Yesterday I worked the early shift at the gym. Now the gym I work at is tiny: three studios (one for spinning, one for ellipticore, and one for yoga) plus Women's and Men's Locker rooms. That's it. You have to walk by the front desk to check in, and since nothing is computerized, you have to interact with the front desk staff to get to your class. (Unless you're Brandon Davis, who just hands you a hundred dollar bill and assumes you know what to do with it.)
In addition to that, there's only five people who work the front desk, and three who cover the morning shifts: younger slackbrother j., me, and D., who has one arm, so there shouldn't be an issue in telling us apart. Most people who take classes at the gym - most Hollywood-types, most perfectly nice - have gotten to know us over the years (or in my case, 6+ months) so we chit-chat when they arrive. Yesterday, one of my favorite clients, one of the founders of the Bill Foundation, showed up with a copy of Sunday's New York Times.
Oh my god, Nina! she exclaimed.
A few seconds later, a well-known actress walked in the door. Nina, I saw you-- she spots the copy of the newspaper on the counter --I saw this yesterday! That's so cool! We all chatted for a moment about the craziness of the industry when another client entered. A woman who I am endlessly cheerful toward, but who acts like I don't even exist. The two women I talked to turned to the new arrival - an art collector - and showed her the paper.
Look, Nina's in the paper!
The art collector attempted to furrow her botox'd brow. Who's Nina?
The first two clients looked at me, confused. Um, Nina? one of them said helpfully, motioning toward me.
I waved and smiled. That would be me.
She looked at the paper, looked at me, shrugged and walked away, leaving the other two women standing there, horrified.
I shrugged. Hooray for Hollywood!
...
In other news, I've finally uploaded some of the photos from our wedding, which you can check out in all their glory here. Hey, it's only taken me eight-and-a-half months. Now if I could just finish the rest of the thank-you cards, I'll be set...
