Oh...my...god!

Last month, I learned that one of the diva cast members of my first play when it was produced in Tennessee has turned up on MySpace. Where she has proclaimed that her best memory of the time her friend, the amateur director, spent living in that godforsaken state was the time they, as she remembers it, "told [me] off." Me, Ben Varkentine, whom she mentions by name.

Now-putting aside that I remember it differently-when I think of my best memories of my friends, I think of late night conversations, in person or on the phone, when we tried to make each other laugh and otherwise help each other get through. I think of kindnesses offered and generosities extended without expectation of reward, simply because they could.

I do not think of putting the boot in to a writer who has just seen his work shit on, as well as having spent a week away from home, during which, oh yes, his cat died.

One last thing: As much as I may have made a fetish of Tennessee-bashing on this blog or on the old one, you know what you've never seen me do? Use the names of the divas and amateurs in question. I dunno, I thought that might be...oh what is the word..."childish."

Now, in the words of Bill Cosby, "I told you that story to tell you this one." I think what someone thinks of as their "best memory" reveals much about their character. Which brings me to President Bush.

Via AmericaBlog:

"You know, I've experienced many great moments and it's hard to name the best," Bush told weekly Bild am Sonntag when asked about his high point since becoming president in January 2001.

"I would say the best moment of all was when I caught a 7.5 pound (3.402 kilos) perch in my lake," he told the newspaper in an interview published on Sunday.