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Dear Reader,
I'm listening to his CD while I'm writing this column, but until a few weeks ago when I sat next to him on a flight from Boston to Tampa, I had no idea who he was.
Our conversation began with the usual, "Are you coming or going?" And then when he asked me what I did for a living and I told him I was a writer, he was curious: "What kinds of things do you write about? How do you come up with ideas for your column? Isn't it a little scary to be on deadline every day?"
Finally, 30 minutes later, when he got around to introducing himself, I discovered I was sitting next to Bronson Arroyo, a starting pitcher for the Boston Red Sox.
"I know practically nothing about baseball," I confessed to him. "And the couple of games I've seen on television I thought were a little slow moving, and I'm sorry to say I don't recognize your name either."
But none of that seemed to bother Bronson at all. He explained the game, the signals that a pitcher gives the catcher and how he comes up with his, the American League verses the National League, and why he prefers one over the other. (In the National League, pitchers have to hit, which can throw you out of the game early.)
Bronson taught himself to play the guitar a few years ago and without a bit of embarrassment, he proudly told me that it took him one year to learn how to play one song. But he's obviously got the gift now, because he does concerts and he sings, too--and he's very good. When I mentioned to him that I listen to music when I write, he got excited, pulled out his IPod, and asked me to listen to the songs he recorded, "Do you think you can write to any of these, Suzanne?"
And the next thing I knew I had Bronson Arroyo's headset on and I was listening to "Slide," the first cut on his CD. "Thumbs up," I told him. "The song is definitely one that I could write to, and by the way, you have a great voice." His voice reminded me of the lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish. I was impressed. I listened to the rest of the songs from his CD and Bronson was thrilled to hear that four of them were winners for writing inspiration.
People were keeping an eye on us. I think everyone on the plane knew who Bronson was except me. Kids would show up periodically with their hats in hand, wanting an autograph, and wishing they were sitting in my seat. Even a flight attendant came by and asked for an autograph for her shy co-worker.
It could have been one of "those" conversations, but instead Bronson and I just talked about plain and simple things. We covered marketing, what we want to be when we grow up, successes and failures from our pasts, hot flashes, pitching arms, and how we're going to change when we get old. (I reminded him of our age difference. He's 28; I'm 51.) We talked the entire three hour flight, right up until the wheels touched down.
When it was time to say farewell, I gave him my business card and the web address for the book clubs, and he gave me a copy of his CD. Bronson said that he loved it that I hadn't a clue who he was, because the conversation was totally different than it usually is when he talks to someone.
And I assured him that I'm now a Red Sox Fan!
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
http://www.DearReader.com
P.S. I'm giving away cats, dogs, alligators, ducks and pigs this week. If you need something clever to hold your business card, click on the link to enter this week's drawing. http://www.emailbookclub.com/photo/cards.html
Read the Classics: OF MICE AND MEN, by John Steinbeck, and enter the free Penguin Classic's Drawing: http://www.supportlibrary.com/nl/users/master3/mweb/path13-1.html
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