It was the last few days of January, and it was the Justin and Joni show -- one angelic ex-Mouseketeer and one well-versed folk mama -- both of whom stole Toronto's heart. Both of whom set it aflutter in an oh-so-friendly way.

A scene, first, from the Timberlake file: A day before his concert at the ACC, we crossed paths with the sexy, self-referencing pop star in the bar of the Soho Metropolitan Hotel. And, boy, we weren't the only ones! Word having strategically gone out that the heartthrob was expected there, along with his star producer, Timbaland, every gal of a certain age who owns a pair of skinny jeans seemed to be about.

"It's like an audition to be one of the girls on Deal or No Deal," quacked someone, as we laid back and nonchalantly took in the scene. "Minus the briefcases," he added.

"It's like The Bachelor in here," I continued in a similar vein, "without the roses."

Indeed, for a bar that doesn't usually have a lot of people in it -- especially on a Monday night -- there must have been 300 positive-thinking ladies. All of them angling to be the next Cameron Diaz. Almost all of them with the suspiciously same scarecrow-straight hair.

At various points, there were, amazingly, even lines at the door of the dusky, low-key hotel bar, and an eager-beaver vibe throughout. Mobs of chicks standing around in circles, pretending to be listening to one another but really focused on no one but Justin. (He'd come after eating at Sotto Sotto, FYI.)

And the closer you got to the 21st-century Prince, the more delectably zero-sum it was. Much VJ Matte Babel, who was there, described it to me thus: "It was the urgency in their eyes. Spooky."

Decoding it further, we agreed that nearly all the women thought they had a chance. An opportunity. A possibility. If only. Perhaps you had to be there.

Perhaps, too, you had to have been at the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame gala the night before at the Convention Centre, just down the street from the Soho. That's when Joni Mitchell, the great Canadian songbird, was the great Canadian centrepiece. And while there were many sights and sounds to inhale -- James Taylor, her old friend and one-time beau, twice telling Joni "I love you" from the stage -- it was more sight than sound when it came to the lady legend herself.

Lots of people sang to her, but when she finally graced the stage, wrapped in Issey Miyake and wearing a halo as bright as a big yellow taxi, Joni said a few nice words but left the singing out of it.

To hear her utter even a peep, one had to be invited to the in-the-know jam session in Mitchell's own suite at the Meridien King Edward Hotel!

Apparently, that party went on until 3 a.m.

Apparently, the adoration, from the likes of suite-swinging Herbie Hancock, was palpable. Apparently, Chaka Khan, who was there, too, seemed to know every obscure thing that Joni has ever sung and written, and was all too willing to show that off. Apparently, Canadian opera star Measha Brueggergosman, who'd stolen the show at the gala with her risky and beautiful rendition of Both Sides Now, was still burning the midnight oil. Perhaps you had to be there.

Of course, the idea of the paths of Joni and Justin crossing in the Toronto night does present its own ironies. One can only imagine what Mitchell thinks of that low-pants wearing twerp bringing sexy back.

In an interview in W magazine some years back, Mitchell made no bones about her views of the modern music business: "repugnant" and a "cesspool."

"They're not looking for talent. They're looking for a look and a willingness to co-operate," she went on, singling out Madonna for particularly withering comments. "She's made a lot of money and become the biggest star in the world by hiring the right people," Mitchell said of the Material Girl.

SCENE! HEARD!

Omni-designer Bruce Mau and his too-nice bride Bisi Williams enjoying lunch at Le Select Bistro on Monday ... Durable pop star Pink showing a mean dog bite on her arm to George Stroumboulopoulos during an on-set visit this week to The Hour ... Barenaked Steven Page getting mushy while watching The Queen recently during an Air Canada flight to Toronto from San Diego.

AND LASTLY ...

When that six-packed sometime fiance of Alanis Morissette, Ryan Reynolds, did the Jay Leno show recently, the late-night host teased the actor about his title as the "sexiest Canuck alive" -- a designation handed to him recently by The Toronto Sun. Pointing out that Canada is a lot smaller than the United States, Reynolds downplayed the whole thing. "That's kinda like winning sexiest man in Fresno," he said. Then, he ventured: " Corey Hart wasn't available."

By the way, the population of Fresno is 465,000.