Vince Carter 09-10 Exquisite Collection Buyback Auto

Last July 22, 2010, I redeemed four redemption cards for 09-10 Exquisite Collection Buyback autos of Dwight Howard, Chril Paul and Vince Carter.

After the process, I was given a message to allow up to 12-16 weeks for delivery. That's 3-4 months which I find very long. However, I did not expect that it will be until 8 months later before I receive... not all cards but only one -- the Vince Carter.

My White Whale: 1/1 Dwight Howard Autographed Jersey Printing Plate

In the world of sports cards, a white whale is a card that you have decided to be a must have for your collection. It might not be valuable to others but for you, your collection is incomplete without it.

However, acquiring it is very difficult because it seldom comes up and chasing that card might sometimes take you years.

Mail Week March 28 - April 1: 1 of 1 Inserts and Autos, Carter Exquisite and Jordans

I have been literally flooded with mails this month.

While I really like my March 21-25 mail week because of the rare Shaq 90's inserts, nice Dwight Howard autos and Kobe 2nd year inserts, my mails for the past week is not too shabby either because, finally, my Dwight Howard white whale has arrived.

Michael Jordan 86-87 Fleer Rookie Card Reprint... Err, Fake

Michael Jordan is widely considered as the greatest basketball player ever.

It is therefore understandable that in the world of basketball sports cards, his rookie card, the 1986-87 Fleer #57 is considered as the "Holy Grail"; the most coveted card every fanatic wants to add to his collection.

Lebron James 07-08 Ultimate Collection Signatures Autograph

I don't really collect Lebron James but when something is available for sale that is usually cheaper than what they usually fetch for, I will immediately scoop it up.

After all, you can easily move his cards and they are good trade baits because he is very popular with collectors.

Shaquille O'Neal 96-97 Flair Row 2 Legacy Parallel Card

The Legacy Collection that parallels the base card in 96-97 Flair is groundbreaking.

Why? Because it is the first basketball parallel set that featured serial numbering. Randomly inserted into packs at a rate of one in 30, each parallel single is machine-numbered to only 150. It is even rarer than the one that came next, the 96-97 EX-2000 Credentials which are numbered out of 499.

Shaquille O'Neal 97-98 Flair Rainbow Set

Included in my March 21-25 mail week is a Shaquille O'Neal 97-98 Flair Row 0 card serial numbered 179/250.

With its arrival, my mini 97-98 Flair rainbow set is complete - minus the Legacy parallels of course.

Mail Week March 21-25: Shaq RARE Inserts, Dwight Howard Autos and Kobe 2nd Year Inserts

I think this is one of my best mail weeks because I have added something to my Shaquille O'Neal and Dwight Howard main personal collections as well as to my Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan side PCs.

Check out my mail week from March 21 - 25, 2011.