A big surprise! And a big question mark!

I check my mailbox every evening. I'm used to getting random advertisements stuffed in my box every day; junk mail here is hand delivered by the companies themselves or people hired by the company. Thanks to the compact nature of Japanese housing, it's really easy to go from building to building and reach a lot of people quickly and relatively inexpensively.

Tucked in with those advertisements are the four bills I receive every month: gas, electricity, phone, and internet. And I get a monthly advertisement/coupon from my favorite Tokyo area bar.

This year, I've also received a few packages in trades. It certainly brightens my day to see a hand-written envelope or package, or one of those cards that tells me something doesn't fit in my box.

I took a peek in my box yesterday night when I got home, and there was a pretty big priority envelope in there. You know, the ones that are used to mail packages. I didn't really recognize the sender, and the customs declaration said catalog. Hmm. Did I order something and forget about it? What US company has my address in Japan?

Maybe it's a Beckett magazine or something like that, with some cards mixed in. Or some collectible book. But who would send me this? I'm aware of one trade package being on the way...

So, I got the envelope open, and this was inside:

The latest edition of the Japanese Baseball Card Checklist and Price Guide! Perhaps I've been whining way too much about needing this book. I was really shocked to find this, because I certainly hadn't ordered it. Had I? Did somebody say it was coming?

I searched inside the box. Nothing. I looked at the "from" name. Robert Klevens, the owner of Prestige Collectibles, who sells the guide. I searched my emails, skimmed through the book. Nothing.

Of course, I've spent a little bit of time flipping through some of the pages, enjoying seeing some new photos and information on old sets. This vintage edition covers sets up through 1990, just before the dawn of the Japanese modern age and BBM's first set.

Now, the question is, who sent this? I'm not sure if it was meant to be an anonymous gift, so please leave a comment or send me an email if it was from you!

And a big..