Friday’s soiree on the bridge was a good time. I’m guessing you’ve had your fill of bridge coverage at this point. I’ll be brief. Here are three things I’ll always remember from the night.
1. It was odd to see Ross Perot wandering around the party, unaccompanied. In a black fedora, he sort of pinballed from spot to spot, almost like he was looking for someone. As he passed, people would whisper to one another, “Hey, look! There goes Ross Perot.” A bit surreal.
2. My favorite exchange from the evening was with Lee Jackson. It went like this:
ME: “Hey, Lee! How you doing?”
GARY GRIFFITH: “I’m Gary Griffith.”
ME: “I’m sorry, Gary. But really, I swear, in this light you look a little like Lee Jackson.”
GARY GRIFFITH: “Right. And in this light you look like Wick Allison.”
In my defense, former City Councilman Gary Griffith does bear a passing resemblance to UNT Chancellor Lee Jackson. Doesn’t he? A little bit? I propose that we make this a meme. Whenever you see Gary Griffith, from now on please call out to him, “Hi, Lee!”
3. At one point I ran into Santiago Calatrava and Trinity Trust honcho Gail Thomas. Thomas told me that Calatrava and his wife were terribly hungry, having landed at the airport with no time to eat before the festivities. Problem was, they couldn’t navigate to the food stations, because everywhere he went, Calatrava was mobbed by well-wishers. Now, say what you will about his bridge, but the man was a guest in our city. We couldn’t have him and his wife going hungry. So I fetched him a heaping plate o’ beef from the Del Frisco’s booth (which let me cut in line once I explained my mission). It wasn’t the most well-rounded meal that Calatrava has probably ever eaten, but since I haven’t read any accounts of his demise due to starvation, I trust it did the trick.
