Ms. Ashley Tisdale made an appearance at a Verizon Wireless store this afternoon in Pasadena. As how I'm such a big fan of hers, I naturally woke my lazy butt up at 6:00 A.M. to meet her. Here's how my day went!
***
I drove by the store at around 8:00 A.M. There was no one waiting outside the front, and I assumed I showed up really early. I parked my car and got some sleep for about an hour. At around 9:00 A.M., I decided to drive by the store again; like before, there was no one out front. Eventually I got bored of sitting in my car so I went for a walk. I strolled down the strip and eventually I curved around the corner to the back of the stores, which I did not realize they had (I don't live in the area). When I approached the Verizon store from the back, I finally found the line and quickly rushed to get my things and wait; I was about the 40th person.
With about two hours left to go, some of the promoters of the event started some contests to win VIP tickets to see Ashley (I'll get to those in a minute). There were sing-alongs, dance competitions, some random trivia questions, and other Verizon phone related things. I use T-Mobile so I wasn't eligible for most of it, but the prizes were random Verizon merchandise (key chains, towels), not Ashley Tisdale memorabilia.
Back to the VIP tickets real quick. I did not get one since my spot in line left me behind the Verizon truck, so the promoters weren't really able to see me. I panicked, thinking I needed the ticket to get in, even though I had a wristband securing my spot. Fortunately, it turns out the VIP ticket just lets you cut ahead of the line. You weren't given extra time to meet with Ashley or anything like that.
At 12:30, Ashley appeared! She was escorted from the inside of the store (no idea how she got inside in the first place) to the back of the store where everyone was waiting. There was a tent with a camera that people can dance in front of to pretend you were really dancing with Ashley (a prerecorded Ashley danced on the on the left side, the people dancing with her appeared on the right). Ashley Tisdale herself actually went in the tent to dance with her virtual self, which was really cool, but unfortunately I couldn't get a good look cause the sides of the the tent were covered. Still, I got to see Ashley dance on the TV screen!
Twenty or so minutes later, I finally got inside the store. I was so nervous, I was unable to keep my hands steady. We were allowed to have her sign one thing (gasp!) and one picture of her, not with. It was okay, though, since I really just wanted her to sign my copy of Headstrong. I had a present for Ashley; it was a stuffed white and black striped tiger. When I finally got meet her, I handed her my gift, saying how I would appreciate it if she would accept it. What did she say next?
"Awww, thank you so much!"
My cheeks must've been blushing so much. I mean, it's Ashley who should've been receiving all the thanks since she has given so much to the fans. But here she was, saying thank you to me! It was incredibly awesome.
I had her sign the handbook that came with the album. As I preordered the album, I was supposed to received an autographed booklet. When the album came in my mail last Saturday, it had a small signed picture of her which I thought was the bonus autograph. A couple days ago, however, I received another package from Warner Bros. that contained an actual signed handbook. I wasn't sure if this handbook was really signed by Ashley herself, but I honestly didn't care. If I was going to meet Ashley Tisdale, why not have her sign both? So despite the one autograph rule, Ashley signed them anyway and now I have two booklets with three signatures.
There were Verizon posters of her that she signed and handed out; I received one of these, too. Unfortunately, because I went by myself to the event, I had no one to take a picture of me. I was quickly rushed along and missed my chance to take a picture of her, and this had been the only real bummer for me. But seeing as how I couldn't take a picture
with her, I wasn't bummed quite as much.
When I left the store, it was only about halfway through the event. So what did I do next? Wait in line again for another chance to see her!
The promoters there were smart. About the first half of the line received white wristbands while the latter half received yellow. This way they would know if anyone was trying to do what I did, see Ashley again. Fortunately for me, the 'bouncers' (they were just security guards) didn't know any better and I managed to go into the store a second time! I didn't ask for another autograph or anything because I had nothing else to sign, but it was great seeing her. And guess what? I forgot to take a picture! Jeez, I can be so absent-minded.
I waited outside when the event was over to try and catch a glimpse of her. This didn't work since her sneaky guards somehow managed to get her out of the building without anyone seeing it (most likely she was in the backroom of the store still but no one stuck around to find out).
All in all, I had a great time. It was so fantastic being inches away from her and having her talk to me, even if it was just for a minute. God, she is amazingly beautiful. A pic of what she wore will probably be up soon, but for those who can't wait, she wore a vanilla yellow dress. It was very simple but it looked absolutely stunning on her. I just became an even bigger fan of hers after today.
P.S. If my gift for her shows up on her website or YouTube, I would scream!
P.P.S. Pics, and maybe videos, of the event will be on
http://www.ashleyconcerts.com/ this Wednesday.
P.P.P.S. Conan O'Brien is da man! 1:50 is the best part of the interview, no doubt!