“Excuse me. Why are you here?”

[kpete]

Allow David Letterman to Explain Why Retiring Affects ‘Your Self-Esteem’

…(A) few weeks ago, I got very excited because the Obamas invited myself and my wife to a state dinner, and I said, “Oh my god, Regina, we’ve been invited to a state dinner!” And she says, “Oh, I love steak.” I said, “No.”… So we go to the steak, state dinner, and it’s for the heads of the Nordic states, and President Obama was giving remarks before he introduced the heads of state. And he was talking about how cooperative their union was, the Nordic states. Yes, they have differences, but by and large, they all felt and had the same beliefs, and they were good for mankind, and believed in the right thing, and they were strong allies for the United States. He said, “Don’t misunderstand me, they do argue. They do have … as a matter of fact, there is still an ongoing fight in the Nordic States about which country is happiest.” And then the prime minister of Iceland got up, and he said, “We are working on a defensive weapons system right now.” And this gets everybody’s attention! Like, Iceland, really? Working on a defensive weapons system? And he said, “Yes, volcanoes. We just haven’t figured out how to aim them yet.” So I’m seated at dinner next to a man who is the assistant chief of staff to the prime minister of Norway. And I’m feeling like a big shot. And we’re chatting, and we’re chatting, and we’re chatting. And when it comes about dessert time, and the guy says to me, “Excuse me. Why are you here?” And I said, You know what? I think I picked up somebody else’s mail. And he said, “So you’re here by mistake?” And I said, Yeah. And he said, “Oh.” So there you go — you get invited to the state dinner, nobody knows why. That’s the sum total of being retired…

MORE:
http://www.vulture.com/2016/05/letterman-retiring-affects-your-self-esteem.html#

[Skinner]

1. God I love David Letterman.

[glitterbag]

19. Me too.

Love him to pieces.

[Ineeda]

2. Dave...

smart, funny, silly...clearly a Democrat. And missed.

[Cryptoad]

3. "no off position on the Genius Switch!"

[Kittycat]

4. That's the best answer ever, LOL.

[thomservo]

5. Here's a clip of Dave going after Trump.

[glitterbag]

20. Ahh Letterman

I was fortunate enough to be watching his show the night Trump was on. Dave is brilliant.

[LibDemAlways]

6. I always enjoyed the personal stories Dave

occasionally shared. They revealed that underneath the sometimes frosty exterior was a guy who loved his family, recognized his own flaws, and strived to do the right thing.

Completely unrelated to Letterman in particular, but everytime I read about celebrities being invited to the White House for state occasions I think how great it would be if ordinary people who work hard and support government with their tax dollars would be invited too. A pipe dream, I know. Most Politicians want our money and our votes. Otherwise we don't exist.

[pampango]

7. "Working on a defensive weapons system? And he said, “Yes, volcanoes. We just haven’t figured out

how to aim them yet.”

[SunSeeker]

10. Best Iceland joke I ever heard!

Even if it is the only Iceland joke I ever heard.

[MerryBlooms]

8. Rec & Kick & Share.

[mountain grammy]

9. Miss you, Dave..

Great story

[SunSeeker]

11. K & R

[Warpy]

12. David Letterman is a very smart man

He boiled it all down to its essence, right there.

Once your work is over, 90% of your identity is gone, just vanished. The work itself goes on and on and on but you're no longer part of it, you're just "there," the only way you know you were ever part of it is maybe some retirement trinket plus all the crap you managed to accumulate while you had that identity as a talk show host or steamfitter or whatever.

You don't even want the crap any more, you're sick of barking your shins on it.

[bvar22]

13. If a person's self worth is dependent 90% on their job,

...they already have a huge problem.

People should work to live,
not live to work.

[awoke_in_2003]

15. Exactly

The reason why some people die shortly after retirement is because work is the only reason they have for getting out of bed.

[intrepidity]

16. But our society demands that work consume nearly all of our waking hours

how does one realistically *not* identify so completely with their work? I mean, really?

[awoke_in_2003]

17. I guess I'm lucky

My job demands that it consumes 40 hours a week plus the occasional voluntary overtime. That is why I won't become management, I like my overtime voluntary and paid.

[glinda]

14. I love this man.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

18. Dave!!

Tell us more stories, Dave! Make it your next career phase!

❤️

[glitterbag]

21. the dinner

I don't know about anyone else, but the idea that a man who
dave had never seen before felt comfortable asking Dave how he managed to arrive at the White House dinner after he received the Kennedy Center Honor tells me all I need to know about the rube asking the question.

Dave's answer is the quintessential Dave.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

22. Ha! True

I assumed the questioner was from Iceland, or something, and somehow didn't know Dave. Living under a rock, maybe?