Meeting the Muse

So yesterday I logged on to find emails telling me that the Bull Run Rally was going to be in Reno on Wednesday night at Circus Circus. Big deal, right? Well, I do love racing. I love the engines. I love the cars. I love the speed. I followed the CART series for years, have gotten into NASCAR, went to the Jim Hall Kart Racing School in Ventura, CA, and crewed on a SCCA team at Sears Point. If I wasn't a writer (or if I had a lot of disposable income), I'd love to be a race car driver or involved in racing somehow.

But the emails weren't due to my interest in racing. The emails were because of one of the Bull Run drivers. Hayden Christensen to be exact.

You see Hayden is my muse, the inspiration for my writing. And the fact that he was going to be in Reno at the same time as I was in Reno...well the Force was definitely with me. If only I'd brought Darth Tater with me!

So even though I was supposed to be at the literacy signing autographing books, I skipped out early. Most people wanted to see Nora Roberts and the other biggie authors, not little old me. Though I did leave some signed copies just in case and bought the rest of my books so I wasn't being totally irresponsible. But hey, it was Hayden. Not only did he play Darth Vader, he was driving a race car. It doesn't get much hotter than that. Romance fans would have to understand that. Any living, breathing female for that matter.

So I had a goal for the evening. I wanted to see Hayden in person and take his picture. I thought that was an attainable goal if I timed it right. I just prayed I'd timed it right. My hubby dropped me off (he's totally cool about my crush on Hayden and I'm hoping he will get me that life-sized standee of Anakin for my birthday) and then parked the car. I was meeting a fellow Hayden fan who I'd met on-line and also wants to write romances so she signed up for the RWA convention. I called her cell phone to see where she was and she told me she was following Hayden. I looked up and there he was. And yes, he's even more gorgeous in person than his photos. Skinnier though.

It took a moment for me to remember I had a phone in my hand not a camera, but I recovered quickly enough to take a picture. I also heard him speak. Talk about being in Hayden Heaven. Only a few minutes after arriving and I'd already achieved my goal!

I saw a blonde holding a camera, looking like I felt so I said, "Michelle?" It was my friend. We hugged, she showed me her just autographed GQ with Hayden on the cover and we checked out the cars. Soon we met up with my hubby, who had missed Hayden completely. Not that he cared, but he was happy for us.

As we were hanging out by the entrance to the Circus Circus, I glanced inside. I saw a green shirt. Hayden was wearing a green shirt. I yelled for Michelle who yelled for my hubby and we raced inside. It was Hayden!

First, a couple of things. Hayden is a talented actor and totally gorgeous. The sexy curly hair, the full lips, the charming smile and the intoxicating eyes. Hero worthy, definitely. I mean, he is the muse for my writing. But what I saw tonight was the beauty inside him. This was a man who had driven from Salt Lake City to Reno. He looked tired, but he went out of his way to sign autographs and pose for pictures with his fans. His patience and generosity with his time amazed me. I never thought I could like him more than I had. I was wrong. He not only deserves his fans' affection; he deserves their respect. Okay, back to the story...

So I called out, "Hayden." I told him I was a writer and he was my inspiration, muse and pulled out the first page of one of my works in progress. I asked if he would autograph it. He did! I then asked if I could take a picture with him. He said yes! And he put his arm around me. At this point I was feeling like one of my heroines--pulse quickening, heart pounding, a bit shaky. I couldn't believe he was touching me. And yes, I also felt like a giddy teenager. I put my arm around him and managed to brush one of his curlies sticking out from the back of his baseball cap with my fingers. Now I truly had died and gone to Hayden Heaven. I only wish I could figure out how to post pictures here. I'll see if I can have my webmistress put a couple on the website when I get home.

Michelle was next and got her picture taken with Hayden. My hubby was the photographer. Michelle's picture came out great. Mine was dark and blurry. Not that I'm complaining. Meeting Hayden was more than enough.

After Hayden returned outside, Michelle and I each bought at Bull Run Rally T-shirt. She had a Sharpee on hand (yes, she was totally prepared for this!) and we were waiting with other people to see if he would come back inside. My hubby had gone out to look at the cars. My cell phone rings and it's him telling us to run to the opposite entrance of the casino. That Hayden and his brother Tove were outside. Have I told you how much I love my husband for doing this?

Michelle and I hurried out there (not an easy thing to do in the Franco Sarto heels I was wearing, I sure missed my Tevas) to find hubby standing only a few feet away from Hayden and snapping pictures. We'd each already gotten an autograph and picture so we didn't want to stalk the poor guy, but no one was around (not even security) so we waited for Hayden to walk towards us. I asked him if he'd sign my shirt even though he'd already signed my book and he did. He also signed Michelle's shirt. She asked him if he had to go to go to school to learn how to do that. He just gave her the cutest smile and winked. Thud! We both swooned as he headed inside.

We then checked out his car, a cool yellow Lamborghini with Star Wars decals on it. I would've loved to see the engine, but no such luck. We saw a few more of the stars pull in and then headed back to the Hilton. I had a couple parties to attend, but it was really hard to concentrate or carry on a coherent conversation when all I could think about was meeting Hayden. I'm hoping by morning, I'll be ready to conference. It's nearly three in the morning though and my feet still haven't touched the ground. I doubt my heart ever will!