What do you call these?

Your answer is nearly always a giveaway for where you're from. 

So what do YOU call them?

I called them donut holes once when teaching Sunday School, and my students swiftly corrected me. 

"These are NOT donut holes.  These are Timbits."

Timbits.  Sold at Tim Horton's.  The salted caramel variety is seriously the best pastry-sold-in-a-ball-form I've ever had.  Other than that, they're just okay.

The funny thing is Helena corrected her father recently, telling him they're Timbits, not donut holes.

Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal

With all our travels, we've been in a lot of old churches.  Most are, "Wow, that's beautiful" and you move on.  The Basilica of Notre-Dame in Montreal, however, is not one of those.  It was breath-taking on the inside.

The outside is stone but the inside is all carved out of wood.  The wood has been painted with these beautiful deep colors.

The blue lights at the front just make the place feel majestic.  It made both of us immediately think of heaven and what it may look like.

This is the pulpit.  It didn't have a circular staircase like all others we've seen but rather the staircase twisted and turned around and the back.  How would you like to preach in that, Dad?

We had a half hour wait before our tour began, so there was plenty of time to practice our photography. 

Ottowa

As previously mentioned, John and I were gone for part of Millie's visit - we went on a babymoon!  This was the first time we'd been away from Helena together, and it was so good and looking back, so necessary.

 

We took Millie's car east, to Ottowa and then Montreal, two cities we'd never explored.  Of course any good car trip starts with an Iced Capp from Tim Horton's.

We got a little nervous about our navigation skills when we crossed the Mississippi River!  A quick check on the GPS told us we were still in Ontario, so we kept driving :) 

Ottowa is the capital of Canada, so a tour of Parliament was on our docket of things to do.

 

  

It was beautiful inside, as you'd expect.  The most beautiful part was the library, as the walls, the shelves, everything were wood with beautiful carvings all over.  It was the only part of the building saved from a fire in 1916, and I'm so glad it was saved.  (Sorry, no pictures were allowed!)

The main doors are flanked by a lion and a unicorn.  The architect had a sense of humor or I'm missing something, as I've never seen a unicorn with it's tongue hanging out in front of an incredibly important government building before!

We also visited the Royal Mint that afternoon.  One of John's side hobbies in the last year has been researching and learning all about the Gold Standard and such.  Unfortunately we weren't allowed to see where the gold is refined and then made into bars, but John was allowed to hold one weighing 28 pounds (more than Helena!) - and worth $700,000 on that day.

Here are the three things we really took note of in the city of Ottowa:  1) There are statues everywhere, statues of government related things and then statues like these - different parts of trees with little kids' legs holding them up!  2) There are trails everywhere, making it a very accessible city for those who don't have cars.  3) The signs that are supposed to help us tourists are pretty horrible.  For example, we were following the tourist information site signs for 20 minutes, going back and forth past the site without knowing it!  Signs directed us to the place, saying three minutes this way, but there were no signs to show us that we were actually there  and needed to go inside (it was inside a mall).

Ottawa was a fun place to visit for the afternoon.  As we walked around, we chatted about how someday we'll take our kids to Washington D.C., but then we thought about our current life and realized we may be taking them to Ottowa instead!

A bit of fun for Canadian Thanksgiving

A fun video that shows many spots in Toronto.

I'm thankful to be living in this country.

Dated Mail

We got this in the mail last week and all I could think was, "Are you serious? Digital mail? You guys are about 15 years late on this one!"

The Emergency Room

The Canadian health care system is a major topic of interest when we go south of the border. As we just had a new experience with it, I thought I'd share. [Again, please understand that I am saying nothing - good or bad - about the American health care system. I am simply sharing a part of our life in Canada.]

Friday evening John & I decided to take Helena to the ER. She'd been acting unlike herself for days, had had a fever for almost 48 hours, and seemed to be getting less relief with each new dose of Tylenol.

We walked in the ER doors at 6:40. The triage nurse checked Helena's vitals, gave her more Tylenol, and told us it would be a 1 to 3 hour wait. The first 2 hours went by quickly. The third stretched on and on while we started to recognize the different characters from the Disney Junior commercials, as we'd already watched their shows. At exactly 3 hours, John went up and asked how much longer we'd be waiting. The answer, "Helena's name is next in her area."

What did "her area" mean? After 50 minutes of waiting to find out, I asked how much longer it would be. "Her name should be called soon."

And so it was ten minutes later. We saw a doctor within a couple minutes of being put in a room, Helena was checked out, it was determined she just had a virus, and we were sent into an in-progress waiting room to rehydrate her with Pedialyte for the next hour so that her vitals could be checked again. By the time she was discharged, it was 12:15.

If you do the math, that means we were at the ER for 5.5 hours.

FIVE AND A HALF HOURS.

According to the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-term Care in December 2011, our wait was only 45 minutes longer than the average ER visit to this hospital for a minor condition. And when we asked the nurse if the night was particularly busy, she looked at us with a quizzical look and answered, "No, actually tonight we're a bit slow."

It's not just here in Toronto. In 2008, a man died in a Manitoba ER after waiting 34 hours. In a quick google search, I found recent articles from Vancouver, Ottowa, and Toronto discussing the crowds in the ER. Perhaps my friend said it best in an email about our visit:

"That's Canada...sorry. ERs in Canada are the worst place to be in Canada... it's a huge Canadian issue and has been for quite some time...5 1/2 hours is actually pretty good. :("

Thoughts on the "Buy American" Campaign

Have you heard about the Made in America challenge that Diane Sawyer and ABC are currently doing? They're trying to teach people to buy more American-made items, which will in turn help create more jobs in the United States.

I would have thought this was a great campaign before. We should be trying to support jobs here rather than in places like China. But since living in Canada, I've heard comments from various people against such American-centric ideas. These thoughts are not directed against the idea of the U.S. helping its economy. No, the thoughts are against these ideas that can really hurt the Canadian economy.

Did you know that the U.S. imported $347.9 billion worth of merchandise in 2010?* Canada imported merchandise worth $264.2 billion from the U.S. That's huge. How huge?

"The relationship between the United States and Canada is the closest and most extensive in the world. It is reflected in the staggering volume of bilateral trade--the equivalent of $1.6 billion a day in goods..."

No wonder some Canadians get a bit frustrated when they hear "Buy American." The U.S. and Canada are each others most important trade partners, and yet Canada is hung out to dry when it's time to help America.

Why can't the challenge be "Buy North American"?

*Stats and quotes come from the U.S. Department of State Diplomacy in Action website.

An Attempt at An Answer

"Do you think we'll ever live in the United States again?"

The only answer I could think of for John this morning was,

"Probably. But I'm sure it won't be as good as we think it will be."

The question we've been asked the most in the last few years is "What's it like to live in Canada?" I never know how to answer.

First of all, living in Canada has blessed us in many ways. We've experienced what it's like to be immigrants. We now know a lot more about the country north of the U.S. and how Americans are perceived in this country. We went to a church in British Columbia that embraced us completely and let John experience what it's really like to be part of a church family. We've made really good friends. We've encountered the wonder of the Nanaimo bar. We've lived in incredibly diverse cities. We've climbed mountains and seen gorgeous views. John has gotten and continues to get more education. I've worked at a great school and worked with/taught amazing people. We've consumed NO hormones from dairy products while up here. We've received inexpensive health care. We've decreased our belongings (even though we still own A LOT of stuff).

Yet there are many times we wish we did not live in Canada. It's tiring to explain why we won't ever have Ontario Health Insurance every time we see a doctor or dentist. It's hard to be seen as an outsider when meeting new people. It's difficult to fight the urge to defend my country or my fellow citizens when I hear negative comments day after day. It's hard to feel like you don't belong in either country.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We decided last night at about 9 o'clock to celebrate Thanksgiving with the rest of Canada today. So, the turkey bathed in a sink of cold water over night, waking us every few hours for new water (we figure that was practice for parenting), and I spent today cooking, washing dishes, cooking, and washing dishes. Check out our first ever turkey:

It was delicious and John is an amazing turkey carver.
Here's the spread:

Cranberry sauce, turkey, gravy, stuffing, mixed vegetables, and mashed potatoes

We wish you could have been here
to share it with us!

Canada's National Songs

The song "O Canada" is a recognizable song with a somewhat interesting history. For a long time there were many songs vying for the title of National Anthem of Canada. "O Canada" was originally written in French and for a long time found competition in "God Save the Queen" and "The Maple Leaf Forever". In 1908 an English translation (however not a literal one) was written and finally accepted as the one in the 1960s. Since then there have been multiple modifications proposed for the English version, such as these two:

"our home and native land" to "our home and cherished land"
"in all thy sons command" to "in all of us command"

Not only does the song have official lyrics in Canada's two official languages, but it also has a set version in Inuktitut, one of the First Nations' languages.

You now know the history of "O Canada". But I recently read an essay in The Walrus (think the Canadian version of The New Yorker) that proposed a different song for Canada's national anthem. This was definitely not the first time it has been mentioned in the same phrase as "Canada's national anthem." And I must admit I have heard more about this proposed song since living in Canada than any other song. It was even played in the Closing Ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics! What song is so popular?

The old Hockey Night in Canada song! You may not recognize it, but this song (titled "Hockey Theme") is not only recognized but can probably be hummed by most Canadians. It was a BIG DEAL when the song for HNIC was changed in 2008. People still talk about how disastrous a change it was.

So, in order to teach you all more about Canada and its culture, here is...drumroll please...the Hockey Night in Canada theme song:

The Canadian Rockies with my Bro

We have made it to Toronto and are settling in. Today is John’s first day of events at the university – orientation! More about Toronto will come as we have thoughts/experiences to share, but for now I’m just going to try to catch up with blogging about the last month.

My brother Rob joined us in Langley right before we started the move. While I worked, John & Rob hiked the Chief. Check out who they visited!

It was my great pleasure to take him & John to Kobe’s Steakhouse for their recent graduations.

The food was delicious and the chefs were entertaining.

After driving for a day, we spent time camping and hiking in Glacier National Park (in BC, not Montana!), Yoho National Park (in BC), and Banff National Park (in AB). They are all located close to each other – really, it’s an amazing area of the world. We traveled through or next to mountains from when we left Langley to until we left Banff. It was incredible; the mountains surrounded us for eleven hours and then all of a sudden, they were absolutely 100% gone.

Natural Bridge in Yoho - Can you see Rob and me?

At Emerald Lake

John was clearly on vacation!

The men took a swim in the glacial Ross Lake. It was cold! The bottom was

surprisingly muddy and hard to walk on without falling in.

Takakkaw Falls in Yoho

Hike at Lake Louise

Plain of Six Glaciers

Lake Agnes

The three of us

Yes, this tree is growing UPSIDE DOWN!

Rob in Johnstone Canyon

Banff National Park

Then it was another day of driving to Billings, Montana, where

we visited John’s cousin Kaylie and her son Sullivan.

One more day of driving and the trip was complete – at least that leg...

Let's see how much you've learned...

In honor of Canada's 143rd birthday, and in order to see how much you've learned about your neighbor-up-north over the last two years, take the following quiz. Answers are found at the end.

1) What is the capital of Canada?
2) Which province has French, rather than English, as its main language?
3) What are the two national sports of Canada? Hint: One is a winter sport and one is a summer sport.
4) What do you call the political leader of Canada?
5) Where can you find the Maritime Islands? Name them for extra points!
6) What is poutine?
7) Name the highway that crosses the country of Canada from west to east. If you can't name the highway, guess the number of the highway.
8) How many provinces are there in Canada?
9) What percentage of the Canadian population lives in Ontario?
10) To which one of these stores would you go to buy home improvement supplies: a. Canadian Tire b. The Brick c. Tim Horton's
11) Do all Canadians live in igloos?

Give yourself a point for each question that you got correct.

Answers:
1) Ottawa, Ontario
2) Quebec
3) Hockey and Lacrosse
4) Prime Minister (Stephen Harper is his name!)
5) The East Coast. Take an extra point if you named any of the four: Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, PEI, and New Brunswick.
6) We like to joke that it's a heart attack in a bowl, but what constitutes poutine is a bowl of fresh french fries and cheese curds (not melted!) with gravy poured on top. Absolutely delicious.
7) The Trans-Canadian Highway, aka Highway 1.
8) Ten. If you said 13, you were close. Three of those you were thinking of are actually territories.
9) More than one-third.
10) The answer is a. Canadian Tire.
11) No. Please don't ever tell me if you said yes.

Count your points. If you got at least one point, be proud of yourself. You know more about Canada than Canadians think you do!

Something Completely New in Politics

So we're wondering if any of you have been following what's been happening in Canadian politics this week. Events have occurred that have never happened before!

In October the Conservative party retained control by having the most votes in Parliament out of any party. Thus, Stephen Harper remained Prime Minister of Canada. Since then, there have been some proposed budget changes that have not been liked by all. The main one was a big cut on government funding of political parties. This and other proposed measures enraged the other parties.

So the centrist Liberals, the socialist New Democrats (NDP) and the separatist Bloc Québécois leaders have united to form a coalition government (which is constitutional). Led by Stephane Dione (the leader of the Liberals), they were hoping to take over by winning a majority vote on December 8 in the House of Commons (in which the Conservative party only holds 145 of the 308 votes).

Harper then met with the governor-general (the Queen's representative), asking her to close Parliament until January when he will present the proposed budget - which means the confidence vote can't take place tomorrow. She agreed.

So Canada is in a state of limbo. Who knows who will be leading after January 27th!

Note: This is really complicated. I've been trying to learn about it and digest all of it throughout the week. If you want more information, click here for a more detailed and educated account.

Fillin' Up the Tank

Sounds like the gas prices have been going down in the U.S. We've seen falling prices as well, but not anywhere near the fall of other places. It sounds like BC has the most expensive gas in all of southern Canada at the moment. And no - that's not $100.8 per gallon or $1.008 per gallon. It's $1.008 per liter. Canadian gas stations have their permanent decimal point there, because until the last few years, a liter's price has always been in the cents and not over a dollar.

Anyways, that's not what I meant to write about. Filling up the tank here is very similar to the States (none of the pumps have automatic shut-off devices, so you have to hold the handle while filling up - I know, we're really roughing it out here), but what is different is the posted price. When you drive by a gas station, you have to ask yourself, "Is that the real price or is the real price the
posted price minus 3.5 cents?"

That's right. The Chevron gas stations are always 3.5 cents cheaper than the posted price, and I've started noticing some Esso "On the Run" gas stations that have the same deal. These stations have signs like the one to the right posted 10-15 feet in from the road. Other gas stations have signs out by the road that say, "Street price is the same as the pump price."

So I hope this helps all of you British Columbia visitors when searching for the cheapest gas.