Ask me about living in Canada.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Ask me about living in Canada.

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

Lord Lambeth posted:

As an american who has lived in Quebec and BC, I haven't heard it often. I feel like this is a Ontario stereotype if anything.

I lived in southern Ontario, and there's a loooot of "eh" between say, Oshawa and Cornwall. That's maybe the most stereotypically-canadian area of Canada and people take pride in it. "Aboat" and "oatside" are common, people love wearing goofy canada-themed toques and mitts, and so on. There are folks who take local hockey seriously and NHL and the Blue Jays are big, big news. Kingston is the biggest city around until you get to the GTA and even they say "eh" and do all the other stuff. A wonderful small city as long as you avoid Queens students. The only place I've ever seen where people actually wear around school jackets like villainous TV jocks was Queens.

I was in the Fort Henry Guard one summer as an american. It was really fun to larp a loyalist. Fun fact, a lot of southern Ontario and Quebec was settled by people from the former colonies that became the US.

tuyop posted:

4. Canada was almost entirely French fur trade colonies until the seven years war when they were forced to cede land to the British. After that, Canada beat the poo poo out of the US in the war of 1812.

You mean the british did, with british troops, born in Britain. Up until Confederation the canadian "military" was a territorial militia that would have rolled over even in the face of the mediocre US army of the time.

Edgar Allen Ho fucked around with this message at 20:24 on May 22, 2017

# ¿ May 22, 2017 20:16

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# ¿ May 5, 2024 18:12

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

Earwicker posted:

In the US we consider it to have been a tie, but the war is barely taught even here.

It was actually a military stalemate and both sides launched failed invasions, but mentioning that in the Canada thread is like to start a flame war.

# ¿ May 22, 2017 21:04

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

I woke up today with a serious craving for some Tim's

I think the closest one is a good day or two's drive away in Minnesota.

# ¿ May 24, 2017 18:30

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

PT6A posted:

Of all the Canadian things you could possibly ever crave: why that?

EDIT: I guess Timbits are pretty drat good, it's just everything else that's awful.

I'll fight anyone who says the breakfast sandwiches aren't good, and I've had enough of the coffee that I crave it over better coffees.

Plus last summer I'd kayak all over Kingston and the thousand islands and then slam a giant ice capp, now I can't

# ¿ May 25, 2017 03:30

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

subpar anachronism posted:

Hello fellow Edmonton goon! I've been living here a few years but mostly working from home and hiding from the snow; do you have any specific tips about the culture of Edmonton in general, or specific things I should do and see and eat? I live in the river valley.

Also as someone from the American deep south I can definitely get why Alberta gets called the Texas of Canada.

As far as 'eh' goes, I don't actually hear it that often in the city either so I don't think Nessa is just exposure blind to it. It tends to be more older or small-town people in my experience.

I'm not an eh-xpert but I think it's far more common in the east than the west. Not unlike the US, the further west you go the genericer the accents get. I'm a texan who spent a while in Ontario so we are similar transplants.

# ¿ May 26, 2017 15:16

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

Macarius Wrench posted:

Wow there are a heck of a lot of random little settlements in Canada called Fort X. Four freaking hours for a McDonalds though, jesus. I suppose it helps to be trained in auto-repairs since so many people there are going to be car owners.

Is it particularly difficult to get a driving license in Canada? My girlfriend is just starting to learn and here in the UK it's a bit of a nightmare and expensive. When I first learned like 8 years ago I could do it in my small country town but thesedays you have to do it in one of the nearby nominated cities. And when I say nearby I mean a half hours drive.

How do driving tests work for someone who lives as remotely in Canada? I imagine the driving test is pretty much "drive on this road for 100 miles and don't come off the road because it's probably snowing" and voila, here is your license? Haha

You should remember that the vast majority of canadians don't live as remotely as The Great Burrito. Something like 90% are within an hour of the US border and most of those are in Toronto, Montr�al, Vancouver, and so on. Getting a canadian licence is pretty normal and a driver's licence from the US, UK, or Ireland can be swapped for a licence from your province of residence with no re-test, typically. The licence comes from the province though, not the federal government. Nevertheless the average canadian can pass all the tests in their own town without going anywhere else. The experience may be different in the three northern territories but it's probably simpler overall than getting a british one.

Edgar Allen Ho fucked around with this message at 12:19 on May 28, 2017

# ¿ May 28, 2017 12:14

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

PT6A posted:

It's not just evenings -- weekends downtown will also provide you a wonderful opportunity to see what the post-apocalypse would look like if just crackheads and drunks were left alive.

We've had a few stabbings in the middle of downtown recently, too -- one was completely random and took place on a C-Train platform.

LOL YEAH- no one has to work on weekends in Canada except the druggies, what a paradise!! Us normals don't do drugs or drink, and definitely don't pay to get even more drugs!!

FWIW I was born in the american south but I've seen more confederate flags in Ontario and in BC, individually, than in any southern state.

Also anyone willfully living west of the canadian rockies is either a rich yuppie or a wannabe rich yuppie

Edgar Allen Ho fucked around with this message at 17:57 on Jun 8, 2017

# ¿ Jun 8, 2017 17:53

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# ¿ May 5, 2024 18:12

Edgar Allen Ho: Apr 3, 2017; by sebmojo

French vanilla + espresso is the best Tim's drink.

It won't rock your world but if you grew up with a fondness for both goofy expensive lattes and awful gas station coffee/cocoa, it's a pretty happy mix.

# ¿ Jul 6, 2017 07:37

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Ask me about living in Canada.