A Rose By Any Other Name...

Don't worry, this isn't a Literature post, but inspired by other bloggers, it will be a musical one.  I don't plan on doing it much, but I like music and it gave me a chance to look up some and find new songs.

Why are we doing this and what is the theme?

Originally these boxes were $30.  About a month and a half ago I went to Walmart and spotted them marked down to $11.49.  On that day I passed on them.  I mean, sure a guaranteed Pete Rose autograph is a nice grab but he signs all the time, surely its not too hard to get one cheap.

I went home, and looked it up.  I haven't found too many cheap ones, and the ones I did came from this set and would be about $30.  Unless you watch ebay like a hawk then maybe a bit cheaper, and found a few for around $15, but they were from this set.  So I decided that if it was still there next time I went, I'd get it.

I went about 3 weeks later and it was still there, so I bought it.

First video is Seal's "Kiss From A Rose".  I also want to say I haven't checked out all these videos, so they may not work to well, I'm just using suggestions given to me from this site.  I've always liked this song and I sing along every time I hear it on the radio, so its a good starting point.

A terrible scan of the wrapper, but oh well.  I got 60 cards total so once I got home I checked and noticed it was only a 50 card set.  Maybe I can get them all, and hey, maybe I could flip them for about ten bucks keeping only the auto and costing under 2 bucks.  Hmmm.

Next song is Bon Jovi's "Bed Of Roses".  Its always been a good song to me, but not one I have to crank up when I hear it. I can sing along to it, but often don't.

Okay, let's see the cards.

These are decent designs, even though no logos appear on jerseys.  For that reason I like the cards without jerseys in them.  Pete must have liked reading the paper a lot, I guess he was looking for the betting lines.

How can I mention Rose and not have Poison?  "Every Rose Has It's Thorn"  will get cranked up 9 times out of 10, and sung along with about the same.  This says its from a show in St. Louis in 2007.  I think I remember wanting to go to that show despite not being the biggest Poison fan (aside from this and a couple other songs). Bret Michaels has been around here a few times since but I've missed him every time.

Aside from the logo-less jerseys, my biggest complaint might be that they are in black and white.  Imagine the color of that curtain on that last card.  These would really pop if they had color, even if it was only half the cards.

I like some Flyleaf music, but I never heard this one before.  I was fairly disappointed as I use to a much harder sound.  "Blue Roses" though is one of their newer songs, and I am curious to see what the rest of the album sounds like.

Even being in black and white, the actual action shots are still pretty good.  I like the variety they used for the set, and in the end I did manage to get the complete set with a few doubles.  After compiling it though, I decided to keep the set, but have no use for the dupes.

Lynn Anderson just recently passed away, but her major hit "(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden" is still a staple on many classic country stations. I admit its not one I listen to a lot, but its not a song that makes me change the station so its still good.

I thought I would show the backs of the cards.  They all use the same photo, so there isn't much to it.  These were the doubles I pulled in case someone is looking for a certain number.  I can set it aside for you.  I guess its okay, but I'd prefer to have different back photos on the back even if they were the same as the front side.  For $30 I feel its a little generic.  Glad I didn't pay that much.

I haven't heard this song in a long time, and I'm fine with that.  The few times in chorus we actually sang (and didn't watch Disney Movies) we would sing Bette Midler's "The Rose".  I actually liked the song, and how it was arranged, but we sang it every day, and for no real reason.  I got tired of it after a while.  I could probably sing the song without the lyrics if I tried hard enough.

So, what about the autograph?  Did I get it in the box, or did I get the cool one I had to send off for?

My preference would have been one in the box because I'd have it in hand that day, and that's what I got.  It even came with protection, so it worked out great.  The autograph itself isn't too great, but hey, I can say I have a Pete Rose autograph, I'm not complaining too much.

The card I got was even a nice one too. Sure no logo on the hat, but at least his glove covers what they washed away on his jersey.  I'd rather have an action shot logo anyway.

Did they change the back of the card compared to the regular version?

Nope, not really.  Then again, I doubt many people care what's on the back of an autograph card.

One final video, this one is simply called "Roses".

This is by the group Outkast, and it reminds me of a time when people actually cared enough to make decent videos, even though MTV and other outlets all but abandoned the concept.  I will watch this video in its entirety every time I see it.  It has a good amount of cameos too.

So that will wrap it up today, for under $12 I got a complete set and a Pete Rose autograph.  I won't complain about that at, and if they had another box at that price I'd be tempted to buy it just to maybe flip it (and see if I could get a nicer auto).

Thanks for reading, have a great night, and I hope everything comes up Roses for you guys.  Did I miss any song you expected, or any suggestions for me to check out?  Also did you like how I presented it, if enough people liked it I might try it again in the future.