Balukjian: Coming full circle with the Wax Pack Book trip
From SABR member Brad Balukjian at Wax Pack Book on August 6, 2015:
I pulled up in front of my house about an hour ago, turned the ignition, and exhaled deeply, my shoulders slumping. The odometer read 165,434. I had made it.
I emptied out the Accord and dragged my life inside, up five steps and to the right to my bedroom. My wall decorations welcomed me back–the framed autographed Mike Schmidt photo, the Iron Sheik doll, the Phillies pennant.
I set out to track down a pack of cards, and ended up with a complete set of memories. The lessons I learned are many, some still forming and swirling in my head. It will take some time to sort through it all, but when I do, it will congeal in a book that will hopefully do it justice. I hope you’ll still be interested enough to read it.
I had one more thing to do: For the duration of the trip, I carried a second 1986 wax pack with me, unopened, to use as a prop when explaining the project to players and people I met along the way. I let them cradle it, feeling the wax paper and the outline of the fossilized stick of gum inside. By the end of the trip, the wax seal had all but worn off.
Read the full article here: http://www.waxpackbook.com/
Originally published: August 7, 2015. Last Updated: August 7, 2015.