Sanuk Canadian

My brother called us up in the evening asking if we'd like to shoot some pool with him. Along with my brother, my folks, myself and my brother's girlfriend all met at Dooley's, which is a Canada-wide chain of pool halls. One table costs $10 per hour, so we played for two hours. It was great fun. I asked for a pitcher of beer, which myself, my brother and dad shared. The beer was only $7. My usual these days: beer and jelly beans...^_^ We all told funny stories and teased each other in between shots. It was really, really fun. On cold winter nights, why not shoot a round of pool or snooker? ^_^

"Jungle Jim's" is the name of a "jungle themed" restaurant in my hometown. The inside is filled with tacky bamboo and dangling plastic bananas. If you visit this restaurant, just ignore the interior and enjoy the excellent food. I ordered a whole wheat chicken quecadilla, and a Greek salad. The salad had a lot of ingredients that I usually don't eat: tomatoes, black olives and raw onions. But, I surprised myself by eating the majority of this salad AND enjoying it. Yay me! ^_^

I think the image of "indians" is synonymous with North America. When I lived in Germany, my host sister even asked: "Is it possible to see an Indian in Canada?" After reading an article in the local paper about a new exhibition of Native Canadian art at a local gallery, I decided I had to go and check it out. The gallery's owner, Mr. Pascal Pelletier, invited my folks and I inside even though a sign on the door said: "closed". I felt spoiled next as Mr. Pelletier actually took the time to explain the meaning, history and the artist's personal background for each painting. Amazing hospitality! These works are from one artist: Mr. Roger J. Simon (1954 - 2000). He lived and painted Indian tribes in the Maritimes, British Columbia and Santa Fe, New Mexico (U.S.A). When I asked if I could take photos for my blog, his response was positive: "As long as you don't profit off it, go right ahead." I thought I would share with you some of the ...

At around midnight, my parents and I heard some giggles from outside. My mother went to the window to investigate: a group of university students were busy making a snowman. When I woke up this morning, right outside the balcony of my parent's place, stood two HUGE snowmen, complete with rocks for smiles and carrots for noses. They looked great. To give you a sense of how tall they are, notice the heads of the snowmen reach the second floor of the neighboring building! In Japan, it's interesting to note that snowmen there tend to be only two snowballs in height, while in Canada, we use three balls of snow. A Japanese snowman: Japan has snow kids, we've got snow MEN. ^_^/

As mentioned in an earlier post, I bought a book called "How to be a Canadian" by Will and Ian Ferguson. The guidebook is meant to be a satire of what is the "typical Canadian". After reading the first chapter, I have to share with you some of the book's gems. On Economy: "The main product manufactured in Canada is snow." On Population: "There are 30,000,000 people in Canada -- all of whom have, at some point, frozen their tongues to the side of a chainlink fence or flagpole. Even though their mothers told them not to." (Yes, I have actually done this.) What You've Learned So Far: "If you want to appear Canadian, all you have to do is tuck a beaver under your arm and stroll allong humming the Hockey Night in Canada theme song." If you are Canadian and enjoy poking fun at yourself, I highly recommend this book. I often find myself laughing out loud at the observations.