A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Florenc (metro stop)

I bumped into someone I knew yesterday in downtown Prague. Yeah, seriously, what are the odds? Well, first, let me say that the odds of finding someone who knows you is very small, while the odds of finding someone you know are actually not so bad.

Think about this. You've met people all your life, but how many of them actually remember you, or what you look like now 5-10-20 years later? How many of them could spot you on a crowded street in Prague wearing lord knows what and looking a bit confused? Now think of all the people you know. Not just friends and family, I'm talking about presidents, luminaries, actors... Ah yes, actors, those people we get to watch from every angle and in a variety of costumes over a series of years. How hard would it be to spot one of them? In a pair of cargo shorts, a long-sleeve blue T and a silly blue bandana. How hard when they have just a touch of white scruff and a pair of wire-rim glasses? Not so tough when you're only as far apart as their traditional close-up shot.

And that's how I met Tim Robbins.

A word about Tim.
Not only is he in four movies I consider masterpieces (for different reasons): Shawshank Redemption, High Fidelity, Hudsucker Proxy, Cradle Will Rock, he also happens to be a good friend of my beloved John Cusack, and is credited with "discovering" Jack Black and giving him his first movie role.

He's also an avid member of the Green Party, "partner" of Susan Sarandon, and he's been on the Colbert Report (and if you saw that episode, you know how awesome that is).

And I was standing there, pretending to look equally confused at my map while he did the same, both of us lost Americans on St. Wencelas street in Prague. I could have said something, "Hiya Tim..." but what would have been the point? I know who he is, he doesn't know anything about me, and other than a slap on the back, what could I gain from such a ploy? A photo op? I'll pass. It doesn't hurt that 2 seconds after I confirm the ID and move off, another American stumbles up, "... uh, excuse me, are you Tim Robbins...?"

SO there's my brush with celebrity in Prague. It's not the first time I've seen a celebrity, and it won't be the last. Tim Robbins probably isn't even the most exciting person I've gotten to "witness" (though given my current fascination with the novel High Fidelity, it's plenty relevant). I'm not one to worship celebrities (ok, except John Stewart, underneath whose feet bloom the fragrant golden blossoms of all that is worth hoping for), so why get all excited about this? I dunno, because it's out of the ordinary.

And there's a point in that. I'm traveling Europe, I spend almost every night in a different bed, a different city, a different country. I speak no languages, I am a foreigner, alone and among thousands, out on the dynamic journey I call the Lamb. And yet even this, after an adequate amount of time can assume a certain mantle of normality. How do I know this? Because I did get excited about seeing Tim Robbins. If you're sky diving, and you happen to see Airforce One in the distance, you don't get excited about the proximity. you make damn sure to stay focused on the dive, because that's exciting enough not to get distracted by stupid things like celebrity.

So I'm getting settled, getting accustomed, getting... restless? with all this moving around. A few more weeks of fun with Shelley should be a great way to zap my attention back on key, and after that a whirlwind move up to New York, new challenges, new people. I'll keep myself busy for awhile, and maybe I won't ruin my shorts if I pass Mr. Stewart in a bagel store. Or maybe I will. Sure would get his attention.

Anyway, that's the story of me and Tim Robbins, both equals, both lost in Prague. He of course eventually found his ridiculously posh hotel, and I found my way back to my hovel/hostel. Equal for one moment, but of course, I'm the only one who will remember it, so "equal" here is tenuous at best.

Celebrity, it's not just an American fascination, but maybe we do take it too far? Maybe? you think?

But come on, Tim Robbins... he was "Merlin" in Top Gun! He was the Public TV gangleader in Anchorman!

what's not to get excited about?

Weber (on the Lamb)