Philadelphia Messiahs 2006

Next, I left for Philadelphia, where I sang two Messiahs with Richard Hickox and the Philadelphia Orchestra. It was strange - I'd been running around so much, then to come back to the Messiah was like a time warp. I caught a cold. So I didn't see much of the city (no Liberty Bell for me) and tried to just stay quiet so I could save up for the concerts. My last night, I had a strange thing happen to me, that only *I* would do... I noticed a girl in the lobby, crying her eyes out, and finally went over and asked her if she was OK. She launched into a long story about how her long-distance boyfriend (who'd asked her to marry him) had invited her in town to see him. He sent her the plane tickets (which left the next day) and said he'd pay for the hotel. She didn't have that kind of money. She didn't really understand why he wanted to keep her in a hotel, since he lives in Philly, but just thought he was treating her nicely by giving her a room. They were going to meet up at the Hotel. Well, it turns out he's actually married which he revealed to her probably AFTER their first night in the hotel. When he revealed that he was married, instead of just saying "OK, let's continue the affair," she broke up with him. So, utter and sheer ass that he is, he didn't pay for the second night of her hotel. And she didn't have a credit card or money enough to pay for the hotel room. It sounded like the most elaborate type of scam, and I was trying to figure out what she was trying to get out of me, but gave her the benefit of the doubt and checked out a few things with the concierge. Sure enough, her story panned out - he'd seen the whole story unfold before his very eyes, and the boyfriend had paid upfront, but then come downstairs and GOTTEN HIS MONEY BACK for the second night! Gads. She wasn't beside herself so much about not having someplace to sleep, but more about losing the "man of her dreams." She really thought he wanted to marry her. He even has kids. But she couldn't change her plane ticket, and barely had enough money to get to the airport the next day. So I bought her dinner and told her she could sleep in the extra bed in my room. She spent most of the night telling me more about the story, and thanking me for being so sweet. I know she could've been some kind of mass murderer or a scam artist out to get my valuables (I locked my stuff in the vault in my room, just for safety's sake) but told them downstairs what was going on, so they were also keeping an eye out on us. And I figured it was a sign that for once, in the City of Brotherly Love, singing "The Messiah," I really needed to live the Christian ideal and risk helping someone. It turns out, she was exactly who she said she was: a hairdresser from some small town in the Midwest. She recontacted me later to thank me again, but I haven't kept in touch. I hope she's found a REAL knight in shining armor that she was seeking.