Quelle Coincidence!


Timing is a funny thing.  So funny that in the sixties, they wrote a catchy song about it.


But, in this case, I'm not talking about men singing falsetto.  I'm talking about what has been deemed a "Plate of Shrimp" moment.  If you have never seen Repo Man, you should.  The premise of the plate of shrimp is that you'll be thinking about a plate of shrimp, and then out of nowhere, someone mentions plates, or shrimp, or plates of shrimp.

If you happened to read my polemic in the previous post, you know I have been dealing with some serious anger issues in re: my gyno's office/practice.  I not only wrote about it, I talked about it with several friends/family/colleagues.  The general consensus is that I should find another doctor.  But here's the plate of shrimp:



Eight years ago today, I posted about firing one of my doctors.  As it happens, it was my gynecologist.  His name was (and I shit you not) Dr. Hamburger.  He had been recommended to me by my doctor in Atlanta (hold on to your hat) Dr. Gummer.   In addition to his limited appointments, he was inconveniently located, but most of all, he was about fall off our insurance plan.  So... I asked around at work, got a name of a practice and made the switch.

Nashville is a decent sized city.  I have to think there are any number of practices that could do what my current practice does, but doesn't make me anxious to go to appointments, and angry when I leave.

I haven't made a final decision, but it's a helpful reminder that I could be the victim of the story, or I could be the hero of it - and that designation rests with me.

Onward!

I had a terrific day.  We had a meeting with the top management of our entire company.  They do a roadshow every year to meet with every location, answer questions, talk about the coming year and priorities.  I ended up arriving late and sat second row, center.   And the CEO and CFO laid it all out for us.  Here's how last year shook out, here's what we're doing this year.  Here's what we're proud of, and what we want to do better.  At the end, there was a Q&A.  The questions were all thoughtful, interesting, and got answers that weren't just word vomit, but relevant, specific responses.  I didn't know how to handle it.  I sat and listened.   I loved it.  I'm pretty rah-rah with company meetings anyway.

The CEO of the company is probably three years my senior.  He has his M.D. and J.D., both from Duke.  He's from Nashville.  He looks like any guy you'd meet at a party.

At the end of it, I went up to him.  I introduced myself, and I told him how much I appreciated a letter that he sent to the company after the violence last summer in Virginia.  It basically said, "We don't stand for that, we're a company of inclusion, and racism and violence aren't cool."  He said it way, way better than that.  He said he had really struggled with that when writing it and I told him I had printed it out and shown it to my friends/family who all said I was working for a great company, and I said "I know!!!"  I basically word vomited, but he seemed to genuinely appreciate my comment.   BTW - he sent another one prompted by the #metoo movement saying "We don't harass, and if you're getting harassed, we need to know."    Basically, he's kind of amazing, and I was starstruck.

The thing is, why wouldn't I introduce myself?  I did it the week I was at UL corporate.  Introduced myself to the CEO, thanked him for taking the time to present at the company meeting.

I introduced myself to Mayor Megan Barry* and Kristen Laviolette (the wife of Preds coach Peter) at a playground build.

I saw Jeff Garlin standing at the back entrance of the Belcourt after he moderated a panel after the showing of Airplane.  Went up and introduced myself.  We talked for a good five minutes.  He hugged me!

When Aparna Nancherla came to town, I went to her show, and afterward, I went up to introduce myself.  Since I stalked the hell out of her on social media, she already knew who I was... that's... well, that's a little awkward, but still - she was great.

My point is, if there is someone you want to meet, and the opportunity presents itself, do it!  And I don't mean, if you see a celeb having brunch, interrupting them and asking for a selfie with them.

Case in point.  When I was interning at WAGA-TV in Atlanta, in 1996, they had a morning show - lite news, guests, segments... well, given that the Olympics were that summer, in Atlanta, they had some pretty decent guests.

Including... Dan Aykroyd.  He was in town running and promoting the House of Blues.  Now, I have for many years, had a thing for Dan.  He had a small role in Chaplin, he played Boolie in Driving Miss Daisy - and KILLED IT.  When Atlantans found out he was cast for that we all thought it was a mistake.  It was not a mistake.  He got it.  He really got it.  And he was in Dragnet, where I had a massive crush on his ultra rigid Joe Friday.  I loved his SNL characters.

And I here I was, in the same building with a comedic legend.  Now, I had access to the whole building, and given that one of my jobs every morning was to deliver the overnight ratings to about 30 people, it's not inconceivable that I could have wandered down to that general area and talked to him.  But I knew that I would not be able to be cool, and I was supposed to be an adult, and working. And although nobody ever said, "Don't hassle the talent", I innately knew I shouldn't hassle the talent.

So I didn't meet Dan Aykroyd.  Which was a bummer, but I know I did the right thing.  As a result of that internship, I ended up winning an award from the Georgia Association of Broadcasters.  I sat at a head table with Guy Sharpe (an Atlanta legend - meteorologist) and Bud Greenspan.  Bud created all of the post-Olympics documentaries - you've probably seen one - they all have a similar style.   And that same year, I met Julius Epstein, who, with his brother wrote this old movie called Casablanca.

I have met a lifetime of cool people.

But more to the point, some really cool folks have me me.

I don't have a moral to the story.  I just had a pretty solid day and wanted to share it.

I'm Allison.  It's nice to meet you.

ae


*No, I don't really want to talk about Megan Barry's extramarital affair with her police appointed security guard at the moment.  I'll address it...eventually.

Comments