The Sighting

I think I had an out of blog experience yesterday, and there was a certain amount of coincidence involved. I was even more late than usual. It was Monday, after all, so allowances must be made. I stepped off the tube at Waterloo, intent only on not walking into any of the twits who were blocking the exit pathway. On a side note, why do people stand pressed up against the doors as they wait for them to open? There are people in the train who are waiting to get out; it’s far easier for everyone if you stand back and let them get through first, so why the hell do they insist on trying to be the first into an emptying train? Is it that they’re worried the people who wave the little plastic paddle and declare the train “ready to depart” aren’t going to notice the fifteen people clustered around the door nearest the entrance to the platform, through the yards of empty space further down where two sensible people have already boarded? So as I gracefully pirouetted my way through the ravening hordes like a rhinoceros on the charge, I spotted a vaguely familiar face.

Let me be clear here. I’m not certain that the person I saw was the person I thought it was. There was a resemblance to the photo of what I can only assume is him at the top of his blog, sure. But it was only a glimpse, we were both hurrying, and – have I missed any possible caveats, just in case it wasn’t him? Add them here if I have. I think I had a glimpse of none other than blogger-extraordinaire, Mr London Street.

I’ve never knowingly thought I saw a fellow blogger before. I’m sure, given the vast numbers of them out there, that I’ve passed them all unknowing. And I know, thanks to the lovely Veronica Lake, that I won’t be recognised myself. That and the fact that I have an audience of 5, two of whom I knew before they started reading. But to even think I saw someone I only know from their writing, well it was almost like glimpsing a celebrity. I pretend to be all cool about it – I’m not into celeb worship, I don’t read OK or any of those, I figure they’re just people – but whenever I glimpse someone whose work I’ve admired, whether they be an actor (Jude Law, Sainsburys, Finchley Rd, late last year; Damian Lewis, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, earlier this month) or a writer (well, I’ve never seen any of them in the flesh, to be honest, but I would love to), it gives a little buzz. It’s interesting to compare the reality with the image, if nothing else.

So it was even more interesting that, later the same day, MLS came out with this post, about meeting other bloggers in person. He provided elegant character sketches that give a sense of the people he writes about. I’d love to be able to, but all I can offer is that, if it was actually him, he wasn’t shoving his way into the train before I was out of it – high commendation indeed. It was just the briefest flash of possible recognition. And, in my defence, if it’s not him that I saw, well, his profile pic is quite small. And MLS? If it wasn’t you, I offer a response to this: it’s not the beard, it’s because you have a doppelganger out there somewhere.