Bet you thought that my spot a star days were over...outgrew them or
something...well think again...spot a stars the past few weeks have
been-a-plenty...

last friday, my work sent me to hang out at the u.s. open all day in a
client's box...why?  i don't really know...nice people, i guess.
anyways, i was walking around between matches and noticed that andre agassi
was practicing with his trainer in a small stadium court with hundreds of
people sitting in the bleachers watching, taking pictures, yelling to him,
etc.  shirt off, all tan and cut, he looks like he is in perfect shape (i
think i even wanted him), living the single life again...but then i ran into
his personal manager who was an old childhood friend of mine in las vegas
(it's a small town). he said "hey devon! how've you been? why are you here?
(blah blah blah,) if you want to see andre, he's playing tomorrow
(saturday), let me know and i can get you two tickets. no
problem...really...a no brainer"  of course, my parents were here for only
two days, so i had to turn him down b/c i was hanging out with them all
saturday...but the thought was nice...

...then monday morning i get an early wake up call from my old friend, the
manager..."hey, you and your girlfriend have tickets at v.i.p. will call,
you'll be sitting in andre's box seats...you got better seats than me!,
etc.."...so we ended up going Monday to see andre (via fifth row seats),
also got to see seles beat capriati, and then...

monday night i call my manager friend to thank him and after we talked for
awhile he said that the andre camp is very superstitious about who sits in
their box seats.  andre pays very close attention to who is in the seats and
(i guess since he won yesterday) we were invited back for wednesday night's
match...i don't ask questions, i just go...so go we do...same fifth row
seats, andre v. escude and serena williams v. monica seles...both people we
are rooting for, win...

at this point i think i know what you are thinking...it isn't a spot a star
when you go to a specific event where you know the actual star is going to
be there...and i agree with this logic...i even agree that seeing andre
practicing at the u.s. open does not really count (although i think i did
debate this issue with a couple of people recently...but fair enough)...

however, it turns out that our seats were in a prime spot a star observation
location...first, we had a perfect view of a very raggedy, twitching keith
richards...head wobbling on top of his neck downing screwdrivers left and
right...i doubt that he could even comprehend what was going on in the
match, let alone that he was actually at the u.s. open...(1 point)

tonight andre plays again...are we going?  i don't know...we came back
wednesday...he won...logic dictates that tonight we will be back in flushing
meadows but who knows...

honorable mentions (leading spot a stars any other week):

1.  jim jarmusch walking alone down 6th avenue friday night in midtown
manhattan when i was out with the p's;

2.   tim "speed" levitch - world's most famous gray line bus tour guide -
made famous in the highly recommended documentary THE CRUISE walking right
outside our apartment on 15th street with a group of people (possible giving
a walking tour?)...i recognized him by his distinctive voice before i looked
up to see him...

-- Devon Goldberg

                Swab the Deck         Sirens