35 days. Wow.
I think I have made the most of my time in North Carolina, working hard for Baseball America, going to the gym almost regularly, seeing movies and even going to a UNC/NC State football game. I am sure I could have done something crazy like made friends or something, but I have had a great experience.
I don’t know what I would have done without the people at BA, because of how helpful and friendly they are and have been, but without them, I wouldn’t have come here in the first place.
My work day was mostly normal, though there was a visit from a former intern to add to the excitement of today. The people at BA seem to like him for the most part, but it doesn’t seem as if he is as highly regarded as one might hope to be when leaving as an intern. I certainly hope people think better of me and my internship than they do of him. But, of course, I would like to be the best, so I hope they think I am better than anyone and everyone. Is that too much to ask?
I updated the directories with information I had received last night and this morning as soon as I got to the office. Admittedly, then I answered emails before I got to working on the next couple of bios for the Hall of Fame. I was not looking forward to writing stories on George Kell and Wee Willie Keeler.
When I was finished with what I could do for the directory, I went to Editor 2’s office and told him to just give me the next two names alphabetically to write about. That probably wasn’t my smartest move, but someone has to write them, so it might as well be me. So that’s how I got Kell and Keeler.
What amazes me most about Wee Willie is that he was pretty much the exact same size as I am, and he was a phenomenal hitter. He collected more than 200 hits in eight consecutive seasons, well before Ichiro Suzuki made it the thing to do. He had 206 singles in one year, over a century before Ichiro also matched that mark. If I were to be compared to any player, I would love for it to be Ichiro, so it makes me think this man’s 19th century play was remarkable.
Kell was voted in by the Veteran’s Committee, and I already have my opinion about players who have made it into the Hall that way. He had one really remarkable year, in 1949, though his biggest feat was edging out Ted Williams for the batting crown by two-thousandths of a point. He denied Williams the Triple Crown title, and did it with two hits on the last day of the season. Kell should have had one more at-bat, which would have made the number different either way, but the batter in front of him grounded into a double play to end the game while he stood on deck.
I guess it’s good for me to learn about players like these though, because they ARE members of the Hall of Fame. And since I have finished the bios on these two players, I am now done 20 for the book! Since there are only 292 members of the Hall, I believe I am somewhere at almost seven per cent for contributory work. That should be significant enough to get my name in another book, and since I am now vain, that is where my concern lies.
For lunch today we went back to one of the two barbeque places that we have frequented during the time here. The old intern came with us and Editor 1 was very put off by some of the things he was saying either during their ride to the restaurant or while we were eating. Either way, I don’t think he was impressed. Hopefully that is never me.
On my way out of the office I stopped to say goodbye to Editor 1 and Editor 3. Since they are both leaving for Winter Meetings I figured it would be the last time I would see them, so I wanted to say thank you. I gave Editor 1 the card I had made him and letter I wrote him, and he said it was an easy decision for him to bring me on and they have enjoyed having me. He also said that he would be around next Friday, so I would see him again before I leave.
When I stopped in to bid farewell to Editor 3, he told me that he, too, would be back next Friday, so I would get another chance to see him before I leave as well. So I guess I was preparing for my last day with these people for nothing. Though I won’t spend next week with them, I will see them once more before I head back to Canada.
With that in mind, I wasn’t so reluctant to leave the workplace, but before I took off I did grab the list of Hall of Famers from Editor 2 so I could work on it if I so choose. I am sure I will have plenty of time but the desire is what I might be lacking. I took the list anyway and now have the option of working this weekend.
From work, I went tanning and then headed to the mall with the movie theatre. Nicole and I had plans to see the same movie at the same time again. We were both going to see the late show of Love and Other Drugs, and I decided that I was going to make it a double feature. I wanted to see 127 Hours too, and the timing worked out so that I could see it right before the chick flick.
I enjoyed 127 Hours, most probably because it is based on a true story. But the story is remarkable and I thought James Franco or whoever starred in that movie, did a great job. It does make me want to read the book written by the actual Aron Ralston though.
Love and Other Drugs was a little bit different than I expected, and had an entirely separate plot line that I had not seen in the trailer. I liked it for that, but it was certainly a chick flick, not my favourite genre. I expected that obviously, so it was good for what it was. I talked to Nicole about it afterward as planned, but we had to exchange emails because for some reason my American phone doesn’t seem to be working.
And that was enough excitement for me for one night. Off to bed in preparation for my final weekend in North Carolina.
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