I was tagged in the above photo on Facebook. Nothing wrong with that, except I’m not in the picture.
I’m supposed to be the guy in the top right, next to the fellow in the red shirt. That’s actually Warren Bates, a former Regina resident who’s since gone off to the greener pastures of Vancouver.
Thing is, this isn’t the first time this has happened, that someone’s mistaken me for him. In fact, while he was still in the Queen City, this would happen somewhat regularly. People would come up, exclaiming “Hi Warren!” like I had just brightened their day with my presence.
Even worse was when someone would resume a conversation they’d been having with Warren, jumping straight in without a greeting. It felt like I was playing all his VHS tapes while he was out of his home and that, no matter how much I tried to get them back to the same spot by catching the mistake and explaining it, Warren would return to find the tapes cued up a minute before or after where he’d left them.
Thing Two of this situation is that he’s probably the better of the two of us. He’s a talented, hilarious guy. That’s not just my opinion; there was once an actual competition that named him the Funniest Person in Saskatchewan. Around Regina, he was known as a great stand-up and improv artist. The takeaway from that for me is that he probably got the “Hey, James Brotheridge, you jackass!” way less than I got the “You’re a funny man, Warren Bates.”
So, if this is still going on, I only have one option: Warren, whenever you want the city, it’s yours. You’re the better man, and I can’t beat you at just about any game you want to bring to the table. I secede this territory to you.
Warren is actually going to be in Regina this weekend, performing at Sunday’s Red Hot Riot. Along with my doppelganger, host Jayden Pfeifer will be joined by the very-funny Ron Pederson, who some might remember from his great appearances with the National Theatre of the World at this year’s General Fools Festival.
As for myself, I’ll be hitting the road the day after, so if you see me around town, say hi to Warren.