--Planet AvP | Articles | Encountering the Governator

Encountering the Governator Something strange happened to me on Wednesday, something that I could not believe at first. I had received a message on my answering machine inviting me to meet the governor of California at the Chico mall the next day. Despite my skepticism, I strolled down to the Chico Mall, on East 20th Street, around 11:30. I waited in line with a bunch of other folks for an entire hour, until he made his speech. The waiting process was arduous; the crowd increased the room’s ambient temperature and the secret service folks took their time securing everything. Eventually, around 12:30, a local conservative senator and two state assemblymen came to give their speeches. They didn’t say much, except to associate himself or herself with the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger. Unsurprisingly, the crowd reacted in the appropriate fashion and gave them the obligatory clapping before and after they left. However, a minute later, Arnold walked up to the podium and the entire mall seemed to explode with applause and excitement. It was our chance to meet our hero in person - and, boy, was it cool! In true Arnold fashion, he began his speech with a joke; referring to our city as Chino, instead of “Chico.” See, up in southern California, there is a city named Chino, so he thought it would be amusing. And it was. Once the crowd quieted down, he began to discuss his plans for the 2004 budget, which he wanted to pass. You see, California was under a large recession until we elected Arnold in a recall election. As such, his budget proposal is an endeavor to reshape the state economy. With that said, the speech was fantastic and was spiced up with references to his movies. “To all those legislators in special interest groups, it’s time to say hasta la vista, baby!” In addition, he used the words “terminate,” “pumping iron,” and “I’ll be back” in his speech. It was a clever speech, which was designed to serve a political purpose, but was delivered in a friendly and understanding way. We in the audience were treated as old friends or peers, rather than voters. Naturally, everyone kept clapping and hooting, so he had to pause his speech a few times, but it was in good taste. It was especially great for me, as I was about ten feet away from Arnold as he was speaking. In addition, he came down to sign autographs and shake hands after his speech. At this time, he passed within a foot or so of me and looked me in the eye. Now, if it weren’t for those darn kiddies who walked in front of me, I would have had an autograph. However, the mere proximity to him was exhilarating and having the legend look you in the eye and smile was fantastic. Advertisement Overall, it was a highlight of the year for me. Of course, I can’t possibly describe the experience properly without giving the highlight quotes. As such, a few of my personal favorites are listed below: “Yesterday, I lifted 285 pounds -- I lifted Ted Kennedy out of his chair.” “And to all the special interest groups and tax increasers: I’ll be back!” “I promise as the people’s Governor to terminate unfair taxes!” Lastly, I was not able to fulfill my duty and inquire Arnold about the upcoming AvP movie; he had to return to Sacramento to fulfill his political duties before doing one-on-one commentary. Still, it’s good to know that ol’ Dutch is fighting evil outside of Hollywood, as well as on the silver screen. I hope that this has been an enjoyable read and I apologize for the lack of AvP material. I hear, though, he will “be back” for cameos in upcoming movies, but he has not disclosed the titles yet. By Evan Burt Comments? Flames? Praise? Mail feedback!