Three people

Last night I was asked to name three people, living or dead, I'd like to meet and why. A cliche exercise. It's supposed to illustrate something about your personality apparently. Some people are literally unable to come up with anyone. They really struggle with this apparently. I thought for about 4 minutes and here's what I decided:

1) Jane Austen. She's a great writer. Plain and simple. One of my favourites actually. She's written some absolutley fabulous, timeless stories that have been, and will continue to be read and adored by thousands of readers. With English as my background, its no wonder I was required to read many of her novels to complete my degree. Pride and Prejudice will remain among my favourite novels forever. I'd love to talk to her about her influences, her life in the 19th century, and her thoughts on marriage, love and society.

2) Gwen Stefani. What an awesome, powerful female rocker. She's nearly 40 and she looks hotter than I ever will. She has incredible abs - even after having 2 kids - and is happily married to Gavin Rossdale. She's been with the same band since she was a teenager and her music is super cool - punk, ska, reggae-ish. I love it. I'd love to talk to her about her career and hear stories about her band's adventures. I'd also like some fitness tips.

3)Steven Meisel. He's a famous fashion photographer who's shot pretty well every top supermodel in the world. He's most noted for his amazing editorial spreads in Italian Vogue as well as being Madonna's photographer for her book Sex. I love the concepts, the design, the lighting and composition of his pictures. I'd love to sit down with him and get some pointers.

That's all. Analyze me as you see fit. :)

PS - this could change tomorrow.

Relapse

Last night, I bit off both my thumb nails. I don't know why I did it. I knew when I was doing it that I'd regret it. Up until then, I had successfully stopped biting my nails for more than 2 months.

I feel guilty. Like some sort of recovering alcoholic that's just fallen off the wagon again.

Now every time I look at my stubby little thumbs, I feel ashamed. At least it was only two nails. I still have 8 nice ones. And in the meantime, it sure is a lot easier to type on my BlackBerry.

High Rollers

On Monday I met Joshua Jackson as part of an event at work. Based on the terms of his contract and his decent celebrity status, I expected a somewhat pretentious guy surrounded by an entourage of handlers. I pictured him walking in on a red carpet in dark sunglasses with a smirk of arrogance across his face. I pictured fancy clothes, expensive accessories, maybe even a hot girl by his side. I pictured a high strung agent pushing aside throngs of screaming, star-crazed teenage girls.

Instead, I met a nice guy. A normal guy. A guy drinking a medium Tim Horton's coffee as he began his workday. Off-screen, he just seemed like a regular person I could meet anywhere in Toronto. He was wearing a simple sweater with jeans and was funny, friendly and enthusiastic. He signed autographs and happily posed for pictures without making it seem like a huge deal at all. He was modest and unassuming.

It was not what I expected. I feel a little silly for expecting some big show. I think I forget that celebrities really are just people. I wonder if its weird for him. I wonder if he remembers what it was like to not be famous.

Either way, I now have a new appreciation for a celebrity I never really considered before. Hell, I may even try and catch a few episodes of The Fringe.