O. M. G. (O.O)
I went to Pride in Toronto on Sunday. I had flip-flopped on whether I had really wanted to go or not. While I had not been to Pride in Toronto before, I had gone to Pride in Ottawa and so had a sense of what the day would be like. In the end I decided to go and to march with Glow in the parade.
I am so glad that I did.
This was written in my notebook as I waited for the bus back to Waterloo.
-----
I still don't fully believe what happened. It feels as though it happened days ago as opposed to ~5 hours ago. And even then, it sort of feels like a dream. To be fair, the whole day, consumed by energy, sort of feels like a dream.
The guy who plays Jack on "Torchwood" and "Doctor Who" (John Barrowman) was at Toronto Pride today.
I met John Barrowman.
I marched with Glow in the parade and as our column started slowly moving, I saw him. He was in the column next to ours that had not yet begun going forward. I knew that he was in Toronto since he is working on the "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?" reality tv show, but I didn't know how long he was going to be there for.
My eyes went wide at the wonder of possible recognition. It couldn't be him - yet it made sense. He might still be in Toronto. Wait. Hadn't I seen a man dressed as Maria while waiting for the parade to start? Maybe it was, in part, a promotional thing. Would it be okay to approach him? I don't want to be a bitch and disrupt his private life, but at the same time this is a public occasion... and I wanna (...meet him, not be a bitch). Okay. I'll establish his identity, give a solid compliment/comment on his acting and then leave him be. No autograph, no photo (not that I had a camera... damn I wish I'd had a camera), nothing else.
Of course all of this was processed in a few fangirlish seconds and I was soon moving out of our slow moving line (eh, I wouldn't be long - they couldn't get that far, and if they did I could catch up) and began walking towards him. He had started taking a video of the moving parade (only now have I begun to wonder if maybe I was on it briefly). I nervously glanced from his camera to the shuffling members of Glow, pausing briefly in my mind to wonder if the man standing next to him was his husband. His video finished and I jumped in hoping to take advantage of what I imagined was a brief lull.
"Are you John Barrow-"
"Yes, I am."
Along with increased fangirlish anxiety I experienced significant relief. By cutting me off he had saved me potentially, and likely, mangling his last name.
Then I did what I had tried to avoid, what I had hopped I wouldn't become... a babbling fangirl.
"You're awesome!" Inward face-palm.
I didn't mention why I thought he was awesome. What I'd seen him in. Nothing.
He thanked me, and per my plan I prepared to leave, but then he stuck out his hand. I giddily shook it and all bets were off.
"Would it be absolutely horrible of me to ask for an autograph?" I'm a horrible, selfish person.
He explained that I could, if I had something that he could sign. I smiled, mentally cheering myself for making a habit of caring this notebook and pen with me. Fumbling was inevitable (especially given the state of this book - both cover and back have come off, but I still carry them with me) and I dealt with it as swiftly and calmly as I could. I presented him with the final page (a middle page would have been cleaner, but required more thought process) and the working pen. He asked my name, graciously signed, and I went off to rejoin my group - stopped and not even out of sight - and gave a final farewell, thank you, and compliment - I believe a reiteration of "You're awesome!" or some similar variant.
I was a babbling fangirl fool. I was, literally, shaking. I wonder what would happen if I randomly ran into a "Firefly" cast member under similar circumstances...
-----
End of journal entry.
That was how I remembered the events taking place. Given my bubbly state it is very possible that I have messed up certain details.
The autograph now sits, framed, on a shelf by my laptop. Two days have passed and I am still stunned at what happened. If I had decided not to go, if I hadn't marched with Glow, heck, if Glow had been in a different position in the Parade, this would likely not have happened. At the same time I'm also surprised that it took me that long to notice John Barrowman. I had seen the Maria, I had seen the men in lederhosen, but somehow I hadn't seen him. If I had, I might have been able to have a more relaxed encounter, but I am filled with fangirlish glee all the same.
It's clear to me just how out of it I was, since it wasn't until I was looking at photos of the parade, and saw some pictures of John Barrowman that I noticed that he was wearing an "M?" shirt.
/Spoilers for "Torchwood" season 2/
I can't imagine that John Barrowman would come upon this, but just in case...
Thank you so much. You were very kind and patient with this awkward fangirl. I have enjoyed watching you on "Doctor Who" and "Torchwood" and thought that you did an excellent job with the intense, emotional scenes with Gray. Your eyes were incredibly expressive.
/end Spoilers/
I am so glad that I did.
This was written in my notebook as I waited for the bus back to Waterloo.
-----
I still don't fully believe what happened. It feels as though it happened days ago as opposed to ~5 hours ago. And even then, it sort of feels like a dream. To be fair, the whole day, consumed by energy, sort of feels like a dream.
The guy who plays Jack on "Torchwood" and "Doctor Who" (John Barrowman) was at Toronto Pride today.
I met John Barrowman.
I marched with Glow in the parade and as our column started slowly moving, I saw him. He was in the column next to ours that had not yet begun going forward. I knew that he was in Toronto since he is working on the "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?" reality tv show, but I didn't know how long he was going to be there for.
My eyes went wide at the wonder of possible recognition. It couldn't be him - yet it made sense. He might still be in Toronto. Wait. Hadn't I seen a man dressed as Maria while waiting for the parade to start? Maybe it was, in part, a promotional thing. Would it be okay to approach him? I don't want to be a bitch and disrupt his private life, but at the same time this is a public occasion... and I wanna (...meet him, not be a bitch). Okay. I'll establish his identity, give a solid compliment/comment on his acting and then leave him be. No autograph, no photo (not that I had a camera... damn I wish I'd had a camera), nothing else.
Of course all of this was processed in a few fangirlish seconds and I was soon moving out of our slow moving line (eh, I wouldn't be long - they couldn't get that far, and if they did I could catch up) and began walking towards him. He had started taking a video of the moving parade (only now have I begun to wonder if maybe I was on it briefly). I nervously glanced from his camera to the shuffling members of Glow, pausing briefly in my mind to wonder if the man standing next to him was his husband. His video finished and I jumped in hoping to take advantage of what I imagined was a brief lull.
"Are you John Barrow-"
"Yes, I am."
Along with increased fangirlish anxiety I experienced significant relief. By cutting me off he had saved me potentially, and likely, mangling his last name.
Then I did what I had tried to avoid, what I had hopped I wouldn't become... a babbling fangirl.
"You're awesome!" Inward face-palm.
I didn't mention why I thought he was awesome. What I'd seen him in. Nothing.
He thanked me, and per my plan I prepared to leave, but then he stuck out his hand. I giddily shook it and all bets were off.
"Would it be absolutely horrible of me to ask for an autograph?" I'm a horrible, selfish person.
He explained that I could, if I had something that he could sign. I smiled, mentally cheering myself for making a habit of caring this notebook and pen with me. Fumbling was inevitable (especially given the state of this book - both cover and back have come off, but I still carry them with me) and I dealt with it as swiftly and calmly as I could. I presented him with the final page (a middle page would have been cleaner, but required more thought process) and the working pen. He asked my name, graciously signed, and I went off to rejoin my group - stopped and not even out of sight - and gave a final farewell, thank you, and compliment - I believe a reiteration of "You're awesome!" or some similar variant.
I was a babbling fangirl fool. I was, literally, shaking. I wonder what would happen if I randomly ran into a "Firefly" cast member under similar circumstances...
-----
End of journal entry.
That was how I remembered the events taking place. Given my bubbly state it is very possible that I have messed up certain details.
The autograph now sits, framed, on a shelf by my laptop. Two days have passed and I am still stunned at what happened. If I had decided not to go, if I hadn't marched with Glow, heck, if Glow had been in a different position in the Parade, this would likely not have happened. At the same time I'm also surprised that it took me that long to notice John Barrowman. I had seen the Maria, I had seen the men in lederhosen, but somehow I hadn't seen him. If I had, I might have been able to have a more relaxed encounter, but I am filled with fangirlish glee all the same.
It's clear to me just how out of it I was, since it wasn't until I was looking at photos of the parade, and saw some pictures of John Barrowman that I noticed that he was wearing an "M?" shirt.
/Spoilers for "Torchwood" season 2/
I can't imagine that John Barrowman would come upon this, but just in case...
Thank you so much. You were very kind and patient with this awkward fangirl. I have enjoyed watching you on "Doctor Who" and "Torchwood" and thought that you did an excellent job with the intense, emotional scenes with Gray. Your eyes were incredibly expressive.
/end Spoilers/