Mike Farrell Makes My Day. . .AGAIN!

Guess who just got email from Mike Farrell again.  ME, la la la!

You see that part at the end where he says it was a pleasure to meet me and see my “lovely face”?  That’s Mike Farrell in a nutshell to me.  That’s just a sweet thing to say, Mr. Farrell, and it wasn’t even necessary — it was just sweet.   If I hadn’t been sitting down when I read it, I woulda swooned.

Thank you for all your kind words both in emails and in person.  You’re an amazing, inspiring human being, Mr. Farrell, as well as an actor of many talents, and getting to tell you that in person last month was one of the true highlights of my life.

(For those of you who are new readers, you can catch up on the Mike Farrell Saga du Awesomme here:  http://megwood.wordpress.com/category/mike-farrell/.  Watch for an updated write-up on him, focusing more on his advocacy work and his two memoirs, coming to the Boyfriend of the Week site this August.)

Thanks for stopping by the book event.

Sorry it’s taken so long for me to say that, but I’ve been carrying around the lovely piece you handed me and finally had a chance to sit down and read it. Takes me back.

I’m flattered, again, at all the nice things you said and delighted that you took the time to stop by and say hello. It was a pleasure to meet you and see your lovely face.

Thanks again. Take care.

Mike Farrell

Of Mule, Man, Mike, and Meg.

Hey, everybody!  How was your weekend?  It was good?  Oh good, glad to hear it.

I’m sorry, what was that?  Oh, you ask how MY weekend was?  Well, to be honest, my weekend. . .

KICKED ASS!

Guess who I met yesterday?

Yep, that’s me and MIKE “The Beej” FARRELL!!

Mr. Farrell was in town yesterday doing a book reading for his new memoir, Of Mule and Man, which is about a cross-country road trip he took a couple of years ago while on a book tour for his 2007 memoir, Just Call Me Mike: A Journey to Actor and Activist.   The book tour featured dozens of stops, each sponsored by an advocacy organization for human rights, and Mike did the 8000+ mile road trip alone — just him and a rented Prius, a car he nicknamed the Mule for it’s combination of  hybriditude and stubbornness.   As with the man himself, the book features an engaging, irresistible amalgam of comedy and seriousness, a combination that makes Mike Farrell the kind of  progressive thinker I think it’s easy for all sides to listen to, interact with, and learn from.  He’s a gentle soul with emphatic, passionate beliefs — a rather delicious and deadly combination.

The reading itself was amazing — he didn’t actually read from the book at all, but instead told us a few funny stories about his trip and then said he mostly wanted to hang out and chat.  So, that’s what we did!  He encouraged us to ask him anything, and our reward was getting to listen to him talk about his incredible advocacy work (special focus on anti-death penalty activism — yay, Mike!), as well as a few stories about M*A*S*H and his experiences as an actor in general.  Both of his books talk a lot about his life as an activist, if you’d like to learn more, and you can also read journals from his trips to places like Rwanda, Somalia, Bosnia, and other war-torn places on his web site, Mike Farrell Online.

After it was over, we each got a few minutes of one-on-one time with him while he signed our books, and I got to tell him face-to-face how much I respected him and how grateful I was to him and his co-stars for the impact that M*A*S*H had on me as a kid.   Being able to tell him that in person was one of the high points of my life, I kid you not.  Even better:  he seemed genuinely pleased to hear it, and was more than happy to pose afterward for the above photograph as well.

Thank you, Mr. Farrell, for being so gracious and accessible to us all yesterday, and for taking the time to talk to us about the things you are so passionate about.  You’re an inspiration.

Additional thanks go to my friend BCL, because if you hadn’t emailed me about Farrell’s reading yesterday, I would’ve MISSED IT, which would’ve been a goddamn crime.

And, of course, gratitude size XXL to my husband, Mr. Meg, whose store of patience appears to be infinite.

Great frakkin’ weekend all around, my peoples.  Might even have been one of the best.

Mike Farrell’s Email(s) — My Gift to You!

Mike wrote back to say it was a-okay by him if I shared his messages (see yesterday’s post for the backstory on this), so here’s what he sent me, along with my reply, along with his reply.  Thanks again, Mike!  I’ll be tuning in to see your last hurrah this Sunday on Desperate Housewives for sure!

Subject:  Thanks…

… and Happy New Year!

Hi Meg (if you’re still there doing this) -

I just happened on a column you wrote about 6 years (or thereabouts)  ago, naming me as your “Boyfriend of the Week.” I have to tell you, I  was knocked out! I’m only sorry it took me 6 years (or thereabouts) to find out about it.

You’re very sweet to have done that – and I like a lot of what you had to say. Sorry about your not getting an invitation to the 63rd birthday party, but there wasn’t one.

Anyway, you’re a doll. Thanks for including me in the ranks of the young(er), buff(er) types.

Love,
Mike Farrell

Happy New Year to you as well!  It’s wonderful to hear from you, and I’m thrilled to know you read the write-up and enjoyed it!  I very much enjoyed seeing you on “Desperate Housewives” in 2007, by the way — hope you’re thinking about another regular TV gig soon, because even though cable TV still shows 400 episodes of MASH a day, I still miss having you around!

Happy 63rd birthday, a few years late! 

p.s. Mike, do you mind if I share your message with my readers? 

–Meg

Thanks again. What is likely to be my last outing on “DH” will be on Sunday night, from what I understand.

There’s so much crap out there that it’s hard to be excited about
getting involved in TV again, but every once in a while something comes along that means something, or, as in the case of “DH,” is just fun.

And no, thanks for asking. I don’t mind if you share the message.

Best,
Mike Farrell

Again, I say with the W00T!

2008′s Lookin’ Pretty Good So Far. . .

Happy New Year, everybody! 

I spent January 1st completely offline — my New Year’s Resolution for 2008 was to spend at least one day every year without checking email, and I wanted to get that day over with as soon as possible so life could get back to normal, ha ha. 

But guess what I missed out on by never logging on yesterday?!  An email from none other than ex-Boyfriend of the Week Mike Farrell (better known to most as B.J. Hunnicut from M*A*S*H)!  I spent all day yesterday watching the boob tube and feeling decidedly unloved, as my husband spent hours ON HIS DAY OFF talking on the phone with copy editors, trying to finalize layout and whatnot for his story on today’s front page (he’s a reporter, see?). 

Unloved, said I — while all the while, an email was waiting for me in my inbox from B.J. Hunnicut!  As a great friend of mine likes to exclaim, “Oh, the humanity!”

I’m waiting for Mike’s permission to post his entire message here for you guys to read, but until I get that, I’ll just tell you that it’s extremely intelligent, sweet, and funny, and it was obvious from his message that he’d both read and really enjoyed my old write-up about him (it’s a six year-old write-up, which just goes to show you this is a man who doesn’t do a lot of ego surfing — good on ya, Mike). 

He apologized for not sending me the requested invite to his 63rd birthday party, and signed his message, “Love, Mike.” 

LOVE, MIKE! 

I had a brief moment of irrationality where it occurred to me it might be really cool to get “Love, Mike” tattooed backwards on my forehead, so I could be reminded of his affections every time I looked in the mirror.  But then reason took over, and instead, I think someone needs to make me a tee-shirt.  Volunteers, hut!

If you have a few minutes today, be sure to check out Mike Farrell Online, his official web site — http://www.mikefarrell.org/ (when you see his home page photo, you’ll understand why I said in my original write-up that his smile lights up both his face and my own — such a sweet face!). 

And thanks again, Beej!   2008′s sure shapin’ up to be a bee-you-tee-ful year.