Chefprefers BLOG

My wife and I arrived at my wife sister’s place two days before the Canadian Thanksgiving. The American Thanksgiving is in late November whereas in Canada it’s in early October. Why the different dates? You asked. Canadians wanted to be different and it was the original Thanksgiving and since the US wanted to commercialise it. They wanted to fit in Black Friday just five weeks before Christmas. It’s better for their capitalism. Yea Naaah! Or it’s the celebration of the harvest. Canada’s further North and the winter comes a lot sooner.

Our arrival brought tears to the reunion of the sisters. It has been only a year and they are very close and my wife’s visit will be only brief. In 2018, We all holidayed in Europe for 2 weeks. Travelling to iconic places such as Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, and Prague. So any excuse for the sisters to catch up?

They live just West of Ottawa in an area called Kanata. Kanata has a lot of high-tech industries and a great deal of residential 1/4 acre block living. The Ottawa Senators have their arena there. Just about every franchise known to man is present. The standard of living is great with easy access to most needs. This is a far cry from the depths of Fez. Canadians are known for their friendly and polite demeanour, cultural diversity, and love for outdoor activities. Canada, their home country, is characterized by vast landscapes, including mountains, forests, and lakes. Hockey is a popular sport, and maple syrup holds cultural significance. Canada also values inclusivity and is recognized for its commitment to social welfare and universal healthcare. They also obey the rules and if you don’t, they’ll let you know. They love their hockey and it’s contagious, I find myself rooting for the Senators instead of my original team, the “Bruins”.

My back is feeling better and I can walk more than 5k now. For the next few days, we have some travelling downtime, so we dropped back to domestication helping out the sister in law with Thanksgiving Day preps. She also has recently retired so she was enjoying the time off. Her husband is a principal at one the largest high schools in Ottawa, so you can imagine the managerial stresses that come with that so it wouldn’t take very much to retire. Like, it would probably take a silly educational rule change to tip him over the edge. Although, they say when you retire you become redundant and no longer accountable to what you’ve worked for your entire life. So you can regret the decision. I know when I retire, just another maintainer, it wouldn’t make much difference. Just another thing I don’t need to fix.

Thanksgiving came and went noting that we were able to catch up with my brother inlaw’s parents and his sister family and my niece and her new hunk. My niece has finished uni and now works at the University of Ottawa as a research assistant. Her new hunk, who she has known since second grade, has finally sparked a relationship with her. He’s quite a good looking guy so I don’t know why she had taken so long. She tells the story of how the superstud had slipped her a note in second grade by asking her out, in which she said “Yes” but she’s not sure and follows up with a “just kidding”. Interesting two words “Just kidding”

I once heard that these two words should never be used. Because it’s out after you jokingly insult someone. Or it’s an “I take it back” comment. Like, the Prettyboy poured his heart out to this young lass and she used it as a joke. Although a second grader, probably wouldn’t understand whether it’s a joke or not and whether that hurt his feelings. To be honest, I haven’t heard that from anyone nowadays although I do remember it being said at school. Perhaps it’s part of the juvenile insecurities. Anyway at the end of the day, the Hunk got the girl.

We took many walks around the neighbour to freshen up for our next travels. Next up, trekking through Algonquin and behind.