The past few months I’ve made some small efforts to create more of a social life for myself. For me, “small efforts” means that if you’re used to seeing me once a year, maybe now you’ll see me once a year and get a phone call. And I’ll think about you on your birthday. I’m not sure how I ended up in this solitary little boat; certainly I married a skilled conversationalist who nevertheless prefers to socialize with nobody else around. But it can’t be all his fault. Can it? I suppose I could make it his fault if I tried.
Anyway, when I noticed that Heather was going to land within 150 miles of me I said to myself, “Self,” I said, “here’s an opportunity to drive for an hour and a half, wait in line to say hi, drink one beer, meet two editors and one construction project manager, wait in line again to say goodbye, and then go get stuck in traffic. I’m in!”
http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2216612&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1
Dooce Hollywood Meetup from Eden M. Kennedy on Vimeo.
It was actually good fun despite (or perhaps because of) the Lifetime people, who kept trying to create a buzz of excitement around Heather for the cameras. “Take pictures of her!” they exhorted us before we went in, “we want to see flashbulbs!” “Turn off your phones,” they said, “we’re recording sound.” “Don’t tell her we handed out these eight-by-tens of her dogs,” they said, “act like you brought them from home!” They had two bunches of flowers and handed one to a non-blogging woman named Julie Christine! I’d been talking with to give to Heather as though she’d brought them as some sort of fan offering.
“I had no idea it was going to be like this,” I said to Heather when I finally got to her. “Me neither,” she said with a cute but arch look that I interpreted as, Dude, I’m rolling with it.
I sent a Twitter from the bar: “Signed a release, went through receiving line, got signed picture of Chuck & Coco. Cameras! Now: beer.” A friend @replied, “Aren’t you buddies with Dooce? Yet you still have to wait in line with the plebes?” But it wasn’t a hang, it was made-for-television meet-up. I actually was the first in line but the TV people put a family in front of me that included a shy little girl who kept saying, “I don’t want to meet her!”
On the drive back I managed to find KCRW on the radio, I didn’t fall asleep at the wheel, and when I got home Jack had saved me some pizza. Jackson was still up, he had been waiting to let me choose which Pokemon I wanted to revive on his Leaf Green game. I picked Shaymin.
I’m glad you drove 150 miles to bring some normal, grounded vibes into Heather’s day.
I’m about as sociable as you are these days, and I love it. I’m aiming to move into a cave by Christmas.
Actually, according to Google Maps it was 79.8 miles. Now I bet you don’t feel sorry for me at all.
Plebes? Wow.
That’s some crazy shit. Love the movie ending though.
That look on your face at the end of the video just says everything.
The look on your face at the end of that video absolutely killed me. So funny. Why did Lifetime have to make it seem so crazed? Heather draws a big fan base of excitable people (myself included) as it is. Seems weird. Then again, I’ve watched every season of Rock of Love like my life depended on it, so who am I to take TV to task for making things more dramatic than they need to be?
Jules
House of Jules
Ain’t Hollywood grand? If there’s not a big enough buzz, then hype, hype, HYPE!
That is odd.
btw, I’m the sole participant in NaCoMo, in which I comment daily on your daily posts. Logo coming soon.
when i am famous, i promise you will not have to wait in line to talk to me. you will, however, most likely have to surrender anything metal to the warden. please bring menthol cigarettes. you may have to hide them.
Rolling with it is probably the best approach…to juuuuust about everything, now that I think about it.
Woooo! Am I deep or what?
Don’t answer that.
I loved your face at the end of the video – priceless!
I lived in New Orleans while the Real World was in town – I imagine it was similar, although I imagine Dooce as cooler and more approachable than the 20 somethings who thought they were the bee’s knees and really, just a giant p.i.t.a who made doing anything in their vicinity (whether by design or mistake) obnoxious.
Everyone is now challenged to write a longer sentence than me.
landshark, I wouldn’t take that “plebes” remark personally, it was from a self-described plebe.
Don’t I look nice on camera, everyone? I can’t wait to be face-down on the cutting room floor.
JV, I can help you set up your own social network!
Brandon, jagosaurus, Alyson: carry on.
I’ve been with Heather when strangers were sneaking pictures of her from across the room. It totally freaks me out. I’m all, um, it’s just Heather!
Ms. Kennedy Onassis,
It is not nice to make me snort milk through my nose while watching you videos.
Excuse me while I go towel off.
OMG, Eden! Your face at the end of that clip just made me scream with laughter.
Bless her heart, she IS rolling with her celebrity but it is difficult not view it all as a… zoo.
That last paragraph hit home with me. As my first grader has become more independent, I’ve started to get more involved again in art world things from my pre-child life.
Then I come home, and I step back into my alternate reality that is laundry, Pokemon and cold pasta.
Dude, that was totally surreal. The creation of celebrity…um…alrighty then.
Oh, Mrs. K. I’d drive 80 miles to meet you, Lifetime crew or no.
The Hollywood thing is weird! I lived there/worked there once. It’s gross how everything has to be “a thing”.
You look muuuuch younger on film by the way.
Oh, that is some righteously good stuff. What a freak show! I hope you kept that expression when you went up for your photo op!!
and hey, I’m Mrs. Kennedy too… but check out my first name
truly,
Jacquie
That makes me feel cynical and sad, how you were prepped for the interaction. Nice of you to make the drive.
Weird! But your expression at the end … priceless. Will that be part of the Lifetime movie or whatever it is, too?
I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve borrowed your Turtle video for evidence on my post today. I’ve been thinking about it non-stop since you posted it this weekend.
I really like it when you’re posting every day. I vote that you participate in more nablopomos, but, you know, with a blogroll script, perhaps.
THAT sound like fun. How odd must that have been for them? I can see Jon in that video and just the sight of his sideburn gets my sides a’burnin!
that it is so hilarious.
well, from afar it looked very swanky and i hope heather got the weed she asked for on her blog. i’m sure the lifetime people were happy about that! : )
giyen
There’s a lot going on in there – and it was like a lounge out of Swingers. Was Jon Favroh in there somewhere?? Whoah.
(har har. you said, “she said with a cute but arch” – seriously, I had to read that a couple times out loud.)
Nooooo. Did that really happen? Did they really give out the doggy photos. What are they, Tigerbeat?
Dooce is Leif Garrett, I guess. But you yourself are AT LEAST one of the Bay City Rollers. The cute one! You are even the cute one. So let the printing of the photos of Cookie begin.
The world is so strange sometimes. All the time.
Mwahaha…that was hilarious. Your face at the end, Dr. Kennedy Onassis, Esq. should also be on 8×10 glossies handed out at dooce events.
I live 5 minutes away, but I didn’t go. Now I am kicking myself, but the formal waiting in line thing would have been a letdown. I really wanted to go and pretend Heather and you were my real friends for an hour and go home.
Thanks for the video! You are hilarious!
oh, geez. it’s a bit overblown, isn’t it? as one who loves dooce as much as the next, it’s just strange to see how concocted things can get. but your video commentary? it brought everything back into perspective.
Ugh, reminds me of when I was dating my first gf, a popular local musician. After one of her concerts, I found myself waiting in line backstage with her groupies (yes, bands you’ve never heard of get creepy groupies too) and thought to myself, “F**k this, I’m not waiting in line to see my girlfriend”, and I walked away. By the way, really famous musicians (and bloggers too, from the looks of it) get much better looking groupies than locally famous lesbians. Seriously, the “groupies” were scary.
Hi Eden,
I am the one you refer to as “Julie” in your post about Dooce, except that my name is Christine. That was totally fun, I am glad I got to meet you!
Gah! Christine! I suck. Completely. And you’re so nice about my suckingness.
How cool! I’m a huge Dooce fan, can’t get enough of Fussy, and love to drink Merlot and eat pizza with Christine. And I got to see all three of you in the same clip from 2,000 miles across the ocean.
My head just exploded a little, but I’m fine. Really.