Do you ever have one of those blah kinda days where it’s all dreary and drizzly outside and you don’t really feel bad, but then you don’t really feel good either, then something happens. . . someone smiles at you, someone sends you flowers, someone sends you an email telling you that “You’re a Winner”. Yeah, that happened to me. Not the flowers part. But my boss smiled at me (he smiles a lot). AND I got an email telling me that “You’re a Winner”!! That’s right. Instantly perked me right up. Let me tell you.

I don’t know how I missed this since I read Southern Plate religiously! But I won! I won! I was giggling around my office like I just won the Lottery. I’m even fairly certain that I was more tickled than when I actually won a car on The Price Is Right. I was just stone-cold mortified when I was on that show.

Yep – I won a car on The Price Is Right. . . way back in 1988. I was pretty excited, but I didn’t run ‘on down’ and I didn’t kiss Bob Barker either. I was in SHOCK. Everything happened in slow motion.

I was living in San Diego at the time while my then-husband was stationed at Miramar.  His grandfather, who LOVED The Price is Right, would come visit us about twice a year.  One day, I saw a flyer on base for a bustrip to Los Angeles for a taping of the show.  I thought that it would be a great idea if I went to see how to get there and what all was involved and when Papap came out to visit, I could take him to see the show.  Brilliant!  Except that I couldn’t find anybody that would go with me.  Everybody that I knew thought games shows were lame.  So I went by myself. . . as an observer. 
 
My then-husband had to ask for the afternoon off work to watch the boys who were only 2 and 3 years old.  His commander said, “That’s the best excuse I’ve ever heard for an afternoon off.  I’d best see her on the show if I’m supposed to believe you.”  So Ex came home and told me that I HAD to get picked to prove that his excuse for taking off was legit.  I told him that I didn’t want to get picked, that I was just going to watch.
 
So I got on the bus.  We got there about 1pm, got our tickets (they’re first-come first-serve) and got in line.  Luckily, since Southern California has such beautiful weather year-round, it wasn’t bad standing outside all day.  While we’re waiting in line, I was making friends with people from my bus and the busload of college kids behind us.  And everybody was talking about what they wanted to win.  Me – I didn’t want to win anything.  I was just there to watch.  Well, they started letting us in, but on the way in, you had to go through this little 30 second interview process.  There was a man and a lady with a clipboard making notes and asking everybody different questions like “Where are you from?” and “What do you do?” and such as that.  Some people were nervous, but I wasn’t.  I wasn’t trying to get on, so I was as comfortable as could be talking to them. [I had heard that they liked people who were from out of town, folks with funny names or different accents]  I don’t really remember what they asked me, but I remember that they didn’t ask me where my accent was from and as the lady was shewing me away, I said, “You didn’t even ask me where I was from. . .”  She said, “I didn’t have to.”  Hmmm.  I guess a Southern accent is a Southern accent.  Anyway, we went in and got our seats.  Then the same lady with the clipboard went up on stage and was looking around and making more notes.  They were figuring out who they were going to call down.
 
The announcer then came out and got the crowd all geared up.  He told us what to expect and when to yell and when to clap and all that jazz. . . and he was funny like a comedian.  Then it was showtime.  Bob Barker came out and they started calling folks to “come on down”.  Well, MY name was the second one called.  I just sat there for a minute saying “but I don’t WANT to go on down.”  The people next to me pushed me up and at this point the camera was on ME and you can clearly see my mouth say “Oh shit!!”  And just for the record, I didn’t go screaming down the aisle like some crazy freak.  I was in too much shock.  I didn’t want to ‘come on down’.
 
The first item up for bid was a stereo.  I didn’t get that.  But the second thing up for bid was a little two-seater sailboat.  And I got it!  Oh shit again!!!  I had to go up on the stage.  Now let me tell you – I was scared as HELL!  There 300 people in the audience and there were cameras and cords EVERYWHERE and I just knew that I was going to trip and fall.  {Oh – I didn’t kiss the old geazer either}  Anyway, Bob leans down and says in a mock Southern accent “Do you want to win somethin’ puurrtty?”  Me – “Sure”  Bob – “Well how about a NEW CAR!!!!!”  More holy crapping goin’ on!!!  It was a yellow 1988 Pontiac Fiero Formula and it was the Five Price Tag game.  Then Janice, one of the models (we were on a firstname basis by now), brought out four items with prices in front of them and I had to guess whether the prices were true or false.  And ever how many prices I got right was how many choices I would have of the five price tags on the car.  I guessed True – True – True – False and I got them ALL right.  Now at this point, I was thinking to myself “You’ve got four out of five chances to win this car.  If you lose, you deserve to lose.”  Well . . . . I got it right on my first guess!!  Bob Barker said, “YOU are a player!”  Personally, I don’t remember him saying anything, but I saw it when it came on TV.  And Janice wisked me away to sign a whole bunch of papers.
 
Well, then they told me I had to go back up on stage to spin the wheel.  WHAT??!!! At that point, God knew that my heart couldn’t take much more excitement, so I didn’t win that.  Thank goodness.  I’d never been so excited to lose something in all my life.  But I seriously just couldn’t take anymore.
 
Then we rode the bus home and I was the hit of the night.  Everybody on the bus was so excited for me.  When I got home, it was about midnight and my husband was in the bed.  I woke him up and the first thing he said was “Did you at least get picked?”  I said, “Yeah and I won a car.”  He sat up and said, “Really. . . you got picked?”  Me – “Yeah and I won a car!”  He – “You REALLY got picked.”  Me – “YES and I WON A f***ing CAR!!”  Finally it registered.  He – “Holy crap!!”  Me – “I KNOW!!!!”  I was pinging off the walls.  It was crazy!!!  At least he had his evidence that his excuse was real.
 
That was February 9, 1988 and the air date was March 22.  Everybody in the family had their VCRs set to record it.  My mom’s favorite part. . . as it was going to commercial after I’d won the car, it showed a freeze-frame of my shocked expression and my mouth gaping wide open.  Niiiiiice.  For all of America to see.
 
The weird thing was later that summer, we were all in the backyard and Ex asked me to go to the garage for something and as I was walking through the kitchen, I heard on the TV, “My name!  Come on down!!!”  It was a rerun!!  Who knew!  So we stopped what we were doing and watched it again.  It wasn’t like we hadn’t watched it 10 times already.  But for a moment in time, I was a celebrity.
 
And yesterday, I was just as excited to win the Southern Plate cookbook. . . and especially the apron. Southern Plate’s mama made it.