Introducing my publicist, Ginny! Also known affectionately as Gin-Gin (as so many lovely Virginias in my life have been) she is responsible for my Twitter fan-handle @CircleOfAlan. How can I not get on board with that kind of vainglorious tribute? If ever I rise above the small-town trappings of Loudonville, let @CircleOfAlan become my officially unofficial outlet for news and gossip.
As for Ginny, she will be playing Liz Rosenberg to my Madonna as I extend these flights of delusional fantasy into real-world nonsensery. (I’m even making words up now, so don’t bother to dictionary it.) On a more serious note, she’s become a lovely friend in her own right, and we recently held a retirement party for her at our home. It was the least I could do for someone who helped me out at work and made every day a little more fun and enjoyable. (And now that she’s retired she’ll have that much more time to devote to the online Twitter promotion of yours truly.)
It was a testament to her heart and engaging personality that so many friends from her work world showed up to celebrate. It’s also an indication of how fun she is that she was game enough to don an Alan Ilagan original head-dress to greet her guests (at least until she fell over in her chair). All in a day. All in a party. All in a publicist.
When I look back over the friends I’ve made over the years, many of them were motherly in certain ways. Some were mothers of my friends, others were simply older women who played a motherly role in my life. I’m not sure why I’ve searched for mother figures, or what role of healing they filled and continue to fill in my life. I’m just glad they’re there. We seek out what we need to survive.
