Pirate meets Pirate at Book Expo America 2008

At the 2008 Book Expo America in Los Angeles last week, we debuted our new children’s picture book - A Pirates Quest (for his family heirloom peg leg).  The response was great. At the book show, I was dressed as the pirate from the story and had my guitar ready so that I could serenade innocent people passing by.  The song was a great way to draw people into our booth and introduce them to the new book.   I probably sang the song over a hundred times . . .

And at one point, I even met a gentleman who naturally looked so much like a pirate that I had to ask him about it.  His sideburns were white and bushy.  The lines in his weathered face told a tale of the sea.  And when he smiled, his teeth, or lack thereof, said it all…this man was a modern day pirate!  He told me he gets hired as a pirate for lots of TV shows and commercials, when he’s not busy being a nurse.

I am not lucky enough to naturally look like a pirate, so I have to wear a wig and fake beard.  I’ve had a few people tell me that I should actually grow my hair out and dye it red, to look more like the pirate all the time.  Hmmm, I guess my natural dirty blond color isn’t quite as exciting.  But if I did dye my  hair red, at least I would look more like my sister Laura. -- Rob