No matter what success I've enjoyed with Airborne, no matter what I do for the community, no matter how prolifically I blog, my time running Just For Laughs has left an indelible imprint on my "Personal Brand" (as Mitch Joel would call it). Despite the fact that I left the event eight years ago, people still stop me in airports, in shopping malls or on busy streets and ask me to "say something funny" or--worse still--regale me with a joke...or eight.
However, after running into author Naomi Klein in the airport yesterday, I realize life could be much worse.
On the road plugging her new book "The Shock Doctrine," the brainy agent provocateur is best known for her rabble-rousing tome "No Logo," which brings me--at long last!--to the point of this post.
As she passed by the check-in gate, one well-dressed woman turned to her equally well-dressed friend and sniffed:
"Psst...look. That's Naomi Klein, the writer.
No Logo? Yeah right, just check out her jeans!"
Suddenly, telling jokes doesn't seem all that bad...