My posting about the potential embarrassments of reading in public has brought in some delightful responses, but none better than this:
Your reminiscences brought to mind some less-than-pleasant scenes from my
days as a pre-adolescent, adolescent and post-adolescent bookworm…and one
story you might find amusing.
It was back in ’74 or ’75, at Dumont High School in N.J.; one day,
standing outside the auditorium waiting to go into an assembly or something,
I had my nose stuck in Harold Pinter’s “The Homecoming.” A very perky, very blonde,
reasonably sweet cheerleader noticed what I was reading and said, “Oh,
that’s so cool!”
Well, naturally I was kind of…flabbergasted. But hey, you never know with
people…and I did have one of those lusting-from-afar crushes on the young
lady, so I said something fairly lame, along the lines of, “Yeah it’s really
something,” to which she replied with an eager “Uh-huh.”
Not knowing where to take this, I thought I would make a joke. “I think the
Drama Club ought to do this sometime.” And she beamed and said, “Yes,
absolutely.” And then she paused and said, “Who do you think should play
John-boy?”
It took me a few seconds before I put it together and realized that she was
under the impression that what I was reading was the script for the
television movie that served as the pilot for the series “The Waltons,” also
titled “The Homecoming.” I was bitterly disappointed for a second, and then
relieved to be returned to the reality I knew.
So be wary of that fantasy waitress….
Actually, all the waitresses at Good Enough to Eat, my neighborhood hangout, are maximally cool. Several are performers of various kinds, and when possible I go to see their shows. (Where are you now, Shannon Hope Lee?) As for the other restaurants in the immediate vicinity, though, I make no promises!