My very brief Betty White story

The Monterey Peninsula lost three of our resident celebrities in the past month, Michael Nesmith, John Madden, and Betty White. I have no stories to tell about the first two, but I do have a very brief one involving Betty White.

A few decades ago my mother and sister Liz were visiting from Oregon. We were having lunch at The Thunderbird, a bookstore/restaurant just outside Carmel. Quite suddenly Betty White came around the corner and started browsing the bookshelves next to our table. Liz's jaw dropped. My mother had a puzzled look on her face. Once Betty White had moved out of earshot I asked my mom if she knew who that was. She said "No." When I told her it was Betty White she said "Oh, I thought she looked familiar. But I thought she was someone I knew when we lived here and I wondered if I should say something to her." That wasn't too far fetched because she would occasionally run into old friends on her frequent visits.

Even though Betty White was a Carmel area resident that was the only time I ever saw her in person.