Being a total dork

Something very exciting happened to me this week. I've been told it is blog-worthy though it is also very embarrassing to speak about. Actually it is equally exciting and embarrassing to talk about. Anyway, here goes. At the hat shop on Tuesday, a certain renowned actor I very much admire and respect casually walked in. No, it's not Keanu, but I swear I'm getting closer and closer to meeting him (this actor was in a movie with him and I rubbed elbows with Martha Plimpton at a show once... it's going to happen).

So at first I wasn't sure if it was really him, but he definitely has a distinct face so I knew it had to be him. He browsed the shop and I nervously made some comments about our hats and then when he was close to leaving I thought to myself, you know I never talk to famous people because I feel bad about bothering them when they're just trying to live life and be normal but there's no one else in the shop and he's made eye contact with me twice so he doesn't seem to mind that I'm ogling him and he must know by now that I know who he is so damnit I'm going to say something this time not like the time I literally bumped into Steve Martin on an elevator and just stood there with my mouth open until he said excuse me and I moved and said sorry.

And after all that thinking, this is what I came up with saying, "I'm sorry to be annoying, but are you John M___?" (I'm intentionally leaving out his last name in case he or someone he knows googles this and I'm out of a job but let's just say he was in a movie called "Being John M___"). He answers in a very quiet voice, "Yes". Then I proceed to say, in my proudest moment, "You're really cool." WTF?? Man did my face turn red. Of all the things I could've said, this is what I say. Then I stepped out of his way and said (much to my own surprise outloud), "Oh no, now you'll never come back to this shop. I'm so sorry!" But he was very nice and waved his hand and said something like (he was very very soft spoken), "No, no, it's ok. I really like this shop. I'm rarely in town and when I am, I like to stop by." At least that's what I heard. In any case, I left him alone and he looked around a bit more and then waved and said goodbye to me.

I was still mortified, but I take it as a good sign that he didn't blast out of the store the second I harassed him and we actually had a sort of conversation. Now I've decided never to bother a celebrity again because I obviously have nothing good to say anyway! Though I do think there are certain circumstances when it is okay and not okay to bother someone famous. I think the elevator thing with Mr. Martin would've been really awkward, him stuck in the elevator with a crazy fan, not good. I think the John M thing was okay because we were alone in the shop, I wouldn't have done it if there were other people in the shop causing a scene. Also, when I was in high school, I went to a taping with some friends of the TV version of "A League of Their Own". The show didn't last, but that day Tom Hanks was the director and there was a monkey on set which was unintentionally funny. So after the show was over, my friends and I were all freaking out that Tom Hanks was standing right there so out of nowhere I shout out, "Hi Tom!". He turned, smiled and waved... at me! Or not, who knows, but I think that situation was also appropriate. Those are my two shining celeb harassing moments. Let's hope I can keep my pride intact in any future encounters.