My night with David Sedaris

Oh.. how I love David Sedaris.  He's known for his short stories, his humor and his way of telling a story that is at once both funny and thought-provoking.  He is kind and the humor is witty and clean.  He is an author that is more likely to come to you gently; through a friend or an NPR segment as opposed to the shelves of your local big-box store.

I remember very clearly the day I was introduced to him.  It was winter.  I was riding into New York City with my husband, friend and her brother.  I had had a couple of drinks.  My friend's brother was driving and he held up the audio recording of David's collection of Christmas Stories Holidays on Ice  "Have you heard of David Sedaris?"  I had not. There was a story of working as a Macy's elf and another about a prostitute that comes to his family's house for the holiday.  Minutes into listening to the first story I was in tears of laughter. This has never changed for me.

I've read all of his books and have always wanted to see him on stage but it's never worked out.  Then my husband texted me one day last week - did I want two tickets to see David Sedaris?  A colleague of his had a pair and couldn't go for whatever reason. Heck yes I did.

My sister and I went and it was amazing.  It was held an in old ornate theatre built in the 1920's.  The event was presented by the local NPR station, one I had been a supporter of in the past.  Wow - can NPR throw a party! Our tickets included a buffet, an open bar and an early book signing.  My sister and I were probably 4th and 5th in line for the signing.  I bought two copies of Holidays on Ice; one for the couple that gave us the tickets and the second one to be signed for my son. I also brought my absolute favorite book When You Are Engulfed in Flames.  When it was my turn to meet Mr. Sedaris I told him the truth:  "I've been trying to think of something witty to say to you all week and I haven't come up with anything".  "That's OK"  he said, "I'll walk you through it."

He doodled in my books.  I cropped out the names of the people this was inscribed to for the photo but the picture  has a story to go with it, promise. 

His performance was fantastic. We had third row seats.  THIRD ROW.  The first story he told, "Death Knows No Season" had me in tears almost immediately.  Tears of laughter.  He talked about his pet fox, his family and yes the upcoming election.  The two hours flew by without anyone noticing.  He was funny, gracious and a joy to spend the evening with.  I would do it again, immediately, in a heartbeat.

Thank you Mr. Sedaris, thank you to our local NPR station and a special thank you to the couple that provided the tickets to us.  It was such a good night and one I'll remember for a long, long time.
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Hey are those Affiliate links?

Yep. I love David Sedaris and want to share his books with everyone I can.  Buy them from Amazon, from your local bookstore, check them out from the library, whatever.  Just read them.

As far as Amazon, if you purchase anything after clicking on my link they send me a tiny percentage and it doesn't cost you anything.  I guess it's their way of thanking me if you're the one person on the planet who hasn't heard of Amazon yet.