Goal #5: Meet a Celebrity -- Check!!

Meet a Celebrity - Check!

I know most of you may laugh but, yes, I indeed had a goal of meeting one celebrity OR attending a celebrity-like event for my Top 11 Things I Want to Accomplish in 2011.  I honestly felt like this would be my hardest goal to check off, but less than three months into the new year, I've accomplished yet another goal.  Of course, I think it'd be great to still attend a music awards event, but for now, I'm proud that I at least had the opportunity to meet one celebrity this past weekend - Bethenny Frankel (star of the Real Housewives of NYC and Bethenny Ever After). I'm aware that some people may or may not consider her a true "celebrity". Granted, she's not a Julia Roberts, but she's a self-made success, and for that alone I was extremely proud to meet her.  She didn't have a cookie-cutter life where everything fit nicely into a box and then she "magically" became famous.  I don't think Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, the Kardashian sisters, or even Kate Hudson are half worthy of their success --- all of those celebrities had wealthy, famous parents which made it easy for them to stroll right into the spot light.  I'm a fan of fighters, those who beat the odds to have success (For Example: Chris Gardner, from the Pursuit of Happyness or Michael Oher portrayed in the Blind Side).  Those who think outside the box and defy society's expectations... those stories are MUCH more interesting and their success is much more deserved in my eyes at least.  Bethenny grew up without parents.  I couldn't even imagine that. I grew up without a father and that has been a roller coaster of emotions alone; I couldn't imagine not having the mom I have. My mom has encouraged me and been my biggest cheerleader my entire life. When I'm down, she's there to put a smile on my face and lift my spirits.  Some folks tell me my mom worries too much (that to which I agree), BUT I'd rather have a mom who cares SO much about me to watch over my every step, than a mom whose love was non-existent.  Bethenny had to be tough because she didn't have everything served on a silver platter, nor did she have a family to love, encourage and support her as she strived for her goals.  One thing I truly loved about Bethenny is she wasn't one to have a "woe is me" attitude; she's had a tough shell because of her upbringing but she used it to make herself a household name.  Call it what you will, but that's success in my eyes.

Bethenny hosted a 13-city tour around the United States to promote her books as well as share her insight on her journey through life.  My friend, Callie, and I had the opportunity to meet her in Baltimore, MD at the Hippodrome Theater.  Women like Bethenny inspire me.  She didn't go through life in a "June Cleaver" fashion.  She had success, got married, and had a baby all on her own due time.  Life is full of pressure - especially pressure on women to find a man, get married, have kids, and live up to everyone else's expectations.  It can be exhausting and so agonizing.  It's like leave me alone already. Someone's version of success could be settling down at a young age and having a bunch of kids. Another's can be working to the top of the ladder and putting marriage on the back burner.  Another, could be living to fulfill a greater purpose of consistently volunteering to make better the lives of the less fortunate.  Bethenny was downright sassy, inappropriate, tell-it-like-it-is, and all around hilarious. She does not sugar-coat a thing, so I naturally felt right at home because I came from a family who doesn't really believe in filters.  (Example #1: Me -"Hey Mom, like my new shirt?" Mom - "No, looks horrible, get it the hell off." / Example #2: Me - "Why in the hell are you going to the Dominican Republic?"  Me - "Because I want to travel to a beach and try somewhere new. Mom - "Trader, can't believe you're leaving the US." ) Yep, that's my mom for you.  That's why I felt at ease when I was listening to Bethenny talk--definitely a straight shooter.  My heart did go out to Jason a bit, though.  She rips him apart - everything from his parents, to the size of his package, to his weird quirks.  I know it's all in good fun, but it definitely takes a patient, loving man to not let anything get under his skin.

Bethenny looked fabulous - definitely a Skinny Girl at heart.  She ran through the thoughts behind her books and gave a lot of advice on finding your passion, dating, becoming a Skinny Girl, and working in your daily job.  I was actually quite amazed - the lens of fame and fortune is not all sunshine and glitter.  Just a few short years before her big break, she had a $50,000 negative tax return and the year before that she had a $150,000 negative tax return.  Her path to success wasn't a yellow brick road, and her unwavering determination was profound.  Numerous companies turned down her idea for the "Skinny Girl" Margarita; now, they all come to her begging to buy her company.  When she came up with the idea for her first book, a publisher turned down her idea telling her it would never sell.  Little did he know she would be a NY Times-Best Seller and he would subsequently be fired. Her moral of the story was even if you don't have a "cookie-cutter" life, you can have success and you can have all the things your heart desires; and that sometimes saying "no" to someone or something is really saying "yes" to yourself.  The one negative side to her event was she did a Q&A session, which is something that is well-thought of because it gives a chance for her fans to say hello and ask a special question to her.  However, the "fans" used this to get up and explain their whole life story to her before asking a silly question.  She went through about 25 or more questions, and it made the crowd restless.  No one asked an intriguing question. People were asking her if she received their emails, or if she has a good recipe. Excuse me, she didn't receive your email and read her damn book for a recipe.  So, all in all, the show was good, but I was a little disappointed in the content.  I wish she would have elaborated more on the secrets of the Real Housewives show, or funny stories about her life as a mom and newlywed.  It basically was a book promotion and a Q&A session.  I did buy her one book, The Skinny Girl Dish, just so I would have something for her to sign.  Besides, it's always good to learn new recipes and ways of cooking.

Finally, we had the meet-and-greet session after the show where it was a quick autograph and snapshot. Of course, when it came time for my picture, the producer of the show didn't know what it meant to hold the flash button down for longer than a split second, so my photo came out a bit dark. Awesome. Thankfully, I was smart enough to ask for a group photo with my friend, Callie, so that one came out nice and clear. Bethenny told me I "was lookin' all sexy" and told me she was "jealous of my girls". HAHA--gotta love it.  So, we got a dose of what it means to channel your inner skinny girl while getting a few snapshots with the Bravo celebrity. All in all, I'd say meeting Bethenny was cool and definitely allowed me to check off another "goal". I think as women, we can be way too hard on ourselves and on others. We need to spend more time building women up instead of competing and tearing each other down. Bethenny exudes a sense of empowerment, that against all odds, one can achieve success. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is a successful empire. We must work hard for what we want out of life.  Cheers to finding your inner skinny girl and working to achieve YOUR version of success!!