Best Birthday Ever?

I'm thinking ...
YES!!!

I've had some pretty memorable birthdays ...
spent at Disneyland, Disney World, Hollywood, among others...
But my birthday this year, topped the cake!
[Which is good, considering I didn't even have a cake this year!]

This was the first time I've ever worked on my birthday.
When I arrived at work that morning,
I was greeted with lots of birthday wishes from the kids.
They sang 'Happy Birthday' to me, too.
A few kids overheard a teacher telling me that
there were birthday treats in the kitchen,
[Lofthouse cookies]
and were waiting after the snack for a "special treat"
Needless to say, they were rather disappointed that it was
only the teachers who were getting birthday treats.
So the next day, I brought a cake mix and made a cake
to share with everyone!

There was something I really wanted to do for my birthday,
and even though it meant 'going solo',
I decided to do it!

So after work, I took BART to San Francisco.
I got off at Powell Street Station
and walked to the Curran Theatre



and purchased a ticket.

Not just any old ticket either...
but a ticket to see Hugh Jackman In Performance!



[Hence the big grin on my face!]



I would have loved to get a seat in the Orchestra,
but at $200 a pop, it was a little out of my price range. :(
So, I settled for a cheap balcony seat,
because it was definitely better than nothing!
[And at least it wasn't in the very back either!]



Oh my heavens!
What a WONDERFUL show it was!
He is just as charming and attractive
in 'real life' as he is in 'reel life'!
So talented...and funny, too!

Was rather envious of the 79 year old woman
who got brought up to the stage
and danced with him! [Lucky her!]

He sang songs and shared stories about his career.
All my troubles just seemed to melt away,
while watching him perform.
I wished it could go on and on....and on!
But sadly, it had to come to an end.
[But oh, what an end!]



After the show, I posed for a photo with 'Hugh'
[And took a few photos for others, as well.]



Then I went outside and saw that there was
a large crowd gathered in front of the theatre,
so of course, I waited, too!
It was a bit breezy and chilly....a typical SF night.
But Hugh, was worth waiting for!



He finally came out after waiting for 15-20 minutes.
This is when one of the disadvantages to being short
comes into play. With anywhere from 4-8 people standing in front of me,
I basically just had to lift my camera into the air and hope for the best!



Which resulted in a lot of other people's cameras
and back of heads dominating the photos.
But, I did get a few of Hugh...



I had made my way down towards the end of the line,
determined to find a way to get his attention somehow!

There was another lady also trying to get his attention.
She was shouting things out to him...
including that her birthday was next week.
So I shouted out, "Well, it's my birthday today!"
I don't know if he heard me, but shortly after that
he took the Playbill that I was holding out and signed it.
As he handed it back and I said, "Thank you, Hugh!"
He looked right at me and said...

"Thank you, sweetheart!"

I about melted into a puddle of goo right there and then!
And with those three magic words, May 10, 2011
became the best birthday EVER!!!



What a night to remember!