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Hello, Everyone. HAPPY CANADA DAY!!! I promise to have a new story for you tomorrow. Today I want to post an old story of mine. I wrote on July the 1st last year. It's a tribute to the country of my birth. July the 1st is Canada Day, our version of the USA's July the 4th holiday. Read all about it: Mike Word Count: 687 Canada Day As the USA prepares for their July 4th celebrations, very few of those planning parties or weekend trips are aware of the significance of July 1st to their northern neighbors. I moved from Canada to the USA in the fall of 1999 and was shocked to learn, few Americans knew anything about Canada Day. In Canada, we all knew about July 4th. It's common knowledge. This year, on July 1st, Canada will celebrate its 139th birthday - 139 years of confederation. The people of Canada celebrate it the same as Americans celebrate their "big day" - parties, parades, fireworks, cookouts, and trips. We love our day and our country. Canada Day celebrates events that occurred on July 1, 1867, when the British North America Act created the Canadian federal government. The BNA Act proclaimed "one Dominion under the name of Canada," hence the original title of the holiday, "Dominion Day." In 1982, the name was officially changed to "Canada Day." While writing this tribute to my country of birth, I decided to gather some information on Canada to pass on to those who read my stories. A lot of it I knew, but there were a few things I didn't know. For instance, I found it interesting to learn, Canadians eat more Kraftİ Macaroni and Cheese per capita than any other nation. Canada has more donut shops per capita than any other nation in the world, but also the fifth least amount of police per capita. I guess this means Canadian police eat a heck of a lot more donuts. Canadians are noted as beer drinkers - I do my part. Surprisingly, I learned in my research, we are actually rated 16th in beer consumption. The Czech republic has us beat by a long shot. I call on all Canadians to correct this wrong. Canada is the second largest country in the world, second to Russia. However, it's the 9th least populated. It has a population of thirty-three million people, one million less than the state of California. Most of Canada is wood or farmland. The far northern sections are frozen tundra. The majority of the population lives along the east and west coasts, on the edge of the major rivers, and of course the Great Lakes. Our forefathers settled these areas hundreds of years ago, because the waters provided food. There are five and a half time zones in Canada. A half you ask? Newfoundland, which only joined the federation in 1949, to make Canada what it is today, is in a half time zone. Newfoundland, (but not Labrador), lies squarely in the eastern half of its time zone, exactly three and a half hours from Greenwich. The Newfoundland government attempted to bring the province into conformity with the other Atlantic provinces in 1963, but withdrew in the face of stiff public opposition. Other countries that operate on the half hour time difference are: Suriname, Iran, India, Sri Lanka, and Central Australia. Canada has the 6th best standard of living. In spite of their love of Kraftİ Dinner and donuts, it is a great place to raise a family. They, also, have the largest surface area of fresh water, which one day may be more valuable than oil and natural gas. Many people, here in the USA, ask me if Canada is mostly French speaking. I found the statistics in my research. In a survey of what people considered their "Mother Tongue," it was found that 59% of Canadians were English speaking, 23% French, and 18% had either more than one "Mother Tongue," or a "Mother Tongue" other than English or French. Canada and the USA are sisters. We share rivers, lakes, lands and the air itself, just as true sisters share the same genes. As Americans hit the road on for their July the 4TH weekend plans, I ask them to please raise a cheer for their northern sister on her birthday. Canadians will do the same on the 4th for their southern sister. Let's all have a little extra Kraftİ dinner and a donut, but don't forget the beer. Michael T. Smith |
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