The Oprah Finale Taping + An Unexpected Today Show Interview = one of the most memorable days of my life

the last couple of days have been an absolute whirlwind- to say the very least.

so there i was, going about my usual sunday routine, when out of the clear blue i got an email from the oprah show indicating that i was selected to be part of a one-time Standing Room Only audience for the taping of her final show to air on Wednesday, May 25!!

um. i was shellshocked (under-statement) because i have no idea how/why they got my name. well, whatever, no time to QUESTION IT. i got right on replying exactly 52 minutes after receiving the initial email and was confirmed to be on the show shortly thereafter.

i had no idea WHAT to expect, but i was picturing it to somewhat resemble the chaos that can only have been like my experience at the Oprah show when she shut down michigan avenue (refer to http://maliyacular.blogspot.com/2009/10/oprah-gone-ghetto-fabulous-just.html for... well, an experience like no other, if you will).

i was SO pleasantly surprised to realize that the crowds standing in line this morning were SO THE OPPOSITE. everyone was so HAPPY and so NICE and just so GRATEFUL TO BE THERE! it can only be described as a delightful start to the day, really.

and you better believe that there were all KINDS of newscamera crews ready and waiting to document the spectacle that could only be oprah's final taping. so there were all these ladies being interviewed and i was impatiently standing there, waiting for MY turn to be interviewed (love that camera, you know it! hahahaha). well, whatever- i ended up just pretty much asking one of the roving reporters if she needed someone to interview and she said yes! i was delighted to share my wisdom/insight/excitement/etc etc with the world. HA. so there i was, trying to exude my overexcitement (today would be like me on a normal day x 100) in a slightly contained fashion (composure is my middle name)...

at the end of the interview, i asked who the reporter was with. she gave me a slightly funny look (i dont know, was i supposed to know her?) and she was like "nbc" and i was like "oh! okay" and she gave me another slightly questioning look before she clarified "we're with the today show".

and. well, i think someone picked my jaw up off the ground at that point.

of course the one reporter that i decide to accost isn't one of the local news stations... it just happens to be the TODAY SHOW!!! weeeelkjdsfl! i was giddy. but MAN, that camera is DECEIVING! you really DO feel like you are just having a simple one-on-one chat with the reporter... when in fact, your footage may be blasted for all the world to SEE!!!

so, we finally get into the oprah studio and GOD the EXCITEMENT WAS RIDICULOUS!! i couldnt STAND IT!!! and Standing Room Only turned out to be PRETTY DAMN SOLID!!!! we were in this balcony-type area that had been opened up to allow some more of oprah's fans into the studio for her last taping EVER. anyway, so we were all standing like in the top corner, looking down on oprah's stage. (im the indian girl wearing a springtime green dress! find me on tv!)

it. was. phenom.

and oprah. MY GOD. she looks unreal. she looks EXACTLY like she does on TV (even better than on TV, in fact!) and her last show was done with such grace and poise... everything that would emblemize The Oprah herself. i dont want to go into too much detail, because im STILL not sure what im allowed to publicly say versus not before it airs tomorrow, but i was so happy just to be in the presence of such GREATNESS. un-believable.

also in the audience were gayle, stedman, maria shriver, bob greene, and tyler perry (among others)!

well, okay, so then we all leave the taping (it was REALLY sad, but i have to say, a bit anti-climactic), and there are all KINDS of reporters ready and waiting. and so, who do i run into but my new best friend, that today show correspondent?!?!?! it was so funny, she actually came up and was like "hey! remember me?!" and i was like "UMM... i cant believe you remember ME!" hahahah. anyway, so we chat informally for a little bit, and it turns out her name is Mara Schiavocampo. per googling her a bit later i realize... yeah, she's like an emmy award winning journalist.

awesome, christie. way to do your research and all that. sigh.

so ANYWAY, she totally asked for me to do a follow up interview to the show's taping and ummmm... you think you have to tell me TWICE?! i even jokingly mentioned how much i LOVE that CAMERA! hahahaha. shameless, i know. but again, since i didnt really know how much of the oprah taping should remain confidential since it was so hyped up as being a huge secret, i feel like i came across as rather vague and not super coherent. oprah privacy supporter to the very end. big fat SIGH.

anyway, mara was SO nice so im happy i got to meet her, albeit rather briefly. but then it was funny, because i was walking down the sidewalk and of course, i see another reporter and i shamelessly bound on up and am like "oh! do you need people to interview??" and he was like "yeah! but we need to interview this lady first, so just hang tight"... so i hung tight for like two minutes, after which i tactfully pulled one of them aside and was like "excuse me, who are you with?" and they were like "inside edition". and... well, after that, i just flounced off. hahaha. such a tv snob, i KNOW. but in my DEFENSE, i was more concerned about how they would potentially "edit" my interview to their liking... whereas with the today show, i feel a bit more comfortable with their "editing" tactics... hello, if you cant trust people like meredith vieira and matt lauer, who CAN you trust?? hahaha

so. in conclusion. another day for the books, my friends. i canNOT believe that today actually happened. there really is something to be said about karmic forces, because my ability to FINALLY get tickets to the oprah show (her LAST SHOW, no doubt) was nothing but good luck... no, scratch that... good KARMA just coming right back full circle (learned that from the oprah herself, just today!).

thank you, oprah! thank you, mara schiavocampo!! thank you, thank you, thank you for making this one of the most memorable days ever!

hmm. after all this, watch me not be on tv at ALL tomorrow. haha. sigh. oh well. it's all about the experience, right? well...