Canadian Terms??? I use a lot of these!

Become familiar with following general terms:
Deadly - a reaction to something done "over the top"; overdone; excessive. Can also be used as a response to something done very well.
Loonie - the Canadian one-dollar coin.
Toonie - the Canadian two-dollar coin.
Deke - a sports term meaning to dodge and out-maneuver.
Brown Bread - whole wheat bread.
Homo Milk - homogenized whole milk.
Dooryard - front garden.
Wicked - something or someone amazing, i.e. "Cheryl is wicked at her job."
Beauty - expression used to refer to something done extremely well.
Double-Double - said when ordering a coffee; indicating two creams and two sugars.
Growl - to yell.
Runners - athletic sport shoes.
Gitch - tighty-whities.
Longjohns - long, thin waffle-knit thermal underwear used in extreme cold.
Timbits - the doughnut hole-like small pastries available at Tim Hortons.
Timmies - Tim Hortons, a chain of coffee shops.
Brutal- an adjective for something bad or unfair.
Chesterfield - a couch.
Eh - (pronounced "ey", as in "hey" or "hay") word you add to the end of a sentence, to ask for a response of agreement or disagreement, similar in meaning to "don't you think?", or "right?" (ex. "Looks like a storm comin' in, eh?"). It is also sometimes used with "I know", and in that case it doesn't really mean anything. ("Wow, the Calgary Flames really kicked butt tonight!" -"I know, eh?").
Gawn- to showoff, or to force.
Two-Four - (pronounced "Two-Fer") a case of beer, so-called because it contains 24 cans.
Pissed- term used as expression of getting intoxicated.
Mickey - a flask-sized bottle of hard liquor.
Texas Mickey - a 3 litre bottle of hard liquor.
Touque - (pronounced "tuke") a knit cap usually worn in winter. Known as a Beanie in the USA.
Toboggan - a simple sled and a traditional form of transportation. Now used primarily on snow to carry one or more people (usually children) down a hill for recreation.
Balaclava - a knit touque/face mask combination, usually worn in winter. The origin of this word is British English and takes its name from The Battle of Balaclava 25 October 1854 during the the Crimean War and the famous Charge Of The Light Brigade.
Click- a kilometre.
Hydro- a reference to electricity, not water. Synonymous with electrical service in provinces where most of the power is supplied through hydroelectricity. "The hydro is out," means there's no power, not no water. This phrase extends to things like 'hydro poles,' 'hydro wires,' and having a 'hydro bill.'
Canadian bacon - is the American term for back bacon cured in maple syrup, which is referred to by Canadians as "peameal" or "back bacon".
Francophone - someone who speaks French as a first language, as opposed to an Anglophone, who speaks English as a first language.
Housecoat - type of bathrobe you can wear to get the morning paper, and not worry about being seen by the neighbors.
Kerfuffle - Scottish word referring to a flurry of agitation, as in, "There was quite a kerfuffle after Mike asked for the project three days early."
States - The USA is almost always referred to as the States, except in writing, when it becomes the US.
Washroom - bathroom and washroom are used interchangeably to refer to a place where you would find toilets. There is not always necessarily a shower or bathtub within a washroom.
Soda vs Pop - Canadians drink pop. Ask for a soda and you'll get soda water (Especially in British Columbia and Ontario).
Pencil Crayon- colored pencil.
Joggers- sweat pants.
Run a message- means to run an errand.
Learn the local slang for the area you're going to:
Chinook - From the aboriginal word for the language of trade used by First Nations people. Refers to a warm westerly "trade" wind that blows east from British Columbia over the Rocky Mountains and blankets the Alberta foothills with out-of-season warmth, changing the temperature rapidly. Picks up moisture across the prairies and dumps onto Toronto and Chicago as "The Albertan".
How's She Bootin'er? - Atlantic Canadian equivalent of "How's it going?"
Whadda'yat? - Newfoundland term meaning "What are you doing?"
Bunnyhug - Saskatchewanian term for a hooded sweatshirt.
Poutine - (pronounced poo-TEEN) gravy poured over cheese curds and French fries. Originated in Quebec.
Caisse populaire - kind of co-operative bank, or credit union, found mostly in Quebec. Popularly known as a caisse pop.
Depanneur - in Quebec, a corner store or variety store. The word derives from "dépanner", meaning "to help out temporarily"
Guichet - Quebec term for automatic bank machine
Look out for the following derogatory terms:
Hoser- Hoser: a guy who hosed (siphoned) wrong fuel from a tractor into his truck and ruined his engine on the way back to town. A dumb crook whose luck ran out in public, for all to see.
Newfie - derogatory term for a person from Newfoundland and Labrador. The term is primarily used in "Newfie jokes," the typical Canadian ethnic joke. Many Newfoundlanders use the term with pride amongst themselves, not taking offense to it when used without intention to insult.
Frog - derogatory term for French Canadians.
Square head - derogatory term for Anglophone Canadians. Mostly used in Quebec.
Quebecois - Official term for people living in Quebec, mostly in reference to Francophones. "Quebeckers" (often pronounced K-beckers) is often used by Angolophones.
Gorby- derogatory term for tourists.

Sure has been rainy up here the last few days. I don't think the Sun has peeked out since we got here.

The weather forecast for the 4th of July weekend is calling for low to mid 70's and partly cloudy. Sounds perfect to me but I'm sure all the family members coming up for the long weekend would like it a lot warmer. As I look across the hills, all I can see is fog right now. As long as the rain clears out and they aren't stuck in the barn for five days.... That's the important thing. Lol..

We haven't done much since we got here. It's been very quiet and relaxing. We drove to Petokoskey yesterday just for something to do. I took a few photos of the Beaver Island Ferry coming in from the island. It was pretty overcast so the pics aren't great. But like I say "You can never have to many photo's of the ferry"...

Leslee had her knee replaced on Friday. She is doing OK now but it was a little hard on her. I'm finding out that we aren't as young as we used to be. She will be the rest of the summer trying to get her knee back in shape. Poor thing. I feel for her, but I'm sure once she gets through this tough spot her knee will be so much better. It aint fun when something is hurting all the time. Well that's all for now. Hugs from Up North...

Stacie

Michigan Facts....

Subject: Fwd: Interesting Facts about Michigan

THIS IS MICHIGAN ...
Detroit is known as the car capital of the world.
Alpena is the home of the world's largest cement plant.
Rogers City boasts the world's largest limestone quarry.
Elsie is the home of the world's largest registered Holstein dairy herd.
Michigan is first in the United States production of peat and magnesium compounds and second in gypsum and iron ore.
Colon is home to the world's largest manufacturer of magic supplies.
The state Capitol with its majestic dome was built in Lansing in l879.
Although Michigan is often called the Wolverine State , there are no longer any wolverines in Michigan . However, one was spotted in 2007, so there are some.
Michigan ranks first in state boat registrations.
The Packard Motor Car Company in Detroit manufactured the first air-conditioned car in 1939.
The oldest county based on date of incorporation is Wayne in 1815.
Sault Ste. Marie was founded by Father Jacques Marquette in 1668. It is the third oldest remaining settlement in the United States.
In 1817, the University of Michigan was the first university established by any of the states. It was founded by priests. Originally named Cathelepistemian and located in Detroit . The name was changed in 1821. The university moved to Ann Arbor in 1841.
The city of Novi was named from its designation as Stagecoach Stop #6 or No.VI.
Michigan State University has the largest single campus student body of any Michigan university. It is the largest institution of higher learning in the state and one of the largest universities in the country. Michigan State University was founded in 1855 as the nation's first land-grant university and served as the prototype for 69 land-grant institutions later established under the Morrill Act of 1862. It was the first institution of higher learning in the nation to teach scientific agriculture..
The largest village in Michigan is Caro.
Michigan's state stone, the Petoskey, is the official state stone. It is found along the shores of Lake Michigan .
The Mackinac Bridge is one of the longest suspension bridges in the world connecting the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan . It spans five miles over the Straits of Mackinac, which is where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron meet. The "Mighty Mac" took three years to complete and was opened to traffic in 1957.
Gerald R Ford grew up in Grand Rapids and became the 38th president of the United States . He attended the University of Michigan where he was a football star. He served on a World War II aircraft carrier and afterward represented Michigan in Congress for 24 years. He was also an Eagle Scout, the highest rank in Boy Scouts.
The Kellogg Company has made Battle Creek the Cereal Capital of the World. The Kellogg brothers accidentally discovered the process for producing flaked cereal products and sparked the beginning of the dry cereal industry.
The painted turtle is Michigan 's state reptile.
The western shore of Michigan has many sand dunes. The Sleeping Bear Dunes rise 460 feet above Lake Michigan . Living among the dunes is the dwarf lake iris the official state wildflower.
Vernor's ginger ale was created in Detroit and became the first soda pop made in the United States . In 1862, pharmacist James Vernor was trying to create a new beverage when he was called away to serve our country in the Civil War. When he returned, four years later, the drink he had stored in an oak case had acquired a delicious gingery flavor.
The Detroit Zoo was the first zoo in America to feature cageless, open-exhibits that allowed the animals more freedom to roam.
Michigan is the only place in the world with a floating post office..
The J. W. Westcott II is the only boat in the world that delivers mail to ships while they are still underway. They have been operating for 125 years.
Indian River is the home of the largest crucifix in the world. It is called the Cross in the Woods.
Michigan has the longest freshwater shoreline in the world.
Michigan has more shoreline than any other state except Alaska .
The Ambassador Bridge was named by Joseph Bower, the person credited with making the bridge a reality, who thought the name, Detroit-Windsor International Bridge, as too long and lacked emotional appeal. Bower wanted to symbolize the visible expression of friendship of two peoples with like ideas and ideals.
Michigan has more than 11,000 inland lakes and more than 36,000 miles of streams.
Michigan has 116 lighthouses and navigational lights. Seul Choix Point Lighthouse in Gulliver has been guiding ships since 1895. The working light also functions as a museum, which houses early 1900's furnishings and maritime artifacts.
Forty of the state's 83 counties adjoin at least one of the Great Lakes.
Michigan is the only state that touches four of the five Great Lakes.
Standing anywhere in the state a person is within 85 miles of one of the Great Lakes.
Michigan includes 56,954 square miles of land area, 1,194 square miles of Inland waters, and 38,575 square miles of Great Lakes water area.
Sault Ste. Marie was established in 1668 making it the oldest town between the Alleghenies and the Rockies.
Michigan was the first state to provide in its Constitution for the establishment of public libraries.
Michigan was the first state to guarantee every child the right to tax-paid high school education.
Four flags have flown over Michigan - French, English, Spanish and United States.

Isle Royal Park shelters one of the largest moose herds remaining in the United States ...
Some of the longest bulk freight carriers in the world operate on the Great Lakes. Ore carriers 1,000 feet long sail Michigan's inland seas.
The Upper Michigan Copper Country is the largest commercial deposit of native copper in the world.
The 19 chandeliers in the Capitol in Lansing are one of a kind and designed especially for the building by Tiffany's of New York. Weighing between 800-900 pounds apiece, they are composed of copper, iron, and pewter.
The first auto traffic tunnel built between two nations was the mile-long Detroit-Windsor tunnel under the Detroit River.
The world's first international submarine railway tunnel was opened between Port Huron, Michigan, and Sarnia, Ontario, Canada in 1891.
The nation's first regularly scheduled air passage service began operation between Grand Rapids and Detroit in 1926.
In 1879, Detroit telephone customers were first in the nation to be assigned phone numbers to facilitate handling calls.
In 1929, the Michigan State Police established the first state police radio system in the world.
Grand Rapids is home to the 24-foot Leonardo Da Vinci horse, called Il Gavallo. It is the largest equestrian bronze sculpture in the Western Hemisphere.
The State Motto (written in Latin) translates to: "If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you."

Was that interesting or what?
With all of the negativity due to poor economics and housing markets these days, let us try to remember and say something positive about our beautiful and interesting Michigan !! We will strive to thrive once again! It would also be a good thing to keep our Michigan in our prayers and thoughts, too.
Thank you, and may God bless our Michigan and her people.

New trees and flowers.Yay!!!!!

What a nice "Mother's Day"! The weather was beautiful, and my family planted three trees for me out in the yard. I loved it.... Our very sparse yard is finally starting to shape up a little. The trees we planted will take a while to grow, but they have to start somewhere. The funny thing is that we bought the new trees from the very same nursery as Jim did twenty seven years ago, for our original house.
That is one thing I miss about our other house... The yard. Jim really had everything fixed up nice over there, and the trees he planted twenty five years ago are gorgeous... I always enjoyed sitting in the Sun Room and listening to the wind blowing through those big old Maple trees. And the birds! Oh my gosh we had lots of birds over there. Probably because of all the trees. Lol.
With Korey owning the house now, it isn't like we can't go back for a visit with our feathered friends and trees. Maybe I could trick her into a cup of coffee out in the sun room. That and the newspaper would be a treat.
Alan brought me the prettiest Hydrangea. It's a perfect size to put into a pot for the patio out back. Also, my little Anna got her Grammy a bright red hanging basket for the front porch. I'm hoping it will bring in a Humming bird or two...
So that was my Mother's Day. Three nice little trees that will hopefully stand tall and proud in a few years, a hydrangea, and hanging basket... Gee, you'd think my family knew me or something!!! Heh, heh, heh...
Hugs from here.

I belong to a group where the members make tags for each other - and Cindi made this one for me. I thought it was cute so I wanted to show it off. Thanks Cindi! Lol... I have been kind of lax lately about my tag making, but I think today would be a good time to get back into the swing of things.

Jim is outside doing a little yard work and cleaning the garage. I would like to be out there keeping him company, but yesterday I woke up with a muscle spasm in my lower back, so I'm laying low for a while. I hate taking any muscle relaxers because it puts me to sleep, but I may have to if it doesn't let up soon...

It's going to be a beautiful sunny day with temps in the mid sixties - and I love it! We haven't had a nice day in ages. It seems the "April Showers" had a grip on the whole month, but it's May now and time for a little nice weather... We are hoping to head north on Wednesday to open the barn up for the summer. This is the latest we have ever waited for our initial Spring trip, and yet we are still hoping it isn't too early for the stairs and hubby's injured knee.

Well, I guess that's about it for now. Hugs to from Grand Blanc.

Well, it has been raining again today. It seems like this has been a very wet and windy Spring. We really do need the water for our Great Lakes but a warm sunny day once in a while would be such a nice change of pace.
Other than the rain there isn't much going on here so I thought I would share an E-Mail.... I guess what my Mom always told me is really true.

"With age comes wisdom"


Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio " To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here goes:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14.. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood..
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Hubby and I finally visited our Great Lakes National Cemetery. It is only a few miles from our home here in Grand Blanc, but for some reason we have just not made it a priority... We were very surprized to see so many Graves, because it's only been in service for two years.

I really loved seeing the the "Avenue of Flags". It was a very striking entrance to the rolling hills of the cemetery...

The National Cemetery is situated on a small lake that is surrounded by rolling hills.


This is one of several Pavallions that are used for Graveside Funeral Services.


We were surprized to see that so many Veterans have already been buried in the cemetery.



This is the "Avenue of Flags". Such a beautiful site to see all of the "Stars and Stripes flying in the wind.

Another Easter...

Well, a year ago at this time we were in Florida, and it wasn't to enjoy a nice vacation. (Hubby's brother was terribly ill.) Boy that seems like a long time ago, and yet that trip is still fresh in our minds. So much has happened in the last year, with Ron's passing - along with several dear friends. Fortunately, we are old enough to know that nothing ever stays the same. Our lives are ever changing to make us stronger human beings. Such is life... and unfortunately death....

We had a wonderful Easter, with the family all coming for dinner. Lots of food and laughter made the day memorable. Alan and Anna are such sweet children, and we are lucky to be so close to them. Of course the Easter Bunny made a stop here to leave a few things. Alan is old enough to understand now but he still appreciates getting a few goodies from the Bunny. He even took several colored eggs and hid them in the grass for Anna to find. She had a ball!



Dad's knee is getting better every day. He is walking more and the swelling is finally going down a little. He isn't very good at sitting for long periods so I'm happy he is able to get around more. He is finally getting back to the happy go lucky guy he usually is.
Well, I guess that's all the news for now. Hugs to all from Grand Blanc.

Dads Knee...

 

Poor Booger...

Not much going on here. We just watched the Super Bowl. It was a real good game this year, as both teams fought right up to the end. Now we don't have to watch football until this fall again! Woo Hooo. It's not that I don't like football, but when you have a team as bad as the Detroit Lions it just isn't that much fun.



Well, the weather was nice today for a change! We finally climbed above freezing and it was wonderful. The temps have been below average for this area for the last month and it was really getting old. But the Sun was shining today and even the snow melted for a change. It almost felt like Spring! Lol.

I was a little bummed out yesterday. My favorite PSP Group suddenly shut down due to unforseen circumstances. I'm hoping the owner of the group will reconsider and open it again. I really enjoyed all the interaction with my online friends, but if that doesn't happen I will move on... One thing you learn with age is that things never stay the same. Life is an ongoing static process that can change in the blink of an eye. I did find a few tutorials to play with and that will keep me out of trouble for a while, so all is not lost.

I guess that's all for now... Hugs to all from Michigan

Stacie