Three Degrees of Separation

1. I am friends with Karrie.
2. Karrie is married to Marty Riemer of 103.7 The Mountain.
3. Lyle Lovett was coming in for an interview (along with John Hiatt and Joe Ely) for The Mountain Music Lounge.
3a. Good friends care about their friends' dreams.
3b. Fortunately, good friends forgive. Like when Karrie forgave me for saying that her hyperactivity was making her mule fidget over a 10,000 ft. cliff in the Andes Mountains of Venezuela six years ago. Look, my mule is calm, like me, I told her.
3c. I didn't know her mule was blind until way after I said that.

That's how I got lucky enough to meet Lyle on Saturday.

I don't pursue meeting famous people, even though it may seem so since I have a list of heavy hitters posted on my blog lately. Eugene Morgan of the USS Indianapolis, Julie McCoy of the Love Boat...come to think of it, lately my famous people are all associated with boats - if you consider Lyle's most famous song lyrics: "If I had a boat, I'd go out on the ocean, and if I had a pony, I'd ride him on my boat..." (this handsome sailor to the right is my Brother, Brian, who learned how to sail a Boat in Belize last week, and he thinks he will become famous if I post him on my Boating Blog. Good luck to you!)

But anyway, I was sick about the possibility of meeting Lyle (sick in a good way). I love his songs, I love his ability to turn a phrase. I think he is pure class and have loved him ever since I first heard his songs in college.

And...Karrie and I were just about the only two spectators watching through the window to the studio, listening to the interview and songs. We think that Lyle smiled at us through the whole interview (but we weren't completely sure he could see us). After they finished, Lyle came out and saw Karrie's camera and asked if we wanted a picture. He asked our names and shook our hands. What a guy.

Later that night, my mom and I had fifth row seats at the Paramount, where we listened to the above guys plus Guy Clark - just four chairs, four guitars, four guys. We truly enjoyed every minute of it. An unforgettable day. Nice to have friends who can make something like this happen.

So I have to post this other picture of Lyle and me. As you can see, I closed my eyes. So why am I posting it? If you look closely, Lyle's girlfriend is in the background; she is actually RIGHT IN BETWEEN us...see that small little head? Right in between us...I thought that was pretty profound.