As our Olympians return home ...

In the wake of the London Olympics I think expressing our appreciation to ALL the athletes is not only appropriate, but the ONLY response.

ALL of the athletes who were in London did a great job and have more than earned the appreciaition of our Nation for making us proud.

Afterall, the Olympics are not just about getting Gold medals, they are about being the best you can be and striving to achieve personal bests. (Remember the Jamaican Bobsled team and Eddie the Eagle Edwards??)

Aren't the Olympics about higher, stronger, faster?? I don't remember ever reading that they are about only getting the gold? Being there alone is a spectacular achievement, and every one of those men and women who wore Canada on their chests entering the Stadium 18 days ago deserve our respect, our admiration, and our pride - they've earned it!!!

Thanks to Team Canada for a job well done!!! You made us proud!!!

I'm a TRUE Canadian ...

NOT once, but TWICE over the holiday shopping I got clobbered by someone pushing a shopping cart and BOTH times I said "Oh, I'm sorry!" in response.

To recap: THEY clobbered ME, and I apologized !!!!

I am SUCH a true Canadian!! It's a Canadian thing to say "Sorry" - and when someone hits you with a cart it's almost force of habit (though, it would appear this is a Canadianism that is waning - but that's a reflection for another day).

Looking back, I have to marvel that I did it not just once, but TWICE !!!

Only in Canada they say!!

It's been a good run ...

Every once in a while Canadian Television comes through with a programme that is both memorable and entertaining ... in the past we've had King of Kensington, The Beach Combers, The Friendly Giant, The Littlest Hobo, Due South, Mr Dress-Up, Fraggle Rock, and other shows that brought a distinctly Canadian tone to the airways ...

Then a half a dozen years ago comedian Brent Butt pulled together a show about the small Saskatchewan Community of Dog River ... focused on the gas station-diner: Corner Gas and The Ruby, the show brought Brent, Wanda, Lacey, Oscar, Emma, Davis, Karen, Hank and the other residents of the community to International prominence and made us laugh along the way ...

Tonight Corner Gas ends it's run ... It's going out while on top ... and if the chatter in the media and online is any indication, it is a show that will most definitely be missed ... I have the complete dvd set of Corner Gas seasons, and play them frequently ... there is something sweet and endearing about the whole crew ... and their adventures and misadventures are a delightful way to pass a couple of hours any time of the day ...

Thanks for the Memories Corner Gas, and thanks to Brent Butt and all those talented people who brought that corner of Saskatchewan into our lives every week ... it was an awesome run. We're sorry to see it end!!

On the verge of history ...

On the eve of the last Federal Election - on September 24th to be exact - I wished:

If we can avoid a Conservative Government in the upcoming election,
but can't have a LIBERAL Majority,
the next best thing would be a Liberal Minority,
with a strong showing by the NDP
who partner in a coalition Government.

Now it would appear my wish may well come true:

The Liberals and New Democrats signed an agreement on Monday to form an unprecedented coalition government, with a written pledge of support from the Bloc Québécois, if they are successful in ousting the minority Conservative government in a coming confidence vote.

The accord between parties led by Stéphane Dion, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe came just hours after Liberal caucus members agreed unanimously that Dion would stay on to lead the Liberal-NDP coalition, with support in the House of Commons from Bloc MPs.

To read the complete CBC.CA story on this historic moment in Parlimentary Tradition (Liberals, NDP, Bloc sign deal on proposed coalition) - click here

To read what I had to say back on the 24th of September ... words that seem to be coming true - click here.

Oh, and for those who fail to grasp the wonder that is the Canadian Parliamentary system at its finest - do not lose sight of the simple face that only 5.2 MILLION voters voted for a Conservative, while 8.6 MILLION voted for someone else, AND 10 Million simply didn't vote at all ... The Liberal-NDP-Bloq alliance simple gives the MAJORITY of Canadians what they wanted in the first place !!! (check it out here)

History is in the making ... and I wouldn't want to miss it for the world !!!

I'm Actually Proud to Be Canadian Today (Thanks Dr Morgentaler!!)

Every once in a while something happens that is just RIGHT.

This week's appointment of Dr Henry Morgentaler to the Order of Canada would apparently be one of those moments ... and today, CBC.ca has an article on the "division" this appointment has had on our so-called Just Society (click here to read the article) .

I was delighted to hear that Dr Morgentaler was FINALLY given our nation's highest civilian honour for the struggle, the achievement and the work that he has put into his crusade for the FREEDOM of CHOICE when it comes to women's reproductive rights. (I posted about this previously)

While personally I don't favour abortions, as one who will never bear a child himself, I don't feel it is my place, nor the place of any one else to interfer with the RIGHTS of women to decide for themselves such matters. Our responsibility as a civil society, something we Canadians take great pride in touting, is to ensure safe access to such procedures.

Doctor Morgentaler made this his life's mission, and he has more than his share of struggles in achieving it ... threats, violence, bombings ... all enacted under the banner of "Pro-Life" opponents who have been a tad off-base in their actions ...

So, one can (and WILL) agree with the appointment, and we've heard of a BC priest with a somewhat checkered past insisting he WILL return his Order of Canada in protest, but the bottom line is that THIS time, with THIS appointment, the Order of Canada has rewarded someone who willingly battled for the RIGHTS of Freedom and Choice for ALL CANADIANS.

I can think of no more honourable cause that FREEDOM, and today I personally can think of no more honourable Canadian to receive this honour that a survivor of the Nazi Holocaust, who championed FREEDOM by risking his safety and life.

Congratulations Dr Morgentaler - I'm proud to be a Canadian today thanks to YOU and your worthy cause !!

There is NO doubt in MY mind that you have EARNED this:

A Stroll Down Memory Lane ...

In an attempt to provide my readers a more balanced view of Childhood, both theirs and MINE ... I will offer the following clips I found on YouTube. After revisiting the trauma of the creepy Child Catcher of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, I had to find some happier memories ... and I did in these clips ...
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This may be incomprehensible to my American Readers, but Bob Homme WAS, along with Ernie Coombs (Mr Dressup) a Canadian Television Institution not unlike Mr Rogers, Captain Kangaroo or even Howdy Doody. WE grew up watching both programmes - they are gentle programmes filled with story, music, and delightful characters. Mr Dressup had Casey and Finegan, while Friendly had Jerome the Giraffe and Rusty the Rooster (we won't talk about a rooster living in a sack hanging on the wall!!??) ...
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Yesterday playing on YouTube I found clips of both programmes ... and so here I offer a reminder of The Friendly Giant ... and below a clip of Mr Dressup !!
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Two programmes that carry me to a deeply serene and peaceful place ... Tonight I think a viewing of The Wizard of Oz (the original) is in order !!!!
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The first one begins with promos for TWO other Canadian TV Institutions: Fraggle Rock and The Beachcombers !!!
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A Continuing Stroll Down Memory Lane ...

I'm not even sure HOW you can begin to describe the impact this man and his programme had on GENERATIONS of Canadians ... Mr Dressup was a friend and a contemporary of Mr. Rogers, and they began together back in the US ...
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Fred stayed in the States and became a Cultural Icon, while Ernie moved North and became a Canadian Icon and Institution ... It takes about three plunks of the piano notes of the opening theme music to carry EVERY child raised in Canada over the last 40 years back to a place where we were can remember ourselves plunked in front of a flickering tv screen watching Mr Dressup, Casey, Finegan, The Tickle Trunk, and the other assorted characters that came and went. Thousands upon thousands of us spent a half an hour being entertained, informed and educated in the shadow of the Treehouse ...
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Personally though, I LOVED Finegan (the Dog), but found Casey a tad annoying ... I still miss them ALL though:
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Dreaming of a Double Double and a Maple Dip??

Yesterday over a I can fly, just not up, CandyGirFlies mused about a dream her hubby had one night involving donuts and Tim Horton's ... She wondered if it might be a middle aged Canadian Male thing ... (Gawd I hope NOT!!! I've worked too hard to shed 40 pounds, only to pack them on from Tim's !!!!) ... But as I read her words I thought of a bit by Canadian Comedian Ron James about a visit to Tim Horton's ...

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So - click here to read The posting over at I can fly, just not up, then come back and listen to Ron's rant about Tim's and consider if CandyFliesGirl's hubby is having a dream about donuts, or the Bovine Betty in the foxy hair net behind the counter getting him all warm in the secret bits ??!!

I'll opt for donuts ... though I may one day start dreaming about them, I'll STILL consume them sparingly !!

A Canadian Classic ...

Today something I read over at "At the Half Note" called to mind a scene from the timeless Comedy Duo Johnny Wayne and Frank Shuster, who together for over 50 years entertained us via Radio and Television broadcasts ...

If you are unfamiliar with Wayne and Shuster, head over to Youtube.com and check out the videos posted there ... my personal favourites are Rinse the Blood off my Toga (all three parts) and my ultimate favourite is The Shakespearean Baseball game ... Can it get any funnier than setting a sketch about baseball to Shakespearean Iambic Pentameter speech, complete with paraphrased quotations from The Bard ???

I think not !!!

It was, and it still is a sketch that is simply - BRILLIANT !!!

Wayne and Shuster were and remain Canadian Classics ... a pinnacle of humour that is yet to be transcended ... one can't help but be a Booster of Wayne and Shuster !!!

Oh, and Frank's brother Joe was the creator of a little comic called "Superman" ... even the great American Superhero is ultimately a Canadian !!!!!

AND - in the annals of Television History, Wayne and Shuster are recorded as the guests who appeared the most on a little television show hosted by some guy named Ed Sullivan ...

They've left their mark ... pour a coffee and take some time at Youtube ... but be ready to laugh!!

My Favourite Corners of Canada ...

In further honour of the Day ... I would offer some of my favourite corners of Canada in which to hang out and enjoy the setting, the scenery and the place ... They are diverse and spread across this vast land of ours, but what unites them is a deep connectedness that I feel for them ...

1) Confederation Park (known to the oldtime locals as Centennial Park) in Stratford Ontario - The waterfalls, the sledding hill, the nearby art gallery, the bridge over the train tracks, the towering spruce trees, the funky scultures, ... it was a special place through my childhood, and when I come back as an adult, if I'm quiet I can still hear the laughter of children playing throughout the tiny gem of a park tucked on Romeo Street.

2) The Atnarko Valley - Located south of the Highway into Bella Coola at the foot of the infamous "The Hill" that takes you from the Interior Plateau into the Valley, the Atnarko is the home to deer and grizzlies and some of the most striking scenery on the planet. If you walk far enough you find Hunlen Falls and where The Birches - the Homestead of the Edwards family once stood. It is a beautiful enchanted place filled with stories and memories of a different time.

3) Purgatory Glacier - Located a few kilometres west of the Atnarko, the logging road wends its way up the side valley from the Bella Coola valley until the road runs out under the watchful gaze of the northern end of the vast ice fields and glaciers that lie in the Coastal Mountains south of Bella Coola ... Words don't do justice to the scenery ... Odegaard Falls is worth the hike to stand under its thunderous plummet, and to feel it glacial spray on you face ...

4) The Forks, Portage and Main and The Exchange District in Winnipeg ... Where the continents meet - this small pocket of neighbourhoods in downtown Winnipeg are chock-a-block full of things to do, places to go and people to meet ... It is a place where cultures come together and the multi-ethnic nature of Canada is celebrated ... Like Granville Island in Vancouver, or Kensington Market in Toronto - one has to visit it to truly appreciate it.

5) Riding Mountain National Park - from the town site on Clear Lake, to the Bison Compound to the back country trails - RMNP is simply exquisite, and worth visiting ... We've spend many happy hours in and around the park since we moved here, but the last couple of years as we've been able to explore it on bikes has been the best ...

6) Stanley Park and the Vancouver Aquarium - I miss standing in front of the huge glass tanks, savouring the marine life indigenous to the North West Coast, listening as my well trained children say with delight "there's alot of good eating in that tank" much to the HORROR of people nearby who give nary a second thought to where their fish came from on their fish and chip platter ...

7) UBC and the Museum of Anthropology - with a stunning view of the Pacific, and the monumental North West Coast carvings the Museum of Anthroplogy is simply incredible ...

8) The dam here in Minnedosa - It's not majestic, it's not magnificent, but it is nice and it is a lovely place for a walk, a bike ride, or just to sit and watch the lake ...

9) Goderich Ontario - Standing on the bluffs overlooking Lake Huron and watching the sun set, or a winterstorm close in, or freighters steam in or out of port, or even just watching the waves wash in and out - it is a beautiful spot.

10) Niagara Falls - How can you NOT include the Falls on a list of favourite corners of Canada ?? Even with the garish tourist traps everywhere - the falls are still amazing and worth the visit ...

11) San Josef Bay - due west of Port Hardy on the west coast of the Northen Island. San Joe's Bay, as the locals call it is a gem hidden two hours down a tough slough of a logging road - but it's worth the drive ... the sandy beach that opens out on the vast Pacific Ocean (next stop here is Japan) is breath taking ... it is truly beautiful ... Ronning's Gardens near the trail head is worth the stop too - the botanical gardens an eccentric loner planted and maintained are unbelievable and worth spending time exploring ... he planted temperate rain forest plants from ALL Over the world including a male and female Monkey Puzzle Tree that are HUGE !!!

12) The Ontario Provincial Police Memorial - tucked in a park just east of the Parliament Buildings in downtown Toronto, this tiny park is a vivid reminder that our peace and our freedom are anything but free ...

There are no doubt many more ... but this is a start ...

Great Living Canadians ...

In my previous posting, on of my "loyal" readers took exception to the number of late great Canadians in the authors list ... So, I offer her my top ten choices for Great LIVING Canadians ...

1) Jean Vanier - Founder of L'Arche, writer, gentleman, and a gentle soul.
2) David Suzuki - Scientist, Environmentalist, Activist, and Media Personality
3) General Romeo Dallaire (re't) - Former Head of the UN Mission to Rwanda, his voice is the conscience of a generation who saw a genocide unfold and did NOTHING ... his book is powerful and painful to read ...
4) Farley Mowat - writer, activist, curmudgeon ... I just love the guy and his writings !!
5) Moshe Safdie - Architect (creator of Habitat in Montreal and the National Gallery in Ottawa)
6) Alex Colville - Painter. (I just love his stuff)
7) Roberta Bondar - Dr, Astronaut, Scientest - 1st Canadian Women in Space!
8) Dan Ackroyd, Eugene Levy, Michael Myers, Jim Carrey, Martin Short, Lorne Michaels, Catherine O'Hara, Rich Little, Steve Smith (aka Red Green), Howie Mandel, Brent Butt, and Tommy Chong - to name just a few of our Canuck Entertainers ...
9) Fergie Jenkins - Baseball Pitcher and member of The Hall of Fame.
10) William Shatner - Actor, "singer" ... come on - Captain Kirk HAS to make the list !!??
11) Oscar Peterson - Musician
12) Tantoo Cardinal, Adam Beach, and Graham Green - First Nations Actors who have made quite the name and reputation for themselves with extra-ordinary skill and acting ability.

I think that will do for now ...
Happy Canada Day !!

Distinctly & Definitely Canadian ... Folk Music ...

Tonight, along with our neighbours, M and I went to a small venue concert in a bank converted to an arts centre in Brandon. On the bill were two of Canada's great folk artists: Garnet Rogers and Connie Kaldor.

Garnet played for an hour, sharing a variety of his own tunes, and stories to accompany the music. Then into the second hour he began a rendition of his brother Stan's song "North West Passage" along with Connie and her bass player ... The second hour was Connie singing along with "her people." (Connie hails from the prairies, and her entertaining stories reflected the reality of prairie life ...)

It was a distinctly and very definitely Canadian moment with two of Canada's premier folk artists, sharing their talent, their humour and their wonderful music ...

Garnet Rogers

Connie Kaldor

You can't mention Canadian Folk Music without mentioning:

the late (and deeply missed) Stan Rogers !!

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Oh, and the common connection on the last D & D Canadian entry??

Randy Bachman !!

Played with The Guess Who and BTO,

and is a damned fine musician in his own right !!

Defintiely and Distinctly Canadian ... Food ...

Millions of babies can't be wrong ...

... even today, The Hospital for Sick Kids in Toronto

continues to benefit from the sale of this

ubiquitous, yet highly nutritious food.

Pablum was the creation of a Canadian !!

The McIntosh apple ... hybridized to the Mac ...

Was brought into being by a Canadian,

and is found ALL over the world.

Canadian Bacon Eh ?!?!

All jokes, and Bob and Doug references aside,

Canadian Bacon ... all I can say is YUMMY !!

Betcha didn't know the Chocolate Bar was a

CANADIAN invention!!!

Ganong Brothers, a chocolate company in New Brunswick

created the first chocolate bar around 1900 in

an attempt to boost sales.

I think it worked ... how many OTHER companies

have created their own Chocolate bars since??