness and the Cubs went on to win the tiebreaker makeup game the next day, ending the Giants season.  The ball sold at auction this year for $76,375.   

BUT WHAT does this have to do with GIVING AWAY FREE CARDS?  I’m almost there.

Still, keeping your head in the game is not always a Cubs trait, just ask Milton Bradley.

In the eighth inning of a 2009 game against the Twins, while playing for the Cubs, Bradley made a decent catch off a ball hit to him in right field and then threw the ball in to stands to a Cubs fan.  A nice gesture except for the fact that the ball he caught was the second out of the inning.  The Twins scored a run and advanced the runners thanks to Bradley’s goof.  But he shouldn’t feel back because Larry Walker...

did the same thing when he was playing for the Expos.    

SO, ARE YOU GIVING AWAY FREE CARDS OR WHAT?

Why, yes... yes I am.  And if you haven’t figured it out, I’m giving away all the cards you’ve seen in this post.

But wait, there’s more.

To sweeten the deal, I want comments, lots of them, but one comment per person please.  

Pick your favorite moment, the kind that made you cringe if your team committed the error or made you experience extreme schadenfreude if your team benefited from it.  Leave it in the comments to this post by Monday, September 20^th, 2010 at 11:00 AM Eastern Standard Time.  

I will look through all the comments and repost the best of the incidents, perhaps all of them if I'm inspired; with the cards of the players involved.  Then I’ll give all the cards away to one lucky person.

But how do you get a chance to be the one who winds up with all these cards?  Here are the ways you can earn up to five (5) entries until the September 20^th deadline

1 – If you follow All About Cards Blog, that’s worth one entry.

2 – If your moment makes it into the set and you follow All Abut Cards Blog, that’s an additional entry.

3 – If you have a blog and link this contest to it (please provide the link in the comments section) that’s another entry.  Please put All About Cards Blog on your blog roll/suggested reading/blog feed/etc while you are at it

4 – If you like us on Facebook, that’s another entry.

5 – If you follow us on Twitter, that’s another entry.

After the deadline, I will compile the set and post it for all to view.  You will then have until Monday September 27^th, 2010 to leave your comments on the set.  If you follow All About Cards Blog and leave a comment on that final post with the complete set before the 27^th, you will get an additional entry.  So you can wind up with up to six (6) entries per person.

Can we really buy your interest in this blog?  I sure hope we can.  But once we have your interest, I’m pretty sure you’ll want to stick around.

But the main thing to remember here is this set and this contest will only be as good as your participation in it.  The set will get better and grow bigger in direct proportion to the feedback received.

Lets have fun with this.  I look forward to putting this set together.

UPDATE:

Carlton Fisk, Willie Randolph, Jeff Kent, J D Drew, Paul Lo Duca, Travis Fryman, Chuck Knoblauch, Leon Lett, Pete Stoyanovich, Dale Berra, Bobby Meacham, Enrique Wilson have been added to the set.  More to follow.

FYI -  these moments can be from ANY SPORT, Baseball, Football, Basketball, Hockey, etc.