Hidden Stories

Sometimes all it takes is a simple Hello and suddenly you are immersed in a person's life.  Yesterday at Target I met a man who was telling me his grandpa would be turning over in his grave if he knew that a box of Kleenex costs more than a beer or two.  His accent was definitely not Texan and sounded more like Boston.  

And sure enough, he was from Cambridge.  His grandparents had a pizza parlor that was a popular hangout for both the Harvard and the MIT crowd.  Since I used to live up there, we discussed numerous local joints that we had in common. 

The conversation continued and I discovered that he had a band and a contract with Capitol Records.  He played (and partied) with Marvin Gaye and numerous other biggies in the 60's and 70's.  Although I don't remember the name of his band, I have no reason to doubt his story.  I wish I had been prepared to know I would be meeting this gentleman as I would have had a ton more questions and I would have paid better attention to the details.  But, we met discussing the price of Kleenex.  Who knew we'd take a stroll down memory lane in Massachusetts!!

These are the moments.  These are the stories that I love.  There are hidden gems in every person we meet, but we seldom take the time to dig deep enough to find them.

As I've mentioned a few times I was at both Quilt Market and Quilt Festival this year.  Last weekend, I was just walking down the aisles and I ran across a booth that was selling dress forms.  I have a love of dress forms and I really want to own one someday.  So, of course I ask the guy running the booth a few questions about the dress forms.  Next thing I know a guy comes up to me and wants to know if I need some help.  So, we chat.  Here's the thing.  This guy is the fitter for the dancers on Dancing with the Stars!! 

Meet Joe Veccherelli

 

 And he confirmed to me that the outfit Emma Slater (I think it was Emma) wore is the same outfit that Cheryl Burke wore in Season 2 when she won the Mirror Ball.  I tried to get my new best friend to get me tickets, but he said they are in hot demand and it's first come, first served.  Like I said, you never know who you're talking to.

 

But, one of the reasons I went back to Festival was to meet this person . . .

 Julie Fei-Fan Balzer!!!

 

 

Julie is remarkable!  She's a mixed media artist, but she was at the Festival demonstrating the Brother Scan-N-Cut.  Luckily I got a few minutes of her time to myself before the throngs appeared.  Super nice and knew how to work a crowd.  After listening to her podcast this week, I discovered she was sick while she was in town.  And still, she was on top of her game.  I tried to get her to come to Texas to teach classes, but she said she'd been here once and was kicked out.  Something about language and tears.  Hmm . . . sounds like a country song.  I guess I'll have to travel elsewhere to partake of her classes.  They sound super fun!!

 

So, next time you're contemplating the price, brand, style of your next Kleenex box, take time to say hello to the stranger next to you.  You never know who you'll meet!  Everyone has a story and I'm so glad I got a glimpse of a few of them this past week.