I love baseball superstitions. Call me hokey or weird, but I love the way the game has so many stories of past and present superstitions.

Take for instance 9/09/09. I know, I know all kinds of weirdness came and went on this fateful day. Brides got married, the Chinese couldn’t get enough of it and Japanese architects actually take the number nine out of building plans for hotels and such. What’s the fuss over 9?

Well, I was intrigued by the “nine” but thought it was just something fun to maybe watch for but not necessarily seek out. Oh how I was wrong.

See, any long time readers of this blog, the ones I love and always hope drop in, will know that as this season started I left everything behind to follow the Rockies. Home was gone, possessions, job, savings, you name it. I did it all in search of meeting this great country and watching my guys of summer in their glory. But, and this is a big but, the money ran out. Uncle Sam took his share of my 401 and there I was left without a direction except to go forward. This would take a job. Pounding the pavement and looking in every open door I could find, I searched for a way to get back on my feet and at least catch some more baseball before this season was done.

Door closed after door closed I kept searching. A recent job search proved fruitful in that I was in the final candidates they would consider to take the position. On and on the process went until I was told last week they would have a decision by the end of…you guessed it, 9/9/09. The day was as long as I can remember one being and finally the end of business rolled around at 5 and I had given up much of the hope I had held onto. This was the end of the business day and no offer had come. It was going to be a long night.

There I was thinking of what to do next in my search for employment. I had shied away from listening to the Rockies game but I heard it was tied in the 8th and any woe is me feeling left at that moment. I was a baseball fan and I could at least refresh the box scores every 30 seconds and see what happens.

It was the 9th inning and the Reds had just come up to bat and broken the tie. It was time for the Rockies to come up. Just then the phone rang and as I looked at it, it was my possible employer calling. Flabergasted I looked at the clock to see what time it was. It was 9 o’clock at night. A work call at 9 o’clock? Surely this had to be a rejection call and what a way to get somebody to sleep  calling at that hour. I didn’t pick up. I waited to see if there was a message because it would be easier to face a rejection over a message. There was no rejection rather a “call me tonight before 10” message. If this was going to be a rejection it was a messed up way to have someone call back only to get punked.

But, I mustered the confidence and called back. It was actually a call to make an offer and could I meet up tomorrow to sign the paper if I wanted the position? Whoa, I noticed the clock and thought why did you call at 9? Well the boss boss was in Hawaii on business and they are five hours behind so the confirmation came at 5 their time 9 mine. Spooky I thought.

I had forgotten the Rockies game was being refreshed on my laptop and there it was after the call. The Rockies had won their 8th game of the homestand. I know you say 8 is not 9….But it made their homestand record 8-1 and looky looky if you add 8 and 1 together you get 9.  

Today as I was reliving this phenomenon of the number 9 I saw the Rockies had won their 9th game of the homestand. Garrett Atkins hit homerun number 8 of the season so I can only guess he will get number nine in the first game against San Diego. It’s beginning to seem like no coincidence they are leaving Coors for a 9 game road trip.

Call me crazy but as I was wrapping up my day I felt the need to get one of those amazing Girl Scout blizzards from Dairy Queen. Just as I was getting my change back I noticed that in my first day of being employed, I spent exactly nine dollars without even realizing it.

I think I am going to see where this 9 thing takes me and the Rockies. If we lose and I find myself sitting in say seat 7, I will rethink and make sure the seat I am in if it is seat 7 is in row 2. After all 7+2=9 and 9 is just fine for the Rockies and myself…