I know it’s Mad Fat Friday and you’re expecting some Ace Jones insanity right about now, but please allow me to take a minute and ramble about my visit to Thacker Mountain Radio. Because it was awesome.

You know in Dirty Dancing when Baby was about to do that last dance with Johnny Castle and the music starts: “Now I’ve…  had…  the time of my life…” -yeah that was me last night at the Thacker Mountain Radio Show at Off-Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi. Only, thank goodness, I didn’t have to get a running go and be hoisted into the air by some poor unlucky sap. (Please excuse me for a moment while I LOL at that thought). Seriously though, I did have the time of my life and if you’re ever in Oxford on a Thursday evening, I highly recommend stopping by Off-Square Books and checking out the Thacker Mountain Radio show which is hosted by the charming, charismatic, and very funny Jim Dees.

I met Jim a few minutes before the show and  was completely star-struck because all I could think was, “Does David Letterman have a younger brother?” As a matter of fact, he reminded me so much of David Letterman, not just in looks but also demeanor, that I could hardly assemble a coherent sentence (not to mention that I was already a nervous wreck about doing a live and unscripted radio show). So, yeah, he thinks I’m an idiot now, but that’s okay. He was very nice, a fantastic host, and took great pleasure in describing Ace Jones as a “plus-sized spit fire”-which was hilarious.

So there I was, nervous as a whore in church and anxiously awaiting my fourteen minutes of fame when then the music started. I must say that the Yalobushwhackers did much to calm my nerves because they were so amazingly talented, entertaining, and cool that I was thoroughly distracted from my incessant worrying about making a complete and total fool of myself. So that was great! I did manage to get back into a full-fledged state of panic by the time I stepped up to the podium, but I really appreciated the break there for a minute. And when it was all said and done, all went well. At least I think it did.  I rustled up a few laughs and then joked about dropping some Eminem lyrics on that super cool radio mic (there was a disco ball, so the temptation was great). What I’m trying to tell you is that I had a freakin’ blast up there running my mouth. (Surprised? I know! I was too!) And when my fourteen minutes of fame was over, I returned to my seat where I very much enjoyed the musical guest for the night, The Eric Deaton Trio, whose two CDs Gonna Be Trouble Here and Smile at Trouble I also highly recommend.

The best part came when seven o’clock rolled around and I got to do one of my most favorite things in the whole wide world -meet and greet folks and sign some books! So you see, I wasn’t kidding. It was awesome! Cue to music! Now I’ve….. had….. the time of my life….. and I owe it all to Off-Square Books, Thacker Mountain Radio, and all the people who read my crazy books and make stuff like this possible. So what I need to do right now is say Thanks! THANK YOU! and Muchas Gracias!

Check it out: http://thackermountain.com/

And remember:

“Nobody puts Baby in a corner!”

 Yeah, I know that has nothing to do with anything whatsoever, but I can’t bring up Dirty Dancing and not throw that in.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Happily Ever Madder coming November 6, 2012!