K'ed - Mart

Last night, my lovely fiancee and I got "kicked out" of our living space for a few hours while wedding favors were being worked on.  So, like good Americans, we went out and spent some money on stuff we didn't need in order to pass the time.  After consuming some delicious fried foods at the local Chili's ('cause we're classy), we decided to travel down the road a little ways and kill some more minutes at the K-Mart that is kitty-corner to said eating establishment.

We don't go there very often; so, at least it's something a little bit different to peruse, rather than the much closer (and cleaner) Target or Wal-Mart.  Anyway, obviously it was a slow night for us on the entertainment front.

Anyway, we came to found out while we were digging through the five dollar movie bins that our good ol' K-Mart will be biting the dust come December.  Apparently, a bunch of stores from this chain are going under, likely due to losing competition with those other retail giants that I named earlier.  Sad days.

So, I did what any other red-blooded, card collector would do and immediately scouted out the card aisle to see if there were any deals to be had.  I left Sam happily occupied in the "Adam Levine Collection" section of the clothing department - a proper distraction.

Unfortunately, they hadn't yet started marking down their card supply; that said, I was surprised to see that the soon-to-be-closing store was still receiving new product:

Not something I usually go for, but I was bored on a Friday night (aka - payday) and I've heard some good things about this newly-rebooted product on the blogosphere, so far.  Why not?  Plus, with my fiancee walking around with 3 DVD's and a sweater, I selfishly kinda wanted to buy something for myself anyway.

I was hoping for a nice Willson Contreras card or an Ian Happ, otherwise the Cubs portion of the checklist is mostly the same faces.  But, it wasn't meant to be.  Contained with in the pack were no uniformed Cubs players; however, I did end up with this guy:

I guess this set had to go to print before they could update July trade deadline team affiliation changes.  Which, might I add, isn't surprising - in case you thought I was complaining.

I still have some mixed feelings about this guy; but I must admit, this is a very nice set, with a sleek, color-coordinated design.  This super-shiny card of the Cubs' hired gun, strikeout king will slot nicely into my CATRC binder to hold down the fort until his inevitable appearance in Cubs colors when Update is released.

As for the rest of the pack:

Wrapping up the MLB portion of the pack were the love 'em or hate 'em, Bryce Harper and the ace of that other team in my town, Chris Sale (not pictured: Jose Peraza & Evan Longoria).  I'm actually quite happy that I pulled that sale, seeing as I owe Jeff from 2 by 3 Heroes a PWE and my White Sox reserves are a little low at the moment.

But, Bowman never has been about the Major Leaguers, has it?  What's a pack of Bowman without some prospects I've never heard of?:

Like most Bowman products, the base card design changes for the prospect portion of the checklist. The swirls get a lot more intricate and ornate, perhaps symbolic of the potentially bright futures of these young men.  The colors found on these cards remain color-coordinated for the depicted team (did I mention I love it when card sets use that design feature?), though this isn't the best cross-section to highlight that particular characteristic. 

Anyway, the only guy who's name I recognize here is Cody Reed and that's because I just read on MLBTradeRumors.com that the young arm has been shut down for the year due to a lower back spasm issue.  The prospect has been in the Bigs for a little while now, but it's been a struggle as his 7.36 ERA over 47 2/3 innings suggests.  Maybe it's actually best that he just shuts it down and starts over fresh in 2017.

Oh and Anderson Espinoza, because he's a Padre now, as a result of the Drew Pomeranz trade and all of the shady-dealings that are coming to light on that front.  Tsk tsk, A.J. Preller and co.

Then, of course, there are these "Next Generation Prospects" inserts, although I have issues with including a guy who's been an MLB regular for the entirety of this season in this set.  Oh well.

I have to say, this particular insert set reminds me of a flashier, higher-end version of the recently-released Topps Bunt product... y'know, the physical version... what with the floating team logos in the background.  This seems to be a popular characteristic for cards in 2016 and I am more than okay with that idea.

With that, we've reached the end of my pack of 2016 Bowman Platinum - it made for a fun rip of some nice-looking cards, even if it wasn't particularly productive for my personal collection. However, while that might have been all for that pack of cards, that wasn't the last pack I that I bought from K'ed-Mart (get it? they're out of that location) last night:

I threw this pack of 2016 Topps Sticker Collection into my purchase for three reasons:

1. I've never once opened a pack of Topps (or Panini) stickers in my life, so it made for something different on a relatively dull Friday night.
2. I could clearly see a Cubs logo through the white portion of the packaging, just at the base of Kris Bryant's neck.
3. They're cheap.

This turned out to be a good impulse buy, seeing as it's contents were much more Cubs fan friendly. Take a look:

Turns out that the card I could see through Kris Bryant was actually Kris Bryant... how cool is that?  Any pack of cards (or stickers) where I pull a card (or sticker) of Chicago's favorite son is a definitely a winner in my book.

Also, it should be noted, that this particular Kris Bryant sticker became an internet sensation for a while, taking center stage in a heart-warming, fit of excitement for a young child:

Okay, this hobby might be sliding more and more into the "nostalgic adults with extra money" business and away from kids with nickels and dimes, but moments like this have to provide some hope for the future, right?

Also, while I was quite happy to pull the Bryant myself, I was not moved to tears of joy.  Clearly, I have to step my game up.

Meanwhile, keeping Kris company in that pack was another Cub:

Okay, well, former Cub.  The stickers go to print awfully early, seeing as Starlin Castro became a Yankee way back in December.  No matter, I like "Star" better in Cubs colors anyway.

By the way, if you saw anything you liked, besides the Aroldis Chapman, just let me know and it's yours - I am not wed to anything I pulled from that pack of Bowman Platinum.

There you have it - my wild and crazy Friday night.  A couple of packs of cards for me and a nice, new sweater and set of DVD's for my fiancee.  Maybe if we splurged like this more often, our K-Mart wouldn't be going the way of the dinosaur.

Maybe - Sam likes Target an awful lot...