Canadian Thanksgiving and Much More...

Upon coming to Buffalo we did not realize how many significant differences there are between Canada and the Untied States. Among those differences are the date and tradition behind the Thanksgiving holiday. Here we have learned that it is a celebration of the Pilgrims and “The New World”. However, in Canada it originated as a bountiful harvest in preparation for the winter. Both holidays have evolved over time to symbolize many things. Most importantly it has become a day for families to join together to reflect on what they are grateful for.

On the second Monday of October it is a disappointment that we are not at home with our families. This is a reminder that not only are we away from home, but we are in a country with different customs and traditions.

The great thing about our team is that, although us Canadian’s are the minority, our culture is embraced. We celebrate the Canadian Thanksgiving and our team always wishes us a Happy Canada Day! Since we have been here it has been the second time our team has embraced this Canadian holiday (and the second time we ate first J ). We joined in the very “Canadianly” decorated conference room (Thanks to Paja). We ate amazing turkey and “fixins” (As Coach Mac would say), and as we do with our families, enjoyed spending time with each other.

One thing we have come to realize is that not only do our differences distinguish us, but they also bring us together. Since, as a team, we celebrate Canadian and American holidays it is very hard to feel homesick here, at our second home with our second family, at the University at Buffalo. Go Bulls!

This Thanksgiving we are thankful for the food that was made to unite us together as a family here at UB.

If you are Canadian and looking to come to UB, here are a few things to take a look at:
You will…
Become instant friends with any Canadians on Campus (bonus if they’re teachers!)
Smile every time you spot a Canadian flag or license plate
Be ridiculed every time you use the word “eh” (I know right)
Go home and realize how much Canadians do say “eh” (and when you come back you’ll realize how much Americans say “y’all”)
Need to create an Aim account because they don’t use MSN here (even though it’s better lol)

You will also experience the following deprivations:

CFL, OHL and love for Steve Nash
Canadian Programming (Degrassi, Art Attack, Reboot, YTV, CBC and CTV)
And the following delicacies; Mars Bars, Ketchup and All dressed chips, non-caffeinated Mountain Dew, Shawarmas, Rockets not Smarties (Smarties are chocolate not candy! Google it), Bagged Milk (It’s cheaper and more economic!)

Some things you’ll never get:

Miles vs. Kilometers (using the “officer I didn’t know the difference” trick only works once)
Temperature in Fahrenheit rather than Degrees (45 doesn’t mean it’s time to go to the beach!)
The Canadian vs. the American Dollar (Denny’s never gives you a fair exchange rate)
If you miss your off ramp on the highway, you will be driving for miles (kilometers?)
Peoples accents (In the south they speak a whole other language)
And Coach Mac’s watch must measure in American time (because I know it takes longer than 30 seconds to sing either of our anthems, which is about the time it takes for us to do the 30 second “L and I” drill.)

Last but not least, this is an example of American humor (courtesy of freshie Abby):
Why is a turkey such a good band member?
Because they always have their drumsticks on them! (haha…not!)
Well, time to sign off eh?

Your two favorite Canadians,
Brittany Hedderson #23 and Teresa Semalulu #22

P.S. Canadian Birthdays are huge and involve lots of gifts and cake…keep that in mind Coach ;)