Meeting Bill and Hill

Previously... Letter to Bill and Hill

This is the story about how I purely by happenstance met Bill and Hillary Clinton privately.  

One Thursday night a few years ago, I think spring of 2001, I met my girlfriend Mimmi for drinks in Manhattan.  We met right after work in a restaurant called Opia on Lexington and 57^th Street.  Mimmi was then working for the Finnish government , and I had just moved from a job with the Finnish government to work for a Danish pharmaceutical firm. 

 

So, we are sitting in the lounge in Opia sipping Cosmopolitans and chatting about life.  All of the sudden Mimmi gets a surprised look on her face and exclaims: “I think I just saw Bill Clinton walking in!”  Mimmi’s eyesight is not the greatest and she has a wonderful imagination.  I responded to her that it is highly unlikely that Bill Clinton would just casually walk into this joint. 

Mimmi and I finished our drinks and went to visit the ladies’ room before heading home.  We are sitting in the stalls and debating in Finnish language whether Bill Clinton could really be in the house.  Suddenly we hear in Finnish: “Yes, you are quite right.  Bill Clinton is hosting his staff party in our private room.”  A voice of a Finnish waitress of the restaurant.  Out of the toilet rushes Mimmi – hyperactive thyroid makes women very, very fast – and I run after her still trying to pull my pants on.  Mimmi heads straight towards the private room, me at her heels: “Mimmi!  We cannot go in there!”  But Mimmi just keeps on walking and I follow.  Four Secret Service agents guard the door, smile at us friendlily: “Welcome ladies!” Two Finnish blondes are always invited to any party in NYC.

The room we just entered is rather full.  Large room.  Remind you, this is Bill Clinton’s private staff party.  This is post his presidency when he already had opened his office in Harlem, New York City.  On the other side of the room we see Bill and Hillary Clinton chatting with the guests.  Mimmi and I negotiate whether we should go ahead and approach them.  Towards us walks a dark haired woman introducing herself as Anna, Bill Clinton’s Head of Staff: “What are you doing here? This is a private party.”  Anna waves to the Secret Service agents who are now looking somewhat embarrassed, asking them to move closer.  Mimmi hands Anna a business card and explains that we just really would like to greet Bill Clinton.  Naturally, Mimmi, working for the Finnish government has diplomatic status.  I am unshielded, unprotected, a non-citizen yet very luckily a legal alien, now totally convinced that I will be immediately imprisoned for an indefinite length of time and then deported from USA.  But now, because of Mimmi’s status, there is a diplomatic situation.  Anna signals the Secret Service agents to back off, and tries to, very politely, convince Mimmi and me to leave.  I am getting more and more panicky by the second.  

Finally, after requesting Anna the favor of obtaining Bill Clinton’s autograph and mailing it to her, Mimmi agrees that we should leave.  We leave the room, and go down the two-part staircase leading to the exit.  We stop at the platform in the middle of the staircase.  Mimmi, all excited and proud about having crashed Bill Clinton’s staff party phones her husband and son!  I am still nervous, my heart is pounding, I am sweating and I just want to get out into fresh air within the safe neutral zone of a late nigh Manhattan street.  Suddenly, one of the Secret Service agents comes down the stairs to ascertain safe exit for President Clinton and Hillary Clinton.  The agent into his walkie-talkie: “All clear, just those two Finnish ladies here.”  Mimmi and I look up the staircase and Bill and Hillary are descending!  Nobody else around, just the four of us!  Bill and Hillary stop in front of us and introduce themselves: “Hello, I am Bill Clinton.” “Hello, I am Hillary Clinton.” “Pleasure to meet you. Where are you from?”  And we shake hands. 

I must say Bill Clinton has the most charismatic personality of anybody I have ever met.  And a huge handshake!  (Being sexy and single in New York City I could not help but wondering what else he might have huge).  No wonder Hillary Clinton writes in her book that the first quality she fell in love with in Bill Clinton were his hands.  

Back to the staircase in Opia restaurant.  After a little bit of chatting – none by me, I was stricken mute, Bill did most of the talking as he spent some time in Finland as a student and has very fond memories about that time - Hillary is getting anxious and starts pulling Bill down the staircase by his hand.  Out the door they go, into their Hummers, the whole cavalcade speeding away very fast lights blinking down Lexington Avenue. 

Breaking the most basic rule of hygiene, I did not wash my right hand for several days trying to safeguard the magic of having shaken Bill Clinton’s hand.

 

Next...How Mimmi Received Bill Clinton's Autograph and Other Consequences