Meditations (typed on the internet) on Canada Day

[c9]

I love Canada Day. Always have. I spent ages 10-19 in Ottawa, which is truly the only place to be on Canada Day. Everywhere else I've been has always paled in my mind. The city has hundreds of thousands of people downtown. They close all the downtown core (about a 10-15 minute walk to cross it) and everyone can wander. There are low-quality tshirts being hawked at tourists, face painters, clowns, events everywhere, and a huge fireworks display. And everyone's smiling. The intense, universal joy is so rare in life (think Pride Day in a big city, or during a wedding reception when you're close to the couple, that sort of thing). I was saying to leapfish yesterday that I've sort of resigned myself to not enjoying Canada Day to a certain extent, because it's just not Canada Day to me without all that.

In Kitchener, Canada Day is... subdued. In tne entire city of Kitchener, the only event listed on the City's website was a firefighters' competition a couple blocks from our place. The sister city of Waterloo gets the Canada Day celebrations, over at the University of Waterloo. As near as I could figure, it's only just barely a civic event and more of a university-funded and -organized event. In our neighbourhood there was nothing. No flags evident, no honking horns (except for Portugal's World Cup win), and just the same blah Kitchener always seems to have. This gets me pretty down as the day wears on and I fully grasp that the fun isn't going to suddenly appear.

But yesterday turned out fun, in a low-key and very different from what I'm used to kind of way.

On Friday I went to see KWLT's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf in St Jacob's, and I biked there and back. I didn't realize how long the show was: 20:10 --> 23:38, including two 15-minute intermissions. Kudoes to the cast -- just four people having conversations on a set stage for the whole period. I got home rather late, at 00:30, and was really tired. I haven't biked 26 km in over a year. We slept in, and I was exhausted in the morning. We sat around, then headed for the Kitchener Farmer's Market as we do on Saturdays to get our groceries.

We bought all sorts of things, but the primary purchase seems to have been peas. It was $3 for not very many peas, so we bought a flat for $23. Turns out this was maybe too many peas. We spent at least two solid hours shelling them, and ended up with almost six tupperware containers full. Anybody want some organic fresh peas? PLEASE?

We went to Ye's Sushi for lunch, the new all-you-can-eat sushi place that opened just around the corner from us. Two sushi restaurants opened since we moved into the neighbourhood. Did our reputation from Halifax precede us or something? Yummy and ate too much, as always. Their ordering system has a few bugs. Little pieces of paper with numbers written on them seems fool-proof, but I guess someone went and built a better fool, as they say.

leapfish made his famous hummus, and we took the bus with various crazies over to Steve & Kevin's townhouse. The crazies were going elsewhere, luckily. Sat around, chatted, ate, played a game of Scrabble as notable for its creative approach to spelling as it was for its dirty angle. Still more people showed up, and an actual party broke out! It was a sit around and chat party for sure, but still. Met many new people, some of which I could even handle as friends. We played an amusing game I like to call "go back inside because it started raining again, only once we're inside the rain will stop again." It's not a very catchy name.

We had BBQ, ate Canada-Day decorated cake, and listened to the neighbours all around setting off fireworks (poorly). High townhouses and hedges made most of them invisible, so that was a bit different. Very relaxing night. We finally walked home (35 mins) at 1. Collapsed into bed pretty quick.

So that was my Canada Day. I spent yesterday morning gathering Canada-themed usericons just so I could post all sorts of Canada Day things, and I ended up not posting the whole day. Oh well.


I think I do need an Ottawa Canada Day again though. So my current plan is for us to be in Ottawa for Canada Day 2007. Anybody want to come? Let's have a fun day of soaking in the festivities!

Comments

[heartovmidnight.livejournal.com]

Your first paragraph just totally made me cry. This year was my very first Canada NOT in Ottawa and I missed it terribly. I really should have made more of an effort to be there.

Next year - I'M THERE.

[c9.livejournal.com]

I knew you'd get what I meant. If you're not raised on it, it's harder to get for sure.

[simplisticton.livejournal.com]

For me, this was the first Canada Day I've spent in Fredericton that actually felt like I expect Canada Day to feel in a provincial capital. It was a lot closer to what you described in the first paragraph -- at least during the afternoon at the parade and in the evening at the fireworks. And the fireworks were good this year -- my hypothesis is that the city spent all the money they saved from last winter's (virtually untouched) snow removal budget on Canada Day celebrations. It was also notable as Zach's first exposure to fireworks. It was a bit rocky at first (we were about 150 meters from where they were setting off the fireworks on the south side), but once we convinced him to look up, he was pretty attentive.

Ottawa in 2007 probably isn't likely for us since G will only be six months old at that point... but maybe 2008. I definitely want to make it to Ottawa for Canada Day while the kids will enjoy it.

[c9.livejournal.com]

G? I remember the middle name, but did you spill the first name and I forgot?

[simplisticton.livejournal.com]

G is just a code name for now, the same way Zach was Z. It's not as applicable this time around as "G" is only the initial for the boy's name (Gabriel). The girl's name is Kathern (Kate), but since I'm 99% sure it's a boy, I just use G.

(No comments on the biblical nature of Gabriel, please :-)

[thespos]

The whole thing with the peas really made me laugh. I don't know why. I just have this mental image of the two of you seeking out BYOP (Bring Your Own Peas) or BYOV (Bring Your Own Vegetables) parties, and things like, "What are we having for dinner?" "Peas." Over and over and over again. LOL!

It's always interesting to me how different countries celebrate their national holidays. I think, as an American, we expect that it will be just as built-up as our Independence Day celebrations tend to be, no matter the size of the town. I can remember being 17 and laying on my back in a local park... oh wait... no, that's right... laying on my back in a local park, looking up at the fireworks. The town where I grew up was only a few thousand people, but we still had a parade, fireworks, and outdoor activities all over the place.

I was in the Netherlands for two Queen's Birthday (Koninginnedag) celebrations, and it seemed very focused on the cities. I mean, everybody came in from the villages to the cities for it, but it was definitely an event for the larger populations.

By this time next year, I will have been to Montréal and Vancouver, but Ottawa might be fun, if an American is allowed to attend. :-)

[c9.livejournal.com]

You'd be welcome, but you might find it, subtly, a bit anti-American. :)

[quingawaga.livejournal.com]

I remember Canada Days in Ottawa too. I lived there from ages 9-17.

sushi???

[the-prop-tart.livejournal.com]

Where is this sushi place you speak of?

Re: sushi???

[c9.livejournal.com]

Where Galaxie Diner used to be. It's 100% awesome.

[jamincan.livejournal.com]

I went to Canada Day in Ottawa once in the four years i lived there and you're right, it was awesome. The other three years my parents carted me off to visit my grandparents. :-(

[saviolo.livejournal.com]

I brought Caleb to his very first Canada Day in Ottawa a few years back. Visited with Angie and Adam, and we watched some of the best CD fireworks I've ever seen from a parking garage roof in the Byward Market. Awesome. Caleb was pretty blown away, as he continually is by how willing cities like Toronto and Ottawa are to close down major downtown routes for a street party (Pride, Taste of the Danforth).

I'm SO up for Canada Day in Ottawa next year.

Hey, check the most recent issue of AbOut, I got a letter published.

-Daniel

[c9.livejournal.com]

I don't know what AbOut is. Is it a magazine devoted to abs? I could get into that.

[saviolo.livejournal.com]

Heh, no... it's another free gay rag, like Fab, but catering to Northeastern New York and Southern Ontario. Basically... Buffalo and Toronto. It's not nearly as good as Fab (and that should give you some indication of where it stands).

[primary-suspect.livejournal.com]

You mean you aren't sticking with your Z choice for a girl? I don't remember what the girl Z option was now...

[simplisticton.livejournal.com]

No, two Z names is one too many. It was an either/or choice for one-time only. The name that will not be used now is "Zara". So I guess in a way we're all fortunate.