One of our stops was an antique mall in Wedowee, Alabama. Elizabeth had been channeling her inner Ruth and searching for an opportunity to go antique shopping each day of the road trip. She finally found it on the last day, making a quick turn into the driveway when the shop appeared. It turned out to be a great stop, as the mall not only sold antiques but also housed a Bigfoot museum.
The museum was small, fitting everything into a twelve-by-twelve space, but it was clearly important to the owner, with signs inside and outside referencing Bigfoot. Over the three days, every gas station stop seemed to have Bigfoot t-shirts for sale, and this place was no different.
Elizabeth bought several items, not t-shirts but other treasures, including a large eclectic mirror for her guest room in San Diego. The mirror was crafted from a wooden chairback, a set of deer antlers, a wooden shelf, and a section of a wooden yardstick. It’s not my style, but since I wasn’t buying it, that didn’t matter. I’m not sure Ruth would have bought it either, but she would have appreciated its unique design. Elizabeth even got a discount because the creator happened to be in the shop at the time.
As Elizabeth was checking out, a conversation about the museum began. The banter circled around to the television show, Finding Bigfoot. If you’ve never heard of the show, I can tell you that it ran from 2011 to 2017, and even though they never caught a squatch on camera, the show kept viewers coming back. There were four main characters searching for the elusive beast.
At the heart of it all was James “Bobo” Fay, the show’s gentle giant. He was a big guy with long hair, Bigfoot T‑shirts, and an over-the-top squatch call. When the antique mall owner learned that Elizabeth knew Bobo, he was stunned. “If you know Bobo, you’re the closest thing to a celebrity I’ve ever met. What an honor.”
After a brief chat, the shop owner asked if she could get him an autographed photo or two. “I’ll pay for the postage. It would put our little museum on the map.”
Elizabeth agreed and went a step further by trying to call Bobo so the owner could speak to him. The man’s excitement was through the roof. He felt like he was in the presence of greatness. Unfortunately, poor cell service stopped the call, but BZ left with his business card and promised to reach out to Bobo. She told him that he should check his mail. “He’ll send you something.”
I doubt BZ mentioned to him that Bobo attended her wedding, or that he’s crashed on her couch in San Diego a couple of times, but he did and he has.
I never mentioned that David and I played cornhole with Bobo on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean the day after the wedding, or that the three of us rode out an earthquake together just after we finished playing on April 4, 2010. But we did.
And I didn’t tell him that the show, Finding Bigfoot, premiered thirteen months later on my birthday, May 29th, in 2011, but it did.
I know she didn’t tell him that she and Sutton went squatching with him as a part of their honeymoon. But that’s true too.
In the end, two people made one another’s day. BZ channeled her inner Ruth, made a few purchases including her treasured mirror, and the shop owner found himself in the presence of greatness.
I got to witness it all, so everybody won.
TBC