SNL Sarah

Tonight Sarah Palin performed in the opening skit for Saturday Night Live. I haven't watched the show since college, but I wanted to see how she'd do instead of taking the word of the media tomorrow, so we tuned in as a family (I figured that Sarah's segment wouldn't be risque).
Alec Baldwin was with her playing an actor who is complaining about a conservative apppearing on SNL, who supposedly didn't realize it was really Sarah. She suprised him by saying she WAS Sarah Palin, and shaking his hand with a smile. Then she let him have it. She said, "Stephen was always my favorite Baldwin brother".
This was a perfect characterization of Sarah, charming and tough by turns.
I laughed harder because it reminded me of an incident last Labor Day Weekend, when my family was camping in Cedar Point, near East Hampton. We attended Mass on Sunday at Alec Baldwin's parish, Holy Rosary, discovering this when he arrived late, in shorts, attracting a lot of attention. He waved to his fans, and the Mass resumed. Afterwards, Alec stood with the two priests in the reception line, shaking hands. I waited for the priests to put him in this place, and realized with some dismay, that this was East Hampton, where celebrities rule.
I was irritated by his performance, and the crowd of older women surrounding him, (he is a notorious liberal and an abusive critic of some of my favorite Fox news commentators, this predisposed me to be annoyed) so I refused to joining the adoring throng. Besides, younger women were doing the same thing, passing him by. While we were crossing the street to the parking lot, I shot over my shoulder to my daughter but hoping to dig him, "his brother's a better actor anyway!"
Later, walking on the beach, I recriminated myself thinking, 'he must be awfully lonely coming to Mass to find some attention. He has alienated his ex-wife, his daughter, and half of the American public, maybe I could have shown some charity and invited him to a cook out at our campsite'.
Too late. I had found the opportunity to get in a good line irresistable.
So did Sarah!