IDK My BFF Kerri Walsh Jennings

My internship is pretty cool sometimes. Well, a lot of times. I've already told you the story of how I had a Twitter conversation with Misty May-Treanor, and saw the men's national team play against Bulgaria, and talked to Karch Kiraly on the phone... but this one takes the cake:

I interviewed Kerri Walsh Jennings -- Six Feet of Sunshine, four-time Olympian, winner of three consecutive Olympic gold medals, most winningest women's beach volleyball player ever -- live and in person.

She's in town for a few events with Peak Vista Community Health Centers; first was a volleyball clinic for kids followed by a VIP reception, and the second day was a "Breakfast of Champions" at which she was the keynote speaker. USA Volleyball got a table at the breakfast so Kristina and I claimed seats because, hello, Kerri Walsh Jennings. But then word came down from The Powers That Be that we should give the event some coverage. Twist my rubber arm!

It was decided that we'd do a quick "Humans of Volleyball" photo/blurb of her on Instagram. Kristina and I were all ready to do it at the breakfast, but yesterday the plan changed -- we were going to the clinic that afternoon to catch her there instead! *insert mild panic here*

So we just, uh, casually strolled into the World Arena (seriously) and, y'know, introduced ourselves to Kerri Walsh Jennings (seriously). Luckily, though, we were with our boss; Charlie's interviewed pretty much every big-name athlete on the planet (seriously), so he breezed right in, chatted her up and presented The Interns. And she introduced herself back, as if we haven't known who she is since we were in middle school.

The actual clinic stuff came next, and Kristina snapped away on her fancy camera as Kerri helped some little kids play volleyball.

(My iPhone photos are pretty lame, but click HERE for a gallery of Kristina's pictures!)

I shagged a couple of balls, waiting nervously with my recorder and trying to keep my feet from going numb with cold (the floor was laid over the ice rink). The initial approach is always my least favorite part of interviewing people, and I felt like a really awkward vulture circling her as she signed autographs for a bunch of little kids. But I eventually snagged her! And LOOK, there's proof!

Photo cred to Kristina, awesome my partner in crime! #BallsNetsAndMoney

Clearly, she's about eight feet taller than I am. But it was a really great interview! Important people sidled up to her to try and steal her away, but she never broke eye contact and actually made me feel important. She's also incredibly sweet. :) Every sport should be so lucky to have an icon so passionate about growing the game and giving back to the next generation of players. (And I'm not just saying that because I work for USA Volleyball. Kerri gets it.)

It was a very giddy drive out of there with Kristina, let me tell you!

This morning, it was up and at 'em bright and early to head over to The Broadmoor (fancy shmancy) for the breakfast (they served steak. STEAK). It was definitely a good call talking to Kerri last night, as she was totally surrounded by people today.

Please ignore the giant ear on the right.

Kerri started her speech by stepping up to the podium, kicking off her shoes and saying, "Seriously, I don't know how you do it, ladies. I spend my days in bare feet. This is awful!" So I think it goes without saying that she's overwhelmingly, ridiculously likable, even before she donated a ton of money to Peak Vista and then offered a two-hour volleyball clinic to the silent auction to raise even MORE money. She's also a really good speaker. She flat out said that public speaking is way out of her comfort zone, but instead of being awkward about it, she was actually incredibly personable and engaging. (Again, not just saying this because I work for USA Volleyball.)

And when it was over, I got to go to work and transcribe my interview with Kerri. Then THIS HAPPENED!

We got a HEART from Kerri! :D

But my favorite part?

Who the heck are these random 38 people favoriting this?

And there's also this:

Yay, that's me! I'm one of the newbies! :)

I never know how to end posts like this. I'm all "FLAIL FLAIL FLAIL, so uh, yeah, it was pretty cool." But just know that Kerri is every bit as awesome as she seems on TV and in interviews and that we're totally BFFs now, obviously!

EDIT: Sooooo...

*drops mic*

Olympic Adventures: Meeting John Carlos

A few weeks ago, I read an article that said that John Carlos (one of the men that participated in the infamous black power salute incident at the 1968 Olympics) was going on a speaking tour in the UK. After flailing for a bit, I realized that the only London date that wasn't sold out was on May 29th, and I had a London 2012 Ceremonies shift that night. But I couldn't NOT go to this discussion, right? Right. So I withdrew from the shift, and on Tuesday evening, I headed to a movie theatre in Stratford to hear the wise words of an American sports icon.

I got to the theatre pretty early (just in case), and it was definitely unlike anything I've ever seen before. I mean, there was a bar there. So you could buy an alcoholic beverage (or tea, if you prefer) and bring it into your movie. This country, man.

But anyway! The theatre was pretty crowded, which made me happy -- I mean, I didn't really know that John Carlos was a big deal here. I managed to get a seat that was about third row center. It started with the moderator introducing himself and such, and then John Carlos walked out.

First impression? He's a big dude. Olympic athletes, especially track athletes, usually are, so I'm not sure why I wasn't expecting it. But he's seriously a giant.

Terrible lighting = terrible pictures. My apologies.

The Olympics actually factored into the discussion very little. It was really about him and his history and how he got to the point where he did what he did. He really stressed that his actions were standing up for human rights, not black rights, but it became about black rights because he's a black man. And he said "the Olympics' platform is human rights."

Growing up, he always thought everyone was a runner because his mother once chased down a purse snatcher and got her purse back. He idolized Robin Hood and thought of him as the first activist that he'd come across, and decided to become the Robin Hood of Harlem. When the police got word that he might be behind it, they confronted him and -- get this -- put him in touch with a track program.

In response to people who call(ed) him a troublemaker, he says that the likes of Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Jesus Christ are all called troublemakers. "If they call you a troublemaker because you think out of the box," he said, "just remember you're in damn good company."

When the audience was allowed to ask questions, someone asked about his regrets, and if he would do the salute again if he had the chance. After all, his first wife killed herself because of the fallout from it. But he said, "I was born to do that." I think it's awesome that he's just owning it. No regrets. He felt that strongly about his cause.

He also started the discussion by saying, "If I'm an icon, than everyone in this audience is an icon. I'm you." Proof that a normal guy doing what he feels is right can change the world.

Something else that really stuck with me is what he said about Peter Norman. 'Who?' you ask? The white guy on the podium in the picture. I always thought that he'd had no idea what was going on and looked slightly awkward and out of place, but I couldn't have been more wrong. He borrowed one of the Americans' patches for the Olympic campaign for human rights and wore it on his jumpsuit while receiving his medal. He told the two of them that he supported their cause and, because the environment in his native Australia at the time was akin to that in South Africa, faced a lot of trouble when he returned home. John Carlos was just gushing respect for him, and it was amazing.

After the talk ended, he literally ran out of the room, and I was prepared to write a disappointed blog about how I didn't get to meet him. But wait, dear readers! I was quite wrong! It turns out he was running to get to his merch table before the crowd. I hadn't really wanted to buy anything, but at the last second thought "YOLO!" and bought his book. It was £15 I really didn't need to spend, and another book I'll have to lug home, but who cares? It's now signed by one of the most iconic sports figures in the world!

I love when famous people are gracious about their fame. He'd mentioned that he hates when athletes are rude to their fans, because the fans are the reason they're successful, and he certainly lived up to his beliefs. He offered me his hand to shake, and asked how I was doing. And then I took a picture with him. :)

An autograph, a handshake, AND a picture? Successful day, man.