Postage Rates are Out of Control

In better news, it looks like someone checked the want list. 

I've had to restrict my shipping to Canada of late, with the rates to send tiny packages with just a handful of cards from US to Canada threatening to overtake the cost of a decent dinner. PWEs are the way to go these days when shipping internationally, which unfortunately introduces increased risk that your stuff isn't going to show up (or might get eaten by wolves.) Fortunately, the envelopes I sent off recently to Condition Sensitive seem to have arrived in passable shape.

Domestically speaking, we're suffering through our second major postage increase in just the past four months. This is hitting people (like me) hard -- people who like to ship some team bags around the country without breaking the bank. Check this chart out below, which is for First Class Package Retail service:

Ouch! Now, just consider the fact that the "Old Rate" column was actually the NEW rate increase from September 2017. Bad news all around. If you have the means, definitely take advantage of the cheaper rates that come with online shipping through third party commercial arrangements.

It's not all bad news, though. We have some great cards to look at, thanks to Condition Sensitive. Although he caught on briefly with the Red Sox minor league system last season, Johnny Peralta may have played his last big league game. If so, he did it in a Cardinals uniform, which is certainly the best uniform.

In addition to some Cardinals cards, because... well, that's I do here... I also snagged a healthy stack of Blazers cards. There was a common theme with these cards. (No, they're not all little known outside of NY Erick Barkley.) I needed them all! Someone clearly checked the want list, or at least the "haves" list I have posted up at TCDB. What do you call a "haves" list, anyway? A reverse want list? I'll go with reverse want list.

Nurk! Jusuf Nurkic came to Portland in a trade deadline deal last season with division rival Denver. Nurkic has had his ups and downs, but I'm generally in favor of him being the starting center of the Blazers. There aren't a lot of quality centers in the league (there never has been), and he will sit for stretches when the team goes small to match up with the other trendy small lineups out there. I'm not sure how they're going to afford to pay him, though.

Scottie Pippen was the first in a long procession of past-their-peak star players to wind up in Portland in the early '00s. For all things considered, he was probably the best.

I don't want to say the same things I always say when I write about a Sabonis card here, so I'll just say this: Sabonis was legend. Is legend. Is. Legend.

Our local alt-weekly's cover story this week is about the so-called Jail Blazers era, and leaves us with this artistic gem featuring Rashe... oh, just click on it!