Recently in Canada Category

2010 Winter Olympic Coverage

By jodi on February 28, 2010 2:58 AM | 3 Comments | No TrackBacks

I'm not all that into it. That's my coverage. I watched a little last week. I saw Shawn White, Lindsay Vonn and the guy who won the gold in Men's Figure Skating. I can't remember his name. I remember Johnny Weir, tho. I like that kid, he's entertaining.

I talked some smack about the US - Canada quarter finals game last week. Wil and I had a contest, loser had to make dinner. But the truth was, I was only keeping an eye on the score online. I was having a Harry Potter movie marathon and Wil was playing the Sims.

I'm so happy for Canada, not only have they won their first gold during hosted Winter Games, but they've won a ton of them. Which is wonderful. But today... today is the final show down, isn't it? The US vs. Canada. Gold Medal Hockey game. Do I root for my homeland? Or do I root for my adopted home, for Canada to have, what would have to be, their greatest triumph?

What are you nuts? I'm rooting for America, baby. I am what I am. We'll see who makes dinner tonight.

We are quicksilver, a fleeting shadow, a distant sound... our home has no boundaries beyond which we cannot pass. We live in music, in a flash of color... we live on the wind and in the sparkle of a star!

By jodi on October 29, 2009 4:44 PM | 3 Comments

Wow. The blog has been silent awhile, hasn't it.

I'm leaving for Wa tomorrow. Not as expected. I'm going to be traveling down without Wil. There has been a death in my family, and it's important that I go and be with the people who need me right now. Death in the family is one of the emergencies that should allow me to travel alone, and still get back into Canada. Hopefully.

Wil does not have his passport yet, it should be arriving by registered mail on Friday the 6th. So he will be coming down on the 7th and we'll drive home together on the 8th. So I will be with my husband when I get back to Canada, however, not the entire time I travelled. Nonetheless, my lawyer said I have a good reason. Worst case scenario, I will not be let back in. At this point, I am very close to getting my VISA. It would suck, but not as much as if it were six months ago or last year.

I did receive my work permit. On my work permit it states "Application for PR status has received initial approval." PR = Permanent Residence. That works in my favor as well.

I don't feel quite as excited as you'd think I would feel. Well, one - it's a death in the family. And I am quite shocked and saddened right now. Two - I am paranoid. I think I will always be paranoid until I have my visa. I'm quite sure that Wil will get tired of all the strategizing I will do next week, via email, on his entrance into the states. "If they say this, answer that. Don't say this unless they ask. Carry X,Y and Z with you. Make a copy of that thing." And so on. Why I should worry about his entrance into the states is beyond me. Canadians come down to the states ALL THE FREAKIN' TIME. Plus, he's a grown up. Maybe because things went all wonky for me coming into Canada two and a half years ago, I'm always going to be a freak about it. I hope not, because I have hopes for us going back and forth as we like many times. God forbid I turn into some kind of anal retentive freak about it.

Three, I will miss him. I always thought when I got married I would have to marry someone who is SUPER understanding because I would be FIERCELY independent. None of that mooshy stuff when one of us had to travel with the other. But it's been two and a half years of pretty much constant companionship. One time, Wil went to Victoria for a couple of nights without me. But other than that, not a day has gone by, you know? So, I'm really going to miss him. I'm already missing him and I haven't left yet. Turns out, I'm mooshy.

He, however, will probably beer drinking no pants boy parties with video games and cigarettes and no girls allowed.

Happy Thanksgiving

By jodi on October 12, 2009 9:14 AM | 4 Comments | No TrackBacks

To my Canadian friends and family.

Thanksgiving feels different here. I mean, yes, it's earlier, which feels off. It seems that most of the people I know have their Thanksgiving dinner at any point this weekend. Now, this is just my observation, and may not be correct, but I feel like it may not be quite as big a deal here as it is in the US. Thanksgiving in the States is pretty much the biggest holiday of the year. Plus, it kicks of the Holiday Season in general. So on Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, you go directly into Christmas Spirit.

Ok, it sounds like I am challenging Canadian Thanksgiving to a Holiday Fight. Correct me if I am wrong about Canadian Thanksgiving. It's just my observation.

Nonetheless it still seems to be a time when families gather and give thanks, and that's what is important. My family came up to celebrate and early birthday dinner with me, Wil and the Stepdot. And I'm so grateful for that.

A truly thankful Thanksgiving

By jodi on October 1, 2009 3:48 PM | 4 Comments

I just got a call from a nice lady in the immigration offices in Alberta. We'll call her Jane. Because for some reason, I don't want to use her real name. She had some questions that Wil and I need to clear up for her, by writing a short paragraph of explaination and faxing it to her. Easy peasy.

Jane is a very nice lady, I think she liked me. She spent several minutes talking to me about my application and what the next steps will be. She told me to go ahead and fax her an application for a work permit! I was thrilled to hear that because months of unemployment for Wil, and years for me, have taken a toll. Of course, I don't know how helpful it will be in today's economy. I suppose it depends on what I am willing to do. What I am NOT willing to do is phone support. Neither is Wil, for that matter.

To make matters better, I talked to her about traveling across the border and she told me that I could travel across the border as long as Wil was with me. My application came from within Canada because it is a hardship to be away from my husband. He supports me. This fact makes it risky to cross into the states without him. How much of a hardship could it be if I left the country without him. But if I am with him...

This means as soon as we get Wil's passport, we will be able to go to the States. And, as long as any working schedules allow, we can go home for American Thanksgiving. I wouldn't think this would make me cry, but all of the sudden I found myself crying. Wil is not home right now, which is probably for the best, because I am sure he wouldn't know quite what to do with me in this state.

Someone is processing my application! Soon, I may be able to work! I will, most likely be home for Christmas! ( to quote a famous song)

I do not know how long it will take to get my approval letter. (at that point I take it to the local immigration office and apply for my card.) I am just so thrilled to have this news. These steps to take.

I know how to spell Saskatchewan now.

By jodi on September 17, 2009 4:12 PM | 2 Comments | No TrackBacks

We returned from our trip on Monday evening. Sunday we drove from Moose Jaw to Calgary, and then home the next day. I returned suffering from anti-depressant withdrawal, which was a bit like being stoned. Not entirely unpleasant, but not conducive to safe driving either. Wil returned with a sickness which we refer to as either a Prairie Sinus Infection or The Bacon Flu. (Fully cooked, it is not as dangerous as the Swine Flu.)

We are both better now.

Moose Jaw was an interesting place. First of all, the prairies are gorgeous. I know a lot of people would concentrate on the flatness of it all, but it was beautiful. I will say this, for a girl who's number one allergy is grass, Moose Jaw at harvest time is not the healthiest place to be. But it was fun being in a different climate and terrain.

Moose Jaw has a series of tunnels underneath it and there are two tours centered around them. One is the story of Chinese immigrants who lived and worked them, running steam laundries and trying to pay their "head tax" for immigration. This is the one that my new-to-me sister-in-law called "history."

The second tour has been labeled "legend," or possible "wishful thinkingtainment." The story goes that, during prohibition, Al Capone spent a goodly amount of time in MJ, hiding from his troubles and running booze. So much so that he called Little Chicago. This is the tour that we took, as half the party had seen the Chinese immigrant stories. It was a slice of theatre.

Look, maybe Al Capone hung out in Moose Jaw, did some business, who knows. It seemed short on fact and long on tales of bootlegging in general. We were continuously promised large quantities of booze and a powerful drunk. Much to half our party's dismay, that part turned about to be theatre as well. We had to buy our own booze after the tour.

The guy who took us through the tunnels was heeee-sterical. I kept thinking how my family would have ate it up. They would have been his favorite type of audience. Loud and participatory.

Greetings from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan

By jodi on September 9, 2009 10:31 PM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

Our trip has been extended and taken a little detour. It's been a long day and I am very tired. But for the next four nights I am staying in a double wide trailer that is nicer and larger than my apartment. Which begs the question...

Why don't I live in a double wide trailer? There are no tornados in British Columbia. I think I would be safe.

Tomorrow we are going to go shopping at Wal-Mart. It's a whole new lifestyle!

Liar Liar Pants

By jodi on May 19, 2009 9:26 AM | 2 Comments | No TrackBacks

Last week, we kept getting phone calls from "Private Caller", with no number displayed. They were very persistent. Both Wil and I are ... hesitant to answer the phone when we don't know who it is. I have had too many years of scary bad credit. And both of us too much time spent doing phone technical support to ever trust that any phone call is not going to come with a time consuming request. Plus, we were busy. Playing World of Warcraft.

After the 10th call that day, I answered the phone. Recently, I had been victim to Roger's willingness to give out my home number to one of the "authorized" retail partners. They called and called and called. We ignored them. (I would pick up the phone and say "Hello-two-three" and hang up. A trick I learned dealing with afore mentioned horrible credit. If you don't answer in 3 seconds, chances are I don't want to talk to you. ) Finally requested to be removed from these lists. So when a woman I didn't know asked for me, some kind of paranoid instinct kicked in and I said I wasn't home. I don't know why. I tried to take a message, and that's when she said she was calling from the CIC. Canadian Immigration.

I freaked out. What was I supposed to do now? Backtrack and admit I lied and that I was home. Explain to her about the near harassment level of sales pitches we've been getting because of our wireless contracts? Hope she thought it was funny. I couldn't admit to Immigration that I had lied to them, even in such a benign manner, and it was totally innocent and benign, albeit extremely paranoid! So I carried on. She said she would call Jodi's representative, I said I would tell Jodi they called and hung up. Then I ran in to the room and woke Wil up from his nap to tell him that I LIED TO IMMIGRATION and that was going to hell and no way were they gonna let a liar in to the country. Because lies are the first step to terrorism, right?

Turns out my lawyer had made a few mistakes on the form and they just needed some corrections. But it means they are, at last, processing my application.

Oh god! Oh god! Bobbies! We are NOT watching this. I'm sorry about the boobies.

By jodi on March 17, 2009 3:23 PM | No Comments

One of my favorite things about Canada is their attitude towards adult content on tv. Basically, after 10 pm, it's your responsibility to make sure your kid doesn't hear the F word or see bare breasts. There is a content warning after each commercial break, warning you about content, but that's it. I love that. We are so prudish in the States. (See J. Jackson's Nipple v. The United Priggish States of Football Watching America for further evidence.)

But the truth is, I'm not a parent. I don't have to worry about anything. Until Wil's daughter comes to visit. Wil and I are not used to thinking about the content of what we watch. To be honest, every single tv show on Canada seems to have a content warning of some kind after the commercial break. You become sort of immune to them. Several times this week, we were caught off guard. I wanted to watch a show about a housewife with multiple personality disorder, as naturally a person like myself would, but on the "previously" scenes there were bare boobies and people having the tv sex. Oops.

We were looking forward to watching tv simulcast of Will Ferrell's broadway show "Your Welcome, America: A Final Night With George W. Bush" on HBO for weeks. It was on Saturday, at 8 pm. So the three of us were sitting on the couch, watching it together. HOW WERE WE SUPPOSED TO KNOW HE WOULD SHOW A PICTURE OF A PENIS???? I mean... COME ON! It's not our fault.

If it were my kid, I wouldn't care. By age 11, we probably already would have spoken of, and looked at pictures of, penises. For educational purposes. But I have no idea what her mother's take on it is. I have no grasp of how mature she is about these things. The last thing I would want to do is treat a kid like an young adult before her time. For reals. That makes me sad. Other people's kids are mine fields, you know what I mean?

I know for sure she does not know the definition of the word "muff." Thanks for saying it 14 times in a row, Mr. Ferrell.*

Measure my booty.

By jodi on December 14, 2008 1:08 PM | 9 Comments

The Greater Vancouver Region has a very strong Blogging/ Social Media community, which is great. I didn't know of such a community in Seattle. In fact, I never knew any other bloggers in Seattle, sadly. I'm listed on a uberlist of bloggers in Seattle*, that's as close as I came to knowing other bloggers. So even though I considered myself a Seattle blogger, of course, I have never really considered myself a Community Blogger. I blog about myself. So I'm very impressed with the community here in the GVR.

The other day, I was mentioning to Wil that our friends, Airdre and Kerry Anne, won Favorite Audio/ Video Podcast for their excellent beauty podcast, Lipgloss and Laptops, in the Best of 604. Very well deserved. He asked me why I didn't win an award. Which is sweet, don't you think? In addition to not really being heavily involved of this community, it's quite simple. This is not my blog's heyday.

Oh, it's true. I know it. You may or may not know it. Blogs, like everything, have and ebb and flow. I think that once I quit my job, my blog started to ebb. Or maybe it's flowing. I'm not sure. Either one. Man, you should have caught me sometime in 2004 or 2005. I was rocking the blogging.

I'm ok with this. It's understandable really. If my life were one of those Family Circus cartoons, where they show what Billy or Jeffy did all day, everywhere they went, it would show little Jodi footprints running from my apartment, to the Safeway half a block away. And back. Occasionally, you'd see little feet running further down the block to the bank or London Drugs. But your chances of blog fodder decrease greatly if you never leave a 3 block radius.

Nonetheless, I did recently win two nice awards. One from Captain Dumbass of Us and Them, who lives here in the Greater Vancouver Region.

Booty

Hee! He said "booty." One day, Captian Dumbass and I will run into each other when we are both wearing our Bad Monkey shirts. I certainly hope we aren't compelled to fling poo.

And another from a former coworker, although I didn't know him at the time, Good Father.

Measures Up

It's too bad he wasn't blogging back in the days when I was at my POE. (And we didn't know each other) We could have had Blogging Lunches. Booked a conference room on the 2nd floor, right next to Central Services, with it's free soda and candy jar. Remember that kid, the mail guy, who one time dyed those kick ass flames into his hair? His name escapes me, because I'm horrible with names. It starts with a "D." He's worked there about 20 years by now, I figure. I hope he's still there. And the last big formal Christmas party we had, right before the dot com bust? We had different international themed rooms for the dinners. Oh man, I got DErunk that year. I did it for Evildeb. She was pregnant with AlmostCertainlyGoingToEndUpEvilMaggie, and was sad she could not "party."

Anyhoo, I like these awards. They are übercomments from two readers saying "I like you. Or at least your blog." And that's all the reward I really need. ** I know that one day my blog will cease to ebb and start to flow again.

* I suppose I should remove myself, but I'm not gonna. I still consider myself a Seattle blogger. I'm just... North of Seattle, is all. Very very north.
** ok, I suppose all awards are really saying that.

You'd be surprised how simple it is to turn my frown upside down.

By jodi on December 4, 2008 2:12 PM | 12 Comments

In the 18 months I have lived in Canada full time, I believe Red Vines have been the No. 1 item requested from visitors of the States*. Please, bring me red vines!! I have looked for them constantly. It's automatic now, I glance at the licorice sections of every store that carries candy. Without even thinking about it. I have never found them. Never.

Until today. If I had been in the middle of a conversation, I would have been rendered speechless. (I was alone, so I was already not utilizing speech.) I gasped. I stood there entranced. I picked up a bag and held it to my heart. I've always felt that London Drugs was a fairyland of miracles. (You can buy a MacBookPro there. At a DRUG STORE. It's awesome.)

The best part? they rung up as American Vines.

"Oh HELL yeah!"
"I'm sorry?"
"Nothing. I'm fine. It's just the vines.... from America..."

*I'm not sure what #2 is, possibly Pickapeppa Sauce, or stuff from Bath and Bodyworks. Or an entire Target store.

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