It May Be Late, But It's Still...

Wordless Wednesday! (Happy Canada Day!)

More Than Just Poutine

It's fun to post about things that are different here in America-Land. People often ask me if it's really different being down here, as opposed to the True North Strong And Free (TNSAF). These people are usually Americans. (Please remember--I'm married to an American. I like you guys.)

There are lots of things that are different. Uni-coloured money, for instance--it took me years to get the hang of looking in the corner for the denomination, rather than just memorizing colours. I can't tell you how many times I gave a cashier a one-dollar bill, thinking it was a twenty. (Twenties are green in Canada. You look in your wallet, see blue, green and purple, and you know you have 35 dollars.)

And then there's Fahrenheit. A few years ago I was finally able to stop subtracting 30 and dividing by two to get an idea of how cold it would be. Or not cold. You see my point.

One of the most bizarre things that's different down here is the Corn Pops. I've never understood why Corn Pops have to be different. What's worse is that the ones down here are...um...not good. My apologies if you're a fan of American Corn Pops. But seriously, there's something weird about the shape. And don't even get me started about the texture.

Here's what Corn Pops should look like:

This picture was originally for photographic purposes only. I've not been feeling the greatest today, so I had cereal for breakfast and lunch. I had every intention of simply pouring this back into the box.

I ate it.

It was good.

For My Peeps

Sara over at Domestically Challenged was asking about how a Canadian gal like me ended up living in Joisey married to a red-white-and-blue-through-and-through American, spawning a half-breed Wiggle Baby. So, naturally, I will oblige. I try and make My Peeps happy, when I can.

(Domestically Challenged, by the way, is a fabulously hysterical blog, and I highly recommend you go check it out. Plus, I'm mentioned there today, which makes it more fabulous. For me, anyway. Oh, and Poutine--fries, gravy and cheese curds. Tres yum. )

And now, back to "Days of My Life", starring Me.

When we last saw our heroine, she was graduating college with her BS of Music Performance (Flute). This was her first foray into living as a Canadian in America-land. For the sake of my sanity, I'll stop referring to myself in the third person right now.

I'd been accepted into a great school for my Masters, but alas, the money there were sure they could find among unaccepted assistantships, was not found. This, by the way, all went down about a week before graduation. Nice. There I was, graduated, and no prospects.

After much prayer (and I mean much) I decided to look for a teaching position in a private school. (It had to be private, because my degree was not Music Ed.)

My reasons for looking for something in the Northeast U.S. are a little personal--and some of those reasons just might be reading this. :) However, I found the school I eventually took a job at, and began the ginormous process of applying for visas, saying goodbye, saying hello, and moving to a land unlike anything I'd known--there were horse farms on the same road as my new home, for heaven's sake.

Anyway, some of that personal stuff led to some heartbreak, I'll admit. But my God is bigger than heartbreak, and He used that to lead me to Hubba Hubba. (And, He gave me one of my dearest friends back.)

God's a great healer of hearts, and Hubba Hubba and I were engaged soon after--I knew he was the one as soon as I met him, I actually did. You really do "just know." We've been married for 5 years now, with a Wiggle Man to bless our lives (and keep us busy.)

So, that's the backstory, Sara. If you want to fill in the blanks with some more details, you'll just have to come visit on your summer vacation. We'll talk over Poutine.

More Things I Miss...

I just got back from a wonderful trip home to visit with dear friends. Our kids got to play together, I got some great girl time in, and all in all, had a fabulous time. Being home always reminds me of things I miss...some of these are repeats, but here's a list:



1. Friends and Family--girls, there's no one else I'd rather watch chick flicks with! Besides, how often do I get to do trumpet repairs in a liquor store parking lot?



2. The myriad of chocolate bars I can't seem to get here...Coffee Crisp, oh Coffee Crisp. Not to mention "real" Smarties. C'mon, Nestle, what's the deal?



3. Swiss Chalet. My lunch on Sunday filled a void deep within me for rotisserie chicken dipped in Chalet sauce. Oh, my gravy.



4. Corn Pops. Pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but really. What is the deal with different Corn Pops?



5. Ok, so obviously I miss food...I'll combine the rest into Number 5: Tim Horton's (technically now available in the US, but nowhere near me...sad...) Harvey's and Loblaw's. Perhaps it's silly to miss a grocery chain, but I do. I really do.

6. The big sky. I'm not sure why, but I'm convinced the sky is bigger and higher up in Canada.

7. Sports shows that feature hockey even in summer.

8. Other people who know the tune to The Log Driver's Waltz.

9. Signs and packaging in two languages.

10. Not needing to explain "The Briefcase", or any other silly story from high school, but explaining anyway for the benefit of our poor husbands, and the chance to laugh about it all over again.

Things are Different

I have TWO fans! Who knew? :) Camilla, my fellow foreigner on our Mommy boards, was also waiting through my two week blog drought. So, in honour of Mommy diversity, here are some things that are different in the U.S, that you Americans may or may not be aware of.

1) Spelling. I'm not spelling things like "favour" and "honour" wrong. :)

2) Corn Pops. I have no idea why, but U.S. Corn Pops are different than our Canadian ones. I don't like yours. :(

3) Candy. Why can't we all have the same candy and chocolate bars? Why can't I get a Crunchie or Smarties down here? (Canadian Smarties are chocolate. What Americans call Smarties we call Rockets, and we usually only eat them around Hallowe'en.

4) Euchre rules. I don't know why Americans think they can order their partner up, and not go alone. I will never understand that one. :)

5) Words. I had never heard the terms "spigot" or "hopper" until I moved to the States. Why can't we all say "tap" and "restroom"?

I'm sure there are lots more differences that we can share and come to blows over. Feel free to share your favourites.

Happy Canada Day!

Today is Canada Day! Yes, for my American friends and family, it's pretty much just like July 4th, only 3 days earlier and minus the blue in the decorations. Family barbeques ("grilling" for the Yanks) and fireworks, and of course, beer. I'm always reminded of fireworks at Uncle Bob's when we were kids, fighting over whose school the "Burning Schoolhouse" would be that year.

Being a stranger in a strange land, I like to remind everyone I'm an alien. So I do my toes:

And, I also dress up my toys:

When Wiggle Man wakes up from his nap, I'll likely dress him up, too. He has a collection of Roots t-shirts with beavers on them, courtesy of his loving aunties.

Poutine

I've finally decided to do it. I have a blog. Last night, as I lay awake estimating how many hours of sleep I had left before Wiggle Man woke up, I thought about what to name this fine piece of writing. So why Poutine, you ask? Well, it's just darn yummy. (For my American friends reading this, poutine is french fries with gravy and cheese curds.) Super delicieuse! I, of course, cover all that with ketchup. Feel free to be grossed out if you want, but you'll never steal my poutine, will you? That's what I thought.



Then, I looked up the meaning of the word 'poutine.' Depending on who you ask, it means anything from pudding, to bad stew, to mushy mess. I thought--hey, this blog will be a mushy mess of all kinds of things. Poutine works! Those of you reading this will be treated to the latest accomplishments of Wiggle Man, my first born; the trials of losing "baby" weight...ok, and PRE-baby weight; marriage; chickens (the ones we raise, not so much eating them); the ups and downs of being an alien in a foreign land (it's different, I PROMISE) and whatever else comes to mind. This will be, to quote one of my high school english teachers, "verbal diarrhea."



Enjoy.