Although I've never been lucky enough to see one of my favorite bands -- "Dispatch":http://www.dispatchmusic.com/ -- live in concert, one of the band's original members, Chad Urmston, joined up with two different men in 2004 to form an incredible new group called "State Radio":http://www.stateradio.com/.
I can remember the first time I ever listened to Dispatch, in high school at my best friend Sam's house. I fell in love with …
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When I first moved to L.A., about 10 years ago, I was quite broke and desperate to earn extra cash. I signed on with an agency that staffed "waitpersons" (<-- my effort to be PC) for movie-premiere parties.
Each party was themed to reflect the essence of the movie, and the costumes were always playful and fun. This time, for _Miss Congeniality,_ the costumes were those of beauty queens: …
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On any typical day in my life, I tend to venture into realms of celebrity nation. I take photos. I mean, I am rarely without my camera.
This one night, my dear friend Chipster invites me out for a night of delight, as is always the case with him. So we are chillin' in this club, and along comes Damon. It's Homey D. Clown! (Just kiddin'--Mr. Wayans is a …
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Eyes glued to the back of the recruit's skull ahead of me, I continued to focus through my peripheral vision. I didn't want drill instructors beheading me for looking around in an undisciplined manner before my turn to attack the obstacle course.
Smiling Marine officers ambled up to our platoon taking pictures. What in the world was going on?
A large hand clapped the shoulder of the recruit …
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Hartford, Connecticut. A sophomore in high school. A famous band.
I had snuck a poster into the concert hall, folding it and wrapping it underneath my little black skirt, making it stiff and stick out. I got it through and made my way with my two best friends to the ground level of the concert arena.
Our tickets? For the nosebleeds. But we were determined to get as …
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As he walked through the doorway, his body eclipsed the sun.
I was behind the bar washing dishes, my body folded over to reach the cramped sink. I spoke my usual greeting, and asked if he'd like a table. No, just some tea to go.
He approached, and I could see that he looked pleasant, but much taller than our usual customers. I gave him the list; the …
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The first time I met Mick Jagger was in 1978. My girlfriend Meryl and I had graduated from our funky wine-drinking, cigarette-smoking, hippie-teachered, rich-white-kid-with-problems "alternative" high school in New Jersey, and we liked walking around the city.
When we needed to use a bathroom, we went to a hotel, because they wouldn't kick you out like in a restaurant. We must have been walking around Central Park, because we …
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When I was in college, I had lots of odd jobs. I took surveys in a mall, was a traffic flagger for a tree surgeon, a "flyer" at Saks Fifth Avenue, and eventually assistant to a loss-prevention auditor.
But some of my fondest memories were of my waitressing and bartending days. My sister and I had jobs at the Harley Hotel, the nicest Hotel in Willoughby, Ohio--known for …
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So I used to work at the Wal-Mart in South Philly--automotive department, which is funny because I know nothing about cars. The department next to it was sporting goods, a department that generally didn't have any associates assigned to it at night. Lucky me, not knowing anything about sports, either, it was also part of my beat.
One night this old man, dressed from head to toe as this …
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On a snowy day during the primary, I decided to attend the appearance of the candidate's wife here in my hometown in New Hampshire. There was very limited seating in the room, and I was given a front-row seat because I was on crutches.
I waited anxiously, hoping that the speaker would not be late, as I had to go to work. Unfortunately, by the time she arrived, I …
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In high school, I drew on everything I owned. One day in science, I spent the hour scrawling a back piece of the Punisher on my jean jacket in India ink. It was pretty good, so I kept wearing it.
During my prom, I walked out of the ballroom to get some air. Stan Lee came strolling by. I got excited. I said, "Hey, Stan Lee. Look," and I …
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My brother was visiting me in New York City in 1985. We went to the top of the World Trade Center, and a 12-year-old kid asked my brother if he could borrow a pen.
He used it to get Billy Crystal's autograph. My brother snapped a picture of this scene, which now looks very strange. He still has the pen.
So there I was at "Dragon*Con":http://www.dragoncon.org/ last year, having fun with a personal project. I was taking pictures of peoples' derrieres, and planning on putting together a slideshow titled "Gettin' a Piece of A** at Dragon*Con '08."
An older gentleman walked up to our table and started chatting, and at some point I asked if I could take a picture of his behind for my project. He looked a …
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It was about 3 a.m. on a Sunday morning, in a quiet 24-hour diner in New York City. There was a man sitting at the bar who caught my eye. I knew him from somewhere, but couldn't put my finger on it. Then the waiter told me that he was an actor from _The Matrix._
Holy crap--it was Morpheus in the flesh! He was right there in front of …
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I lied my way through my twenties. It was the only way I could have managed. If you'd ever been to my small town and had a curried-chicken dinner at our best restaurant, you'd know that high-society types are rare there. So I lied.
I took off to London, then to Morocco and then to Spain. I made up stories about my family, my experiences as a child vacationing …
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In the spring of 1963 I reached for the door of the football locker room in the University of Washington’s “Hec” Edmondson Pavilion. A large crowd milled around the bleacher area outside our locker room because that year’s graduation ceremonies just finished. However, my schedule included a workout, at that time, to stay in shape for the 1963 Husky football season. So I made my way through …
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When Sean Penn came in for jury duty, he went out on the balcony of our building and lit up a cigarette during one of our breaks. I had to go out there and tell him it was a non-smoking building and to put it out.
He tossed it on the ground and stomped on it. He was very nice about it. As a matter of fact, he was …
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Three coworkers and I were having lunch at our usual spot when I recognized someone I thought was an old acquaintance walking in our direction.
I couldn't quite remember where I knew him from or what his name was, but that has never stopped me from just saying hi. "Hey," I called out, "how have you been? Long time no see!" He replied, "Great! How's everything been with you?" …
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A few years ago, I traveled from NYC to L.A. to visit a friend. On the way home from a Runyon Canyon hike, we stopped at "Pinkberry":http://www.pinkberry.com/ to share my friend's virgin Pinkberry experience.
Turned out it was the actor Jeff Goldbum's first time at Pinkberry as well. He walked in eager and interested, with a woman who looked like a close relative, and eyed my small plain with …
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It was in a little Cuban diner in Providence. I was eating dinner before the "Coheed and Cambria":http://www.coheedandcambria.com/ show, and who should happen to walk through the door but Claudio, the band's lead singer, and Travis, the guitarist.
Better yet, they sat down at the table next to mine. Well, I thought I was dreaming, because I asked them if they were from Coheed, and amazingly they said yes. …
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