star-struck

Last night, I stayed up way too late trying to write that email (and also avoiding writing it) and then by the time I was done, I figured I may as well stay up a little longer and listen to the last few songs of a C'landian radio station's countdown of the top 100 songs of last year. Since I don't listen to the radio anymore, I hadn't heard most of the songs before, but I liked the top couple and the #1 song gives me the chance to tell the story of my closest brush with a celebrity.
One day I was trying to finish some homework on the bus out to uni. Halfway along the trip, the older woman next to me rang the bell for the next stop. Unfortunately, we were on an express so I explained to her that the bus wouldn't stop there, but she could try asking the driver to let her out at the red light. She didn't want to do that so she ended up riding all the way out to uni to get a non-express back. At first, when she started chatting, I wanted to get back to my homework. She asked me what I was studying and stuff and then started telling me about her son who'd started a law? journalism? degree at the same uni a few years ago, but then he'd dropped out to sing in a band. She sounded disappointed and worried about this and assured me he was going to come back and finish his degree soon, since music doesn't offer a lot of security as a career. "ah well," I said, "I hope he's enjoying himself. Is the band doing okay, at least?" "well," she said, "you might have heard of it; they're called Famous, Successful Band". So yeah, I think they're doing okay. She went on to tell me how she and her husband would go to see him play whenever he was in town, even though it wasn't at all their kind of music ("The kids seem to like it, though"). Their son would leave tickets for them at the door and the person there would either be doubtful that they really wanted tickets, or know immediately who they were since they'd be a good 30 or 40 years older than the rest of the crowd. She was very sweet When we got to uni I showed her where to get the non-express, she wished me well with my studies and I went off to tell everyone I'd just met Famous, Successful Band Singer's mum.
One of the songs off this guy's solo album just got voted the #1 song of the year. I wonder if his mum still wishes he'd go back and finish his degree.