Assholes and Cowboy Boots
It turns out that Richmond’s premier dentist also happens to be an extremely talented watercolor artist. Extremely talented. Baxter Perkinson is so good that he has been able to raise millions of dollars for charities by auctioning off his works.
To make it interesting, he would get some local ‘celebrities’ to help, serving as guest auctioneers. He was a fan of folks like former Governor George Allen, Grammy winner and sausage king Jimmy Dean, cosmetic magician Dr. Joe Niamtu, local anchor Lisa Shaffner, and his favorite chef, hopefully me.
We would take turns going to the podium and chattering up the price of his works. Over the years I ended up owning three of them myself. Baxter is a very generous guy, even if his politics are a bit misguided.
At the end of the auction we all went onstage to take a bow at which time a gentleman who, unknowingly, happened to be sitting next to my wife. As he surveyed the scene of the Governor, the Singer and the Chef he noted a common thread: “Look at that” he said to my wife, “the three biggest assholes in Richmond all wear cowboy boots.
