A short story from the Junos.

Our seats were as front row as you could get. Any closer and we would be on the floor with all the “seat filler” type volunteers. These are people who are in their late teens/early twenties and dressed up in their best; guys with their funkiest rockstar clothes and girls in their sexiest outfits. It didn’t feel like we were in Saskatchewan anymore. It felt more like a video shoot in LA or New York. Back in our front row seats I sat next to a guy from the Toronto area for a little while. He was friends with one of the Canadian Idol judges which is how he got into everything I guess. He was nice and seemed to be enjoying the weekend, especially the parties. He asked me how I was enjoying the parties. You know, the staying up until 5am type of Juno weekend parties. Not being the real partying type I just tried to avoid the question. Nelly Furtado’s band was getting set up. This guy leans over and says to me, “Wow, now there’s a great looking girl! Do you see her? Over there, what do you think?”

What do I think? I think I want to avoid this whole question! I feel like I’m in high school again trying to answer this one. I don’t like sizing up people. It’s unfair. And me sizing up a woman is unfair to my wife. So, what to do? How do I answer this one?

I decide I’ll look, hopefully that will buy me some time to come up with a response. I really just do not want to answer the question.

I look in the direction he indicated. It looks like it’s one of the seat fillers he’s referring to. Likely 10 years younger than me, maybe 20 years younger than him! I then notice that just behind this girl Nelly’s band is almost ready and Nelly has a backup singer on a platform with a short skirt on. Not being totally sure whom he was referring to I just pretend he means the woman on stage, that way I have a response.
“Oh her?” I asked. He nodded.
“Your eyes were just reeled in by that short skirt.” I say. He laughed and kept nodding his head. That seemed to satisfy him. Mini-crisis averted.

However, this is a good reminder that I live in somewhat of a Christian bubble. Playing in a Christian band mostly in churches, living with a Christian family, and knowing almost only Christians makes it easy to forget how most people on this continent live. Now, what to do with this reminder. . .

GL