Thursday, February 25, 2010

Oh, Canada.



I love a world in which curling exists. Talk about a ridiculous, and ridiculous looking sport. A sport that has existed since the 1500s! That is old. And it is still very, very popular in Canada--land of my ancestors. Now, can you imagine my surprise, as I was watching the curling semi-finals of the Olympics, to encounter one John Morris, Curler:



That's him, second from left. Cute. John Morris. What? You're not convinced?



Bam! (Notice: his dumbbell is actually two curling stones. And, NB: good curling stones cost about $1500 per stone, because the granite they use is so rare). Curling is not just for your Canadian grandparents anymore, kids.

This got me thinking. What else has Canada given the world? I've constructed a partial list.

1. Me. If my grandparents had not both been in Canada to meet one another (and in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan no less), there would be no Rhonda (perish the thought), and therefore, no me. So, Canada, the world thanks you. My blog thanks you.

2. John Morris. We've covered that.

3. Macintosh toffee. (It comes in the loveliest plaid box, and when you purchase it, you have to SLAM it against something, to break it into bite-sized pieces. Words cannot express the satisfaction of hammering your candy against a counter top in order to eat it.)



4. Alice Munro. One of my very favorite short story writers. In fact, I've been reading her stories all day. (Prove it.) Okay, I will.



5. Bryan Adams. Four words: Waking. Up. The. Neighbors. Oh, sorry, Neighbours.



6. Best Accent Ever. Don't get me started. That Canadian accent turns me to a puddle of mush in about four seconds. I'm not kidding. It makes me swoon.

7. DeGrassi High. Before there was "My So-Called Life," or "Gossip Girl," there was DeGrassi.




8. Alanis Morisette. I got Jagged Little Pill as a Christmas gift in the 8th grade. I listened to it continuously for about six months, and found out that I was really, really pissed off about a lot of things. Without her album, I might never have known. I certainly wouldn't be a writer.

9. White Spot. They serve their kids' meals in a PIRATE PACK. And, they don't look down on you if the only condiment you want for your fries is mayonnaise. In Canada, at White Spot, mayonnaise as condiment is totally acceptable.



10. Ryan Reynolds. As far as I can tell, my readership is about 99.9% female. But that male .1% out there, even you can appreciate that Mr. Reynolds is not too hard on the eyes.



In conclusion: THANK YOU, CANADA.

(What am I forgetting?)

Kendall

7 comments:

  1. OH wow -- how I heart Ryan Reynolds. He is on my site as well.


    You forgot number eleven: SB! Oh yah!

    not too serious i hope

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  2. Thank you for this shout out to Canada! LOVE it! Degrassi (all incarnations, even!) is one of my favorite shows ever. One other thing Canada has given us that I'm personally very grateful for - the RCMP. If there was no RCMP, there would have been no obscure lil show called Due South. And if there had been no Due South, I wouldn't know about my favorite Canadian - Paul Gross. Yum! : )

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  3. I seem to recall a "certain" ROOTS poster of some significance to you....before the rest of world knew about ROOTS. ROOTS brought you and Matt Damon together.

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  4. Ahhh?....ME! (and Rick Anderson)

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  5. I have just the video for this post:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXqKORNdDh4&feature=player_embedded

    Also, was it you that was telling me about dropping a Hard J? I just saw that episode again and it cracked me up.

    By the way, based on 44 followers, I'd estimate the male readership of your blog to be about 10%!

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  6. Hello!
    I am a fellow Canuck who has started to follow your blog.
    Can I add a few things to your list?
    1. Trivial Pursuit
    2. The Stanley Cup
    3. Tim Horton's coffee/donuts
    4, 5, 6 & 7: Nelly Furtado, The Tragically Hip, The Guess Who and Our Lady Peace
    8. Poutine (I think this is actually attributed to France but you can find it almost anywhere here)
    9. Coloured money
    10. Spelling words like colored with a 'u'

    Love your blog!
    Annie
    http://anniesturn.blogspot.com/

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  7. God I miss Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Place. Thank you Canada for Ryan Reynolds and Kendall, two heavenly gifts.

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