In Which I Flirt with an NHL Player

Dustin Penner used to be an LA King. I was sad when he was traded to Anaheim. I was still sadder when he went to the Washington Capitals a couple of weeks ago. This means he won't be playing against the Kings as often as he used to, now that he's in another conference.

However, I can still enjoy his tweets. He's well loved, and despised, as often happens, on Twitter. Recently he shared this with his followers, all 104,400 of them.

Want 2 tickets to my first @washcaps home game.Come pick me up at the grocery store & help me bring my bags into my new place tonight #no🚗😕

(I see the emoticons don't show up. There was a car and a sad face after the word "no.")

The guy was so new in town, he didn't have wheels. So, I tweeted something slightly inappropriate.

Dude, if I lived there, I'd take you on my back. 
Wait. 
That didn't come out right.

Now, Penner's a funny guy. I thought he might appreciate the humor, but I doubted he'd even see it. His Twitter feed must be insane.

Then, lo and behold, THIS:

That's right; he marked my tweet as a favorite. That made my day. So I posted a photo as proof on Instagram. Same deal. I figured my followers would see it, they'd share in my delight and then it'd be over.

But look at THIS. It's a screenshot of that Instagram post.

See the heart symbol with "dd2527" next to it? That's Dustin on Instagram. I was sitting on my computer when I got the notification--bing!--that someone had liked my photo. That someone was him! It's silly that I get a thrill from such a distant, mostly impersonal action, but I do. That's the nature of being a fan and I don't care. You have to grab happiness where you can, I say!

Are you on Twitter? Do you follow any celebrities? Have they ever responded to you?

Postscript: There is a happy ending. He did end up getting a ride from someone. Here's the news article.