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Monday, July 17, 2017

Cave Woman

Field of soybeans against a Michigan summer sky - on the corner, up the dirt road from my home

I've been out-of-pocket for a couple of weeks, which included a stay-cation.  During that time, I had company for an overnight visit. My guest room is rather small so I gave up my room for the night. When I moved in a couple years ago I felt it was important to have a comfortable place for guests. During all this time, there's been no other overnight company.   So while I was off work, the guest room was dismantled!  I donated the furniture to a good cause and went to work!



Heavy duty shelving took over the spot left vacant by the dresser.  It filled quickly with all the new boxes created during my recent sort-a-thon. Up went two 6ft CARD tables for various stages of sorting work. No more cluttering up the den!  The two shelves under the binders hold the Tiger collection. The next shelf contains PCs, working sets and binder cards. The bottom shelf is full of cards for trading.


The Tigers' table - predominantly for team set and Tiger organization. Underneath there are two crates of albums.  I'm a vinyl junkie as well.  The window faces east which means no afternoon heating!  I may miss that in few months!



Dragging out the MANY several thousand count boxes and putting them away three or more times a year was getting old.  The inability to dedicate a permanent place for the hobby contributed to the disarray of my collection.  I had no place for scanning when packages arrived. Instead they stacked up on my desk for some other day.   This table is for scanning and trade package prep.

Lifesized Altuve  4/10
A jumbo Finest Altuve propped on the tray behind the laptop keeps me company - and sometimes I have a helper:





Today a comfortable breeze is keeping the room cool. There's a little feeder out front with a weeping cherry just outside the north-facing window, which always holds a little winged friend or two. The house sits back about 125 feet from the road so the yard is deep and gorgeous.  It's a grand view from the table!

I also have baseball and music memorabilia, and 70s pop culture for decor - and a little stereo to hook up. Gotta have tunes while working on cards!  Once it's a bit decorated, I'll show off the whole room. It won't look like the man cave so many of you lucky guys have but it's cozy!  



A new hobby room means the study is reclaimed!  No more piles on the desk with boxes stacked against the wall in what is the smallest room!  At one time, I'd considered an addition to the house. The space needed was already here and available! I'll gladly sleep on the couch if guests need to stay over.

This can only mean the time has come.  With the MLB trade deadline rapidly approaching, it seems only fitting -

THE TRADE BAN IS LIFTED!

I'll begin putting trade packages together over the next three weeks.  I have a handful that remain to be shared and I'll do that with the next couple of posts. Expect another giveaway of sorts.  I am still purging!



37 comments:

  1. I'd call that a Stay-Cave! Looks like a great place to disconnect. Well done.

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    1. thank you! I wanna play with my cards all the time now which interferes with my job.

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  2. Wow, I'm super jealous of all the room you have. Love the Woman Cave! Oh, and your "helper"... ha! I know the kind of help they'll be offering. LOL

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    1. thank you Tom! oh yes, i know you understand what kind of help I'm getting - or NOT - as it is.

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  3. Looks like a very nice room set up. I wish I had that, to be able to know where things are is a luxury!

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    1. it's a making a huge difference in quality time spent - less time hunting, moving and storing. Thanks Billy!

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  4. Who the hell has to mow that lawn?

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    1. My friend John does a nice job. Mr. Deere mows two acres for me weekly. You only saw the front yard!

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  5. Replies
    1. GONE! She was a terrible roommate. So glad Barney came along! She spends her time hanging out with him and the Water Buffaloes these days.

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  6. Replies
    1. you know, it truly is. I do NOT miss city life at all!

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  7. Time sorting baseball cards is time well spent -- though most of my sorting gets done on our small living room table. I hope to have a card room like that one day! Happy to hear the trade ban has been lifted as well. I'm in the process of putting a package together for you as we speak.

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    1. you can say I upgraded the sorting area. I'm truly excited about the hobby again. I also have another stack of cards for you, growing quickly!

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  8. Hobby rooms are so nice, keeps everything neat and organized. That is a beautiful view out the window.

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    1. thanks Corky! the view is more than pleasant. Once the weather changes and the leaves fall, it will look entirely different!

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  9. Awesome. Looks like a great set up. Nice and organized. :D

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    1. thanks so much! It's becoming more organized daily!

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  10. It's wonderful that you now have a room dedicated to your hobbies. -And it comes with a helper! Can't beat that. :)

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    1. no worries! I don't beat the help! you are correct though. I've wanted this space for a long time. Decided it was more important than company. ;)

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  11. Nice! We just moved to a bigger house a couple months ago and my wife even gave me my own room. It's still a work in progress and will be for the foreseeable future, but it's nice to have room to spread out.

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    1. i need your new address! Looking forward to more updates on your new space!

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  12. Nice room! I need to find better shelving myself

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    1. $90 on sale at Home Depot with 600 lb per shelf limit. 72 high, 48 wide and 18 deep. It was a perfect fit! Only needed a mallet to put it together.

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  13. Great setup. I really like the idea of using those heavy duty metal shelves. I have some in my garage to house cards, but never thought about putting them in my office. Hmmm... maybe that'll be my summer project. Nah... I'm way too busy and tired. But it's a great idea.

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    1. thanks Fuji! The shelf is great. It was easy-cheesy to assemble. 15 minutes.

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  14. Great room. Great view. I also live in a Rural area. I enjoy the quiet. Right now it is quiet and peaceful. No dirt bikes or ATV's at the moment.

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    1. thanks Fred! I never thought I'd become a country girl but the transformation is nearly complete!

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  15. That's a great looking card room. Love that Michigan is cool enough in the summer that you can just open up the windows and be comfortable with the weather. My wife is a Michigander and we spent a week earlier this summer with her family renting a lake house in northern part of the state. Warmest day was 77, most days were in the lower 70s and upper 60s.

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    1. Thanks Snort! The room needs decor and a bit more organization but it's happening! Living in Dallas for 15 years, and OK for 30 years prior - I'm used to hot summers. It still seems so odd for the temps to drop at night like they do. Lovin' it!

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  16. I need one of those, wait I need two of those. One in FL and one in GA, lol.

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    1. that would be tops! You'd likely fill them both!

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  17. I've been looking for one of those Topps 1-cent ad for a long time! Did you find yours online?

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    1. HI Jess - thanks for stopping by! I picked it up at a "touristy" General Store in Michigan. I probably spent $100 in there on signs and jigsaw puzzles!

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    2. Oh ok! I'll keep looking then! Thanks!

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