“Oh my god. Look who it is!”
Elle and I had our toes buried in the sand on a crowded beach in Massachusetts. On that Saturday afternoon in the dead of summer, it seemed the entirety of New England had run away to the same spot of ocean. Including ex-presidents.
“Who is it?” she asked, following my gaze to the red and white striped towel a few yards away.
“Gerald Ford!”
Of course, it wasn’t really Gerald Ford (Betty was nowhere to be seen). But if your friend is the kind of friend you’ll want to have around until you are much older and sillier than you are now, you will know by how well they play along with your pre-senility antics. And Elle, well, she and I will be smacking our gums in the old folks home together, because she turned out to be Gerald Ford silly.
“That guy is totally Secret Service,” she said, pointing to a furry gentleman wearing a blue Speedo.
“And that guy. The bratty kids are just a cover.”
While John and the others watched, and I’m sure, worried (for whatever reason, imagination games just seem less… healthy as one ages), we spent the afternoon inching toward Mr. Ford, walking slowly to the water and back, closer and closer to the oblivious older man, cutting him off from his security detail.
Long, hot days at the beach, despite the relief they provide from the sticky humidity of the city, have the potential to get a little boring. Some people bring books. Elle and I engage in efforts to thwart the Secret Service. We’ve not once been caught, either.
I took a swing at Lyndon Johnson once.
Well, he woulda deserved it.
“Hey, hey, LBJ…”
Ah Heather, our generation’s answer to Squeaky Fromm without the homicidial rage and love of Charles Manson. (On her good days, at least).
I grew up in the town where the first President Bush has his summer house. It’s easier than you’d think to thwart the secret service guys – a few drinks in a bar and they’ll tell you anything. Meeting a few of them changed my political aspirations forever
It’s ok…I understand, my best friend and I are exactly the same. We even used to do the whole pirates thing, I even brought her a pirate hat home from vacation!
My encounters tend to veer in the other direction. “Hey, look! There’s Condoleeza Rice!” I look around and say, “Who?” Then I crawl into a very small hole and vow to read The Economist.
Little crazy there…..
I actually have seen a few people who looked something like Gerald Ford. It’s probably because Ford had sort of Everyman looks, without any really distinguishable features. Contrast him with other Presidents such as JFK or Nixon, who were rather unique-looking.
The sad part of this story is that my first thought was, “****, would I have even KNOWN what Gerald Ford looked like if I’d run into him?”
growing up in Iowa I’ve seen my fair share of presidents and hopefulls. Still, the first time you (in real life) see the President of the United State (regarless of your political beliefs) it’s a cool thing. My first pres. sighting was in 1980 – when i saw the whole lot, including, jimmy carter and ronald regan. i was 8.
I LOVE this game, on a much smaller scale. My girlfriends and I make up imaaginary lives while people watching in bars. “That’s his mistress, and he’s a millionaire”, “That girl is really a stripper, but works here one day a week to justify her income to her parents”, etc. Hours of family fun for everyone!
HAHAHAAAAA Reminds me of my friend and I on Hermit Island in Maine. PeeWee Herman was following us!! No REALLLLY! lol I whispered it to her as we walked to the store, she didn’t hear my insane mumbling so I got louder and louder until she heard and we both fell to the ground in laughter! He really did look like PeeWee, but when he heard me I think he was offended. Oh well, no sense of humor.
Exposed: we like to do that too – making up lives for other people – loads of entertainment.
Saw his obituary on TV last week. A president who actually restored faith in the White House; A rarity methinks.
But, like, SERIOUSLY! Ford’s funeral is lasting longer than is presidential tenure…