My 15 Milliseconds of Shame

Today started out innocently enough... Mike and I took Jeremiah to the library to check out some new books and renew Mike's before he left town. Little did I know, I was going to wind up on the local news!
As I was perusing the shelves, happy as a clam, a soft voice behind me said, "Excuse me, ma'am?"
I turned around to see the gigantic lens of a TV camera literally 12 inches from my face. "Would you mind answering a few questions about the library?"

Y'all. I panicked. I am NOT good in front of people. Put me in front of a group of kids, I can go all day. Put me in front of grown ups, or apparently inanimate objects such as cameras, and I go straight to pieces. She very kindly asked what the library means to our family.

I started sweating profusely in my armpits and mumbled something about how I like being able to bring JB to look at books and hear stories.

She kindly inquired how I felt about the community spirit in our library.

I lost all grasp of the English language and started speaking in tongues. I think I mentioned being an English teacher, knowing the importance of access to library services for families who don't have computers or lots of books at home, and how cutting funding to libraries sucks.

She wanted my input on local businesses advertising on free bookmarks as a source of revenue for the library.

I think I blacked out at that point.

She then asked if Jeremiah was at the library. So they spent some time shooting JB and his daddy playing on the computers. They were cool as cucumbers. Superstars.
We aired during the 5 o'clock newscast. Thankfully, I got edited down to approximately 1.5 seconds of speech and some shots of me waddling around in the background during a voiceover. I was also quoted HERE.

What a humbling experience. I am the daughter of one of the best public speakers in America, and I am not saying that as his child. Just last week, Dad was in Vegas as a keynote speaker for the Exhibitor Show. He had someone stop him in the airport on the way home to tell him how his speech literally changed her life and inspired her to be a better professional. He spends his life speaking to people and telling them how to be better at their jobs. He travels around the world delivering speeches and teaching classes. He has groupies.

Me? This face sums it up nicely.I die.