By Brendan Emmett in St. John’s
So this is cool.
All I ever do is talk baseball, and now I’m about to do it with some of the most good-natured, fun-loving people in the world. East-coast Canadians.
Somebody play me some Great Big Sea!!!
St. John’s, I hope you’re ready for 22 Days of Blue Jays. We are comin’ in hot.
To say the last few days have been a whirlwind is an understatement, I have a cumulative five hours of sleep in three nights. But Erica and I are ready to do this!
After quickly forming a friendship with Erica in the last couple days, it was kind of crazy to say goodbye to her so soon on Friday. Fans, make sure you’re following her progress out West as well. I’m sure we’ll see each other back in Toronto before we know it. To my fellow ambassador — have a blast out there!
As for Team East, Friday was a travel day, so not a ton to report in terms of specific people and places … yet. But there’s already something I noticed that is quickly becoming one of my favourite things.
It’s simply watching people’s faces light up when I ask them “Are you a Blue Jays fan?”
Employees at Pearson International Airport who were just beginning their morning shifts had their frowns turned upside down just at the mention of the team!
Me: “So, you a Blue Jays fan?”
Random employee:
“… Yo? Are you serious? Love that squad. The Jays, man? Legit dude.”Me: “Nice.”
(Commence bro shake)
It truly is amazing to witness how the Blue Jays have captivated so many of us.
I’ll do my best to capture these moments of pure fandom as soon as possible on the tour.
As you follow along, any ideas you have, questions, or even if you just want to say “what’s up,” send me a tweet @brendanemmett.
And don’t forget to use the hashtag #22DaysBlueJays.
Quote of the day comes from my Toronto cab driver who drove me at 5 a.m. to appear on Breakfast television. After giving his long-winded take on who to vote for in the upcoming election, I’d had enough, and changed the subject:
Me: “… So do you think this season’s Blue Jays team can be just as good as the championship teams in the 90’s?”
Driver: “Oh, I don’t know … for sure, yeah, they’ve got a chance. But that ’93 team, I tell ya, they were so stacked … It was like watching a team of nine Bobby Orrs!”