A Weekend of Inspiring Characters

As I'm sitting here listening to the rain dripping steadily outside, I am sipping on a cup of coffee brewed in just a flash with my Keurig coffee pot...one of the best Christmas gifts I have ever received. I sprinkled in a dash of cinnamon as the waitress at the Austin Street Bistro in Jefferson, Texas suggested over the weekend.

Speaking of the weekend, I found myself in some situations that I would never have believed possible. To begin with, I got to meet the great Pat Conroy. What can I say about Pat Conroy that can sum up what kind of writer he is. He is the Elvis of literature. My signed copy of My Reading Life is tagged with little neon green sticky notes, reminding me of all of the phrases that simply made me weak in the knees.

Another special happening was friend and author Allen Whitley (Where Southern Cross the Dog) pointing me out to hundreds of book club members, thanking me for being his friend and being the first person outside of his family to buy his book. I was completely flabbergasted and had to try really hard not to cry in front of everyone. I could not believe what I was hearing. Talk about unexpected!

I also had the chance to sit beside the 2010 Texas Poet Laureate Karla K. Morton for the entire day. While not listening to interesting panels of authors, we discussed poetry and frustrations with the submission process.

Have I mentioned that I met Fannie Flagg??!! Yes, I actually posed with Fannie Flagg for pictures, me shaking like a leaf of course. Come on, it was Fannie Flagg! Later in the evening she and I met again at the costume ball, I was wearing rubber vampire bite marks and blood on my neck and she was dressed like a Munchkin from the Wizard of Oz (I think) with rosy pink cheeks.

Perhaps the highlight of my weekend was meeting author Susan Vreeland...while wearing my vampire get-up. The writer of Luncheon of the Boating Party, Clara and Mr. Tiffany, and my favorite Girl in Hyacinth Blue, she is a tall, delicate woman with a smile that could melt butter. She sat down at my table the night of the ball and I quickly dished out a selection of books to have signed (I couldn't fit all of them in my bag, so I had to leave some at home). Feeling like a complete child, the only thing I could get out of my mouth was how much I loved her and her books. I can only imagine what was going through her head as I was fawning over her like a fat kid at a fudge counter. I couldn't for the life of me think of anything to discuss with her, my brain was completely stuck in "fan mode". We posed for several pictures and she wisped away (she didn't really walk, just floated like a sweet little ghost) to other tables. I turned to my best friend Michelle, as giddy as a school girl. My weekend was complete. All I can possibly say now is "Thank you Kathy Patrick for gathering this cast of inspiring characters for my delight."