A Close Encounter of the Lucy Kind

By Sharon Stone
s.stone@net2000.com.au

It started over a month prior with some little snippet of information I spied somewhere that Lucy has been nominated best actress for the N.Z. t.v. and theatre awards annual to be held in Wellington on the 20th November. So what is stopping me then? On a plane I went and coincided my holiday with the awards night. Once in Wellington I checked out the Town Hall the previous day.

Then on the day I got up early and made a day of it in [yukky] Wellington. It was so cold and pouring with rain, at 3pm I went to the T. Hall just in case she was going to slip in early... people were scurrying home looking at me as though I was crazy sitting huddled in the cold and rain and as time went on shivering, but let me tell you I felt so excited inside I would have sat there naked if need be, I had been counting down the weeks then the days and now it was only hours.... wow, nothing would have made me budge! All the while I had been spied by some of the staff and unbeknownst to me at that time one of them that kept coming out to look at me was the publicist for the night Sue somebody or other, towards 6.30pm the paparazzi were gathered also at the front steps.

Sue came out and introduced herself to me, [as I was some 20 feet from the paparazzi] and asked what I was doing there, I told her "to see Lucy Lawless" she asked "And what do you hope to achieve if you do see her?" I said I'd like to take her photograph. "Anything else?" she asked. "Oh and hopefully to get her autograph." I replied. "OK" she said, "Well let me tell you that because of the paparazzi it might be very difficult as they are very pushy" ..."And also she "might" be arriving at the side entrance and she "might be arriving in a taxi. I'm not saying that for sure, but she might be"

Woo Hoo.....!!!!! Solitary me watched that side entrance, solitary me strained my neck into every taxi. At 7. 30 pm.WHAT DID I SEE? I saw a taxi with a woman in the back seat lying right down and out of vision to any one, accept me with the long neck straining to see in.

"Gods I think it might be her," my heart stopped I am sure. I followed the taxi with my eyes and saw it stop and saw Rob get out of the front seat. OH! Oh!.... Then Lucy!!! OH!!!! She stood up and looked liked she wanted to do the dash for the 30 meters into the Town Hall. A tiny voice left my throat, "Lucy.!" "Gods that sounded pathetic." she turned, saw my Xena hat on my head, gave way to this huge wide eyed grin, [was she looking and grinning at me?] pointed her outstretched finger at my hat and came over to me... saying "You Crazy Woman!!"Ahhhhh!!!!! I was so, well you know, I was bloody in heaven! and I was going to wake up any moment... nooo! She was enjoying this. And sooo was I. My voice I noticed from then on was decidedly 6 times higher than I have ever heard it! I squeaked, “Can I take your photo?” She laughed and slid her arm around my shoulder and pulled me in tight, talking all the while, wanting to know who I was and where I was from, she was so close she became a blurr to my ever widening eyes! She said. “Better than you take the photo, here let Rob take the photo of the two of us together”, Oh yes Rob was there I shook his hand, and what a fabulous hand shake he has got, perfect. [that was just by the bye.]

Snap! Rob snapped the best moment any Xenite could ever wish to experience. “Your autograph, can I please have your autograph?” I squeaked out. Snap! Oh Rob took another. And with my eyes as wide as saucers, a grin so big as to split my face in two, and that voice that was still far to high to be taken seriously, I thanked them both. And it says a lot of what Lucy and Rob think of the people who they make the show for, the fans, they are not disdainful in the least, in fact I feel it gave Lucy a great thrill to see the Xena hat, it gave way to an opening that never would have occurred other wise. Oh and how did she feel? [[....Soft.... ]]

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