WHAT’S IN A NAME?

There are a few other expat blogs that I try to keep up with. As you can tell, just keeping up with my own blog is hard enough, but I try to at least check in with my friends from time to time to see what’s new in their lives. One blog I read is written by a fairly new expat, and although I’ve never met her, I’m sure she’s a very nice, interesting person. It’s just that I can’t seem to get past the name she uses both on her blog and when she posts on the message board: eurobimbo.

In Italy bimbo means baby boy. Obviously she’s neither a baby nor a boy. That leaves me with the American connotation of bimbo….not very flattering. To me there wouldn’t be much difference if she called herself euroslut. As I said, I’m sure she’s a nice person, but for me this nickname just GRATES. Oh well, what's in a name? Maybe she thinks bad things about me every time I post the F word.

ANYWAY….. The other day I read her blog only to discover that Mikhail Baryshnikov had been in Cortona hosting a showing of his photography. BARYSHNIKOV! I once volunteered as an usher for the Louisville Ballet for an entire season just to see every performance of his.

This was in addition to the season ticket I bought so that I could see him as a patron as well. I even stood at the stage door one night, waiting for him to come out. I got a few pictures, and I also got an autograph. Wonder where those went? I know I wouldn’t have thrown them away. Hmmmm….new project…..find pictures and autograph of Baryshnikov.

So the point is, I would have driven (or rather I would have asked Art to drive me) to Cortona to see Baryshnikov. I wish eurobimbo had given me some advance notice! So then I got to thinking, who else would I drive to see, and how far would I drive?

I know when I was in my late twenties my mom was really getting tired of me still being a groupie. I know she thought I’d eventually grow up and out of that sort of thing, but so far it hasn’t happened. There are still some people I’d drive all night to see (and have, on occasion).

Now I wouldn’t drive to see Brad Pitt, but only because there would be a zillion other people there, but if I thought it would be an uncrowded situation where I might have the possibility of chatting for a few minutes (read: try to talk like a normal person while hopefully only mentally drooling and panting), then I’d be there in a heartbeat.

Who else….Robert Redford for sure. Art said to me the last time we saw him in a move that he was getting old, but I guess it’s like being married…you always see him at his best, as he was in his youth when you first fell in love with him. Robert Redford in “The Way We Were” or “Jeremiah Johnson”…pantpantpant…sigh….

Armand Assante….Al Pacino…..Tom Cruise! and of course everyone knows that I’ve driven all night and flown great distances to see Paul McCartney, and that was just to see him in concert. If I thought there was a chance of an actually meeting, with actual words being exchanged….well, I can’t even imagine how crazy I might get with that one.

There are also plenty of famous people I’d love to meet, people I think I’d really enjoy getting to know, people like Barbra Streisand, Tom Hanks, Luciano Pavarotti, but right now we’re talking hunks….sexy, charismatic, gorgeous hunks.

So my request to Eurobimbo and anyone else out there is to PLEASE let me know in advance the next time Tom Cruise or Robert Redford decides to stop by your house for drinks or to appear at the local fundraiser unannounced. Maybe they’ll turn out to be jerks, or shallow stupid people, but I’d at least like to have the chance to find out for myself. What’s in a name? When the name is McCartney…Pacino…Redford or any of the above mentioned names, apparently what’s in the name is magic.

p.s. HAPPY BIRTHDAYTO MY SWEET BABOO! (sorry, make that sweet baboo SIR!)