You know that kind of crazy weekend? The kind that when its finally over you sit there in the sudden silence, and it all comes back in flashes of color and snippets of sound? Like the lingering of a dream when you first wake up, your feet still hurt and you can remember exactly how someones voice was. But so much happened overall that now the four previous days seem mashed together into one continuous scene. The feeling of surveillance is slightly unsettling, and you find yourself wondering if youre still being listened to.
It all happened so quickly, and so without thought. Like a functional drunk, I think the body must get accustomed to a certain level of stress over time, until you barely notice the pain anymore as your stumble along. This past month has been such an endless barrage of self-inflicted unflagging busyness. But we signed up for this. I filled out our calendar days with trips and family and flights and tv shows (in pen no less) myself. But like any great fireworks show, this month was full of calculated random explosions, and our finale was really something to behold!
Or maybe it wasnt so great. We dont really know just yet. Filming for HGTV's House Hunters International only ended today, so when you see the final product on your telly youll have to be the one to tell me. I think Jon & I are exceptionally normal and mostly boring people, who spend a lot of time at the movies. Or watching our cat play with a paper bag. Riveting stuff. So the close-up of me shoving a forkful of lukewarm breakfast beans into my mouth, or the part where Jon coins the term "cottagey", will have to carry our 22 minutes of fame.
But seriously, we have never done anything like this before. So getting the opportunity to be on tv, on a show that basically creates a semi-realistic re-enactment of our journey across the world when we were young and in love, was something we could never pass up. It could happen that the re-run of our episode will still be around when our children are old enough to watch it, and laugh at us! We look at making this show like a cool way to preserve this insane adventure we've been on, in a way we will be able to keep & share with future generations. Of course Im worried Ill look stupid or mean or ugly or fat, or that my clothes look dated or my teeth look yellow. But who cares. Its the way I really do look & sound right now, this second, in this tiny breath of our human existence.
Like I said, we are totally new to this sort of thing. Being on tv and all. So we were understandably nervous about not knowing the first thing of what was expected from us, or even how the weekend would play out logistically. So when we met the crew, Chris (the respectable expert director), Mike (the energetic, pun-loving cameraman), and Joe (the too-hipster-to-be-hipster sound guy), we were put immediately at ease by their exceptionally friendly ways, and gentle handling. They were so patient and helpful, and werent even bothered when Jon or I would mess something up along the way, or forget and look into the camera.
I was a little weirded out when Joe apologized for his cold hands much like a doctor would, and then stuck them up the back of my shirt to place a sound wire. Then he pinned the microphone right between my boobs, because thats the only place where theres apparently the least clothing rustle on the mic. Makes sense I guess. These guys are so professional though, that after the first couple takes, even that inconvenience lost its novel affect. Mike was very smitten with my cat while shooting scenes inside our apartment. I think he took more pictures of Smaug in one day than I have taken in a month of owning the kitten! Chris was such a polished pro, that I could see him in a tux thanking a clapping audience. When he was speaking to us about a documentary he'd done recently, you could see in his eyes how much he believed in it. And yet he treated a couple of small fries like me & Jon with total equanimity.
This experience has been one we will never ever forget! We seem able to say that a lot these days, and feel so blessed. When the actual show airs, maybe we will wish we really could forget it, and will be totally embarrassed. Feel free to make fun of us! But for now, we are indulging ourselves in the heat of the sun, enjoying our manic schedule, making memories at the speed of time. This has been our attempt to capture a shaft of light in a jar. Lets hope we catch more than dust!
