CyberErik's Success Thread- just starting out, feedback and help welcome!

[cyberer]

Hey guys! I'm glad you still read and still enjoy. I've really enjoyed getting to know you guys over the years as well. I would trade you for the lattimore.

I have a lot to report! It was a pretty up and down weekend of graphing to be honest. On Friday I figured out where Fultz was going to stay after the draft so I decided to go out late ~1am on Thurs night/Fri morning to see if he would come post-draft. I didn't see him.

Then I saw that they scheduled the press conference for 11am so I went out Friday morning to try again, but again didn't see him. So about 3 hours wasted for nothing.

But it wasn't all bad. But it was up and down as well. Saturday Deandre Hopkins, Todd Gurley, Will Fuller, Jaelen Strong, Jihad Ward, Damarius Randall were hosting a football camp in west philly then an afterparty at a nightclub a block from my apartment. So game on.

I went to the football camp and watched for about an hour- some really talented area prospects going all out on drills. I got a wicked sunburn because there were no shaded spots. My buddy and I were the only graphers there.

At long last the camp broke up for the day. They broke up into separate conversations, signed and took pictures with the camp attendees (signed TShirts and hats mostly, some kids had footballs) and took forever to get off the field, but Gurley and Deandre came off together and walked by us quickly. I followed behind and asked him if he could sign. He muttered something.

I said "what did you say?"

He said "I said no."

I said "Can I ask why?"

And he said "You know how much my autograph is worth on ebay man?"

And I'm like "No, I don't- I'm just a fan trying to get an autograph."

And the guy he and gurley were with stepped in and was like "It's for the kids man, he's not signing for you." Gurley didn't say anything but kept walking. He kinda was laughing at the whole thing.

So that was that.

I later got fuller (class act), Randall, Jihad Ward and Strong on 8x10, 8x10, 4x6, 4x6, respectively that I had brought.







My buddy and I decided to hit the afterparty to try for the big names. We got to the club at around 10:15 (the event said 10pm-2am).

We waited outside the club. And waited. And waited. For hours. The line outside the club got packed, but no players showed up.

Eventually Malcolm Jenkins of the Eagles showed up and no one recognized him. They made him wait in line LOL.



He's there in the hat. I didn't have an Eagles mini on me to ask him, so I just let it go.

As we waited the bouncers came over and kept telling us to leave, telling us the guys won't sign, classic "sidewalk police" crap. We just told them to go to hell, pretty much. Public street.

Around 12:45 a giant black SUV pulls up and Deandre and Gurley get out. They walk right by us, but I hung back, wanted to wait for the right moment.

They are immediately surrounded by a posse. Maybe 30 people. Men and women, the club owner, a whole big thing. I figure the game is up.

But after about 5 minutes of chatting they start making their way towards the club. So I see that they are going to have to walk by us again because the posse had moved back past us up the street.

So I wait until I'm even with Deandre and ask him again. He recognized me from earlier and shook his head. But I asked him again and he took the helmet and signed it.

But instead of giving it back, he held it away from me like keepaway. He was like "Give me 100 dollars."

And I'm like "Excuse me?"

He was like "How much you gonna make for this? Okay then give me 50."

I'm like "I'll give you whatever is in my wallet, like 20 bucks."

He's like "Okay then, I'll just give this helmet to security."

So I showed him my wallet, which embarrassingly only had 4 dollars. His boy was like "What am I going to do with 4 dollars?" I showed them my med student ID and I was like I'm not some scumbag ebay dealer and they were like "you need to pay your tuition with autographs, bro." They were just being scumbags.

Gurley was like "Dude ™™™ is the matter with you, just sign his helmet. Hell, I'll do it. But then he saw it was the wrong team's helmet. Deandre gave it up and handed it back, but continued to rant about these guys "making money off of his body and his career by selling on ebay."

So I got the helmet back.



Then I ran around to Gurley and was like "Since you said you'd do it back there to Deandre would you mine signing?"

He's like "I'll do it but only one tonight."

So he signed my helmet. Someone, either me or him, got a silver fingerprint on the helmet. I'll have to wipe that part. But it's an easy fix and it came out pretty good.



I asked Gurley for a selfie but he said no not tonight at the club. I said okay I won't push my luck.

Deandre was still ranting at my buddy about selling on ebay. My buddy hadn't even asked him to sign and was like "Bro mind your business I ain't even ask you."

I was like "Deandre you have my word I won't sell this on ebay."

Gurley was like "Man sell it on ebay I don't give af. Idk what his deal is (Deandre)."

Since my buddy and Deandre were starting to get into a heated argument I decided to leave then before anything might have happened. I told gurley I was peacing out and he shook my hand and told me to get home safe. Seemed like a real class act.

So I put in a ton of time (~10 hours) of graphing this weekend, didn't get all my targets but came up with great adds at the end in Gurley and Deandre!

[lizard-jd]

Nice stories & recap of your graph hunting. I always LMAO at these young athletes who imagine that their graphs are worth so much on eBay that a regular fan will be able to retire on their one item. When the music stops & their careers are over, they will be overjoyed when "anyone" recognizes them on the streets...

[cyberer]

Yeah he was a real jerk-face. If he looks on ebay then he must know that that helmet is worth like 80-90 bucks tops. I don't care what his philosophical thoughts are, either sign or don't.

I don't get these guys that complain complain complain, make you wear them down, etc, but still sign. Either do it and shut up, or don't do it, in my opinion.

[phillysports]

That's a rough go with them but at least you got the auto. Check your Pm's!!! lol

[cyberer]

Just saw that photobucket decided to unhost every photo I've ever posted in this thread in a shameless attempt to shake me down for money.

[cyberer]

and I'll check my PMs lol

[lizard-jd]

Just saw that photobucket decided to unhost every photo I've ever posted in this thread in a shameless attempt to shake me down for money.

Don't feel too bad cause I paid Photobucket the extra $15 and they still lost all my albums and photos. I went back & forth with emails but the people who contacted me had no idea what they were doing so I just blew it off. Those people are a pos in my book. That's why I rarely post any of my graphs anymore. I use IMGUR once in a while but it's not the same...

[phillysports]

You really need to check your pms lol. I feel like it's easier to get autographs than to get you to reply haha hope all is well

[phillysports]

Does anyone in the Philly area have any recommendations for when the mets come into town. I know they stay at the Westin but if anyone has any info about exactly where, what time to be there, where to stand etc it would be greatly appreciated. Would love to get cespedes or Wright

[cyberer]

I'm really bummed about this photobucket situation. I'm really sorry guys for the lack of a good photos in my thread. But, I do have an update- I'm finally home in Philly! I hope your graphing worked out Phillysports.

I got out graphing the night of the mayweather fight. The cubs were in town. I figured they would all be out watching the fight then come home. I was half right. Turns out, they were all in a specific bar watching the game near where they were staying, but it was a private bar.

A guy who came out for a smoke saw me with my graphing stuff and said him and his buddies were chilling inside the bar with the team and I was welcome to come in with them. So I go in and sure enough arrietta, lester, contreras, schwarber and others were all there having drinks.

I just hung out and took it all in, had some drinks. I wasn't going to bum rush the guys at their table. I did go over to Jon Lester when I saw him by himself and asked him for a cancer survivor fist pound. He and I are both cancer survivors. He was surprisingly really nice (he has been a jerk in the past when I met him, though he did sign that other time). He said it was really nice to meet me and wished me continued good health. I didn't ask him for a graph after that.

As players were leaving for the night, that was when I went up and asked. The smoking guy's buddy was a wounded veteran, he had a wounded warrior cap. We approached Schwarber as he was leaving. The veteran asked him to sign. He said no. We pressed him, finally he said yes and signed for the guy. I said what about one more, he said no. I kept pressing him but he kept saying no. He was trying to leave but he got delayed, so he was stuck with me for a minute or 2 standing there. So finally he just did it, but was not nice. Still got a pretty solid sig on a world series 8x10 photo:




We did a similar move to Arrietta, and he wouldn't even LOOK at the wounded warrior, or obviously me. He wouldn't sign when pressed on it. Really the dude has come a long way from the nice guy on the Orioles when he had an ERA of 5.0-6.0. Fame really going to his head.

That was it for the night, but it went better than I expected. So much so that I decided not to go back sunday morning to try for Bryant.

Schwarber really isn't a nice guy, which sucks, but I still got him. I was expecting to get 0 cubs that night, so it was a plus. Good to be back in Philly for the duration after my summer away!