Encounters

We stood in line for 30 minutes. We dealt with the cold wind. Not her. She was ushered in. They rushed her past the crowd, through security, and up to a reserved seat in the William G. McGowan theater. I was just inches from her as she walked by. Was this our brush with a huge star?

Friday night we found our way to Oyamel for some delicious chicken avocado tacos and crispy fried platano. We even got in without reservations... restaurant week and all. How could this date night get much better? Soon we were out the door and on our way to the screening of "Encounters at the end of the world" at the National Archives. We arrived to a long line, but were quickly greeted with some free tickets. The browser on Morgan's phone kept us occupied, but the bitter cold blew right through my tweed jacket (Note: I do not own a tweed jacket, but I feel it adds integrety to this narrative). How long until we would get in?

I sit down and relax. The warm theater feels good. A man who looks like Columbo's brother takes a seat near me. I am glad he made it. He tripped on a couple of stairs before finding our row. He turns his head. Oh, he is sporting an eye patch. I kindly excuse him for his lack of depth perception and turn my attention to the stage. There she is, signing autographs and looking famous. There is a buzz that surrounds her like protestors around the Chinese restaurant across from our apartment. Finally the moment of truth. The lights dim and she takes the stage.

Jennice Fuentes. What? Who is she? She tries not to brag, but has a tough time holding it in. She just wrapped shooting on "Behind Enemy Lines III: Colombia." The audience is quiet. In the Columbian jungle there is no place to hide. That is the tagline. We sit in the jungle.

In a moment the movie starts. I had given up on my dreams. Werner Herzog opens my eyes. I know "Man on Wire" won for best documentary, and I really enjoyed that, but this simple documentary about Antartica stole my heart. I laughed, I cried, I almost turned to columbo's brother to kindly ask him to stop crinkling the paper full of whatever crunchy treat he decided would complement the quiet documentary.

The movie was fun, and while the brush with celebrity paled in comparison to the time we saw Nancy Pelosi leaving a screening of "Quantum of Solace," the night was a great success.

We grab the metro home.