Subject: Infection-Free Trip Report DaveCon 2002 (Is This Anything?) From: foxyscribe@aol.com (FOXYSCRIBE) Date: 22 Jun 2002 18:16:48 GMT Newsgroups: alt.fan.letterman I should be addressing Lenny Levine's wedding invitations right now, but I want to document this trip while my memories are fresh....this year's trip was just as delicious as last year's (I'm starting to doubt my apostrophes already, Pat!)...and I set off for NYC Thursday afternoon certain that nothing could ever top DaveCon 2001. As usual, I took the bus to the Port Authority; according to our instructions we didn't have to meet at Manhattan Chili until 4:00 pm, so I didn't have to get my bus until 1:30 pm in order to arrive in NYC at 3:00. That gave me a nice leisurely morning to get my affairs in order (it's not easy extricating yourself from a husband and two children - even for one day!). I finally set off for the bus station at 1:00 pm. After finding a parking spot approximately seven miles from the bus station, I strolled up to the counter to purchase my ticket. The woman behind the counter suggested that I check with the bus driver to see if he had any seats available before I purchased my ticket. What?! Who's going to New York City besides *me* at 1:30 in the afternoon?! I experienced a small dose of panic as I approached the driver. He assured me that he had at least 20 empty seats - there would be no problem, and I could sit on his lap if I wanted to. Well, okay then! As the bus pulled out of the station, they actually started to show a movie! "Along Came a Spider", which I had seen before, but I thought it was a nice touch. I was too busy with my own thoughts to really pay attention to a movie. There are so few things to be excited about, I mean *really* excited about - the way you did when you were eight years old...the Christmas Eve, and 'the night before the class trip to the Steel Pier' kind of excitement. DaveCon is a yearly trip back to eight years old, jump up and down happiness. We arrived safely and ahead of schedule, and as I stepped onto the sidewalk outside the Port Authority I immediately decided today was not a day to take a cab. The weather was perfect - sunshine and low humidity. I decided to walk (it was only about 10 blocks) to Mahattan Chili. I made a right and walked toward Broadway; on the way a person asked me for directions to Times Square - I was happy to be able to tell them (I love when I know something, you know). I made it to Broadway, turned left in the direction of the theater. Someone again asked me for directions to *somewhere* - I can't remember now, but I actually knew the answer to that as well! I spotted Sephora on Broadway, and decided it would be the perfect place to purchase end of the year teacher gifts that my son Dave that morning reminded me we needed for Friday, the last day of school. I found three perfect items with the help of a delightfully lispy salesman, who also suggested that I let them be gift-wrapped. Great! I brought them to the counter and asked for the complimentary gift wrap and the same guy I paid proceeded to wrap the gifts by balling up the tissue paper and tying a ribbon around the crushed mess. When he finished I held the gift up, and with a bright smile proclaimed, "Well, this looks like crap!" He grinned and summoned a girl from another part of the store who took one horrified look at his creation and instructed me to follow her, where she did a gorgeous job of making each gift look like a beautifully wrapped bon-bon. Ah.....life is good. I started browsing through the make up and perfumes (you could walk into that store with a naked face and leave transformed because EVERYTHING can be tried on from foundation to mascara) when my phone rang. It was my husband Tony calling to tell me Renee and the gang were wondering where the heck I was. Yikes! I thought I had until 4:00 - It was 3:40 and I had a ten minute walk to Manhattan Chili, but perhaps I was supposed to be there earlier. I told Tony to call her back and let her know I was right down the street and I ran out the door and started quickly, happily, skipping down Broadway. The moment when the Ed Sullivan Theater comes into view makes me feel like Mary Tyler Moore when she joyfully threw her hat up into the air on the Minneapolis sidewalk, or Marlo Thomas when she messed up her hairdo and hugged her head in front of the mirror as "That Girl." I just got a huge smile on my face and walked faster. I arrived at Manhattan Chili *precisely* at 4:00, but at that point I was winded and sweaty. I ran up the steps and there was "my group" - I love them so much! Brad approached and asked what size I wanted. I thought he was referring to a nice chilled Manhattan, but it turned out it was a tee shirt he was talking about. What a beautiful DaveCon shirt this year! Traci presented me with my Dave Con 2002 Is This Anything? button. I was madly fanning myself trying to cool down. I saw all the familiar beloved faces, and was thrilled to meet Brady, Steve, Dave "Mr. Cranky" Sikula, and Micah for the first time! No sooner had I arrived, then it was time to go get our tickets. Of course we all got our coveted dots! (It's one of those kind of days where you just want to shriek with happiness every five minutes)! <---Pat? I went into K & L's Rock America with Carl, because I had one last gift to buy for Dave's burly bus driver. My lispy salesbuddy at Sephora had suggested some bath salts and moisturizer, but um, that bus driver didn't strike me as a guy who worries about moisture. I ended up buying him a lovely "Late Show with David Letterman" tee shirt. Who knows if he even watches the Big Show, but as a disciple I gotta take the message out to the people, right? We again hung out at Manhattan Chili where, over a diet coke I got to know Steve and Dave a little better, and Rene once again told the story of her close encounter with Dave (Letterman!). I love to hear that story! By the way, Steve,...my cousin from San Diego? Her husband is an orthopedic surgeon, NOT a dentist. I was misinformed. You'll have to find a dentist in the yellow pages [:)] Before we knew it, it was time to get in line. We took a few pictures (I created a little something special for Alan and Pat - I'm sure some AFLers got good pictures of said creation and will make sure they can be seen by all! We were ushered into the lobby for our "you are dotted and you are the ambassadors" schpeel, which is really hard to get excited about when you've heard it 15 or so times. The "No Woooooing" girl now has a cute male assistant with a booming voice, so that broke up the monotony a little. Marilyn passed out the Altoids - we had a choice this year between regular and cinnamon. Realization: The lobby is like church and the Altoids are like communion. THEN! The theater doors are pushed open and we DANCE into the theater! I can do this one thousand times and it will always be an AMAZING rush of adrenaline...OH MY LORD we are summoned to the FRONT ROW!! I have never been in the front row!!! Oh Yikes A Hooty......DAVE will be standing only a few feet from me when he comes out for the Q & A! Adrenaline, heart palpatations...I might just pass out from giddiness! We have some time to drink it all in before Eddie Brill comes out with his warm up. We watch "Dave Talks to Kids" and I can see this also a thousand times and I love it! Then, Paul and the band come out; I'm sorry for Brad that Felicia isn't there, but oh well, he got over it I'm sure when DAVE HIMSELF came out and spoke to HIM!!! Here comes Dave!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let me tell you about Dave's eyes. They are very, very, blue. And they are *really* *truely* blue, because he's got his specs on. No "contact lense" blueness - just true blueness, just like him. He made a few jokes about indulging in a few margaritas before the show, and said something about being "shit faced". Then, he asked if anyone had any questions. I didn't raise my hand because I was paralyzed with happiness. Brad, however, did, and Dave called on him! I'm sure Brad will describe it much better than I, so I'll leave that to him, but when anyone in the group gets a moment with Dave, I'm as happy as if it were me! <----right, Pat? The map thing with Biff and Bruce was hilarious. Bruce is such a good sport! Connie Chung was cute with Dave - her shoe tying was impressive. Ann, sitting to my left, pointed out the rock of a ring Connie was wearing, a real dazzler! After her segment she and Dave held hands and spoke for quite some time, exchanging a few more kisses. During the comedian's spot, Dave was sitting at his desk cracking up! The show, as usual, just flew by! We stood up to depart (I honestly didn't expect anything else to happen; last year was spectacular and it would be greedy to think they'd do anything out of the ordinary for us this year) and to our amazement and delight, there was Tony Mendez, motioning for us to come up on the stage once again. Behind him was Walter with his camera and it was clear at that point that we were going to be part of the Tony (You're So Sexy) Mendez show. For a moment there, we, as a group, immediately clammed up and couldn't speak. Tony kept saying, "So what else...." and for the most part, I speak for myself, I stood frozen with a huge smile on my face. (Upon viewing the show, my husband wondered why I was all the way in the back out of view. *I* don't know. Paralyzed, once again, with joy.) We had our wonderful tour and I noticed as we left the stage, the coffee maker. Krups. Dave's coffee. "Tony, what brand of coffee does Dave drink?" I asked. I could still smell it and it was divine. Real coffee, not that flavored crap. Probably Columbian, but could be a French roast. "I dunno," Tony replied, and that was that. I will let others tell the details of the tour. The highlight for me was the coffee maker, for personal reasons. I saw the cue cards and markers and took a picture of that. Once again, the place was strewn with notes reading "Tony Mendez is an ass" left there by a jealous co worker. At the end of the tour, we found ourselves back on the stage in the darkened theater, save for a single light bulb lit for the "ghosts". Tony once again handed out cue cards for us to keep (what a guy!) I was happy to hear Tony talking about how special it is to work in The Ed Sullivan Theater. It really means something to him; the history of it, the performances that took place on that very stage. He said that the Late Show people are all great - and it's all because of Dave. "If the guy in charge is a nice guy, it trickles down from him to everyone". Lovely. Then, for a blissful moment, I thought we were going to be locked in the Ed Sullivan Theater for the night as Tony couldn't find a open door to let us out. Damn...he finally figured out a way from Corky and back we were on 53rd Street. We thanked and thanked Tony for another fabulous time. Karen and I walked on to Martini's ahead of everyone and promptly started ingesting alcohol. She, a Cosmopolitan and I, a Manhattan. The weather, still, was perfection and we had a huge table outside under the canopy. The rest of the group soon followed and we had a marvelous meal served by a fun waiter who, at the end of the meal, was even wearing a candy necklace. Tony and Mike also paid us a quick visit, which was really a surprise...you would think they'd done their good deed for the day already! My Creme Brulee arrived and I departed. If I didn't leave the restaurant by 11:00 pm, I would miss the last bus home, which left at 11:30. Brad once again displayed his stellar cab-hailing capabilities and I was on my way back to the Port Authority. My eight-year-old feeling was starting to wear off (I had been up since 5 am) but what an absolutely great day it was. I boarded the bus at 11:25, and I pulled out my camera to view the pictures taken - my favorite is Donz sitting behind Dave's desk with Marilyn and me standing worshipfully behind him, our arms around his neck. I apologize about not knowing how to put my pictures up for you to see. I know Helen and Brad will have great ones. Mine are for the most part, pathetic, really. There are some good ones, so I'll share them when I have some assistance. I can't wait to read everyone else's reports - I'm sure they'll fill in the many blanks I've left. Thank you, and you know who you are, for making this event happen every year. I cannot imagine the planning and coordinating involved, but it is always successful and smooth. Every time we get together, I leave with a warm glow. What a lovely bunch you are. Now, back to Larry Levine's wedding invitations.