When you tell people you are from Canada

[SpiritAlight 1]

Oh Ant, I love your posts!!!

And for all reading this imagine my confusion and/or confusing others; I am tri-lingual plus a tiny bit of this and that language.

There have been studies of how differently the brain develops when learning to be bi-lingual as a child...let alone tri-lingual.

And so...

Apparently those brains learn faster in life as well as they are quicker at getting to solutions.

I have found myself to be a good trouble-shooter.

If only I could be that quick in my retorts to sarcasm/cynicism I would be "king"!

And yes, sometimes I find myself translating in my head before responding, depending even on which English I am communicating in.

It is completely different in Quebec vs. British Columbia, and of course in various States.

It truly is!

Edited October 8, 2008 by SpiritAlight

[JillA 2]

Has anyone ever seen "The Real Housewives of Orange County".... There was a girl from Ontario on the show who flew to OC to meet this guy Shane that she met online... well anyway his uncle was suspicious of her, because she was very pretty and had a great smile so he said "Canadian people don't have nice teeth, they don't have flouride in their water so she can't be from Canada"

That's kind of an overgeneralization don't you think? lol Ontario has a LOT of flouride in their water. BC and Quebec, the lowest. Actually only about 43% of Canadians drink or brush in flourinated water, compared to about 70% of water in the U.S. Most of Europe doesn't. Scotland doesn't. Japan doesn't. Here's a breakdown that I found.

Fluoridated water Not fluoridated

B.C. 3.9% 96.1%

Alberta 74.6% 25.4%

Saskatchewan 31.7% 68.3%

Manitoba 73.2% 26.8%

Ontario 70.3% 29.7%

Quebec 6.9% 93.1%

New Brunswick 19.1% 80.9%

Nova Scotia 44.8% 55.2%

Newfoundland 3.5% 96.5%

PEI 23.4% 76.6%

Nunavut 7.1% 92.9%

Yukon 100%

NWT 53.8% 46.2%

It is still so controversial 70 years later! I had a g/f from PEI that had very dark teeth, and deposits on here teeth from not having flourinated water during her youth. She was raised in a rural area, and she said most people from her area had horrible teeth.

My dentist always told me that the complexion of your teeth, and their strength was about 75% genetics.

So, I'm sure the Uncle was maybe thinking of flouride and it's inception to the water system in North America and equated that with a white toothed smile.

That's interesting... I would like to send this to him and set him straight!! LOL

[Emancipation 2]

It is still so controversial 70 years later! I had a g/f from PEI that had very dark teeth, and deposits on here teeth from not having flourinated water during her youth. She was raised in a rural area, and she said most people from her area had horrible teeth.

are you calling my teeth ugly Carla ? tee hee...

Hmm... I never thought about that.. but loads of PEI are still on well water.. the only chemical that's in that is all the toxin run off from the salt they use on the roads or the pesticides they put on the potato fields

When my mother sold her house the well was bad.. it was from salt run off. The gov agreed to dig her a new well as long as she would sign a document stating she wouldn't sue the gov if she had cancer later in life. Nice

[thetreble 19]

My parents have always had well water as well because we live so close to the country. I always loved the taste of it.

[antda 13]

Hi Treble,

I love the taste of well water and/or country water too! Ever since I've moved here in the country, that's what I've been drinking mostly, especially so since there's an abundant supply of it, as it comes right out of my tap. Heck, I don't even use filters (yeah, I know, I probably should), as that kills the natural taste of well water. Well water/country water is "fresh", straight from the source, with no odd after taste and overall tastes a lot better.

Lol..my husband makes fun of me because of liking to drink well water/country water, but I tell him: "You try drinking city water for many years before, and you tell me which you would rather prefer. You're lucky that I didn't get sick from it before (lol..though I got food poisoning in the city before, but that's another story). And if I die from drinking well/country water, at least I die happy. ". Believe me, city water is gross, no matter how it's treated and/or filtered, as there's always some funny "manufactured" metallic aftertaste to it. Plus you never know, with city water, if it has been polluted and/or contaminated before in some way or other, as there are more people, factories/industries, garbage, etc. there...yuck!

Ant (Well water/country water drinker, and proud of it......)

My parents have always had well water as well because we live so close to the country. I always loved the taste of it.

[antda 13]

Hi SpiritAlight,

Thanks for saying that you like my posts. And likewise, I like your posts, and everyone else's posts here on VJ too! Overall, I find VJ to be a helpful and friendly community, which always brightens my day..

Likewise too, I can understand about being "tri-lingual", as I'm a bit of that myself too, as in:

-English (my main language of communication, a 100,000+ words vocabulary both verbally and visually/written down)

-Birth Country language (only about a 5000+ words vocabulary, only verbally, mainly because of my granny who doesn't speak English, and it's way too hard and uninteresting to learn more otherwise)

-French (only about a 1000+ words vocabulary, both verbally and visually/written down, mainly because I had to learn that in school in Canada like everyone else there)

-A little bit of other languages here and there. Lol..I can count from 1-10 in different lanugages/dialects (now you see why I get my dates confused).

As well, I have/will have "triple citizenships" in my lifetime (but will later on only be a "dual citizen"):

-Canadian (which I currently have through Naturalization, and will continue to have for rest of my life)

-American (which I will have in about 1+ years or so, according to the USCIS..lol..)

-Birth Country (which I might not still have, but would like to revoke if I do still have)

Furthermore:

-I'm "multicultural"...enough said...

Lol...as you can see, it's no wonder I can get confused at times! And others get confused at me too...

Not sure if all this "tri-lingual"/"tri-cultural" stuff has helped me throughout my life, in terms of thinking faster. However, it does make for interesting stories to tell, and a lot of interesting (though it can be frustrating at times) questions

I agree, one has to "translate" and communicate differently, according to the place and the situation. Sometimes I think to myself: Why can't we just all communicate in one language, to make life easier and more understandable? No wonder I prefer to communicate in English, the language which is the most commonly used throughout the world.

Then there's always the langauge of love, which is also common throughout the world too...

Ant (Tri-lingual, tri-cultural, tri-confused!!!)

Oh Ant, I love your posts!!!

And for all reading this imagine my confusion and/or confusing others; I am tri-lingual plus a tiny bit of this and that language.

There have been studies of how differently the brain develops when learning to be bi-lingual as a child...let alone tri-lingual.

And so...

Apparently those brains learn faster in life as well as they are quicker at getting to solutions.

I have found myself to be a good trouble-shooter.

If only I could be that quick in my retorts to sarcasm/cynicism I would be "king"!

And yes, sometimes I find myself translating in my head before responding, depending even on which English I am communicating in.

It is completely different in Quebec vs. British Columbia, and of course in various States.

It truly is!

Edited October 11, 2008 by AntandD

[antda 13]

Hi Trailmix,

Likewise, I do that too on cheques/checks, and stuff like that, when spaces allow for such. It does make it easier at times to do it out "in whole words" like that and I wish I could do that more often than in numbers. However, there are certain forms and other paperwork, which do not allow room to write the entire date out in whole form like that. As well, when I verbally say it out in whole words, others get confused too (and yes, have asked me before to say it again in numbers). Apparently the Americans like hearing and writing the date out in numbers instead of in whole words...lol...

Then I'm stuck with the numbers/dates confusion again..and yes, I'm left "speaking in tongues"....

Ant ("speaking in tongues", date-wise...)

While Ant is speaking in tongues - I simplify by just writing out the month (like on cheques etc)

[twilighter 0]

lETS SAY i HAVE HAD MY SHARE OF "EH" JOKES...

[Izoom 0]

While I guess you have to be light-hearted to take them, the "eh" jokes or comments get real old after awhile...and I'm the American.

Whether or not it bothers her, I don't see many Canadians making a lot of similar comments towards Americans when visiting Canada. I'm not bitter, I just

think that some people here (America, not Visajourney) need to be a little more mature or less closed-minded.

[DeadPoolX 9]

While I guess you have to be light-hearted to take them, the "eh" jokes or comments get real old after awhile...and I'm the American.

Whether or not it bothers her, I don't see many Canadians making a lot of similar comments towards Americans when visiting Canada. I'm not bitter, I just

think that some people here (America, not Visajourney) need to be a little more mature or less closed-minded.

I think most of the problem really lies with the media. I know, that's an "easy" out, but look at how Hollywood uses and reuses stereotypes. If they're not rehashing geographical or cultural stereotypes, they're making use of gender-specific ones instead. Whether or not the public finds this amusing isn't the point. The issue is that people are consistently exposed to these stereotypes, many of which can be quite negative.

Using Canada as an example, when Hollywood looks at Canada, what do they portray? Ice and snow, with people bundling up to keep from freezing to death. Even worse, many characterizations of Canadians rely on ideas that are extremely old, such as RCMP officers always wearing their dress uniforms and riding horses. Then there's the idea that Canadians all speak French. While knowing French is probably a good idea in some cases, the predominant written and spoken language is English (that's a mixture of both the British and American versions). But it's considered far more amusing by Hollywood to have a "somewhat dopey French-speaking or accented Canadian RCMP officer pushing his way through the tundra on dogsled while on his way to his igloo."

To be fair, Hollywood does this to everybody, specially the U.S. itself. I'm originally from Texas and thanks to the old westerns that were popular in the 1950s and 1960s, many people still believe Texas is a dry desert wasteland, sparsely populated with little towns where cowboys ride horses and stop in at the local saloon and get into gunfights." These same individuals are often shocked when they visit and find out that Texas has forests, swamps, and mountains, in addition to the major cities looking and acting like any other busy and crowded urban center. Houston, where I was born and grew up, is actually the fourth largest city in the United States, but ask people about on the west and east coast (particularly those in the northeast) and they'll imagine it's nothing more than a general store, motel and a gas station.

I won't say there aren't stereotypes about other places, too. Many think all Californians are "surfers" (or in San Francisco's case, extreme leftist lunatics) or that the Deep South is comprised of nothing more than redneck hicks who believe the American Civil War is still being waged or that the midwest only has "low-educated, but often friendly, farmers" and that the northeast are all self-important snobs who're completely full of themselves.

Granted, the above was strictly about the United States, but it's easy to see the stereotypes elsewhere. For instance, what about the Indian (as in from New Delhi, not a member of the Cherokee nation) operating a 7-11 or any other convenience store? Many often think that the Japanese are either "samurai-like" or complete wacko perverts. The Irish and Russians are thought to be drunkards and the citizens of England are either "emotionless, stodgy and in the upper echelon of society" or they speak like Eliza Doolittle, from My Fair Lady. It's also interesting to note that for years, whenever Hollywood needed a "foreign villain," an English accent would be used, since it's considered "different, but still understandable." This was partially George Lucas's reason behind making Imperial officers in the Star Wars films speak that way, too.

[raphael7546 0]

I am so sick of the "EH" comments! I have never said EH in my life!

I also get the "Oh you must speak French too.

And everybody here thinks that its always snowing in all of Canada or something, because as soon as we get snow they say, Oh you must be used to all this snow!

Umm No! I'm from Vancouver, BC , we rarely got snow.

One of my prior coworkers said that we put weird things on the plate for breakfast. He said when you order breakfast there is always slices of Tomatoes and slices of Oranges and that's just weird.

I don't recall having slices of tomatoes on my plate when I ate out.

[canadian_wife 1,826]

I taught High School in RURAL, poor Georgia for 3 years and I got such comments as:

"Wow, Canada..thats kinda like a whole other country" ~ Yah, kinda

"Did you vote for George W. Bush?" ~ Uh, no Canadians can't vote in US elections

"You're the first foreigner I've met"

"Do you have apple pie in Canada or is that just an American thing?" ~ I hear they actually have apple pie in places like Europe

"Do you have July 4th in Canada...wow really, I thought only Americans had July 4" ~ Yes, our calendar doesn't just skip over July 4

And I even had one mother pull her daughter out of my US History class because I not American and thus, could not properly teach her daughter the history of the US. This was also the same woman who complained to the school board that I was teaching that the Union won the Civil War. She honestly thought that the South won!

[Krikit 1,165]

I taught High School in RURAL, poor Georgia for 3 years and I got such comments as:

"Wow, Canada..thats kinda like a whole other country" ~ Yah, kinda

"Did you vote for George W. Bush?" ~ Uh, no Canadians can't vote in US elections

"You're the first foreigner I've met"

"Do you have apple pie in Canada or is that just an American thing?" ~ I hear they actually have apple pie in places like Europe

"Do you have July 4th in Canada...wow really, I thought only Americans had July 4" ~ Yes, our calendar doesn't just skip over July 4

And I even had one mother pull her daughter out of my US History class because I not American and thus, could not properly teach her daughter the history of the US. This was also the same woman who complained to the school board that I was teaching that the Union won the Civil War. She honestly thought that the South won!

:o

"Wow, Canada..thats kinda like a whole other country"

[DeadPoolX 9]

I taught High School in RURAL, poor Georgia for 3 years and I got such comments as:

"Wow, Canada..thats kinda like a whole other country" ~ Yah, kinda

"Did you vote for George W. Bush?" ~ Uh, no Canadians can't vote in US elections

"You're the first foreigner I've met"

"Do you have apple pie in Canada or is that just an American thing?" ~ I hear they actually have apple pie in places like Europe

"Do you have July 4th in Canada...wow really, I thought only Americans had July 4" ~ Yes, our calendar doesn't just skip over July 4

And I even had one mother pull her daughter out of my US History class because I not American and thus, could not properly teach her daughter the history of the US. This was also the same woman who complained to the school board that I was teaching that the Union won the Civil War. She honestly thought that the South won!

It's people like that who end up giving Americans a bad name. Fortunately, most of us aren't like that (or at least, quite that off the wall).

To be fair -- and I hate doing this in regards to morons -- I can see why these kids, especially in a poor and rural area, would think those things. Within the U.S., there are tons of comments about how Canada is "practically the same as the United States" and the U.S. media (in fact, the media all over the world) so heavily concentrates on U.S. politics, that many would probably think "everyone votes in American elections." This is becoming disturbingly true, since illegals sometimes vote now, even though that's against the law. The phrase "American as apple pie" probably leads many to believe that apple pie is an American phenomenon and when that kid asked about July 4th, he didn't mean the actual date, but "Independence Day" or "The Fourth of July," as we tend to refer to it.

The one point I can't understand is how that mother believed the Confederacy won the Civil War (has she ever read a history book or are those considered Union propaganda material?) and that just because someone isn't American, they can't teach U.S. history. If that's the case, how can anyone teach a course on world history or any nation, ethnicity or culture? It simply doesn't make sense; of course, I doubt she does in most cases, either.

[xtinab 0]

"Oh your from CanadIa???"

heheheh