I try to run my eyes over sections of the library book collections whenever I am walking around during a break.
When I spotted this shelf of books, I knew I had finally found an answer to all the questions that I have had about our neighbor to the north.
"Understanding Canada"!!!
Best of all...apparently a reader could gain a full understanding of the country by reading a mere 621 pages.
Wouldn't this book be just the thing to get a handle on all things Canada?
Apparently the monograph has had its readers.
(Make that reader, singular).
Isn't that sad?
Of course I was glad to know that there was nothing new to learn about Canada after 1984.
I like a country where nothing much changes over time.
I opened one of the other books on the shelf, a thinner book, and turned to the chapter on Canadian daily life.
(Major apologies for the sideways way of this cell phone shot photo).
It probably is important to grasp the concept that the most popular pastime in the evening for Canadians is watching television.
Hmmm...I need to see a break down of population segments within the survey to figure out if that is a true statement across the board.
Knowing how food oriented my few Canadian acquaintance are, I turned to the chapter on food; curious to know if it is an obsession shared across the vast country, or if food is a fetish focus of only a few.
Apparently posing a question about a national food will likely generate "a long thoughtful pause" from a typical Canadian.
Shoot...I know the answer to that question:
Wieners.
Every Canadian blogger writes about wiener roasts.
I still don't understand that fascination and the book about Understanding Canada didn't even have the word "wiener" in the index.
Paska, drinking beer with breakfast, why they use "eh?" at the end of a sentence and are so often able to take six weeks of vacation a year: Those were the key "Understanding Canada" questions that I felt were left totally unaddressed within the 621 pages of the book and all the other smaller books as well.
Secretive bunch up north, aren't they?
Makes me wonder what else about themselves that they are not willing to discuss.
8 comments:
Ha! I can hardly wait to see how our beloved Canadians comment on this post. So many questions...so little time. I wonder if there's an understanding Americans shelf in Canadian libraries.
The use of "eh" at the end of a sentence should be obvious, eh?
Funny post, Jill. I was chuckling along. I think that the national food might be poutine, but then I'm only half-Canadian so am not to be trusted on these things.
I wonder which province the writer visited in order to gain such insight into the average Canadian family? My "in-real-life" friends from Quebec seem to live quite differently from my blogging BC friends, and the YT residents that I came in contact with a few years ago were quite different indeed! (Oh, what I could tell you from that visit!!)
ha! Oh. ..the secrets we have tucked under our hats. If you only knew!!
I loved this post. What a hoot.
I just said to Terry yesterday. .I'm hungry for a wiener roast. It seems to be a a common bit of enjoyment in the evenings. .just before settling to watch our favorite shows.
For supper tonight? Roasted Anise Chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy. Fresh Broccoli and cheese sauce and a Romaine Maple Walnut Apple salad that I am perfecting for the blog.
I'm just happy we made the shelf!
You don't have weinie roasts in the States??
inserting a long thoughtful pause . . . where are the lobsters eh??
I think PEI needs its own book.
I am laughing hysterically here! I want to know what the rest of the book had to say! Although it's much more fun if you guys just come up and visit! And when you do come to visit, we will more than likely have a wiener roast! Although I do love Pea Soup, but yes, I do fall into the paska eating group...beer for breakfast, eh? Hadn't thought of that one, that is more a Bob & Doug McKenzie "Great White North" type of breakfast, eh. Anyways, thanks for taking the time to check us out of the library! LOL.
Oh so cute you are Jill! It is my blessed day to have it off for Remembrance Day (did they mention that in one of the books?), and actually have time to read your blog, and look, you talk all about Canadians in a few short volumes. Love your sense of humour! Have a great weekend curled up with a good book!
Oh...I'm so glad I scrolled down to see this post. (Almost missed it!) Too funny!
I'd be happy to have 'wieners roasted on an open fire' listed as a 'national food'. Though open fires are being legislated away by the powers that be...and wiener roasts may soon be only a sweet memory on blog posts of the past.
Canada is a little complicated. I don't think we can be understood through the reading of 621 pages. It seems your 'readers' don't even want to try.
Six weeks vacation? That's just compensatory time off for overtime worked. And it can only be taken during slow times on the farm (in the dead of winter is good).
Is the Canadiana section of your library...next to the 'humour' section?
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