Ten things I miss

[backguy]

Ten things that I miss while in the States:

1. Canadian Tire - This may be the greatest store in the world. It has basically anything you could want to buy, save clothes and pharmacy items. Stores like Lowe's, The Home Depot, and Wal-Mart just don't cut the mustard (which, incidentally, Canadian Tire also doesn't sell).


2. Cereal - There are so many cereals that aren't available down here - Shreddies, Just Right, Alpha Bits, Honeycomb, Vector, and Corn Pops, just to name a few. (I can't wait to try out some Diamond Shreddies when I visit in April.)


3. Royal Conservatory of Music - Nobody around here has a clue what the RCM is, so when I say that I've finished Level 10, they cock their heads and say, "There's levels for doing music lessons? We just learned songs and played them." Every single time.


4. Tim Hortons - I know where the nearest location is after crossing the border at Blaine/White Rock. I have a serious craving for a toasted blueberry bagel with herb & garlic cream cheese. I think that I've been spoiled by convenience of the SLC Timmy's. (I've only found one place with a decent donut here in Seattle, and it's a small, independent chain.)


5. Canadian currency - I never have any clue how much money is in my pocket. For example: in Canada if I have some large coins and a couple of bills in my wallet, I know that I've got at least $30. If I have some coinage and bills in my wallet in the US, it's possible that I have less than $5. Up until my move to Seattle, I almost exclusively used cash for day-to-day purchases; now I almost exclusively use credit or debit to make my purchases because I find the $1 bills are too awkward to fumble around with. (Also, I should point out that the States stole Canada's idea of creating a unique quarter for each province.)


6. Elections that don't take two years to complete - I have decided to not watch CNN until after Inauguration Day in January 2009. I love Canadian elections - just a few weeks in length, and then they're over.


7. Mark's Work Wearhouse - I basically buy (bought) all of my clothes here. This is the epitome of a men's clothing store - you can walk in, pick out your size, and walk out, all in under 7 minutes. (This place understands the inner workings of a man's mind.)


8. Speeding - Even though I don't own a car, I have rented a car three times so far. In some states, particularly Washington, the speed limits are tightly enforced. When the sign says 60 mph, every single car is going, at most, 62 mph. And the cops are everywhere on the road, just waiting for you to slip up. I remember one of the local TV stations was reporting on a speeding crackdown that the police were running, and they reported (with some degree of astonishment) that "some cars were travelling as fast as 65 mph." (Compare this to Ontario this past December, where I was going 120 km/h in a 100 km/h zone on the QEW and was still slower than the speed of traffic.)


9. Bilingual packaging - As far back as I can remember, one of my favourite ways of entertaining myself when eating or preparing a meal has been to read the labelling in French first, which is useful for picking up new words or phrases. (Cereal boxes are the best for this, since every few weeks there's a new activity on the back to complete.)


10. The metric system - Multiply by 10. Or divide by 10. Boom - conversion done. (During lunch at work this week, my American coworkers and I were talking about the U.S. switching to metric and abolishing daylight savings. My comment was, "If it ever gets proposed, I'm sure that government will find some way to tie it terrorism," to which everyone laughed and agreed.)

A few things that I'm glad I have at least partial access to:

1. CBC - This is the only channel that is available on cable in Seattle, and is conveniently located on channel 99, so many Seattlites don't even know that it's available. It's quite amusing to see the look on people's faces in my building's fitness room when I'm watching The National or RMR. (For the record, Rick Mercer does an excellent job of keeping me motivated on the treadmill.)


2. My apartment - This past week, I hung my Canadian flag on my bedroom wall and claimed my apartment as sovereign territory of Canada. I decided against implementing passport control for entering my unit, similar to the Schengen Agreement in Europe. Stephen Harper will be calling me next week to discuss my apartment getting representation in the House of Commons, and possibly even the Senate.


3. Waterloovians - I would estimate that 5-15% of Amazon is made up of Waterloo alumni. It's nice having a lot of fellow Canucks at work (including one-half of my team). Also, having people like Graeme or Kevin around reminds me a bit of home.


4. Corner Gas - I have seasons 1 through 4 on DVD, so even though I'm a season behind, at least I can catch up with these episodes.


5. Voting - I've registered as a foreign voter, so when if Stéphane Dion ever works up the courage to bring down the Conservative government, I'll be able to have my say. However, this doesn't apply to provincial or municipal elections, sadly.


6. Slingbox - With this hooked up to my parents' coaxial cable, I get access to all of the analogue stations that Rogers carries. It's nice having a TV alternative and being able to see some Canadian shows. (Plus, I get east-coast timeshifting, which is strictly forbidden on U.S. television.)