This post will probably make no sense except to those who were there.
I woke up this morning and … I don’t know … I thought to myself: “September 29. September 29. What happened on this day? Why do I remember September 29?” I scanned the list in my head of birthdays. Then I got it. And in the next second, immediately – like a flickering newsreel – came this chain of memories.
September 29, 1993. A rainy night. It was his birthday.
Ann and I had actually put in a couple of DAYS preparation. Giggling to ourselves the entire time at how embarrassing we were. We would be totally serious about preparing, making lists, etc., and then either she or I would shout, “WE HAVE TO GET A LIFE!” But we plowed on.
Ann actually took a day off work to get ready. I called her during the day, and said, “Hey, what’s up?” She said flatly, “I just baked 200 cupcakes.” Long long pause. Then she shouted, “HELP ME. I AM SO INSANE.”
I matched her insanity. I had actually rehearsed a song to present as a gift to him on the night of his birthday in front of the crowd. Mitchell and I sat around the night before, working it out, discussing choices, creating props – yes – props. All of this was done with desperate seriousness.
Me: “So … on that line, do you think I should drop my voice to a whisper, or …?”
Mitchell: “No, no … I think it should be much more up-front … Like – you are making no bones about it …”
Me: “Like this?” I sing the line in question as Mitchell suggested. Mitchell then gave me notes.
I was going to sing “You Made Me Love You” – but the idea behind my performance was that it would be like Marilyn’s “Happy Birthday” to John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Garden. So we used that as our theme – and moved on accordingly with our rehearsals. Yes. Rehearsals. As though we were getting PAID for this.
All along, as I rehearsed my song, Mitchell was cutting up pieces of black construction paper – for part of my prop. All so serious. He was measuring stuff out with a ruler, his face serious, concentrated … I had completely sucked him into my crazy web.
Later, I said to Mitchell: “I am so geeky. I PREPARED A SONG.”
Mitchell said, “Sheila, please. If you’re a geek, then what am I? I spent an hour last night cutting out small pieces of black paper with the utmost seriousness.”
I had an outfit picked out. What was I going for? “Natalie Wood in Rebel without a cause” was the theme of my costume. I curled my hair, big red curls. I had a long red scarf around my neck. Bright red lips. Pale skin.
Ann came to pick me up. Mitchell would be meeting us there later. I went racing out to her car, giggling like a maniac. There was a drizzle. We were going to be an hour and a half early for the show. This was so embarrassing. We had to talk ourselves down off the ledge about this. “Okay, we’re just going to have to be total geeks and accept it.”
Ann was dressed to the nines. She smelled great, and her heels clacked on the damp pavement, in an important-sounding way. I got in her car, and Ann gestured at the back seat – with a kind of shameful serious glee in her eyes. There I saw the stacked up pans of cupcakes. I couldn’t speak. I just stared at them. What had happened? Why were we SO excited for this man’s birthday? Why were we such lunatics? Where were the brakes? Where was the little voice saying, “Uhm … girls. Calm down.”
If the voice existed, we ignored it. As Ann Marie has said countless times: “I will propel myself into the blazing star.” She says it in kind of a threatening tone, too, like: “Don’t even think I won’t!” I am shaking with laughter right now.
She was my perfect partner in crime. We both propelled ourselves into the blazing star without embarrassment.
The night came off without a hitch. Ann Marie set up a small area in the corner where she could pass out cupcakes to the crowd. The image of Ann, seriously doing this in a NIGHTCLUB, is a humorous memory that will never leave me.
My song was … well. Must not brag. But let me say that it came off juuuuuuuust as I planned. It was seriously cool. I took OVER that whole joint. Literally. I just took OVER. Right before I started singing into the mike – it occurred to me that the entire nightclub wasn’t as silent as I wanted it to be – so I gently, gently shushed the crowd. And THEY OBEYED. Mitchell said to me later, “Who do you think you are, Tina Turner?”
One of the best birthdays ever. And it wasn’t even mine.
Propelling yourself into the blazing star means, obviously, you get burnt. But … for me … there’s no other way to live. Into the blazing star. Ouch!
i remember it well!!! You owned those drunk DePaul frat boys and their “uninhibited” sorority sisters!!! It is also the anniversary of my moving to Chicago…his b-day 1992.
“Un-in-hibited!!”
That’s right. I dragged you to see his show immediately upon your arrival. hahahaha
yup..my bags were still in David’s trunk form the airport! Maria made us a spaghetti dinner…so long ago.
I remember a girl that night riverdanced for him – for real – not a joke – and a guy in the crowd played the bagpipes as accompaniment. You must have been like: “uhm … what???”
so fun
I’ve always envied people who propel themselves into the blazing star.
This story was even more enjoyable because of the page I came from directly to here. Still crazy after all these years.
Hmmm. I wonder what page you are speaking of??? hmmmmmmm
It’s kind of cool when you forget how embarrassed you are to be such a geek – and just go for it. Which is really what his entire career is pretty much based on … hahahaha
He was quite amused by our shenanigans. And the look on his face when he saw the cupcakes … hahahahahaha
He thought we were nuts – but he loved it anyway.
Ummmmm, okay, I feel like an idiot – who’s the birthday boy?
Don’t feel like an idiot, Stevie. It’s okay. I haven’t revealed it.
Stevie, I don’t know either. I even checked a daily email I get that includes notable birthdays and there was one listed but well, something tells me that you’re not referring to Bryant Gumbel, now are you, Sheila? Oh, in case you’re interested, he turns 57 today.
hahahaha
Please note that I did start the post off with a warning that “This will be incomprehensible to most …”
And no. Not Byrant Gumble. Ew!!!
Oh my GOD. I love that story. I wore HEELS, for Chrissake. I remember feeling SO much stress about those damn cupcakes… how was I going to transport them all? Was the frosting good enough? Would we find parking? Wasn’t that part of the “reason” (read: rationalization) for getting there “geekily early”? Do you remember just muttering as we sat there: We are so geekily early. We are so geekily early. But we were GIDDY. I also recall having my own little drama going on with these 2 boys and I was INSANE about it. And that song KICKED ass. Especially because you did that first part, like Judy did for Clark Gable, wasn’t that it? It was MAGICAL. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!
hahahahahahaha geekily early
Yes, I am sure we had some well thought out insane rationalization for why we were an hour and a half early. hahahahaha
and yes – the two boys! Now forgive me: but were they tie-dye boy and Gus Kapinsky? Or were they Cute Guy and tie-dye boy? I am pretty sure tie-dye boy was involved.
I have a memory of you standing between the two of them, talking, and looking right at me – so obvious – and shouting, “My life is so complicated!!”
hahaha
Of course – Sept. 29 was juuuuust before “the magic time” began. We had no idea what was in store!
Okay, I’ve googled about every possible expression from your post and the comments, and the only person I think my be “it” is a fella from Britain who is very velvety, if you get my drift . . . don’t wanna say his name in deference to your desire to keep mum about it, but – – – am I close?
hahaha No. He’s American. And he’s not really velvety. More like Velveeta.
hmmmmm.
velveeta!!! hah..that would cut him to the quick!
hahahaha I know. I mean it with love though!
You wouldn’t refer to him as “velvety” though – would you, Mitchell? I mean, the guy is a big goofball. In the BEST way possible, of course.
WHO?????
Out of all the birthdays I found for this date (and I know it can’t be Enrico Fermi!) there is only ONE possible person this could be, unless it’s someone really obscure.
You’re killing me, Sheila.
I didn’t leave out his name to be coy!! I never say his name here! :)
Tie-Dye Boy and Cute Guy, I believe. Gus Kapinsky (“take the ‘L’ out of my last name… I’ll never remember it after 12 beers”) came later on.
hahahahahahahaha “I’ll never remember…”
God, that was such a funny conversation. Member you were sad? And they blatantly just came over with the goal to cheer you up.
Wasn’t there something like:
“Oh God, member that Psych 101 class …” or some reminiscing about college courses?
Was Miles the one who coined the phrase “the happy guy with no boo-boo?”
shaking with laughter right now …
“Man, that guy looks so happy. All the time. Like I look at his face and I think to myself, ‘Nobody can be THAT happy all the time.’ Something is seriously wrong with that kind of happiness.”
Oh God, sorry I’m just getting back to this now. Happy Guy with no boo-boo… INDEED. And, yes, we began to think back fondly about classes we NEVER took. And we were very specific about it… “No, it has to be like a gen ed course, like Rhetoric, or Psych or something, given our ultimate occupations.” I was SO sad when I walked in there that night (I had glasses on. I was THAT sad). Now I remember it as one of the funniest nights.
You, in a tone of resigned acceptance: “So once again I am in the situation of a Happy Guy with no Boo-Boo.”
Now… remind me … why did it have to be a gen ed course? Like … what were we going for? Why did “it” “have to be” anything?? When it was all make-believe??
I am laughing out loud …
Because it was the story of how we met and since we wound up in different professions, it had to be general education. I mean, how else would an OB/GYN *ever* meet a kindergarten teacher/ volunteer fireman? Or a trust fund baby hang out with a male model?
And at first, it was going to be U of I, but then one of them pointed out that you and I would get busted by that, since there are so many of U of I grads in Chicago and we didn’t “know the bars”. So I think it became DePaul, since we were HIGHLY acquainted with the bars in that neighborhood.