I think the answer is no. It's been awhile since my last post, but my madness is getting stronger and I feel the need to share with the world. I will begin again where I left off and tell you about my adventures at Fan Expo and the quest to find Capaldi in Toronto.
Fan Expo was great! Heather and I had a lot of fun and were pleasantly surprised at how well the day went. We got in about 10 minutes earlier than expected, so we were actually on the floor by the time the doors were supposed to open for regular pass people. After casing the joint for an hour, the time was quickly approaching for John and Joan Cusack's Q & A, so with my previous knowledge I told Heather what time we should line up in order to get good seats. I was of course correct and we were able to get a sweet spot. Heather's excitement was building like a kid on Christmas Eve. Finally the moment came and John walked out onto the stage, and I was right he did look like a security guard, but a hot security guard so it was ok.
Fast forward to our photo ops. I have to say this was far more organized than it was at Awesome Con. Finally the time had come for Heather to come face to face with her celebrity crush. I'll be honest I paid for a photo op just to see this moment and it was worth it. She was so star struck that she forgot to stay for my photo and missed the opporunity to have an extra 2 seconds with him. In terms of a photo op, Capaldi was way better at this. John Cusack's was a lot quicker. Mostly due to the fact that he didn't speak. Not even a word. I did however, for some strange reason, get a fist bump. Perhaps he liked my shirt, my hair, my glasses, who knows. It will go down as one of the greatest mysteries of my life. Any way here's the photo...
So that was done. Heather could check something off her bucket list ( I don't actually know if she has a bucket list, but I assume if she does this would be on it). As we walked out of the photo op area, I noticed some of the Doctor Who people were at the autograph tables, so Heather and I did a walk by to see who we could see. This was when I noticed that Michelle Gomez, who plays Missy, didn't have anyone at her table. So I decided to get an autograph, which turned out to be a great decision because she is so lovely! We chatted for a bit about her role and then I told her how I got to meet Peter Capaldi in June, which meant the conversation quickly changed to talking about how great Peter is. Here's the photo I got autographed and of course I chose the one that had the Doctor...
That concludes Fan Expo. We had a lot of fun, I entered a contest to win a meet and greet with Peter Capaldi for when he was in Toronto a month later, and most importantly we got to spend about 5 seconds with John Cusack.
Now to tell you about Peter Capaldi coming to Toronto. If you have been following this blog from the beginning, you may remember that when I met him back in June he told me he was coming to Toronto towards the end of the year. He didn't know for what, but he knew he was coming. Turned out it was October and he would only be here for one day to spend it in a studio doing interview after interview. There wasn't going to be an opportunity to pay exhorbiants amount of money to meet him. I was going to have to win a contest if I wanted to see him face to face. I'm not very good at winning contests, so I was very sad and angry about this. I felt ripped off! I mean I knew long before it was ever announced that he was coming becasue the man himself had told me! So putting my tantrum aside, I decided I would take the day off work because let's be honest, I wouldn't really be working, knowing that Peter Capaldi was in the same city as me.
The day arrived and I awoke with a determination like I've never had. Twitter was ready and I was pretty sure I was following the people that would lead me to my goal. I arrived at the studio around 10:30 am and noticed there were a few people hanging outside, so I wandered over to see if they were like minded people and they were, but not very chatty. I noticed another girl standing alone, a bit further down the side walk, and I walked towards her. Immediately she asked if I was there for Peter. Of course I answered yes, to which she said she was too. Great! We chatted for about 5 minutes when I happened to look up towards a balcony on the side of the studio. Well wouldn't you know it Peter Capaldi walked out.
I told the girl beside me to look up and when she did, she immediately screamed his name. God bless her for that because he then looked down and waved. We waved back. He waved some more and then turned to someone next to him to say something, but pointed in our direction. That person then yelled down and told us to stay there they were coming down. What!? Fantastic! The young college kids around me were full of questions and wondering what was happening. I explained, I think they are coming down to see us, just as the nice lady had said. Then suddenly like a magic gennie the lady appeared in the parking lot and motioned for the 5 of us to come over. The kids were still a bit confused, but I trudged on ahead not caring what trap lay before me. I was pretty sure my reward was going to Peter Capaldi. And I was right! I came around the corner of some cars and there he was! And not just him, but Pearl Mackie as well! So there I was face to face with the man I had met exactly 4 months ago to the day. I didn't need to win a contest, I had determination!
Once again this man was nothing, but gracious. When I approached him, he shook my hand and asked if I had met Pearl. Nope, I hadn't met her before. The kids had finally caught up at this point, so they immediately started talking to him and asking for photos. He was so nice that he posed for photos with everyone. The kids even asked if they could do it again, but without his sunglasses and he of course said yes. Then it was my turn, so I asked if I could have a selfie and he said yes. He asked if I wanted sunglasses or no sunglasses, I opted for the sunglasses. When I went to pull my phone out to take the picture I had forgotten that I had the picture of him and I from Washington as my lock screen. Embrassing! I laughed and said, Oh I actually met you before. He looked at the photo and immediately said, Washington! Damn, I'm impressed he could tell from the photo where it was taken. I said yeah and he commented about how crazy that day was and thanked ME for coming to do that. Uhmm, you're welcome? I should be thanking you. Anyway, we take the photo....
Unlike my Washington photo, he's the Doctor in this one. Which is what I wanted. I then stood off to the side while he was taking a photo with another girl and realized I was standing beside Pearl. Right, Pearl! So, I asked if I could take a photo...
She is fabulous! I can't wait to see her as the new companion because she was so great to meet. I asked her if she was nervous about taking on the new role and she said at first, but it had been a lot of fun. At which point, Peter who was drawing a picture for someone chimes in and says "She's great!" The kids then asked if they could have group photos and they both said sure, so I got in on that action too...
Then that was it. I immediately sent my picture of Peter and I to the Husband, who said he laughed out loud becasue he thought I would probably see Capaldi, but not actually get to meet him again. I told him to never doubt my powers. We spent about 10 minutes in that parking lot and had an experience that I will never forget. An experience I'm pretty sure we have Peter to thank for because it really looked like he had asked to come down to meet us. I stuck around for awhile and waited for one of my students to show up, who is also a fan. I stayed with her for a bit and while we were waiting Peter popped out the front door of the building to take photos and sign some autographs. More of a crowd had gathered at this point, so he really didn't have much time to talk to people, but my student got a photo with him and a quick shout out video to the fans in Brazil. At this point, I was starting to feel like a stalker, so I left. But my student stayed for the rest of the day and got another opportunity to see him and to meet Pearl. Once again, she said it was really quick because more people had gathered. I'm glad that I got there when I did because it truly sounds like no one else had the experience that I got.
And that concludes the stalking adventures of 2016. I know it was a horrible year for celebrity deaths, but for me it will go down as one of the best. I got to fist bump John Cusack, finally talk to one of my favourite musicians, Jim Cuddy, and meet Peter Capaldi not once, but twice. What will 2017 hold? Well for starters another trip to Awesome Con to meet my Doctor, David Tennant and a trip to Ottawa Comic Con to meet.... wait for it.... Peter Capaldi again. So will this madness ever end? Not anytime soon!
