ANTHONY BOURDAIN DOESN'T CURSE HIS ALARM CLOCK.

Two weeks while channel surfing, I heard the narrator on a CNN show say, “Our next stop was Timbuktu.” The phrase caught my interest because I always thought that Timbuktu was a made-up place. Do you remember referring to an outlandish or distant place by saying, “From here to Timbuktu?” I did.  I also thought Oshkosh was made-up too but it wound up in Wisconsin. So I pleasantly surprised to find out from that announcer that Timbuktu was in the country Mali, (of course I never heard of Mali either). Soon my curiosity went on full-blown learning alert, but my mind was sidetracked by my son Andrew coming home from his first day as a busboy in a nearby café.

I turned off the TV and focused my attention on my son as he vented about the rigors of manual labor, (please note, he is simultaneously interning at our local NBC-TV affiliate). He took the highroad and was confident that his performance would improve. But he also implied that a teenage coworker (a server) had it out for him (by listing his shortcomings to the owner).  My boy felt that way because she wanted her friend to get his job.

Andrew sighed, “When I worked at Sears, management made me feel indispensable. Now bussing tables and working at the TV station makes me feel like they can grab any jerk off the street to take my place.” Our conversation was interrupted when his phone rang. Andrew drifted upstairs to accept the call. In the mean time, I put my TV back on, to hear more about Timbuktu.

POOR BY THIRD WORLD COUNTRY STANDARDS, TIMBUKTU IS A CITY OF 54,000, IN THE LANDLOCKED WEST AFRICAN NATION OF MALI. IN ITS ANCIENT HEYDAY (DATING BACK TO THE 1200's), TIMBUKTU (BORDERING THE SOUTHERN SAHARA DESERT) HAS A RICH HISTORY OF BEING AN IMPORTANT TRADING CENTER FOR SALT AND GOLD. THE PHOTO ABOVE IS A PRESENT-DAY SALT CARAVAN.  DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS TIMBUKTU HAS LOST ITS LUSTER.  IT HAS BEEN ANNEXED BY SEVERAL FOREIGN POWERS, MOST RECENTLY (1890's) BY THE FRENCH. SINCE 1960, MALI IS INDEPENDANT.

I soon learned that the show I was watching was called, “ANTHONY BOURDAIN PARTS UNKNOWN.” Although the episode I was watching was over, I discovered that CNN was airing a marathon of the show.

BORN IN 1956, ANTHONY BOURDAIN, AN EMMY AND PEABODY AWARD WINNER, IS A NATIVE NEW YORKER.  HIS CREDENTIALS INCLUDE BEING CHEF, AUTHOR AND TV PERSONALITY.  "PARTS UNKNOWN," IS NOW IN ITS THIRD SEASON.

“ANTHONY BOURDAIN PARTS UNKNOWN,” is billed as taste for the unexpected! This reality series has him circling the globe and bringing viewers extraordinary adventures in offbeat locations while sharing the scenery, food, culture, religion and politics, (noboby on the planet eats...or drinks...better than him).

While waiting for Andrew to finish his telephone call, I was watching Bourdain chatting it up in Russia.  This likable fellow talked a lot about politics while being lavished with native culinary specialties. When Andrew came back, Bourdain's next show was in Thailand.  I was jealous enough of Bourdain to pause the program so I could see it later.

Andrew continued to talk about the ups and downs about his job. He sighed, “I’ll be okay but I’m not looking forward to waking up to my alarm clock tomorrow morning.” I told him, "Be patient. When I was nineteen, I was a waiter at a Red Lobster in Florida. Orientation was two hours. The next day, during a three-hour test shift, a sponsor (another waiter) looked over my shoulder and mentored me on the finer details of the job. The day after, I was on my own.”

IN 1974 WHEN RBOY12 AND I WORKED AT DISNEYWORLD, I WAS ALSO FRIENDS WITH BOB AND RONNIE.  THEY BECAME DISENCHANTED WITH DISNEY AND GOT WAITER JOBS.  WHEN I FOUND OUT THAT THEY MADE MORE IN A FIVE AND A HALF HOUR SHIFT THAN I MADE IN A 45-HOUR WORK WEEK, I RAN TO RED LOBSTER AND APPLIED.

I’m not sure Andrew wanted to hear it but I closed by saying, “I took to be a waiter naturally. I think if there was a practical way to do it forever, I would have, (but I was still in Brookly College and was aiming much higher).

Andrew facetiously replied, “So you think being a waiter is the best job in the world?” I said, “No. And even if I did, I realize that everyone's needs ae different.  Take you for example.  You probably would love to be a game show host or moderate a late night talk show.  But before you go full-on honey badger over following that dream...you MUST understand the reality is, guys like Drew Carey, Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien honed their craft with decades of paying their dues in related jobs, (doing stand-up, writing comedy, appearing in commercials etc). I wouldn’t be surprised if they started as interns and to make ends meet had menial jobs like being a bus boy. ” I then clicked on the TV and said, “You wanna see the guy who I think has the best job in the world…meet, Anthony Bourdain.”