Carson Village, Birmingham, Alabama
May all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who long for Your saving help always say, “The LORD is great!” ~ Psalm 40:16
Today was a day of preparation. We must leave Alabama in the morning.
Stocking groceries for the next week, laundry, packing up Christmas, etc. was our lot for the day.
Until we picked up David and headed to our new favorite Mexican restaurant, Casa Fiesta, for the last time. “Fiesta Bowls all around, please!” Yummy! Back at his place, we chatted and David asked, “Who’s the most famous person you’ve ever had a conversation with?” Wow! Where did that come from? Did he sit around his office dreaming up conversation starters or something? That’s a pretty good question!
And believe it or not, it was a question we all had answers for!
David’s was Pat Benatar. The 1980’s rocker best known for “Love is a Battlefield” and “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”. She’s a singer-songwriter with four Grammy’s to her name. In the United States, she has had two multi-Platinum albums, five Platinum albums, and 15 Billboard Top 40 singles, while in Canada she had eight straight Platinum albums. At 67 years old, she and her husband (since 1982), Neil Giraldo, are still performing.
Where did David talk to her? He was at a concert in Texas, sitting at a table in the front. She was performing along with another rock group, Cheap Trick, and they were alternating sharing the stage. When she was off-stage, she sat at David’s table and chatted him up. How cool is that?!?
Blaine had the most, topping the list with two. The first was Mario Andretti, one of the most successful Americans in the history of auto racing. He is one of only three drivers to have won races in Formula One, IndyCar, World Sportscar Championship, and NASCAR. He also won races in midget cars and sprint cars. He took the checkered flag 111 times during his career from the age of 15, when he and his family came to America, until his retirement at age 54 in 1994. (Blaine assures me that that’s very old for a driver. 😊)
He was named Driver of the Year in three different decades (the 60s, 70s, 80s), Driver of the Quarter Century (in the 90s) and the Associated Press named him Driver of the Century in January, 2000.
So, where did they have their little chat? It was in the Pit area at the Indy 500 time trials. It wasn’t a long conversation, but it was a conversation.
He spent considerably more time with his second encounter – Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, a former lightweight and light welterweight professional boxer who competed professionally from 1979 to 1992, and who has since worked as an actor and sports commentator. He held the WBA lightweight title from 1982 to 1984. He had a total of 34 fights, losing 5 and winning 23 by knock out.
Where? At the wedding reception for my former boss at LifeLine Partners (the physical therapy/sleep lab place). Sarah (my boss) put us at the same table, and Blaine ended up sitting next to him. He was very personable.
Me? Lou Rawls. His wife’s dog was a patient of ours when I worked at Lakeview Animal Hospital. Nina had come in on her own one day and we talked for about an hour until the doctor showed up. She was very nice, and next thing we knew, Mr. Rawls himself showed up one day! We didn’t even know she was married to him! It’s kinda of a long story, that I won’t get into here. Suffice it to say, we all totally enjoyed meeting both people, and about 2 years later, their son as well. Lou died of a brain tumor in 2006.
In case you think you’re unfamiliar with him, he’s best known for the songs, “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine” and “Lady Love”. He released over 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records, as well as a variety of charting singles. He won three Grammy’s and was nominated for a fourth.
So who’s the most famous person you’ve ever had a conversation with???