JimH5

Suddenly I don't feel quite so sorry for myself. Best wishes to you, Godspeed. I hope Santa left you some good carpet shampoo or enzyme cleaner. . . And I hope your son is resting comfortably, on his way back to full health.

Sorry to hear that, Adam. My best wishes to you in coming to terms with your loss. With social media, it's possible to stay in touch with so many people, including your own friends & coworkers, distant relatives, friends of your parents, and others who knew them...it's possible to stay connected to so many people, including the BF.net community. I have a friend who just reached the one-year anniversary on the death of his wife. He used Facebook a lot, when he was feeling especially low, and his circle of friends, and the people who knew his wife, would always reach out to him to raise his spirits. He made sure to stay busy and socially connected--and while that didn't immunize him from bouts of extreme sadness--it did help. I lost my mom 11 years ago, and even though I was in my late 30s, married & living far away, her death hit me really hard. Even with their imperfections, our parents are still our parents, and we miss them when they're gone.

It's New Year's Eve, and I look to the bottom of the screen and see that I'm the only member in the forum right now, with 0 (zero) guests. Yep. Sitting on the couch with daughter watching an old Drake & Josh and Mrs. H5 engrossed in her new iPad mini. 2012 is going out with a whimper...

I got the Roger Connor biography from my brother-in-law, and I bought myself a Tommy Harper game used bat.

I don't blame anyone for selling them at any price. I just can't imagine buying that one at any price. I'm not a bobble guy. I may be wrong about it, but I just can't see that one holding its value in the long run. I think it's the Canseco rookie card or the Luis Gonzalez wad of gum.

I didn't read any self-centeredness into your post, pitch. I'm sure you meant none. And cheers to you for the important work that you do. I don't think we could ever know why this guy targeted the school. I was just adding to the thread and expressing grief as it hit me, the parent of an elementary schooler.

I'm not going to rip Melvin for holding his cards close. Sometimes the right deal just isn't there. There's a long time between now and Spring Training.

I'm a dad of a 3rd grader and this incident hit me especially hard. Those poor kids and teachers and their families didn't deserve this. It's hard to think about anything else.

By "recent issue", I'm including stuff from 2008. Really, anything from your generation would be "recent issue" in the way I use that term. It's not like your grandfather got something at Borchert Field and now you just discovered it. I'm guessing it was mass produced. And it's an item that has no use other than as a collectible (so it's not like everyone else who bought one has been using it as a real bat). So almost all of them that were sold in 2008 are in the same exact condition as yours. The Hall of Fame does commemorative mini bats each year to celebrate that year's inductees. They're dated, and they're cool display items. But they don't really increase in value. That doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy the bat. It's a cool memento of the 2008 season.

Incidentally, the Singapore Sling was invented at the Long Bar at the Raffles Hotel. They still make them there, but they're around $30 each, so it depends on how badly you want to pay homage.

Well, you never know, If the government is paying. . .oops..wrong forum.

I get it that it's the flat part of the chair delivered to a flat back, but every time I see a chairshot like Ryback on Punk tonight, I think that's got to hurt a lot. Besides that, these 3-hour Raws are just too much for me to take. So many matches just to fill time, too much Vickie, too many flashbacks. I may give it a rest for a couple of months, just to take a wrestling break. I want to like watching, but lately it seems to be an endless slog every Monday.

Recent issue commemorative things like that mini-bat are often at their peak value when they are sold. Maybe they will retain their value, often they lose quite a bit. I'm thinking of some of the Brett Favre Sports Illustrated issues, or team photo plaques. That stuff might look cool on a wall or in a display case, but doesn't sell for much. I don't know about your bat. I don't think the hologram does anything to add or subtract value. I would guess it's somewhere between $5 and $10.

There is another BF.netter named TigerBrew who also lives/lived in Singapore. I haven't seen him on here in awhile, but he may have more current info than me. Your hotel is near the Dhoby Ghaut station, which is a hub of three prominent MRT lines. You'll have no problem getting to where you want to go. If you're interested in Sentosa, take the yellow line to the HarbourFront stop (the last stop). That's where the large VivoCity mall is, the cruiseship terminal, and the bridge to Sentosa. Underwater World is a pretty cool aquarium on Sentosa Island. . . You're in an ideal location. I walked through there at least once a week for those years. We attended the Wesley Methodist Church not far from Dhoby Ghaut. Plaza Singapura is a mall on top of the terminal. The residence of the Prime Minister (and it's armed guard patrol) is adjacent to Plaza Singapura. I would also recommend a visit to Little India. Interesting restaurants, the 24-hour Mustafa Centre department store, the Tekka Wet Market. Good stuff. We're hoping to get back there for a vacation sometime in 2013. If you can fly Singapore Air, by all means, do it. All the seats on the Newark-to-Singapore flight are either First Class, or Business Class, with oversized seats that lay virtually flat. And onboard service is unlike anything you'll find in the US.

I lived there for 2 1/2 years from Jan 2008- June 2010. Fantastic place. Bring sunscreen and stay hydrated! And bring money. . . Not sure where you'll be staying. Public transportation is terrific if you are near an MRT station. Taxis are plentiful, too. It's hard to recommend food, as there are price points all over the map. The buffet at the Conrad Centennial hotel is fabulous ($$$$), and the Newton Hawker Centre is an interesting cultural experience ($). Din Tai Fung is awesome. The Food Republic food courts in some of the malls will get you warmed up to some Asian cuisine options, if that's to your taste. I would recommend Orchard Road, just to see unabashed luxury. Takashimaya at Ngee Ann City, ION Orchard, plus some of the newer shopping centers. We loved the Jurong Bird Park, Singapore Zoo & Night Safari (daughter was age 3 1/2 to 6 while we were there). The orangutan exhibit at the Zoo is worth the 20 hour flight by itself. There is a new River Safari (?) which may be open now with pandas either there or scheduled. The National Orchid Garden is fabulous. I understand the Sky Garden atop the Sands resort is spectacular, though it wasn't open yet when we left. There really aren't any unsafe places there, though Geylang and Orchard Towers are prostitution zones, so they may leave you a little skeeved out. With a young child, we were not nightlife people, so I can't speak much of that, though Clarke Quay seemed to be a happening place among expats and locals. You'll see a ton of freight ships on the water off of East Coast Park, and thus, the water isn't great for swimming. Most beachgoers go to Sentosa for that. Sentosa was growing quite a bit just as we left, with a new casino/resort & Universal Studios park. Singapore is a great place, and you're in for an adventure. . .

The Curt Flood biography is also a good read on the labor strife. Flood was a remarkable guy, as was Miller. Is this just old-fashioned writers who hold a grudge against the guy for changing the face of MLB? Do young sportswriters just not understand who this guy was? I just can't imagine voting against this guy on a HOF ballot. The BBWAA has never had Miller on a ballot. He's been considered by a couple of Veterans Committee formats. I think he should be in the HOF for sure.

Old man rant ahead: Too many modern players have such ugly scribbles for signatures that I wonder how much long term interest there will be in their autographs. I don't know what your ball looks like, and perhaps it is a gem, but too often, I'll look at an item and will struggle to even guess who signed it. A lot of the interest in an autographed item is to have someone else look at it and admire it, but much of that is lost if they can't tell who's who. Rant over. If you have rookies or younger players who are destined for stardom on that ball, then it will have good value. Or sadly, if someone on that team dies young, then it will have interest. Otherwise, I'd put it in the $100-$150 range. If it's bold and beautiful, maybe a couple bucks more.

I went and thought it was pretty good. Not as much vintage stuff as I would have liked, but I probably didn't need to spend any more than I did. I picked up a bunch of Sunoco pins featuring the 1970? Brewers. The dealer insisted that they were from 1969, and I couldn't convince him that they weren't, since the Brewers didn't exist in 1969, but he had a price guide that insisted they were from 1969. Strange guy, with a very impressive amount of interesting stuff. I had not seen those pins before, and they are pretty cool and fairly cheap ($6 each). And I saw Phil Marks, an autograph dealer who I have known for 10 years or so. I picked up a few signed 3x5s. Joe Gordon was the prize of the lot. I was close on a vintage Yankees pennant from Rick Haskins. He's the best pennant dealer I have met. Still holding out for a better piece, though. And I was hoping that Kevin Keating would be there. He's the go-to guy for vintage high end autographs. I'm trying to get as many old HOFers as I can. I picked up a catalog from Collect Auctions. They are running an auction now with some very nice items. It was my first non-Gonzaga show in more than a year, so I did get my itch scratched. That $12 parking fee is a little steep, since you've still got a lot of walking to do afterward. Maybe that off lot will be a better choice. . .

He didn't advocate that trade. He just said that's probably what the Mets would want. Thank you. . .that's true. Besides the fact that I'm predicting LuCroy will make the all-star team this year, aaahh no way in HECK!! Jim are you a Mets fan?? OMG that's an awful deal. I like the Mets, but I'm a Brewers fan. And Dickey made the All Star team this year, so he's already one ahead of Lucroy. If Dickey joins the Brewers, he doesn't slip in behind Gallardo into the #2 or #3 spot. He becomes the ace. He's on a three year run with a 12.1 WAR. Gallardo has never done that. Heck, Ben Sheets' best 3-year run was good for a 12.3 WAR. Dickey's signed for next year at $5 million, which is at least $12 million under value. He's an innings eater, something that every team with a shaky bullpen needs. He could keep his knuckler going for another 4-5 years, and doesn't appear to be throwing it with risk of injury. So I don't think we can expect Maldonado or Schaefer or any group of middling prospects to pry him away. For half-a-season of Sabathia, we gave up a package, including someone who was considered a top 15 prospect in the game. The Brewers don't have anybody like that in their system now, so to get a full season of Dickey, it's going to mean someone from the major league roster.

I would love to have Dickey on the Brewers, though I can't see the Mets giving him up and not getting something major in return. He just won the Cy Young award, and there's no reason to think he can't keep throwing his knuckler into his early to mid 40s. If they're looking for catcher and OF in return, I think we're talking about Lucroy and Gomez or Lucroy and Aoki. If it's prospects, I don't think the Brewers have enough to get him.

I want the Yankees to have to suffer through the duration of that contract. Mike Francesa will start each show with a rant, the fans will boo unmercifully, Girardi will have to answer questions daily about ARod. It could save the newspaper industry.

Anyone going to the show this weekend? I'm planning to go early in the day on Saturday. I've been to the National at that venue a few years ago, but this is my first go-round at the Mounted Memories show. Hope it's a good one. . .

Maybe it's the slow pace, maybe it's the Joe Buck/Tim McCarver broadcast, maybe it was the real lack of compelling LCS teams, whatever, for the first time in many years, I didn't watch an inning of the World Series. I followed the games on my phone and watched next-day highlights, but that was enough. This WS in particular felt like a random interleague series. Delmon Young, Brandon Crawford, Al Albuquerque, Ryan Theriot, Don Kelly, Brandon Belt. . .these guys are World Series players!? Not quite like Kirk Gibson vs. Dennis Eckersley.

On the list of people ruining the U.S.'s image Lance Armstrong falls no where near relevant. Sez you. To a lot of people, their impression of a place is formed by its celebrated. Michael Phelps, Lance Armstrong, Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Tiger Woods, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Kobe Bryant. . .international sports celebs, pop stars, Hollywood. . .all of that stuff is an American export. In the developing world, western pop culture counts for a lot.

He came up huge in Game Four. And was a wreck this year. Nearly $70 million in career earnings. And his BB-ref page lists his nickname as "Wolfie". . . . . .of course.