pick five and dine...

fantasy dinner: pick 5 people, living or dead, historical or not to meet for dinner. who would those people be, and what would you talk about?

i was thinking about this on the way to pottery last night, and on my way home again, as i just couldn't come up with an immediate answer. my lack of response in and of itself was interesting. i just couldn't think of 5 people i absolutely had to meet or greet or eat with. rather than have all 5 in one place, i entertained the thought of having them one on one at panera bread or tgif fridays or eating thai food or ethiopian. but then, there is safety in numbers. what if the dalai lama turned out to be a boring conversationalist? and what would i talk about to him? you have to figure that he must get bored talking about spirituality and buddhism all of the time, so what would i ask him? read any good books lately, tenzen? what did you think about THE DAVINCI CODE? and where could we go to talk that he wouldn't be followed by an entourage? it isn't like you can just go out into public with an old dude in an orange sheet and not expect to be noticed. besides, he doesn't speak the language very well. and compared to him, my life is a tad boring.

regardless of who i would invite, the problem of conversation is going to come up. how do you make it a one on one, equal kind of conversation? obviously, if i am picking the dinner company, i am going to be picking someone i do not feel equal too. try awe...wouldn't you pick people that you stand in awe of? ok, given that, give me barbra streisand, linda ronstadt, amelia earhart and carole lombard. but i don't know them. would they be kind to me? would streisand turn out to be a difficult diva? would ronstadt, given her penchant for ignoring the public, even show up? would amelia earhart talk at all, or just keep to herself? and could carole lombard possibly be as funny as everyone said she was, and just as brassy?

i think i have figured out that the dinner party with the five is more fun to think about than do, simply because fantasy is always better than reality. i have had a few occasions to see some of my "idols" in concert, and have walked away thinking i could now die happy. that includes bruce springsteen, jackson browne, the righteous brothers, johnny rivers, and linda ronstadt. in all cases, i was satisfied that i got my money's worth. but had i been able to hang out with each for a week, i doubt that i would have found the icons to be without feet of clay. it is so much more fun to imagine them a certain way than to experience them failing to fit the mold.

i think i would rather observe from a distance, or shake a hand or get an autograph. a one on one conversation would not give me what i want, which is the ability to adore without disappointment.