December 31st marks the end of Canada 150, and what a year it’s been! From the arrival of 40 majestic tall ships to the St. Lawrence at Rendez-Vous 2017 to royalty on Parliament Hill to celebratory pow-wows, our nation has celebrated this historical landmark from sea to sea to sea.
To say sayonara to this momentous year, we thought we’d reflect with a list of 150 Canadian-isms that make us who we are. Without further ado:
1. You’ve sent your kids to school with socks on their hands
2. You’ve spotted a polar bear in Churchill
3. You consider poutine a well-balanced meal
4. You have fond memories of the Summer of '69 even though you were not born yet.
5. You’ve attended the Calgary Stampede
6. You’ve gotten sticky eating a Queue de Castor
7. You’re mourning the ‘Wishbook’
8. You’ve ever referred to summer footwear as ‘thongs’
9. You know ‘bunny hug’ has more to do with fashion than an animal embrace
10. You recently mourned a Canadian legend with extraordinary ‘Courage’
11. You’ve debated whether winning the lottery and dying the next day is ‘Ironic’ by definition
12. You have a large hidden stash of Celine Dion CD’s
13. You’ve planted a tree in BC
14. You’ve slipped on ice on the way to work holding a tray full of double-doubles
15. You have pictures of your kids with the world’s biggest something-or-other
16. You’ve watched horses dancing with men in cherry red suits on their backs
17. You’ve smudged
18. You’ve shopped at the forks market
19. At least 75% of your household members have frozen their tongue to something metal
20. You respect the conversational magic of ending a sentence in ‘eh?’
21. You think fondly of the Quebec Nordiques
22. You celebrated the 1993 World Series
23. You can’t spell toque? Touque? Tuque?
24. You know what a ‘mickey’ is and you’ve indulged in one
25. You delighted on maple toffee in a sugar shack
26. You’ve drunk too much at a ‘stag’ or ‘stagette’
27. The following are household names: Gordon Pinsent, Paul Gross, Molly Parker
28. You have a soft spot for Ricky, Julian, and Bubbles
29. You know which country has the best view of Niagara Falls
30. You’ve gone for a stroll in Stanley Park
31. You can sing your national anthem in 2 languages (and the US's anthem too, thanks to hockey)
32. You can spell Saskatchewan
33. You can name the Great Lakes
34. You kissed a fish and ‘screeched in’
35. You’ve skied Lake Louise, Sunshine, or Whistler
36. You ‘got’ Due South
37. You’ve attended Tom Jackson’s ‘The Huron Carol’
38. You can finish this sentence, ‘New Orleans is sinking, man, and…”
39. You had a crush on Jonathan Torrins
40. You’ve gotten wet and wild at West Edmonton Mall
41. You’ve participated in a bath tub race
42. You’ve seen the northern lights
42. You’re no stranger to bannock
43. Your family rode the rails at ‘Canada’s Wonderland’
44. Growing up, you thought the most famous person on the planet was Wayne Gretzky
45. You know ketchup to be the superior flavour (with a ‘u’) of potato chips
46. A cup of ‘Red Rose’ will see you through your darkest hour
47. You love yourself a good Rick Mercer rant…
48. Even though sometimes Rick Mercer drives you crazy
49. You saw ‘Men with Brooms’ six times. In theatre
50. You’ve strained your neck looking at the CN Tower
51. You know there’s no more thrilling way to get soaked than on the Maid of the Mist
52. You’ve never needed to dream of a white Christmas
53. The highlight of your parade experience is a giant snowman
54. You’ve skated on the Rideau canal
55. You’ve dutifully tried snowshoeing only to confirm that it is, in fact, just walking around awkwardly on snow
56. You’ve walked the Columbia ice fields
57. You’ve been arrested for getting past the official body guard of the Stanley Cup
58. You’ve gone for a wild ride on a ‘crazy carpet’
59. You’ve experienced 24 daylight
60. Your favourite cocktail has clam juice in it
61. You insist on buying Hawkins instead of Cheetos
62. You’ve walked the ocean floor at the home of the highest tides in the world
63. You’ve seen a ‘baby beluga’ on the St. Lawrence
64. You’ve enjoyed Tourtiere on Christmas Eve
65. You’ve had a Grey Cup party
66. You eat all of the Coffee Crisps out of your kids’ Hallowe’en candy guilt-free
67. You’ve seen a wolf-eel at Ripley’s
68. Your idea of wild game includes bear, moose, elk, and deer
69. You’ve spent a night in an igloo…
70. Or a tipi
71. Your idea of the ultimate victory is scoring the ‘Nanaimo Bar’ at a funeral luncheon
72. Your deepest darkest pantry shelf is full of KD
73. You’ve picked Saskatoon berries
74. Upon hearing the words, “Down by the bay…” you immediately burst into a song about watermelons
75. You’ve celebrated the ‘Sourdough Rendezvous Festival’
76. You’ve purchased something of the ‘President’s Choice’
77. You’ve googled ‘What are the northern lights’ more times than you can count
78. You cried when Eaton’s closed…
79. And Zellers
80. You judge the suitability of a Halloween costume on its ability to hide a snowsuit underneath it
81. You’ve laughed a Ron and Don…
82. and cringed at Ron and Don
83. You’ve crossed the world’s longest bridge
84. You know the only thing worse than a bear in the bush is a moose on the road
85. You had a crush on Megan Follows
86. You’ve attended a rodeo
87. You erect an inukshuk any chance you get
88. You’re a proud HBC shopper
89. You can name the original 6 teams
90. You’ve ridden a skidoo to work
91. You’ve worn long underwear in May
92. You loathe the bi-annual exchange of winter and summer tires
93. You grew up watching Canada AM
94. You’ve got a can of bear spray in the garage
95. You described the distance to the next town in hours
96. You’ve shouted the word ‘Mush Mush’ to rear end of a dog
97. You’ve started a heated conversation with the following words, “I was listening to CBC this morning and…”
98. You let your kids bust out their summer gear when the temperature is still in the single digits
99. You’re thankful for your block heater
100. You can cite the connection between Kapuskasing and “The Terminator”
101. You attended Expo '86
102. You’ve used your air-conditioning and central heating in the same day
103. You know the significance of a certain cable to the quaint town of ‘Heart’s Content’
104. You owned a Canada 125 T-shirt
105. You know who Frederick Banting is and couldn’t be prouder of his Nobel Prize
106. You’ve spent a day in the rainiest city in North America (Abbotsford)…
107. And the sunniest (Calgary)
108. You’ve tried lobster trapping
109. You know the historical significance of the name “Bell Telephone Company”
110. Whenever you’re pondering the ‘nature of things,’ you consult David Suzuki
111. You know who actually wrote ‘Hallelujah’
112. You collected pledges for the Terry Fox Run
113. You know the connection between chocolate and the War of 1812
114. You’ve ridden in a combine
115. You’ve stayed in a hotel built by the Canadian National Railway
116. You’ve engaged in a civilized battle for a campsite at a national park in January
117. You’ve seen the Capilano River from 70m up
118. You’ve put away your winter clothes at Easter and lived to regret it
119. You cheered on the fastest man in the world in 1996
120. You wonder who needs a fourth down anyway
121. You’ve cheered on Clara Hughes, Sandra Schmirler, Cindy Klassen, Marc Gagnon, and Francois Louis Tremblay
122. You consider ‘Ragged Ass Road’ to be a totally acceptable name for a place. Or a song.
123. You’ve wondered why its called ‘Vancouver Island’
124. You’ve answered the question, “Whadda y’at?”
125. You know ‘Three Sisters’ isn't made of rock
126. You can pronounce ‘Kluane’
127. Or Iqualuit
128. You own the DVD box set of Corner Gas
129. You went spelunking in a ghost town
130. Forget Australia. You know where the REAL densest population of snakes lives.
131. You’ve crossed the longest border in the world…
132. Or dipped our toe in one, two, or three oceans along the world’s longest coast line
133. You know what the Canadarm is and what it does
134. You’ve watched a military re-enactment on Signal Hill
135. You grew up watching Casey and Finnigan
136. You’ve turned your back on all of North America at Cape Spear
137. You can name 10 prime ministers in 30 seconds. GO!
138. You’ve finished a drink with a human toe at the bottom. Thank you very much Dawson City
139. You’ve packed flip flops and a tuque for the same destination
140. You’ve had your picture taken at the world’s first UFO landing pad
141. You’ve driven under an overpass designed for wildlife
142. You’re proud of Canada’s connection to the Underground Railway
143. You know which Canadian city’s wildlife inspired the name ‘Winnie the Pooh’
144. You employ the occasional extra ‘u’ in spelling
145. You prefer to call him Rudolph the red-nosed caribou
146. You know the best part of summer is the arrival of the BC cherries
147. You’ve personally supported the rising of Canada to the status of super-power in wine world
148. You’ve marvelled at the agelessness of Peter Mansbridge
149. You have a soft spot for old Marilla Cuthbert
150. You celebrated our great nation in your own way in 2017
Wishing you and your family a very happy New Year. May you prosper in Canada 151!
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