How I Met (and Almost Married?) Lindsey Stirling
A Fan Boy’s Odysee of Meeting His Celebrity Crush
Come gather ‘round, for I have an epic story to tell! It is a tale that began in jest but became an odyssey for the ages.
2019 was, to date, the best year of my life. It was a year-long celebration of the end of an era, and the beginnings of a new one. I had already completed several road trips as a part of a year-long promise to my departed mother who passed in 2018.
The first trip would happen in May and was a deeply emotional and meaningful return trip to the Dakotas. It was the genesis for my award-nominated film called “After the Storm”.
In June, I would embark on another superlative road trip to Utah where I would explore four of “The Big Five” national parks. Through pure serendipity on the way home, I would meet and make a trade with my favourite pianist, Jennifer Thomas.
Side note: If Jennifer Thomas and Lindsey Stirling ever collaborated, I think my head and heart would explode in unison.
A Prank Starts in Jest
The tidal momentum of 2019 would continue through the rest of the summer and into the fall. It was then I learned that my celebrity crush, Lindsey Stirling, announced a “Warmer in the Winter” Christmas tour that passed through the North Dakota city of Grand Forks.
I had missed an opportunity the previous year to see her in concert and made a vow that, if she was ever performing within a day’s drive of me, I would drop everything and go.
When I went to purchase the ticket online, I saw there was an opportunity to pay a premium to meet her backstage.
Should I or shouldn’t I?
I sighed and said, “To heck with it” and booked the “meet and greet” option. It was more than I wanted to pay, but I didn’t care. 2019 was a celebration of life and I was determined to leave everything on the field — be “all in” or you don’t go at all.
November 1, 2019: The Accidental Prank
I am a mischievous sort. What is life without some spice?
To celebrate and announce some bragging rights to my friends, I went online to a fake Facebook Status generator, and instead of showing my excitement for the concert, I decided to invert it and make it so my celebrity crush was more excited to meet me; so much so that I would arouse nuptial desires in the superstar.
The status update had an accompanying image:
The majority of my friends got the joke. It was clearly fake…or was it real enough to be believable?
I would receive a few messages from friends who thought it was real. I thought the joke was obvious! I guess not.
At that moment, fate had spoken and beckoned my mischievous side; I now had the responsibility to see this prank through to the end. A path opened before me where I accidentally took the first step on an epic odyssey.
The Fates Approve: SQUEE!
The repetitive punchline for this prank was going to be an innocent exclamation; Squee! The word was meant to punctuate and accentuate. “Squee” is also a fun word to say. It makes you smile when you say it.
The fates seemed to agree with me as one day after my satirical status update, dictionary.com’s word of the day would provide an astonishing coincidence. Behold, this is their word of the day for November 2, 2019:
Message received, Universe! Message Received! What are the odds of this?
It was time to step up the game.
FB Status Update, November 22, 2019
One week before the concert, I had to keep the gag running.
Of things you should note for this status update, the avatar for “Lindsey Stirling’s Agent” is Agent Smith from the Matrix trilogy. I mean, he is an agent!
Attention to detail, my friends!
My Boss Plays Along
My coworkers were, of course, inundated with enthusiastic updates from my upcoming concert trip. Every one of those updates concluded with the assumption that Lindsey Stirling and I will wed before the concert with the obligatory “Squee!”
Yes, my coworkers hated me. My boss, however, decided to treat a fool as a fool and play along.
On the morning of November 26, 2019, my boss would stop by my office and say, “Okay, so, you’re getting married this weekend and not coming back?”
I replied, “Most likely yes.”
My Boss says, “Okay, I’ll just give Rebecca your office then. Is it okay if she keeps your Christmas decorations?”
I said, “I’m perfectly fine with that.”
“Okay, well this will be an easy transition then.” My boss replied, “It was nice working with you.”
She then tapped her notebook with a coy satisfaction, smirked, and quietly backed out of my office.
Fate Brings Forth a Test
Sometimes fate wants to test you to see if you are worthy. Nothing in this life is handed to you. Nothing in this life that is worth anything comes for free. The only thing truly given to you is your life, but you still have to earn it.
Such is the challenge that stood in my path on the way to Grand Forks, North Dakota.
A Border Guard’s Warning
I would leave my home city of Regina, Saskatchewan on November 29, 2019, with a kilt in my suitcase and a smile on my face. I couldn’t wait to see the concert the next day. My intent was to break up the drive and go as far as Minot, North Dakota, and make the sojourn to Grand Forks a day later.
When I crossed the border into the United States, I told the American Guard my plans.
The Guard would break some bad news for me: “You should probably get all the way to Grand Forks tonight because a snowstorm is on the way.”
I said, “You’ve got to be kidding me!”
The guard said he wished he was. I told him that I’m off to Lindsey Stirling's concert in Grand Forks. He asked the normal questions like do I have firearms or drugs. He then asked if I was meeting someone.
I replied, “Just Lindsey Stirling, and I hope once she meets me, she’ll want to marry me.”
He laughed, smiled and said, “Well good luck with that, sir! Welcome to the United States.”
The drive to Minot was fine but a storm was moving in. I arrived in Minot just before the early sunset. I probably should have just plowed through all the way to Grand Forks. The snowstorm is going to be a problem. Sigh…
I’m a bit concerned. I’ll have to leave early tomorrow morning to allow myself some time to see the concert. I see the storm is lasting until Sunday. Sigh…
This is the theme for me going on trips since my Mom’s passing; a storm loomed for each of them.
Unlike summer storms in my part of the world, it is the winter storms that are the dangerous ones. Was I going to make it to the concert?
November 30, 2019: A Legend is Made
I would wake up in Minot and post my final prank status update. Lindsey Stirling was so excited that she extended her “Squee” across four posts.
I woke up at about 7:30 am and checked the forecast.
It seems I would have to get to Grand Forks by noon before the blizzard moves in. Time was in short supply, so I packed up and left by 8 am.
My Defining Moment
As I went to check out, the gentleman at the counter invited me behind the desk to look at his computer screen. He knows my plans and shows me the roads; red warning lines everywhere.
“You won’t make it,” he says, “You can’t go.”
I said I have a 4-wheel drive and he replies that I might be okay. I then asked how good the road crews are in North Dakota. Both of the gentlemen behind the counter look at each other and laugh.
“They USED to do a good job! Now the state saves money!”
I’m thinking I might be foiled by this storm. But I have to go forward! I have to press onward! I might have compromised myself last night by not going all the way to Grand Forks.
Fate stared me in the face and asked me if I was worthy. How bad do you want this?
I said, “I paid for my ticket. I’m going. Screw it!”
The gentlemen behind the counter tried one more time to dissuade me, but I was determined. Storms have been the pattern this entire year — a test to see if I am worthy of this life. What’s one more storm?
A moment of defiance arose within me: You think you are the storm? I AM THE STORM!
I turned away from the front desk and headed towards the door. Before exiting, I stopped, turned back to the men at the counter and stood with my arms akimbo. I was about to be the legend of which the locals will sing folk songs in the black hills for generations to come. This was my defining moment and we all knew it.
“Well, gentleman,” I said with triumphant defiance, “if this ends badly, then it was nice knowing you.”
They bowed their heads, laughed and looked back up at me as if I were already a dead man. If indeed I were already a ghost, then I had nothing to lose.
Arriving for the Concert
The drive from Minot to Grand Forks took over four hours — a normal drive is three. The roads were not as bad as I thought they’d be. But the most important part of it all is that I made it.
I can see Lindsey Stirling!
Since I arrived a couple of hours early for check-in, I grabbed lunch at a local establishment. No sooner did I sit and enjoy my meal, than I would look out the window to see a snowstorm. I beat the storm by maybe 20 minutes.
After lunch, I drove back to the hotel. I had a nap and then got ready for the concert, with my kilt and all.
Pre-Concert Atmosphere
Since I was a VIP, I was given a special entrance. I went in and there was hot chocolate for us and some games for the kids. Everyone was super friendly and in a good mood. I don’t know if this is North Dakotan hospitality or just Lindsey Stirling’s fan base. I’m not used to such hospitality at a concert.
A mother and son came up to me while we were waiting in the lobby. They loved my kilt and wanted to get a picture taken with me. I was so honoured that I asked to have a picture taken with them in return.
After what I’ve been through to get here, I now feel calm and at home.
Finally Meeting Lindsey!
I was last in line to get a picture taken with Lindsey Stirling. When she saw the kilt, she gave me a huge smile and a big hug. She LOVED the kilt!
I said it was nice to meet her. She said in a Scottish accent, “Look at him! All in his Scottish garb!”
I just said, “It’s Irish.”
She laughed and replied, “Okay, Irish!”
We got our picture together and I said it was nice to meet her again. The all-too-brief moment I had with my celebrity crush — a flight almost too close to the sun — had concluded.
No love at first sight. No marriage proposal. Just a quick hello and a picture snap. Good enough! At least she knows I exist, and she gave me a hug!
Ah, celebrity crushes.
The concert itself was amazing. Celebrity crushes and biases aside, it was the best concert I’ve ever been to. Lindsey puts on a fantastic show. I loved it so much.
December 1, 2019: The Return Home
Still on a high from last night’s concert, I crossed the border back into Canada and conversed with the Canadian border guard. She asked where I came from, I told her about the concert and how it was the best I’ve ever seen.
I said, “She didn’t marry me backstage, so I had to come back.”
“It’s too bad you had to come back.” She said as she laughed, “Maybe next time. Welcome home!”
Completing the Prank: Save The Date!
My devious plan from the very start of this odyssey was to get the photo with Lindsey and turn it into a fake wedding invitation. Since I am a graphic designer, my goal was to make the invite as cloying and sickeningly sweet as possible. I then sent it to all my friends.
Take special note: It doesn’t say what date to save.
How my friends didn’t stage an intervention is anyone’s guess.
Epilogue: Coworker Vandalism
There is the old adage of the crabs in a bucket; how one cannot be successful around others because, through the green-eyed monster of jealousy, they will pull you back down with them. If they cannot have success, then neither can you.
Such is the vengeance a fellow coworker and graphic designer took out on me. Obviously, my relentless insistence that I was going to marry Lindsey Stirling backstage in North Dakota had taken its toll.
In an act of turnabout being fair play, she took an image of mine and manipulated it to her own mischievous ends. It was revenge for the past month of insufferable optimism she had to endure.
Such vandalism on the purity of our love! I hate my coworker so much.
Yes, I know; live by the Photoshop, die by the Photoshop. It appears the final punchline was on me.
And with that, my tale is told.
PS — Lindsey, if you’re reading this: Call me :-)
