The coolest part, though, was that I got to meet him - twice. During the opening act, I was second in line for the bathroom, when who should come out but Rhett, himself! I was so surprised I just stared and yelled, “Oh my God!” The woman who was in front of me didn’t even seem to notice and just went straight into the bathroom. But I was dumbstruck. He was very nice and smiled and held his hand out for me to shake, saying, “I just washed my hands,” which was nice but I really don’t think I would have cared either way. I actually was able to speak after a few seconds, at least enough to answer him when he asked my name and to ask him if he was sick (his voice sounded hoarse). I then switched from fan-mode to mom-mode and asked him if he would be going home soon, because he needed to rest. Yes, I really did. Full-blown, dorky, mom-mode. He said he was flying home in the morning after a 2-week tour. I said, “You must really miss your kids.” Yes, I really did. He was very nice and didn’t seem to mind that I was acting like his mother and agreed that he did, indeed, miss his kids quite a bit. Awwwww!
After the show, he stuck around so that fans could get his autograph. Andrew was wonderfully patient and stood in line with me,even buying me a t-shirt (after I did some shameless whining) while we waited to get our picture taken with him. When it was our turn, I walked up and was going to re-introduce myself, but he looked at me and said, “You again.” Clearly, I had made a wonderful impression. Anyway, I did introduce Andrew to him and he even smiled for our picture, because he's just a great guy.
So, I've had another brush with greatness. As I said to Andrew, now I've met Walter Payton and Rhett Miller. Not too shabby.
Have I mentioned, by the way, how much I love my husband? He puts up with my nerdy enthusiasms so patiently and in such good humor. The next day, when I insisted on sticking around in Chapel Hill until my favorite store, Office Supplies and More, opened at 1:00 PM, Andrew didn't complain at all. He even took our daughter to Subway for a drink so I could have time to browse alone. I got a Lamy Studio fountain pen in Imperial Blue. I've been wanting one of these pens for a while, so I think it was an outstanding weekend.
