Sometimes I feel like I’ve seen it all before, heard it all, and there’s just nothing new and exciting out there in the world. And then something happens which wakes me up, reinvigorates me, gives new meaning to my life. Such a thing occurred when I recently returned to Malibu from my trip to New Zealand.
When I travel home from a far off land, and trust me, New Zealand is far off, I usually read the newspapers to catch up on what I might have missed. Of course, New Zealand has fine newspapers I’m sure, but I try to forget the world when I’m away.
I expected to read the same old, same old---the New York Knicks won some and lost some, the President and Congress couldn’t agree on a thing, parts of the world got too much rain while other parts got none---déjà vu all over again. (Oh how I love that redundant expression.)
But what I saw while leafing through the papers shook me out of my boredom. I saw what looked like the pudgy leader (excuse me, SUPREME leader) of North Korea watching a basketball game with Dennis Rodman. Had I forgotten to take my meds, or was I being controlled by controlled substances? I kept looking at the photo, and sure enough, there was the same Dennis Rodman who had kicked a photographer during an NBA game, worn a wedding gown for a magazine cover, and pierced every body part known to mankind.
What an adorable couple the two of them made--the “worm” (Dennis’ unflattering nickname) towering over the diminutive Kim Jong-un-- both chatting with each other like lifelong friends while watching a Harlem Globe Trotter exhibition game. Thank you God for relieving my boredom. Even Neil Simon at his best couldn’t come up with an odd couple weirder than these two characters.
Never mind that the SUPREME leader had recently threatened to destroy New York City with a nuclear bomb. Dennis Rodman played for Detroit, San Antonio and Chicago, so his loyalty was never with the Big Apple. Our new found diplomat in Pyongyang suggested that President Obama call the SUPREME leader, and since the President and the SUPREME leader were both basketball fans, ipso facto, the two leaders would embrace each other and sing “Ring Around the Rosie.”
If this diplomacy works, a whole new world of opportunity could exist. The State Department could send Pee Wee Herman to negotiate with the Chinese, and the Foreign Office in England could send Mr. Bean and Ali G on assignment. It’s so good to be alive.
