Bethenny Frankel Skinnygirl Margatria

It was a dark and stormy night. The wind howled with nefarious intend.  Cthulhu lurked in every shadowed doorstep as lightning slashed at them silently.  Thunder roared as blood was shed…

Overly dramatic?

This is another instance of not really knowing whose autograph I was getting.  I didn’t have a clue about Bethenny Frankel.  I looked her up on Google and saw that she was a reality housewife and I was going to blow it off.  Then I saw that she was cute and I thought again.

Based on the turn out that Marisa Miller had at a liquor store I figured I didn’t need to show up early. Plus it was pouring cats and dogs and I was hoping for the rain to abate.

The signing started at 4PM and I got there about 4:45PM and the line OUTSIDE the liquor store was 200 or so deep.  That’s 200 deep in a down pour with the rain slashing sideways from the wind. Lightning and thunder thrilled the crowds as they worried about being electrocuted while standing in ankle deep puddles.

I, like a true gentleman, found a great parking spot stayed in my comfy car and listened to the radio as I watched the parade of drenched dresses march past me.  Women were sharing umbrellas or jackets or trash bags.  They stood in the rain (at least the temp was in the mid 70’s) with their designer shoes and handbags. Their pretty outfits and hairdos squashed in the rain. After waiting another 30 minutes the rain stopped to a mild haphazard drop and I boldly got out of my car in the nice parking space and walked with umbrella in hand to the end of the line.  Which, at this point, was STILL 200 people deep.

I chattered with the lady next to me. She feared her cork wedge shoes (very stylish mind you) would soak up the water in the puddles and they would be too heavy to walk in.  Trying hard not to laugh, I suggested she walk around the puddles and small lakes in the parking lot. If she did soak up the puddles at least my feet would be dry.

While the line moved constantly, I was in line for another 30 minutes before getting inside the store where I got to buy my Skinnygirl Margertia bottle for Bethenny Frankel to sign.

I was clueless about this signing.  Apparently Bethenny Facebookedand Tweated  this event and her army of followers decided to brave the weather to see her. Her Facebook campaign worked. Bethenny knows her audience. The message was sent out 2 days before the event and it was enough time to generate this amount of interesting in the pouring rain. It was estimated a 1000 fans showed up. Amazing.

Once inside the liquor store the army’s compacts, makeup, lip glosss, etc  popped out of their Louis Vuitton bags instantly.  The faces were repaired before they even bothered to buy their Skinnygirl bottles.

Once my bottle was bought the line moved faster.

I clicked a quick photo while I was moving. I had my bottle out and offered it to Bethenny who was all smiles and seemed very friendly. She was pretty.  She looked me directly in the eyes and thanked me for being there and I said thank you and moved off to the side like flotsam in an eddy. A small group of people were hanging on against the flow of the traffic exiting the building to get a last look.

People were posing with Bethenny’s cardboard cutout. They were snapping pictures of the advertising.  The current swept them past Bethenny too fast and they needed just a few more seconds to digest the event.

I took a few moments to look around while still amazed at the amount of people that turned out for this rain drenched event.

AH