Hi There…………..I am back at my hotel from seeing Clay Aiken at the Outfest.  What an exciting afternoon.

I am writing this quickly and so please excuse any mistakes…spelling and grammar are taking a back seat!!

I would guess that there were about 300 people in the theatre.  There were 8 Clayfans who all walked in together.  We sat in the 2nd and 3rd  rows.  Many others came in later

Clay walked in and sat down right next to us.  He was relaxed and seemed to feel comfortable.  I wish you could have seen the look on the face of the lady who sat right next to him.  She was amazing and never let on that she must have been thrilled.

Before the screening started, the creator and director came up and talked to the audience for a bit.  They introduced all the people in the cast that were there.  Margaret Cho was not there and in the hospital….Lance Bass was back east and was not able to attend.  When they introduced Clay he just turned slightly and waved.

The DDD episode is wonderful and Clay was great in his roll.

After the screening, the panel was on stage.  These are just a few things I remember.

1.  Clay was asked to be a part of the show about 2 years ago but was not able to because of his schedule.

2.  The director and creator both really had great things to say about Clay.  Clay had a bit of a choice of what role he played and they thought he picked the most interesting.  They made a point of saying that Clay caught on quickly, was very professional and was a very talented actor…very natural.

3.  It seems that the creator of the show and Clay had a chance to have dinner together last night…at “Bizarre”

4.  Clay was asked if there were less Claymates now that he came out.  A lot of NO’s from the audience.  Clay said that they are still active and if he has lost any,the others make up for it in enthusiasm.

5.  A lady asked a question to Clay that had been asked and answered earlier so he teased her and said she must not have been there earlier…he teased her a bit, but smiled and said that it was OK because he knew her and everything was OK.  He was cute and it was in no way a slam or inpolite….lots of laughs!

6.  Creator  of DDD has worked on Bones and CSI so very active in TV.

7.  None of the gay actors play gays on the show….purposefully so that people can see that gay people can play any part!!

Clay was dressed in jeans, a beige sweater with different color diamonds on the front, sneakers without laces.  Hair is a medium brown, no spikes..looked good

AND………yes there is a new watch…but I have no idea what kind!!

AND there will be clack of the panel.

I did not see Clay at the reception.  It was loud and crowded and so I didn’t stay the entire time

I am so glad I went to this and hope I answered some questions.  I have not read any other place so you might already have this info.

A BIG thanks to Sue for taking my phone call in the crowded  and loud reception…and posting in RED!!  And another big thank you to the clay fans I met today.  You made me feel as though we had been friends for a long time!!

Off to have some dinner!!