I went to see Dave Eggers interviewing Nick Hornby at the City Arts & Lectures series I subscribe to…Jay was supposed to come with me, but alas, the air travel gods lets us down once more.
It was a great fun event–Hornby is witty and self-deprecating in that charming English sort of way. There was less talk about process, but there was some, so that was all right.
But Dave Eggers…Dave, dude, seriously. We love you to pieces, you’re a great writer, McSweeney’s is fantastic, you’re gorgeous, and what you do with 826 Valencia is beyond awesome…but ohhhh…. you are the Worst. Interviewer. Evar.
I mean, the nervous umm-ing and ahh-ing is one thing, and the awkward questions, and the sort of endearing fan-boy-ishness. We can all relate to that. But when the gal backstage has to come out and take away your ballpoint pen and give you a pencil instead, because you keep clicking it into your microphone….yeah.
It was a great audience moment, though. We laughed and applauded like crazy. Anyone listening to the broadcast on the radio will be going, WTF?
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Then I got home, only to find a cranky stranger in my bed, nearly asleep. Well, that’s no good. Some judicious application of gentle witch magic eventually revealed that it was Jay. I had hardly recognized him; he is usually hopping up and down when we meet after being apart a while. I mean, literally: he stands outside the gate area at the airport jumping up and down and grinning like a loon. If the Child is with him, she is rolling her eyes and pretending not to know either of us.
Anyway, spirits appear to be improved after a good night’s sleep. And, well, TGIF.