Ye Olde Rad Blog

He handed me the envelope and stuck out his hand to shake. His autograph looks exactly like this. He's not as tall as I imagined, only a few inches taller than me, but has big hands, and, of course, he has springs for legs. He was wearing shorts and a t-shirt.

Corona del Mar is a little town on the coast between Laguna Beach (where I live) and Newport Beach (where Kobe lives).

The funny thing is that La Fogata is this little hole-in-the-wall joint you'd never find unless somebody told you where to look. Even then, it's not easy to find. They have healthy Mexican food, and the people who work there are super friendly. They remember your name. I always get the same thing: half rotisserie chicken, rice & beans, with corn tortillas. I always order in Spanish (Español), cuz they give you a better piece of chicken.

I heard that Kareem was there last week. I also heard that a male p0rno-star, who is super well-endowed, eats lunch there nearly every day. Maybe if I ate there more often...

I found Kobe surprisingly humble for such a mega-star. The biggest surprise was that he seemed so ordinary. Very polite. In case you were wondering, here is a picture of Kobe's accuser.

Only two people really know what really happened in that hotel room in Colorado, but the way Kobe played during that whole ordeal seemed to suggest he was innocent. I mean, she's the one who went up to his room, and Kobe can get any girl he wants. If he was really guilty, I don't think he would've been able to play so well during that trial. He was on fire, unstoppable.

I think it's obvious what was going on: Kobe has money. Lots of it. The girl wanted some. The story I heard was that one of her friends devised the scheme after hearing that she had slept with Kobe and talked her into making a move for his deep pockets. Kobe doesn't need to rape anybody. He's married to a beautiful woman. Women probably throw themselves at him all the time.

On his way out of the restaurant, Kobe turned and pointed. With a little nod, he said, "Good luck in court," ... like he genuinely meant it. Guess what I'm trying to say is I found him surprisingly "present" and interactive - not the least bit standoff-ish, kinda sessitive, actually .. almost too nice, if ya know what I mean, especially for someone of his status. I could see how someone might think they could take advantage of him. There's an engaging gentleness to him.

Five minutes earlier or later and I would've missed him. The guys who worked there said, "You came at the perfect time."

After he left, a sports commentor on TV there at the restaurant, started talking about Kobe, which seemed kinda surreal, since he was just there, and his autograph sat on an envelope lying there on my table.

One of the guys behind the counter held up his arm and said, "I'm never washing this hand again." =) They were huddled around the cash register, analyzing the signature on his credit-card receipt. I guess you're sure it's him if he hands you a credit-card with the name Kobe Bryant printed on it.

Of course, I called all my friends soon as I got home (both of 'em). They speculate the reason celeb's such as Kobe & Kareem like La Fogata is cuz it's an out-of-the-way hole-in-the-walll .. with tasty, healthy food. "The last thing they want," it was speculated, "is some big, famous restaurant where they'll spend their entire meal signing autographs."

For more info, here is a Google search pre-configured for the query: kobe bryant lakers