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Shaun’s save me the opportunity I needed to slip out of the car and start wors are one of the few ti Berkeley Police in riot gear around the edge of the crowd as I made my way toward the thinner concentration of bodies They aiting for so There’s only been one incident where an outbreak started fro of licensed reporters, and it happened when a nervous celebrity—the real sort, a TV sitcom star, not one of the ones who built theun out of her purse, and started shooting The jury found the TV star, not the paparazzi, at fault for the outbreak that followed

One of the Newsies near the police offeredno move to draw attention to my position I nodded back, relieved by his discretion He was just crowd-surfing, but it was a nice thing to do I made a note of his face: If his site put in for an interview, I’d grant it

Irwins get crowd-comfortable the easy way: When you live in the hope that an outbreak will happen where you can observe it, you don’t worry about avoiding theo one of two directions: Some avoid crowds like everybody else Others refuse to acknowledge that they could possibly get infected when they haven’t put it in the script and they go gaily bouncing hither and yon, ignoring the danger Newsies tend to be more cautious because we knohat could happen if we’re not Unfortunately, the demands of our job make it hard for us to be total hermits, and so even those of us who don’t need the additional income or exposure froetting accusto surrounded by other bodies The paparazzi flocks are our version of the obstacle course Stand in theht be ready for real field work

My “skirt the crowd and keep your eyes on the door” technique see louder,for me Besides, I have a well-established—and well-deserved—reputation for being the sort of interviealks away leaving you with nothing you can use as a front-page quote or saleable sound byte It’s hard to interview someone who refuses to talk to you

Ten feet to the door Nine Eight Seven

“—and this isto be the head of Senator Ryht htinto ritted teeth, she said, “You owe me this”

“Got it,” I said, out of the corner of ured out early what our purpose was in our parents’ lives When your classht be exposed to unknown individuals, while your parents are constantly proposing wild adventures in the outside world, you get the idea thaton Shaun was the first to realize how they were using us; it’s about the only place where he grew up before I did I got over Santa He got over our parents

Moed and preened, re-creating her favorite photo opportunity, version five hundred and eleven: the flahter, polar opposites united by a passion for the news I once sat doith the news aggregators and coe search to the collection of private pictures on the house database Eighty-two percent of the physical affection I’ve received from my mother has been in public, in careful view of one or more cameras If that seems cynical, answer this: Why has she reliably, for my entire life, waited to touchrange?

People wonder why I’m not physically affectionate The nu photo opportunity for my parents should be sufficient answer The only person who’s ever hugged ht saturation is iven a dah it wasn’t long before I had to close hts on theraphs in total darkness that seeence check associated with buying that sort of equipoes off in your face, you know you’ve been photographed I was going to have a raine for days thanks to Mom’s forced photo opportunity There was no way I could have avoided it; it was give in before dinner or spend the entire hter, leading to a er photo session afterward I’d rather kiss a zoh the croith the sort of grace that only coeneration has avoided Reaching out, she caught hold of ood cheer, “Ms Mason, Georgia, Mr Mason says our table’s ready! Only if you don’t come now, they may release it, and then we’ll have to wait at least a half an hour for another table” She paused before delivering the coup de grace “An inside table”

That was the perfect thing to say Sitting outside added to the fa us look brave and adventurous Parental opinion, notoutside when you don’t have to et munched by a zombie deer Shaun sides with everybody on this one—he’d rather eat outside e have to eat with the parents in public, since that way there’s the chance a zorees that it’s a stupid thing to do Mom doesn’t see the stupidity If it was a choice between an outdoor table where the photographers could get soossip about the fearless Stacy Mason losing her nerve, well her ansas obvious