Waking Up Canadian
Thousands upon thousands (no one knows exactly how many!) of people woke up yesterday morning to discover they were Canadian!
The above YouTube was put out by the Canadian government to let people in on this phenomenon. You have to admire a government that's so down with the times!
If you have a moment, watch it. It's very adorable and shows a man who goes to sleep in a boring room, but wakes in a very red-and-white room that's decorated with all manner of Canadian paraphernalia. The man is greeted by a friendly hockey player (who may still have all his teeth!) and a friendly mountie. By the way, this man is not representative of the kind of good looks you can expect to find in Canada!
The upshot is that many people who lost or were not even granted their Canadian citizenship (Canadians who took out American citizenship between 1948-1977, border babies*, a group of Mennonites who moved to Mexico for a 3 or 4 decades, war brides, and more) have all been welcomed back into the big red Maple Leaf fold.
*Trivia (and you know how I love my trivia): What are border babies?
The answer is at the bottom of this post.
How does this new bit of legislature affect my little family? My grandchildren (who I hope will not be born for a LONG LONG time!) will not be Canadian. Sigh. Up until today, my children's children would automatically have been Canadian. Now, only the first generation born abroad are given Canadian citizenship. Unless, of course, I do something DRASTIC and CRAZY like kidnap my labouring daughter-in-law (and I hope not to have any of these for a LONG LONG time!) and speed north to a hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia. Given my poor sense of direction, this is unlikely to happen!
For more details and to find out if you have turned Canuck without realizing it, go to Citizenship and Immigration Canada's website.
*Answer to trivia question:
Border babies were born between January 1, 1947, and February 14, 1977, to one or two Canadian parents in an American hospital because it was closer to their home than the hospital in the nearest Canadian town. Aside from the short time spent in the hospital at birth, most border babies have lived all or most of their lives in Canada. (from the CIC website)
Welcome/Bienvenue, eh?
Sources:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123993183347727843.html?mod=yhoofront
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/rules-citizenship.asp
Posts
I welcome all newly discovered Canadians to the fold - but that video? Cute but perhaps a bit too much stereotyping... We’re not all about hockey and Mounties!
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Beth. And....I didn't see any Can Lit books sitting around the room!
ReplyDeleteLol. Great video. Very funny. Love the colors. Interesting. I didn't know about this.
ReplyDeleteHey, cool! Thanks for sharing. Alas, I am not Canadian, even now. But I love the country. It's beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWaking up Canadian is my dream. However, I've only been there once on the other side of Niagra Falls, for 1/2 an hour. I looked it up & this doesn't make me Canadian.
ReplyDeleteVery cool post, Barrie. We had second cousins who lived in Vancouver, BC, but I don't think that makes us Canadian. Too bad. It seems like such a friendly country.
ReplyDeleteAren't Canadians just Americans-light? I thought the only difference was the way you say "Out and about."
ReplyDeleteCool video. Alas none of my relatives are Canadian yesterday or today, but I've been to Victoria and it's really lovely, as are the people. Congrats to all of the new Canadians!
That was a fascinating post and I have learnt quite a lot this morning by reading it!
ReplyDeleteI always wondered how that worked. But I guess eventually you have to let go. Just think of all of us Americans who were once from some other country.
ReplyDeleteBut very funny, Barrie!
That was cute! Of course the big question is whether or not the blusterers who threaten to move to Canada whenever an election doesn't go their way would actually be able to do so!
ReplyDeleteas canuckistanians, we have our charms, and faults, the same as folk all over the world
ReplyDeletei understand the new law benefits some folk and causes probs for others
give with one hand, take away with the other... nothing new there :(
Living fifteen minutes from Canada, it has always seemed like a very rational and sensible place to live.
ReplyDeleteMaybe in my retirement.
I listen to the CBC almost non-stop and didn't hear anything about this. (Although I've heard about the issue in the past). I'm just glad we're all getting along so well on this continent.
ReplyDeleteAnd Barrie, your future grandkids will talk about their Canuck grannie with pride, I'm sure.
Wow, cool video. Our government really did a good job there. Love the decoration of the room, I wish mine looked like that when I wake up in the mornings...haha. Thanks for the post,
ReplyDeletetake care, Elli
Cute video.
ReplyDeleteBarrie, I know most Americans think all Canadians put 'eh' after every sentence; but western Canadians do not. That's an eastern Canadian quip. Not being an easterner (though living there) this is irksome.
ReplyDeleteWhen I return to the west, I'm getting a pickup truck, gun racks for the back window, a .30-.06 to put there and bumper sticker with whatever the local obnoxious phrase is now.
Funny stuff!
ReplyDeleteHilarious! Who knew the Canadian government had a sense of humour?
ReplyDeleteAnd welcome home to all those new Canadian's out there!
Now do you get to pay Canadian taxes too?