Dude’s Actually a Lady - Response to TV Show Viewers: Post 23

(Response to TV Show Viewers: Post 22 - March 13, 2026)

In my early years as a general contractor, I built a new home for an older lady. In some ways she reminded me of my late grandmothers, and we worked well together ironing out creases in the gray areas. Although there were nonnegotiables on this house, things we both knew she had to have or things I quickly realized she really wanted, there were times when I’d need her to make a call. Eventually, she fell into a frequent habit of answering me with, “I don’t know. Just surprise me.” She trusted me and I felt the same about her.

When this elderly client heard I’d be passing through the land down under, she began to present me with books from a historic fiction series she owned called The Australians. She’d hand me one or two and I’d place them in my truck. Eventually I had the complete set on the back seat of the F-150.

I felt I owed this widow a courtesy effort I could report back with. At the least I had to get a taste—the intro and a few chapters deep into book one. However, I ended up plowing through all twelve, thousands of pages, which took years. But I truly loved them. And when I finished, I wanted more.

Actress Scarlett Johanssen

As I began to scour the internet for a thirteenth book or more works by this writer, I learned that William Stuart Long was the pen name of a prolific female author. For years, I’d thought I was reading the words of a man, wondering at times about this guy writing some of the hugging and kissing scenes within this epic saga.

Thinking further, I imagined that in the time this woman had written these novels, it might have just been more practical to have folks think it had all been written by a male novelist. Now, times have progressed enough that this series is published with Vivian Stuart printed on the front covers.

The Director of Original Programming and Development had a gender-neutral name that was most commonly used by men. So, when I responded with my first email, spoke into the camera for the videos my family and I made, and sent them up to New York City, I’d been assuming wrongly that a man was on the other end of these answers back. This is all minor, and I’m only mentioning it because when this person answered the phone, I was surprised that he sounded like a young lady, not the imagined fellow I was expecting to start talking with.

The director was charming, enthusiastic with warm, positive things to say about my family and I and what we’d submitted. And she was very down-to-earth, easy to talk to as she explained the network’s excitement about my willingness to speak with them. This woman came out of the phone as impressive, reminding me of many people I knew or had known, the sorts of friends I held no hesitations in trusting or confiding in. She just seemed like a normal type person that could be a neighbor next door or a fellow parent at one of our kid’s schools.  

So, when she said something like, “If you have time, I’m going to fly a film crew to spend a couple days with you next week,” I was past openminded. And when she added, “It’s the production company that makes Rehab Addict,” my thinking went something like, “This makes sense,” since I had this manufactured roundabout logic of Nicole Curtis commenting on my blog, leading to her team, and then back to Manhattan and the HGTV/DIY networks.

It’s nonsensical, but that was how my brain was sorting through and processing peculiarities that had culminated into this conversation with a TV executive in Manhattan.

The director explained a little about how the channels she represented were part of the Scripps family that included the Food Network. Although they had some “in house” production teams, most of their shows were filmed and produced by companies spread coast to coast or even other countries. The company who would be coming to meet me was based in Minneapolis where Rehab Addict was filmed.

For a guy raised on a small farm in Ohio, now living out amongst the swamps of lower Carolina, it was all way beyond simply exciting. It was right there on the edge of unbelievable.    

We had a great talk, this young female director and I, leaving me eager and grateful for a chance to work with such impressive, dynamic people.

I didn’t call and tell my wife about any of this since it felt like news to share in person, and I wanted some time to wrap my noggin around what had been revealed.   

Diann broached the subject when we were together later that evening asking, “Hey, have you heard back from the HGTV guy?”

“Yeah, today.”

“What?” my wife asked with a disbelieving laugh.

“Uh. But it’s not a guy. He’s a she.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure,” I snapped back. “We talked. It’s a woman.” Then after an intentional pause, I dropped the sugar cube. “And she wants to send a crew to film me next week.”

“Are you messin’ with me?” Diann asked next. It was sudden news to her, while I’d had some hours to mull it all over.

“I’m serious,” I said, before then adding something like, “She’s going to fly them out. It’s Nicole Curtis’ production company. The people who make Rehab Addict.”

Then Diann said something along the lines of, “It’s because she’s been reading your blog.” Ms. Curtis’ comment was a source of strange adhesive pride for both of us. I liked the fact that the famous host had taken time to type six words and a smiley face emoji at the foot of my article about her and her show. While my wife was thrilled that this comment confirmed her intuitive abilities, more pointedly regarding the blonde rehabber even knowing about this blog.

Then Diann asked if money—bank account info or any form of credit card payment—was part of this opportunity. And if so, how much. I explained how the woman had not mentioned me paying them or them paying me. And I felt she was trustworthy.

Then my wife asked which days they’d be coming the following week. I wanted to know too and said, “I’ll know more tomorrow when I talk to the production company.”

And that was the end of the discussion for twenty-four hours. For the rest of the night and the next morning we just let this development sink in.   

(Response to TV Show Viewers: Post 24 - Coming Soon)