KIERNAN SHIPKA

Go Get 'Em Tiger

Larchmont Village, Los Angeles, CA

March 3, 2014

Photo credit: Kiernan Shipka

Only blocks from the Hollywood Walk of Fame, my friend and I were sitting at a sidewalk table outside a trendy coffee bar in a charming little part of the city.

I glanced through the window and noticed a few young girls having fun inside. Their collective demeanor, stylish clothes, and chic purses mixed with strawberry scones and a bit of my own preconception made me think they looked a little too sophisticated for their age.

Jaded by the LA scene, I said, "I bet those girls are, like, eleven." "No, she's almost fifteen," my friend replied. "You know her?" "No, that's Kiernan Shipka. She plays Sally Draper on Mad Men. I interviewed her once at an award show." Well, that changes things.

Now grateful for this slick LA scene, I excused myself from our table and went inside to theirs. I didn't mean to bring down the party but when I walked in the door toward the group, they stopped laughing and quietly turned to look at me. That rustled up some flashbacks of junior high school insecurity, but I powered through and made my pitch.

“This is kind of weird,” I said, "but I have this celebrity photo album.” They were politely listening as though it was understood that inconveniences like this may happen when hanging out with their friend, Kiernan. Directing my pitch to her, I proceeded, “It’s just a bunch of pictures of me taken by celebrities. Will you take my picture?” She smiled, thought it was a fine idea, and accepted my camera.

After she snapped a quick photo, another girl who was also sitting at the cool-kids table offered to take a picture of the two of us together.

That was nice but I was feeling outnumbered. It seems I can comfortably talk to just about anyone except a hip teenager. Nonetheless, we posed, I thanked them all, and as I turned to exit I said, "Carry on with what you were doing." Ugh. I felt like such a dork.

A couple of months later Time magazine named Kiernan Shipka one of The 25 Most Influential Teens of 2014. It's comforting to know she wasn't just any hip teenager, but had I known of her elite status going in this encounter might have been easier on me. Clearly, a globally recognized public figure is less intimidating to me than a well-groomed 14-year-old.

Thanks for your valuable time Keirnan. Those exciting teenage years zip by quickly.

Photo credit: Another girl who was sitting at the cool-kids’ table

Once I returned to my table my friend shared these fun photos she'd taken through the window.

Photo credit: My friend