Two years ago during the football season, I had an early Sunday morning flight out of DSM after a home game. As I sat in the gate area, this old guy came marching up to the counter. He boarded early with the senior citizens. When I boarded, the line stopped in the aisle because he had spilled his coffee on a seat. Of course, it was my seat and he was sitting next to me (with his wife on the other side). I thought, "Oh great, this is going to be miserable."
After I sat down, he commented on my Iowa State jacket and asked if I was at the game Saturday. When I said yes, he told me that "Me and my boys got honored in the end zone yesterday!" It was Johnny Majors and his wife!
At that point, I didn't care about anything but the privilege of sitting next to him. After a few more minutes, he started griping about the hotel giving him a DM Register newspaper with no sports section. So, I asked him if he would like to see an online version on my laptop. He did, so I logged in. As he would read an article about the game, he would grunt and point when he wanted me to scroll up or down. So, for 15 minutes, I push buttons and click on whatever he wants. Again, it was such a privilege to be able to do something minor, but meaningful for a legend like him.
After the flight, I asked him if he wanted me to send him a hard copy of the Sports section. He did, so I sent him DM Registers and Ames Tribunes for the entire weekend.
Lastly, his wife was fantastic. Johnny was a bit cranky, but she would just put him in his place when necessary with a wonderful Southern accent. "Oh come on Johnny."