Why we love Canada

July 2, 2008 at 03:55 PM

Maple leaves, hockey and beavers: Why we love Canada

By Times wires
In print: Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Great white north

Canadians rank stuff they love about Canada

Tuesday was Canada Day. To celebrate the country's 141st birthday, a polling group asked 3,000 Canadians to describe the things that define the country. The top five:

• The maple leaf

• Hockey

• The national flag

• The beaver

• The Canadarm device on the international space station

Other notables: Wayne Gretzky was 12th. Celine Dion 27th, way better than Anne Murray at 89. Snow was 61st. Beer 90th. And the practice of saying "eh?" at the end of a sentence isn't popular at all, coming in 225th.

Police blotter

Man is paranoid, with good reason

Hans Mauer, 40, of Muenster, Germany, made it a personal policy to not use automatic teller machines. He was certain his identity would be stolen. So when he really needed some cash, he broke down and used one, but was very careful. He searched the area for cameras that might record his code. Made sure there was no fingerprint powder on the keyboard. Wore surgical gloves. All of this creeped out the people waiting in line, so they called the cops. Police arrested him, suspecting that he was trying to steal someone's identity. The charges were dropped. "It is unlikely he will ever use a cash machine again though," a police spokesman told the Austrian Times.

Woman finds good spot, but no beer

Joe's Food Mart and Video in Norwalk, Calif., is not a drive-through. So it was weird enough when a 1988 Cadillac plowed in the front windows and stopped in the middle of the store. But what happened next made it special. Police say Lynne Rice, 74, got out of the car, walked to the cooler, grabbed a six-pack of Bud and took it to the counter. The cashier declined to make the sale, and called police. Police suspect that the beer would not have been her first of the evening. No one was hurt.

Stink sting

Camera disguised as garbage thrown out

A town council in West Sussex, England, set up a sting in a location where people illegally dump garbage. A camera worth as much as $20,000 was placed inside a black garbage bag so it would blend in, and set up in hopes of catching dumpers. One problem. "Because the camera had been hidden in something that looked like rubbish, (garbage collectors) cleared that as well," council member John Cherry told the Telegraph. Privacy International, a surveillance rights watchdog, released a statement: "It would be hilarious if it wasn't so sad. "

Compiled from Times wire services and other sources by staff writer Jim Webster, who can be reached at jwebster@sptimes.com.

http://www.tampabay.com/news/bizarre/article655287.ece

July 2, 2008 at 04:26 PM

who's wayne gretzky :S

July 2, 2008 at 04:46 PM

Wayne Douglas Gretzky, OC (born January 26, 1961) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player, and current coach and part-owner of the Phoenix Coyotes National Hockey League (NHL) team. Born and raised in Brantford, Ontario, Gretzky regularly played minor hockey at a level far above his peers.[1] In 1978, he signed with the Indianapolis Racers of the World Hockey Association (WHA), where he briefly played before being signed by the Edmonton Oilers. When the WHA folded, the Oilers joined the NHL, where Gretzky won four Stanley Cups, nine Hart Trophies as the most valuable player, and ten Art Ross Trophies for most points in a season.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/Gretzky_aug2001_closeup.jpg/800px-Gretzky_aug2001_closeup.jpg

he looks a bit like Céline's chauffeur! :giggle:

July 2, 2008 at 04:59 PM

Why I love Canada We all have health care, were free to express our self and not get executed for it . Also we have the best singers like CELINE DION, Garou. Michel Buble, David Foster, The Flag, Its The best place to live, Also its very beutiful and its so diverse with different Cultures and Backgrounds.

July 2, 2008 at 05:08 PM

LOL. Way better than Bette. :lol: Go Celine! :cheer:

I love Canada for all that it is... Especially the health care system. :yes:

July 2, 2008 at 09:36 PM

I have been to Canada and I loved it. Friendly people, great cities (toronto, montreal, ottawa). And the fact Celine

is Canadian also has something to do with it :lol:

July 3, 2008 at 12:24 AM

That's it...

I'm moving to Canada

July 3, 2008 at 12:26 AM

July 3, 2008 at 01:59 AM

I wanna go to Canada...I have some relatives there. They gave me a Canada book and I read the whole thing...it had beautiful pictures too. They also asked me if I liked any Canadian celebrities, and I said no. That was a week before I started to like Celine.

July 3, 2008 at 02:01 AM

Haha

July 3, 2008 at 03:18 AM

July 4, 2008 at 06:33 PM

I want to live in Canada - I have never been there but it looks and sounds so beautiful :wub:

maybe i will someday...

July 4, 2008 at 07:07 PM

I want to live in Canada - I have never been there but it looks and sounds so beautiful
maybe i will someday...

You should I love Canada.

July 5, 2008 at 03:30 AM

I've visited Canada many times and sometimes feel as if it my second home. Ah with their Maple Syrple, good beer, kooky love of all that is hockey and beautiful countryside how could one NOT love

it? :canadianwave: :super: