It wasn’t just ANY weekend… and it was more than just a chance for a overworked mom to get away for a few days to decompress and unwind… It was also more then just a chance for two sisters from Vermont to reunite and let loose in a big city (Watch out!) It was a chance for me to focus on one of my newly reconnected hobby fitness aka pumping iron… a hobby my sister and I both avidly enjoy
The Arnold Sports and fitness expo is a Mecca to bodybuilders and fitness competitors, a giant convention center stuffed to the brim with companies pushing their newest protein powders, pre workout drinks, meal bars, shoes, fitness clothing, books, magazines, you name it, they had it. In addition to all the supplements and other items commonly used by individuals in the fitness field there were a ton of fitness celebrities. Bodybuilders Lou Ferrigno (think the original Incredible Hulk), Jay Cutler (bodybuilder not football player!) Tosca Reno (the eat clean diet) Nick Scott (wheel chair body builder) as well as all the women competing in the pro figure, body building and fitness completion. My sister got to meet Erin Stern her favorite female figure athlete (and MAN does she look good!!) 
I got to rub elbows with many amateur competitors hoping to use the Arnold completion to gain their chance to go pro, oh and did I mention the most important individual in attendance? Arnold Schwarzenegger of course! It was after all his event that he started many years ago. Normally he shows up on Saturdays, makes some appearances and hosts his “Ask Arnold” question and answer seminar. Since this year he was no longer the Governor of California it was rumored that he would spend more face time at the event. Which is great because who doesn’t want to meet such an icon of body building? Not that I expected to meet him… in my whole life I have only met one “celebrity” (Geraldo Rivera) and in reality that doesn’t count because.. well he is a tool is the easiest explanation. I did brush shoulders with a pro wrestler while at Philly airport once, but I didn’t know who he was until after he passed by and my husband said to me “oh that was ____ I don’t remember his name because well who CARES about wrestling??? It’s lame… Anyways at 1145 on Friday the first official day of the expo my sister and I found ourselves at the EAS booth getting our huge boxes of protein bars and pre workout shake mixes which was lucky for us because we were all the way at the end of the expo where we noticed a distinct crowd forming… we decided we were going to push through it and circle to the stage to watch the fitness prejudging, well we pushed as far as we could go when we realized the area was blocked by a handful of expo workers. “What is going on” my sister asked me the guy in front of us said that Arnold was getting ready to come through. So we decided we wanted a sneak peek of the terminator himself.. sure enough about 3 minutes later a large gathering came around the corner and flashes started going off everywhere as people raised their cameras in the air to try to get snap shots of their hero… well it was our “lucky” day because he came to a stop about 5 feet in front of us and remained there for about 5 minutes as he was being interviewed…my sister and I were able to not only get some good pics but actually SEE him. As he wrapped up his interview and went on his way we felt pretty darn satisfied with our Arnold encounter and we stopped to eat our lunch. As we continued on our way grabbing free samples and fighting through mass amounts of people we turned a corner almost by accident and found ourselves right smack in the middle of Arnold mania (again). We peered around the side of the booth we were currently next to and there he was! This time about 3 feet from us, we snapped our pics and once again were pretty darn satisfied… but of course once you get so close to such an astounding person you can’t seem to get enough… we began trying to predict his next move… darting around and through people for a chance to get even closer to this massive person. Of course we were unsuccessful; I mean we were fighting against some pretty massive body builders who were pretty desperate to get close to the master. We were about to give up trying to fight through the massive crowd when we suddenly he turned and came right toward us. 
We both froze in place and my breath stopped short, he was right in front of us! Him and the security with their arms up attempting to push us back (unsuccessfully). The man standing in front of me had body building magazine that featured Arnold in his earlier days and a sharpie marker. He held it up and it caught Arnold’s attention (he is really focused on his fans). He stopped took the marker and signed the cover, the man then stepped away and BAM there he was. My breath stopped and my brain stopped working. I should have picked up my lead filled feet and jumped in the gap and stuck my hand out for my chance to meet him and say hello but honestly I really don’t even think I knew what my name was at this point. Of course the gap filled in and I was pushed to the side, which worked out to my favor because I ended up closer to him, he was now holding a child and posing for a picture. Then he turned back and started shaking the outstretched hands of the individuals that had made it into the front row. My brain started working (sort of) so I just stuck my hand out thru an opening so even if I wasn’t right up close to him, hopefully he would grab it and shake it, HA lucky me! I was looking up right into his eyes and his hand closed onto mine… as did some heffa next to me… REALLY? You can’t see my hand here you are going to try to do a double shake?? Jeeze! So me being the non crazed person I am, pulled my hand away disappointed I didn’t get a quality shake but I’m not going to settle for a half assed one, its just not the same! He noticed I pulled my hand away and looked from me to the other lady and said “vow lots of vomen here this year” in a totally calm quiet voice that had a hint of amusement . He then turned and grasped my outstretched hand and gave it a good shake. I could have said anything to him at that moment, he was totally focused on me, but I was a hot mess. I just had a big dumb smile plastered to my face as my sister (with the camera) was as still as a statue with a glazed over look in her eye. They say Arnold stands at about 6’2” but to me he looked closer to 6 feet although his entire stature is bold and creates a illusion of him being comprable to Godzilla, you can tell he hasn’t let himself go at all despite his age and public office position, and his hands were as smooth as silk… really his huge gigantic meat hooks that totally engulfed my large (for a girl)’s hands like the cream filling in a Twinkie… and they were softer then a baby chinchilla, smoother than an ice cold beer after a long hard day. At the time I didn’t think anything of it but afterwards I wondered how can such a giant being’s hands be so soft? Anyways, after he shook my hand and I gawked at him for a minute he slipped away into the crowed while all the admirer’s frantic to interact with him pushed along behind him. I could have packed up and left right then… I hadn’t even intended on meeting the king of body building but now that I had my whole life felt complete…. And while many of you may shake your head in confusion my fellow fitness buffs know exactly what I’m talking about ;)
<3 IT! =)
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