Craig Daily Press

Craig — A day ago, I was on my ranch in Colorado putting out salt blocks for the cattle with my father. Even though I had been absent from here since last summer and out of commission from the job of putting out salt blocks, nothing had changed. The smells of fresh sage and pine tickled my nose, and my father drove without the radio on in order to think as I quizzed him about various ranch operations.

I still had the country girl in me.

I opened the gates with ease because of a special trick my father taught me when I was younger. And I still had the strength to lift and throw the salt blocks off the side of the truck.

I still was a country girl.

Now, three-inch tall high heels, smoky eye shadow, flashy jewelry and a silky mango colored dress beneath the flashing lights of Hollywood disguises the country girl within me.

Hollywood, where the glitter and glamour of the city makes everyone feels famous, is a place that makes everyone feel like a city girl — even a country girl like me.

Although I have lived in San Diego for two years, this weekend was my first time in Los Angeles. After 20 calls to a local radio station here in San Diego, my roommate won two tickets to the MTV movie awards with a one-night stay in a hotel.

Usually, I watch the MTV movie awards at home with a bowl of popcorn and a group of girlfriends. We would play fashion police as the celebrities displayed their outfits across the red carpet.

Saying comments like, “Wow, that color really highlights her figure well, I wonder who made that?” or “ That is a really cute dress, but just not on her.” As if we had the knowledge or expertise to say shallow comments such as these.

This year, instead of commercials between the presentations of awards, I searched for my favorite stars that surrounded me in the audience.

As my roommate and I waited in the lobby of our hotel for our ride to the awards, young boys questioned our lifestyles and asked us anxiously if we were movie stars.

We smiled and answered, “Well maybe,” because it was fun to pretend for a day, to pretend that we were up since 6 a.m. getting pampered and ready for the night, when really I barely finished drying my hair, or to pretend that my dress was compliments of Chanel or Dolce and Gabana instead of a clearance rack in Express.

I went to the awards with the prediction of being choked up at the sight of seeing movie stars such as Will Ferrell, Lindsey Lohan and Will Smith. I had the expectation that a country girl like me would be star struck over famous celebrities such as these.

But, when my girlfriends and I met Paris Hilton after casually bumping into her, I wasn’t. Yes, I was amazed by her beauty and her attire, but I wasn’t left speechless.

She smiled, guided by her bodyguard, and left us with, “You girls have fun tonight, OK.” I never left my reality when I met her and I spoke to her like a friend. Although she always has been famous, she still was a woman like us and she deserved the respect that I would give my girlfriends.

The constant judgment from the public consumes the life of these celebrities.

Everyday celebrities walk out of their houses dressed up in costume even if they are only going to the grocery store. They take the chance that their face might be in a magazine under the headline “When bad clothes happen to good people,” and taint their stardom. This fame comes with benefits. The benefits of VIP status are found in every restaurant and nightclub, shopping sprees, chauffeurs and money.

But is this trade for reality really worth it? Is being famous worth the loss of identity?

I was famous, well sort of, for a day. At the end of the day, I was satisfied with being a country girl and knowing that being a country girl was my own identity that I wouldn’t have to change.