Wow. I am sure glad that my folks got to this place. And not just cause Europe (and Grannie, too!) turned out to be socialists! But because Canada is really great as our celebrations on July 1st...celebrate. Here is my list about what I really like about Canada - you add yours:
- Paddle to the Sea. I hadn't thought about this NFB movie from the 60s for decades and, voom, there is it as the absolute paradigm of the nation's soul.
- Wacky idealistic politicians who turn out to stand for exactly the opposite of what they pledged to the benefit of us all. Trudeau claimed logic and was nutty enough to put us on the world stage through doing all sorts of things largely since undone. Mulroney pretended he was fiscally prudent but never finishing the job, acting like he was under Washington's wing but helped leverage the end of apartheid. Chretien being a nutjob yet getting finally getting 30 or 40 years of deficit financing in line while making us love him for choaking a citizen.
- Comedians who leave for the US market. They are the good ones and you can tell because the CBC rejects them. SCTV is a perfect example. And did you know Saturday Night Live was turned down as a project by the dullards?
- Maple products. We eat the blood of trees. What is neater than that?
- Federalism and how it divides us. Think about it. You have a mobile population, largely made up of immigrants over the last couple of generations, drop them into ten jurisdictions and - whammo - they learn to dislike each other and hold on to what they have and try to keep it from others. Overlapping redundant bureaucracies foster these jealousies.
- The neediness. From the whole flag on the backpack in Europe and how much that makes tourism operators their love us so much to the hand wringing about how we should be doing this or that on the world stage. The best is the argument over what Canada stands for. What does Belgium stand for? No one cares. We are a nation of whining twelve year olds and we don't see it.
- Trees. Both Kingston and Halifax, my two favorite home cities, still sit in the woods and are full of the damn things. That is why downtown Toronto feels so weird. You can't see the trees. We love them so much we have provincial and Federal parks that we hardly every use but are great when you do. Ontario's park system is particularly amazing.
- The flags. We have the weirdest flags. The national one has a bit of a tree on it. And look at New Brunswick's - who the hell ever picked that yellow? British Columbia looks like it was designed for a space traveller worship cult. Alberta's politicians lobbied hard to further reduce the size of the crest and add even more blue.
- Events like today's England v Portugal create some small but telling discomfort between immigrant groups of different generations based on their understanding of what this country stands for even though they are compatible visions.
Comments
Hans - July 1, 2006 9:05 am
Nice summary. Especially: "The neediness. From the whole flag on the backpack in Europe and how much that makes tourism operators their love us so much to the hand wringing about how we should be doing this or that on the world stage. The best is the argument over what Canada stands for. What does Belgium stand for? No one cares. We are a nation of whining twelve year olds and we don't see it." Although that last bit is a bit harsh. I wonder, if Canada ever makes it to the World Cup again, will that help us solidify our identity? More soccer can't but help.
Alan - July 1, 2006 9:19 am
We need a big sister to tell us we need to get a life. Maybe we can ask Norway.
gr - July 1, 2006 9:20 am
An extra bullet! Hey, thanks for Mike Meyers and John Candy was one of yours too, right?
And, BY GOD, what about HOCKEY?????
Alan - July 1, 2006 9:31 am
Note the forecast discussion at NOAA, Gary:<blockquote class="smalltext">WE HAVE FOLLOWED THE MODELS AND BACKED OFF ON THE TIMING OF THE
ONSET OF THE RAIN TONIGHT, AND KEPT IT TO MAINLY AFTER MIDNIGHT WITH
A CHANCE IN THE EVENING IN THE WEST. BUFKIT SHOWS A NICE 50 KNOTS
LOW LEVEL WIND MAX TONIGHT, SO WE HAVE KEPT A MENTION OF DAMAGING
WINDS IN THE WEST WHERE SPC HAS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS.</blockquote>Looks like it is all on board, too. Remember - name no names.
Mike - July 1, 2006 10:14 am
One thing would be the real vastness of this place. "To know it is to be young and ancient all at once", wrote Hugh MacLennan. According to MacLennan, only 7% of the land of Canada could ever be arable; the rest is forest, scrub, rock, marsh and wetland, bog and muskeg. Don't forget the muskeg. Some of us venture into the wilderness to go after the natural resources, but, as MacLennan described us, we're more or less like a modern-day ancient Greece, with most of us living in a collection of city-states strung just north of the American border. I've flown or driven from city-state to city-state from coast to coast, but the rest of it is pretty mysterious to me.
Arthur - July 1, 2006 10:17 am
Things I Love About Canada<br />
<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/cdngovernment/taxchanges.html" style="text-decoration:blink; color:red">1% SPENDING SPREE!</a>
<p>(For the ones that don't see the hyperlink: this)
</p>
Hans - July 1, 2006 10:45 am
Excellent points, Mike. A good introduction to Canada is to take a drive from the Maritimes to Southern Ontario. The West, BC and the North would be more advanced courses.
Alan - July 1, 2006 10:56 am
Arthur has GST reduction fever.
Alan - July 1, 2006 11:01 am
And it is good that he has as I figure I have to spend $1,000 on GST attracting merchandise every two weeks for the drop in GST to overcome the increase in income tax that Harper brought in: ie, I now have to pay ten bucks more in income tax every two weeks and %1 off the GST means 10 bucks saving requires one thousand of spending. Thank heavens the GST change removes billions from the public coffers, too.
gr - July 1, 2006 6:52 pm
Weatherwise, Alan, I missed the boat. There have been dark predictions here, although it is a remarkably pleasant day.
Hey, this American says: thank you Canada for Crown Royal whisky. Maybe the best all-around sipping whisky on earth, for the price.
Missing cm. cm is likely having a holiday/birthday blast with her sister. Watch out Toronto.
cm - July 1, 2006 11:04 pm
cm is indeed having a blast with her sister. We threw a party last night; by all reports a grand time was had by all, and I discovered the joy that is a mint julep (with fresh mint from the garden, no less).
Have you tried the Crown Royal Special Reserve, gr? Now that is a nice sipping whisky.
Things I love about Canada: Mr Dressup (I guess we got him in exchange for the comedians), ketchup chips, and the fact that we always announce when we're going to the washroom.
Alan - July 1, 2006 11:40 pm
We won the fifty-fifty draw at the game. Fifty nine bucks...US. Daddy had steak.
T-Bo - July 2, 2006 12:41 am
Football with three downs, and 12 men and motion...Clean towns and cities from ocean to ocean...Something called Ringolos...yummy corn rings...Oh how I love these Canadian things.
Hockey from pros down to midgets and bantams....Also, I've heard, the guy who draws The Phantom...three fourths of the roster of the L-A Kings.....Oh how I love these Canadian things.
That's enough, it's late and I've already overstretched, I fear. I was going to put in Maple Buds candy, but that's gone now I guess. And ya gotta love pro sports teams called the Roughriders and Blue Bombers and Alouettes, I know I do.
So Alan, do the Wizards still wear those purple hats with the funky yellow W on the front? I gotta get me one to add to the collection (100+), and see my old buddy Mel.......plus it's good baseball, for my money.
Alan - July 2, 2006 1:09 am
I have a purple hat with a funny "W" on at this very moment. We watched the first game which was a gem (down 1-2, winning 3-2 on a walkoff triple after getting guys on 1st and 2nd with two out after the only home run tied the game)...and, yes, Mel was there. Last time we visited he was very good and let the kids get a picture with him. Now you have me on the hunt for Maple Buds. I know I have seen them recently enough not to have know they were off the market.<p><center><a href="images/2006c/wiz1.JPG"><img src="images/2006c/wiz1a.JPG" vspace="20"></a>
gr - July 2, 2006 10:16 am
Well, cm, I have indeed seen the CR special Reserve, but at around twice the price, it doesn't satisfy the 'best sipping whisky for the price' category.
What's this thing about the washroom? (snort, snicker)
gr - July 2, 2006 5:31 pm
OK, no takers on the washroom thing. When we first moved to New England from the midwest and asked at a gas station for the washroom, we were shown a sink. Puzzled, we said no, you know, a toilet etc. They couldn't figure out why we hadn't asked for a bathroom. Regional names for the same thing.
Hey, isn't Rebecca Romijn yours too?