I Spotted My Teenage Crush

When I was in high school, the girls were crushing on the guys from the cast of "Beverly Hills 90210". Not me. I had a crush on Reggie Miller, the legendary basketball player who spent his 18-year NBA career with the Indiana Pacers. The crush lasted for about a year or so, then I moved on. I would see Reggie during basketball games on TV, mostly when his team played against the Lakers. Then he became a TNT commentator after his retirement in 2005, and to this day, I still see him on TNT.

Well, being that this is LA, you never know who you'll run into once you leave the confines of your home. When I was out and about running errands yesterday, Neiman Marcus happened to be very close by (yes, bad bad; even worse, I have a potential purchase on hold), so I stopped in to talk with my favorite NM sales associate. On my behalf, he called the store manager. As he was on the phone with the manager, I stood next to him and suddenly noticed a blonde woman trailed by a very tall lanky African-American man wearing a long-sleeved shirt and a baseball cap. Again, being that this is LA, it's not unusual to see someone from TV or the movies around. Often, I think to myself, "I know that person. He or she looks very familiar", but unless the celebrity is on the A-list or in all the magazines, I don't know who they are in the flesh. But this time, I knew exactly who it was! The man looked up to see my sales associate, who said, "What's up, Reggie?". I knew it! Reggie Miller in the flesh! I debated stepping in to speak with him for a second, but realized that celebrities, when out shopping, generally like to be left alone. The couple looked over the Christian Louboutin shoes briefly, and I noticed Reggie hold up the nude Bananas to his female companion, in a manner depicting he was suggesting she try them. She must have said no because Reggie put them back down.

As I was about to leave, I confirmed with my sales associate that the man was indeed Reggie Miller. He also informed me that he assisted Reggie in the past, as well as his female companion.

I was just a tiny bit excited to see him, but nowhere near as much as I would have been if this were 15 years ago (OMG...it's really been that long since I was in high school!).