I was doing my clinical rotations in eastern NC this week and the most unfortunate thing happened.
A patient's wife tried to compliment me by telling me I looked like someone famous. Hold on, she said, let me think of her name...then it came to her. Brace yourself Dod, an insult was hurled like no other I had received (including when Mr. Perry told an entire class I was cruel to a fellow student on HTN). She smiled at me all proud and told me I reminded her of Charlene from Designing Women. Really. Really??? Being full of southern manners on the outside, I graciously smiled and thanked her after confirming with "the big tall one with blonde hair right?" Yep, that was the one. I of course had a mini meltdown with my fellow adult roommates that evening at our shared apartment in Greenville (my vacation home for the year during the week for school). They had to spend several hours telling me no, I didn't look like Charlene, but they also found the entire incident full of humor. Since you know I am ridiculously vain, I stared at myself in the cheap wal-mart vacation home/cheap apartment mirror trying to tell myself that my excessively dyed blonde hair must have been why she said that. Yeah, and my ridiculous height, and probably my twangy accent, which Seth calls "redneck valley-girl". I guess I am pretty much a shoe-in for Charlene. I do not say this with pride or excitement at the prospect of playing her in a resurrection of Designing Women (even though my secret dream is to be a soap opera actress!!).
Well, I guess Charlene is better than Barbara Jean from the Reba McIntire show. I have always been concerned that someone would tell me I looked like her. I ask you Dod, have you ever had an unfortunate comparison to a celeb? This may have happened to you since you live in California...Oh I hope so (for my sake to laugh at) but hopefully for you this has not happened. I guarantee no one compared you with Charlene. I am going to color my hair back to my original mousy brown to avoid future "incidents."
Love you from NC,
Burl
