BoBuBingo: Finest – Window Still Open!

Sorry that I’ve been away for the past couple of days. I decided to look up some lyrics a few minutes after posted on Sunday Night/Monday Morning and ended up contracting a nasty virus. I have to have my hard drive completely wiped and reformatted. So, I have to use my wife’s laptop whenever she can bring it home from work, and I have to pray and pray that I don’t lose any of my files and can find my software install discs… let alone my OS install disc. Hopefully we’ll still be able to play as scheduled.

Here is where we stand right now.

Card 1 – powerdgr19
Card 2 – UNCLAIMED
Card 3 – volleygod67
Card 4 – 3rin
Card 5 – mdaubrey
Card 6 – topherkris1
Card 7 – arfmax
Card 8 – yetibon
Card 9 – neilrackersfan
Card 10 – burnsee2
Card 11 – UNCLAIMED
Card 12 – owlatnight
Card 13 – cardsoncards
Card 14 – bozemanbreaker
Card 15 – andywtn
Card 16 – aybayz
Card 17 – thejaw
Card 18 – fanofreds
Card 19 – lfb2b
Card 20 – UNCLAIMED

Still a few cards left, and no one has created their own yet, and there’s still plenty of time to get in on the game!

Hope to see you all here on Monday!

BoBuBingo: Finest – Contest Entry Window OPEN

Get Out Yer Ink Dobbers
(it’s time to play BoBuBingo)

BINGO BOX
2009 Topps Finest Master Hobby Box

PRIZES
BoBuBingo Prize: The First Box Hit
Red Number Prize: Box Hit of Your Choice
Full Board Prize: All Remaining Box Hits

BOX HITS
Base Card Refractors #’d to 25 or less
Finest Moments Autographs
Rookie Redemptions
Autographed Rookie Letter Patches
Printing Plates

THE RULES
The Contest Entry Window will be open from 12:00am Central Monday April 27 2009 until 11:59pm Central on Sunday May 3 2009. During the Window opening, you will be able to either choose from 20 different BoBuBingo cards that were made by me using Random.org to assign numbers to each card, or you can fill out your own BoBuBingo card (which must be approved by me before the Contest Entry Window closes). To choose a BoBuBingo card, just follow the link provided below and claim your card number in a comment on this post. Once someone has called a particular card number, no one else may claim that card number. First come first serve. To create your own BoBuBingo card, simply post the numbers of your choice in a 5×5 grid in a comment on this post. You may only use numbers 1 – 150. Be sure the center number is labeled F for your Free Space. BoBuBingo cards created by contestants will not be assigned a Red Number. If there are no unclaimed cards left, but you would still like to play, you will have to fill out your own BoBuBingo card.

The sealed Master Box of 2009 Topps Finest will be busted at 8pm Eastern/7pm Central on Monday May 4 2009 and will be used to draw numbers. Only base cards and non-numbered Refractors will be used for this game. Each card will be called out by me in the order that they were pulled. If and when you believe you have scored a BoBuBingo, make sure to call out "BoBuBingo!" as soon as you can. Confirmation will be on a first call first serve basis. The first person to have a confirmed BoBuBingo will win the BoBuBingo Prize. If and when you believe you have scored a Red Number BoBuBingo, make sure to call out "Red Number!" as soon as you can, even if BoBuBingo has already been called, confirmed, and awarded. If and when you believe your board has been completely filled, call out "Full Board!" as soon as possible, even if BoBuBingo and/or Red Number has already been called, confirmed, and awarded. The game will continue until either all prizes have been awarded or all card numbers contained in the Master Box have been called.

Each BoBuBingo card has one Red Number. If, at any time, you score a BoBuBingo with your Red Number, you will win the Box Hit of your choice! If the BoBuBingo Prize has already been awarded, you may choose from the remainder of the Box Hits.

If every number on your card has been called, you will win the Full Board Prize–all of the Box Hits! If the BoBuBingo and/or Red Number prize(s) have been awarded, you will instead win the remainder of the Box Hits.

If you are not here during the game, but you have claimed a BoBuBingo card before the Contest Entry Window has closed, you will still have 48 hours following the beginning of the game to confirm your BoBuBingo.

If BoBuBingo, Red Number, and/or Full Board is not claimed by 7pm Central on Wednesday May 6 2009, there will be no winner for those prizes.

FAQ
Do I need to be here live to play? Nope! You just have to claim your prize before 7pm Central on Wednesday May 6 2009.
Will being here live during the game increase my chances of winning? In a sense, yes. If you are here live during the game, you will obviously have the first opportunity to claim your prize. If you are not here live and score a BoBuBingo, Red Number, and/or Full Board, but someone else has already claimed those prizes, you, unfortunately, cannot win.
The player that won live did it with 20 numbers called, but I was not here and won with fewer numbers called. Does that mean I win? You’ll only win if you are the first to claim your prize and be confirmed as the winner. It does not matter how quickly you win, it’s how fast you claim your prize and are confirmed as the winner.
If I can’t be here live, should I just not play at all? While being here live definitely has its advantages, it does not guarantee a winner. The Prize Claim Window is open for 48 hours to give everyone a chance to play, especially those that cannot be here during the game.
If I am the first person with a BoBuBingo, but I win with my Red Number, what do I win? You will win both the BoBuBingo and Red Number prizes.
If someone else has already won BoBuBingo and claimed their prize, and I claim BoBuBingo afterwards, what do I win? I’m sorry, but only the first person to have a claimed and confirmed BoBuBingo will win their prize.
If someone has won BoBuBingo, but then later I have a BoBuBingo with my Red Number, does that mean that I don’t win? If you have a BoBuBingo with your Red Number even after someone has claimed and won BoBuBingo, then you actually win the Red Number prize–just so long as no one else has claimed and won the Red Number prize.

CONTEST ENTRY WINDOW
Open NOW until 11:59pm Central on Sunday May 3 2009

GAME TIME
7pm Central Monday May 4 2009

PRIZE CLAIM WINDOW
Closes 7pm Central Wednesday May 6 2009

PICK YOUR CARD NOW!

FEEDBACK
I would appreciate any feedback you may have about this style of game–positive or negative. If BoBuBingo is well received, it will continue. If not, it could either be restructured or scrapped for something else altogether. Any comments, questions, or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Who Needs Cardboard Corner When You’ve Got Zistle?

Goodbye, Cardboard Corner
(we’ve only known you for, like… a month)

After my horrendously failed attempt at striking up weekly live chat sessions, it looks like someone else has initiated their own chat room. I’m a gajillion percent positive that this new chat room will be a bazillion times more successful than Cardboard Corner. With that, I am officially closing the doors on Cardboard Corner, and will instead be using the name "Cardboard Corner" along with its corresponding logo for another future feature here on the blog which I predict will be just as popular as its debut use. So, instead of (not) coming here every Sunday night, I invite you to the brand new ZISTLE LIVE CHAT.

In My Fat Grubby Hands: ‘09 Topps Finest

They’re Here!
(don’t go into the light, Carol Ann…)

This is the first of two sets that I have been looking forward to this year (so far, anyway). It’s also the first Hobby box I’ve decided to throw money at. My first time with Finest was actually last year. While the look and design wasn’t fantastic, there was just something about those cards that really caught me. Hey, I may be all about the old school cards, but I do loves me some really heavy, thick, shininess every once and again. Plus, I think my box last year was loaded. I got a rookie redemption, a Frank Thomas printing plate (which I actually did flip on the ‘bay for a bill), a Jose Reyes on-card cert auto, and a few other on-card rookie cert autos. I doubt I’ll have the same luck this year. Having a loaded box certainly can sway a person’s perception, can’t it?

I’m not going to be busting into this box just yet. If you read my post just previous to this, then you’ll know that I’m saving it for a live break and a game of BoBuBingo. The hard part is that the break isn’t scheduled until the first Monday in May. This will truly be a test of my willpower. I think I’ll have to bury this sucker in the back yard somewhere. Ya know, kinda like a time capsule. A, uhh… one-and-a-half week time capsule. Yeah.

So, until the scheduled break, I thought I’d share a couple of kinda-sorta related items that I got in the mail just yesterday. They’re the last two redemptions from 2008 that I have been waiting for.

Rookie Redemption #1, Mr. Johnny Cueto. I do hope he’s the fifth man in the Reds’ rotation just so I can call him Johnny Five. Actually, what I’d really like to do is make some sort of Total Recall reference, but I can’t think of anything that will work very well. I actually pulled his redemption from the master of Finest that I busted up last year. I sent for it pretty much right away and just got it now.

I actually purchased the redemption for this card about a month or two after I sent in my Cueto redemption. When I received the redemption, I mailed it out right away. Interesting how I got both cards on the same day. I also thought these cards were supposed to be Refractors. Guess not. Oh, well.

BTW, I have to apologize for my photography. My photos usually aren’t this blurry. I tried and tried and tried, but this was the best I was getting short of hunting down my tripod and setting the shutter timer. The only reason I took photos of these cards is because the scanner HATES Finest.

What are your thoughts on the ‘08 Topps Finest Rookie Redemptions? Was it a weak class of Rookies offered, so-so, or strong? Should redemptions be done away with?

Well, since the box is here now, the game will definitely officially begin this coming Monday. All of the details are, of course, found in the previous post. Be sure to come back some time next week to claim/create your BoBuBingo card. First come first serve, of course, so the earlier you get here, the better.

BoBuBingo #3: Announcement

The "Finest" BoBoBingo
(so far…)

That’s right, friends–BoBuBingo returns! And this time? I’m using a master box of 2009 Topps Finest.

BoBoWhu?
For those of you who either forgot or are new to this, BoBuBingo (short for Box Buster Bingo) is a game played by you, the loyal Crackin Wax readers, for a chance to win some potentially big loot. The game is actually pretty simple. You pick out a BoBuBingo card, I do a live box break, and you fill in the numbers of the cards that I pull until someone calls BoBuBingo.

But what in the world is the prize? I’m glad you asked. For this particular game, there are three different prizes up for grabs.

BoBuBingo Prize: The First Box Hit
Red Number Prize: Box Hit of Your Choice
Full Board Prize: All Box Hits

THE RULES
The Contest Entry Window will be open from 12:00am Central Monday April 27 2009 until 11:59pm Central on Sunday May 3 2009. During the Window opening, you will be able to either choose from 20 different BoBuBingo cards that were made by me using Random.org to assign numbers to each card, or you can fill out your own BoBuBingo card (which must be sent to me for approval before the Contest Entry Window closes). When the Contest Entry Window opens, a link will be provided for you to choose a BoBuBingo card. All you will need to do is follow the link provided and then call out the card number. Once someone has called a particular card number, no one else may claim that card number. First come first serve. If there are no unclaimed cards left, but you would still like to play, you will have to fill out your own blank BoBuBingo card. The blank card will be provided here. Red Numbers will not be assigned to cards filled out by contestants.

The sealed master box of 2009 Topps Finest will be busted at 8pm Eastern/7pm Central on Monday May 4 2009 and will be used to draw numbers. Only base cards and non-numbered Refractors will be used for this game. Each card will be called out by me in the order that they were pulled. If and when you believe you have scored a BoBuBingo, make sure to call out "BoBuBingo!" as soon as you can. Confirmation will be on a first call first serve basis. The first person to have a confirmed BoBuBingo will win the BoBuBingo Prize.

If you are not here during the game, but you have claimed a BoBuBingo card before the Contest Entry Window has closed, you will still have 48 hours following the beginning of the game to confirm your BoBuBingo.

Each BoBuBingo card has one Red Number. If you score a BoBuBingo with your Red Number, you will win the Box Hit of your choice!

If every number on your card has been called, you will win the Full Board Prize–all of the Box Hits!

If BoBuBingo is not claimed by 7pm Central on Wednesday May 6 2009, there will be no winner.

CONTEST ENTRY WINDOW
Open 12:00am Central Monday April 27 2009 until 11:59pm Central on Sunday May 3 2009

GAME TIME
7pm Central Monday May 4 2009

PRIZE CLAIM WINDOW
Closes 7pm Central Wednesday May 6 2009

FEEDBACK
I would appreciate any feedback you may have about this style of game–positive or negative. If BoBuBingo is well received, it will continue. If not, it could either be restructured or scrapped for something else altogether. Any comments, questions, or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!