1A: Omri "Irmo" Avraham: David Sedaris Field Report

(A field report from English 1A student Omri "Irmo" Avraham of David Sedaris's appearance at Vroman's Books, Pasadena, CA. Originally filed  December 1, 2010, 4:42 PM.  Because of the high value of Omri's post, her report is reposted here.  Comments by Omri's loyal audience are encouraged.  Let's turn, now, to Omri's report from Vroman's Books.)

Mr. Sedaris is quite the charming and adorable man, with a pink collared shirt, and polka dot tie. I spotted him at Vroman's sitting at a small wooden table for the pre-signing, actively engaged in a conversation with one of the many fans who were standing in line, now snaked through the bookstore.

I headed upstairs to get my pre-ordered copy of Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk. Although I purchased my book a mere three days after the event was announced, my ticket was only valid for a signing, and not a seat for the reading. Instead, me and about 50 other people were sprawled on the floor at Vroman's listening to Mr. Sedaris read over a speaker system. He sounded...cute. I just wanted to put him in a little box and take him home with me and have him be my own personal narrator and life-story teller, like in that movie, Stranger than Fiction.

He began by reading the title story out of his new book. All the characters in these stories are animals acting as humans; he did this because it turns a boring, simple, daily scenario into something a lot more interesting. A squirrel and a chipmunk conversing can provide hours of entertainment while a man and a women gets...boring. Additionally, he does not need to come up with names for his characters or lengthy descriptions because everyone can clearly picture a duck or a cat in their mind's eye.

He then read an excerpt from a story not included (upon his editor's suggestion) in this book because it was “disgusting.” The story, which of course I cannot remember the title of, was about flies eating vomit and fecal matter while having a legitimate conversation that one would have over dinner. And because it is expected for flies to engage in this sort of poop-eating behavior, Sedaris is not disturbed by his detailed, vivid, and at times gruesome yet hilarious descriptions of human waste.

On this book tour of his, he is collecting jokes from his fans. So after reading some random ones which he collected, and throwing in a few of his own, we were invited to wait around Vroman's for the actual signing.

8, 9, 10pm. Finally, at around 10:30 my group was called upstairs to the signing area. Why would a signing take so long, might you ask? Well, Mr. Sedaris was giving each fan his undivided attention, listening to jokes for his collection, and personalizing each autograph. His remark about my name? “Wow, this is the second name I have seen tonight that looks like a typo! I mean, you can rearrange the letters in almost any way and it would be just as legitimate!” Apparently he has not read The Indian in the Cupboard, but thank you Mr. Sedaris, I appreciate it.

I did not have a joke for him, but I asked him a question instead. Something slightly personal, yet not taboo. What is your favorite comfort food, or something you can eat without ever getting sick of? His answer...noodles with butter (and maybe salt/good cheese). and his favorite ice cream flavor? Clotted cream from a small parlor in London.

So what is your favorite food?

Mine you ask...probably peanut butter and jelly. 

December 1, 2010 4:42 PM