So I went to the Flames game earlier this week with a friend of mine and during the course of a pretty good tilt (if you're grading on the curve of games the Calgary Flames have played this year) the question came up as to why I don't blog as much.
It's a pretty valid question if you take a quick peek at my numbers over the past seven years.
Between 2010 and 2012 I was averaging 200 posts a year (that's a post every day and a half). In 2014 I posted just over 100 times....granted I did have a summer hiatus, but still. And last year was even quieter, the first time I didn't hit 100 posts over the twelve months.
This year so far I've been almost invisible.
So why is that?
I think it's a few reasons. The current landscape of Linden cards is not great. Yes, there's lots out there, but the cards are so low numbered and with high asking prices (especially when you factor in the brutal Canadian dollar exchange rate). I've just passed over way more cards than I've picked up. In fact, I've only made one ebay purchase since Jan. 1. I'm definitely not inspired in that sense.
My scanner crapped out a little while ago and my computer is on its last legs (I've had this beast for a good 10 years now) and I find I don't spend as much time in my office upstairs. No real excuse...but if I'm not actually present in front of the computer it does make it harder to blog. And I don't know about anyone else, but I feel like a blog post without a picture is just a little less exciting.
So yes, I will share a couple pics in a moment.
I'm spending less money on the hobby than I have in a good number of years. I don't feel like the interest in cards is dwindling, I think I'm just keeping things a little lower key while this economy is in the dumps.
There are times when I don't know what to say or share. And this one really had me thinking. Why don't I have more to say about this hobby? Why don't I spend more time trying to come up with a "good take" or my perspective on things? I have no answer to that. And that revelation has made me want to improve in that area.
Lastly, I've been a busy guy over the past number of months. Work has been a grind (although not nearly as much these days), I volunteered a lot with my niece, spent time with my nephew, escaped into a good book or caught a hockey game or two. The opportunity to blog has not been as abundant.
And at the end of the day.....I don't want my blog to feel like a job or an expectation. I've been really focused on keeping this fun and something that I want to do for me - as opposed to having the mindset of NEEDING to write for my audience.
Don't get me wrong, I think it's cool that you all come and check out what I have to say and share (and I thank you for that), but I want to keep my blogging experience very close to me. It's to give me more experience in writing, give me a bit of a kick in the rear with my organization and ultimately keep things fun.
What will the future hold? Not sure right now. I don't have any quotas that I've administered for myself but you can be sure that when the time is right for me to blog....I will.
Now, with all that said I feel the need to share a photo or two. So I took a snapshot of my garbage can.
For reals.
It's my Ken Danby 'At The Crease' garbage can.
Actually it started out as a popcorn container I believe. And no, I do not keep my garbage can on my side desk....I put it up there si I could take a nice photo (thanks for asking).
This painting of Danby's is such an iconic piece of art in my books. I've got a framed print of it in my closet somewhere. I don't know why I don't put more stuff up on my walls. Seriously, why do I keep them bare?
But when I saw this container at a garage sale about 2-6 years ago I thought that it would make a real cool garbage can for my office. It's the perfect size.
The bags I use fit nicely inside and it's robust enough to handle a little bit of abuse.
It's got the goalie on either side of it (if a cylinder can have sides) and this 30th Anniversary note in between.
For the .25 cents I paid for it, I'd say it was money well spent.
Speaking of cool garbage cans....I have a story.
I always have a story.
When I was a little kid we would visit my grandparents on their farm. We're talking late-70's, early 80's. I would always get to sleep in my uncle's old room since all of the other rooms were more "girly".
My uncle had neat stuff on his walls, a cool lamp and alarm clock, some collectible-type stuff in his closet - all of which stayed put when he moved out. But it was the container in the corner that had me gawking.
This is not his (I grabbed it off the internet) but she looks just the same - even better condition than this one.
What a beaut.
I didn't even want to put garbage in it I liked it so much.
And this depiction of Jacques Caron is killer. Even though there's no logo on the front of his sweater (no idea why), the pretzel mask is a dead giveaway in my books.
Everything about this garbage can spoke to me.
What I really liked about it was that it was "before my time". When I really noticed this was at a time when Gretzky had exploded into the league, the WHA had merged with the NHL and the fibreglass mask was quickly finding its way out of the league - only to be replaced with the much less sexy helmet-cage combo.
Look at all those great vintage logos! They don't' make 'em like that anymore.
For years I would always stare at this garbage can when I would visit. I wanted to take it home with me really bad but just never could get the courage to ask.
It's been a long while since I've been to my grandma's place now, but I'm sure she still has it (she never throws anything out). I was thinking of asking her now, but I just feel funny approaching her about it.
I think in some weird way I like it more that it's not mine.
So there you go. Your collectible garbage can story of the day.
