The Bridge with Peter Mansbridge - Would you believe Justin (not that one) and Auston (yes than one)

Episode Date: December 27, 2019

and hello there Peter Mansbridge here with a special day after Boxing Day edition of The Bridge. Yeah, I know. I said last week that I was going to take some time off. And I would. Normally I would unless something big happened. Well, nothing big has happened. Although it seems to me that whenever I'm in certain places, certain things suddenly happen that are interesting. And, you know, can use a little further exploration or further chatter.

And something happened here in my hometown of Stratford, Ontario, in the last 24 hours that has gathered a certain degree of attention. And therefore, I thought, you know, I'm here. I should probably weigh in and say something about it. People might expect it, those who know that our real hometown is Stratford, Ontario. Great little spot. City of about, what, 32,000, 33,000. Southwestern Ontario, a little bit west of Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, a little bit north of Woodstock, a little bit northeast of London.

Great city. Fabulous place to visit, and I'm sure many of you have had been here to see the Stratford Festival. Anyway, I digress. Something happened here that I think is worth talking about. So I'm going to, I actually wrote some stuff because it may appear online somewhere.

So I'm going to read what I wrote for you for this podcast. That should make some of you happy, those of you who have been concerned at the speed at which I speak when I'm sort of ad-libbing, as I do with almost all my podcasts. But this will be different because I'm going to read it. It should go a little faster. You shouldn't have to speed it up.

Time and a half, double time, some of you say. Now others must admit I've said they like it the way it is. But here we go. I'm going to read you this. I don't need to tell you anything more in terms of setting it up. You'll get it. You'll get it fairly quickly. It's not always easy being a rock icon or a hockey star.

Sure, you make lots of money, you can live in a fancy place and drive fast cars. But what if you just want to be a kid again? Think Justin Bieber. He still calls Stratford, Ontario home, and as I said, so do I. He comes here often to visit his dad and his grandparents. He slips quietly in and out of town on his private jet, and most people don't even know he's here unless he wants to do something he's loved since he was in single digits, play hockey. He'll rent the ice at the historic century old Almond Arena and play pickup hockey with his pals from his school days. He's still very connected to his friends who he went to school with here in Stratford. I remember once, a few years ago, being at the

arena for some other event, but ended up watching them play, Justin and his buddies. Justin had bought them all white jerseys. His, though, was yellow. Why, you may ask, was his jersey yellow? The guy standing not too far from me said, Don't hit the guy in the yellow. That's the message. Okay, I get it. Not that hitting or especially lipping at the referee was ever a problem for young Justin.

Once when my son was playing, I think it was midget, he got suspended for a game for lipping at the ref. He was called before the commissioner of the League for a quite proper dressing down. But it ended with a smile. Will, the Commissioner, said, you did wrong, but it won't ruin your future. Just remember the kid who holds the record for the most suspensions here in Stratford is... Justin Bieber. Really took some pride in that.

Now, I've never met Justin, but I used to see him sitting on the steps of the Stratford Festival's Avon Theatre when he was approaching teenager status, and my wife, Cynthia Dale, was performing in musicals on stage. Young Justin would be sitting there on the steps with his guitar in hand, and the guitar case laid out on the steps in front of him. He was strumming that guitar and singing for loonies. Within a couple of years, he was crooning Baby and making millions. Now, his has been a complicated life to say the least. Not one without mistakes. But one thing that's never changed has been his

love for hockey and his desire to be a kid forever. Dreaming of playing with the big guys. And that's what the picture on the promotion label for this podcast on Instagram and Twitter this afternoon and tonight is all about. A couple of days before Christmas, Justin called the city office with a request. He knew the Almond was normally closed on Boxing Day, but like any other Stratford citizen, if he paid the overtime rate for rink staff

and if they were willing to come into work, could he bring along some of his old school pals for some shinny? Don't worry, that's just my clock playing in the background there. My Stratford clock. It gongs like that every 15 minutes. So you've got to kind of plan to fit the podcast

in between those 15 minutes. Anyway, he wanted to bring his pals along for shinny. All he wanted in return was that the moment be kept, you know, as quiet as possible so they could enjoy some privacy. Now, that's a reasonable request. And quickly, it was game on.

The pals, it turned out, included some other kids, who probably have the same dream on occasion. Just play for fun with your friends. No coaches, no analytics, no pylons on the ice to run drills around. Those pals had their own star status. Austin Matthews, Mitchell Marner, Tyson Barry, all of the Toronto Maple Leafs. I guess Justin just couldn't fit my number in.

Call me. Maybe. Next time. I know. I know, I know, I know. That's not his song. But I like the thought. They played, Justin and his pals and the Leafs,

they played four on four uninterrupt, for almost a couple of hours. And then, this was a picture to be seen. They all went back in these little dressing rooms in the Almond. They're great. You've got to crouch or you bang your head on the pipes. They go back to the dressing room. They change. They pack their gear. And they headed out the door their bags slung over their shoulders imagine the site they got plumbers electricians

insurance salesmen and a number one draft pick alongside a worldwide pop star, all carrying their hockey bags. Your typical hockey crowd, at least on this day in Stratford. Now, we're to travel a bit, and as a result, there were kids outside. But the stars stopped, and and they signed and they had pictures taken with fans and rink staff too. No one complained. Now before some of you get all huffy and dump on Justin and his pro pals for spending his Stratford time and money on himself, he's actually not that kind of guy. He's been a generous contributor here, silently usually,

to all kinds of local charitable causes, from the museum to the soup kitchen and a lot of things along the way. He comes home and he brings friends and his new family with him because he keeps his connection to his Stratford family and this little town, no matter how far away from the California lights it may be. And in that, at least this week, he's not that different than the rest of us, no matter where we live. At this time of year, no matter what holiday we're marking. We surround ourselves with friends and family.

We remember how lucky we are, and we enjoy a few hours just having fun. So that's my little story from Stratford. We'll see. Maybe I'll be back with the next edition of The Bridge next week as things start to roll out and get ready for a new year, 2020. Incoming, on the horizon. And with it will be the next edition of The Bridge.

I'm Peter Mansbridge. Thanks for listening. Thank you.