Earlier today I did a private signing with Celtics legend Larry Bird. I may have already told this story so I will give the quick version- Larry was the first real big signing I ever did. It was in 2002 in Naples, Florida. When we do basketball signings the balls are generally bagged after they are signed. That helps avoid smudging during transit back to our office. Basketballs come in a cardboard packaging that allows it to be stood up instead of bouncing all over the place. The balls are flipped to the approriate panel and are signed right in the box. Afterwards they can be bagged while still in the cardboard. Bird was my first signing (I was kind of just thrown in there) so I was very nervous about the whole process. Instead of setting up the balls in the boxes neatly I took all of them (was over 200) and laid them out loose on the floor. They were bouncing everywhere and Larry laughed as hard as I have ever seen. It took me about 8 hours to pack that one up. Suffice to say I have learned a lot and am constantly still learning. Anyway, this signing was a lot different. I set up the balls (the right way) this morning and Bird showed up at 4:30 (like he always does) Bird is a pretty quiet but we did talk a little bit as we have a mutual friend in Jerry Koosman. Larry signed a strong variety of product including basketballs, that classic spotlight photos and even added his name to a few incredible Magic Johnson signed 16x20s. Once Bird finished it took me about two hours to pack everything up (six hours less than my first signing with Larry). Overall it was a stress-free lay up of a signing. I am on the first flight out to New York tomorrow morning so, barring any unforseen travel complications, the story ends there.
We have two major Yankees appearance tomorrow evening so be sure to check back for the "happy recap" (thanks Bob Murphy).