Box Break: 2025 Topps Heritage Hobby Box

 See which relic I pull.

Box Break: 2023 Bowman Chrome Baseball Mega Box

 

Not the best box.

Box Break: 2025 Topps Heritage Value Box

Pulled an autograph from a value box!

Book Report: 'How to Win Friends and Influence People'

How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is an essential read that works as as tool to refine your skills of persuasion, manners, message delivery, and far most importantly, manipulation.

The last part may seem like a cynical take, but it's tough to deny that the book preaches that getting your way is paramount, and the means to an end, no matter how seemingly virtuous are nothing more than your "Art of War"-like stratagems.

Most of the advice centers around detachment and empathy. By separating yourself from the task at hand and seeing things from your adversary's perspective, you can design gambits that get them to drop their inhibitions and shift to your manner of thinking.

The examples given of the success of such tactics often seem exaggerated, but there's little debate that in most cases, underplaying your hand works far better than intensity and pressure.

Recommendations include softening bad news or criticism with compliments, ignoring the objective of your conversation in order to forge a connection that will make the person you're speaking to more agreeable.

Timeless, reliable and still ahead of its time decades after publication, Dale Carnegie's book provides crucial words to live by. I recommend it to all, as well as to myself to reinforce the stark, beneficial truths within.

View all my reviews

 

Arizona Theatre Company Review: ''Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson - Apt. 2B'

Offering a fresh, feminist twist on the Arthur Conan Doyle dynamic, "Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson - Apt. 2B" is a breezy, crowd-pleasing production filled with mystery, humor and pizzazz.

The four-member cast bursts with energetic aplomb, delivering rapid-fire dialogue packed with pop culture references, broad physical gags and displaying ample chemistry.

Kelen Coleman, as Sherlock Holmes, is the focal point and undisputed star of the production. A veteran of TV series "How to Get Away with Murder," "The Mindy Project," "The Office" and "The Newsroom," she thrives on dry, pompous mystery explanations. Her counterpart, Regina Fernandez, plays befuddled roommate Joan Watson, thriving on zealous reactions and excelling as the constant butt of jokes.

Aaron Cammack thrives as Inspector Lestrade, a prim, by-the-book detective who scrambles to keep up with Holmes, and wildcard Michelle Duffy, as notorious escort Irene Adler, offers off-kilter momentum shifts, forging a rift in the Holmes-Watson friendship with her shameless flirtation.

The cast makes up for the often uneven writing, willing jokes into laughter with grand flourishes and subtle touches. Interacting like clockwork, the performers sell a series of vignettes with self-aware panache, letting the audience in on the fun as the ludicrously complicated mysteries unravel with improbable twists.

Well worth a look for fans of the Sherlock Holmes oeuvre, "Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson" doles out whimsical delights. The decision of whether or not to spend a night with the two sleuths should be elementary.

"Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson - Apt. 2B' plays at The Temple of Music and Art trough June 7 and in Phoenix June 14-29. Buy tickets here.

Broadway in Tucson Review: 'Mamma Mia!'

Judging from the sunny dispositions and raucous enthusiasm of the cast, "Mamma Mia!" must be just as much to perform as it is to watch. The combination of the feel-good song and dance numbers, upbeat story and head-bopping, toe-tapping rhythms make the musical feel like an interactive wedding dance in which everyone on the floor has had just the right amount to drink.

The 1999 jukebox musical, which embraces ABBA music via" Catherine Johnson's book, doesn't so much tour the nation as it does bounce from city to city, bringing its sense of unbridled joy intertwined with its cultural touchstone numbers. The iconic songs in the film have managed to touch several generations, granting each a sense of giddy nostalgia. 

The show would be insanely fun even if this were a community theater production, but the considerable talent in the cast manages to make it more than even the impressive sum of its parts. The show's shining star is Christina Merrill as Donna, the mother of a bride-to-be looking to discover the identity of her father. A veteran of the long-running Las Vegas residency of the show, she belts out tunes with the operatic gusto of a diva, captivating the audience with wildly confident, iron-lunged flourishes that leave no question as to the depths of her talents.

Amy Weaver lends a bouncy enthusiasm to Sophie, Donna's daughter, who's set herself on the quixotic quest. Blake Price, Jim Newman and Victor Wallace contribute impressive turns as Donna's three former flings, all whom Sophie believes could be her father. A game ensemble cast executes energetic, athletic choreography, which prioritizes explosive outbursts of enthusiasm over lockstep precision.

"Mamma Mia!" flies by like a summer breeze, with a continuous succession of ABBA bangers that hardly lets you pause for breath, much less gather yourself to grant each its proper applause. Working in front of spare sets, the magnetism of the actors brings the characters to vivid prominence in ways the film adaptation couldn't quite execute. Live theater, ideally with a top-flight cast such as this, surrounded by fans appreciating the spectacle like a raucous rock concert crowd, is the only way to truly feel this show's groove. 

From the rafters, this show screams "take a chance on me!" And it would be foolish to disobey. "Mamma Mia!" is too much fun to pass up.

"Mamma Mia plays" at Centennial Hall through May 25. Buy tickets here.

Early Game Review: 'Deliver at All Costs'

Filled with wild action, ceaseless momentum and ample whimsy, "Deliver at All Costs," due out Thursday, is a rambunctious and often hilarious thrill ride.

Swedish developer Far Out Games Studio, working under publisher Konami, captures the spirit of "Crazy Taxi" with a heavy dash of "Grand Theft Auto," tinted with 1950s tropes.

As delivery driver Winston Green, you're tasked with taking on payloads that are often absurd, dangerous and wacky. You find yourself sinking deeper into a tapestry of mysteries, dodging explosions and taking on all manner of obstacles and enemies.

A smile was plastered on my face throughout my time with "Deliver at All Costs." There is plenty of replayability, with a progression system that incentivizes refining your techniques and incrementally improving your adaptability.

While "Deliver at All Costs" may not rake in universal praise, it's enough of a crowd-pleaser to maintain a place on the home screen of gamers of all stripes. Sprinting a mile in Winston Green's shoes is a breathless, grin-inducing rush. 

Publisher provided review code.

Box Break: 2025 Topps Heritage Hobby Box #2

A Corbin Carroll relic is within.

Box Break: 2025 Bowman Value Box