SparkGuy, Live from the Big Apple

By , SparkPeople Blogger
Greetings, SparkPeople. It's SparkGuy here, blogging from the road. I'm a long way from home this week, on the East Coast to promote The Spark. I've done TV interviews with local stations around the country, spotted The Spark in Times Square, and even met with some old friends and members. I've also had a few really exciting meetings. (Stay tuned to the dailySpark for more news on those! Just keep Spreading the Spark! It really helps.)

Even though New York is crazy-cold, I did a run for an hour around the city today--brrrrrr. Luckily my hotel room has high ceilings, so I did some jump rope in here to warm up.

I don't have much time to write, but I wanted to share some of the highlights of the trip so far!



I met with Steve Case, a good friend and business partner. Steve, the founder of AOL and Revolution Health, and his company have invested in SparkPeople, and he has been incredibly supportive and helpful in recent years.



While having lunch with Steve at a high-end restaurant, a member actually recognized me! Her name is Judi (MADEYEJUDI), and she has been with SparkPeople since December 2008.

At the end of lunch as we were getting our coats, the hostess looked at me tentatively and said, "Are you SparkGuy?!" and then something like, "Oh my god!" after I said yes.

Tami said one of the other hostesses said: "Famous people come in here all the time and I've never seen her get this excited before." (Al Gore and Stephen Schwartz, famed composer and lyricist, were also having lunch there that day.)

So, I gave her a hug and then gave her a signed copy of The Spark--the last one I had with me, in fact--mentioning that she's the first person to ever recognize "SparkGuy" in public (without any identifier like SP T-shirt or something).

At the end of lunch, she came over to us and said she had to ask if it was me. It was really neat to meet a member unexpectedly, and it goes to show that you never know when you'll meet another SparkPeople member--and where you'll Spread the Spark. (Read her blog about the experience.)



I've had a great time here in the Big Apple, and the week isn't over yet. There's plenty left for me to do. In the mean time, tell your friends, tell your family, tell your neighbors about The Spark. If you've read the book, you'll know that I dedicated it to the millions of you who have helped turn SparkPeople into a grassroots movement by making your life an adventure! Keep Spreading the Spark!

If you can't find The Spark in your local bookstore, ask them to order it.

Have a question for me? Ask it in the comments below. I'll be blogging more often this year. And keep sending pictures of you with The Spark!