I started on a research project to determine whether taxes are called that because they are taxing or whether taxing became a descriptor because a thing is "bothersome, like a tax." A chicken/egg investigation.
The answer seemed to be that I couldn't figure out an answer easily, because apparently "tax" doesn't mean what we think it does, so I stopped thinking about that for now.
However, here is something I learned about income tax recently.
In the U.S., income tax is based on citizenship. Are you a citizen? You pay U.S. income taxes, or else you tell the IRS why you think you don't have to. And that's a real "or else." The IRS doesn't care where you live: you're a citizen, you owe me. Fork it over.
In Canada, income tax is based on residence. Have you lived in Canada long enough to warrant paying income tax? If so, great. Fork it over. We don't care what country you're a citizen of. Pay up. But if you're a Canadian citizen living elsewhere, pay where you live and let us know when you're back.
The residence-based system is sometimes known as "the British system," which must be why the U.S. doesn't use it. (We don't need no stinkin' British anything.) However, the U.S. is not alone: about half of the world uses one system and the other half uses the other.
In any case, if I were a Canadian living in the U.S., I'd pay tax only in the U.S. As a U.S. citizen living in Canada, I'll pay taxes in two countries forever.
Except that actually, I don't have to PAY taxes in both countries. I just have to file paperwork showing the U.S. that I'm paying in Canada. (Or vice versa, but that's how I'm doing it.) Which is where the IRS and I are having a difference of opinion. I've sent an amended form for 2007's taxes, because the IRS sent me a nasty-gram in the fall and rather than investigate then, I just paid it. But now, I can show that I didn't owe it. Or so I believe.
The British system seems friendlier. It also seems to require less paperwork. Nobody has to file a form saying you don't have to pay. You just don't pay. What does the IRS do with all those "I don't have to pay" forms once they're filed? It just seems wasteful. However, I'm sure the IRS thinks I don't see the whole picture.
One thing is certain: writing about taxes is infinitely preferable to collecting information for taxes and figuring out what one owes. I just hope the same goes for you, the reader--but then, you can click away at any time.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Full Disclosure: Shinny
Yesterday, when I mentioned shinny, I didn't know what I was talking about. I know nothing about hockey except the names of some former members of the Colorado Avalanche, which I absorbed in self-defense. (Water cooler conversations are easier if you know that Patrick Roy is a goalie, not an actor or a politician or someone in the company.) (Roy is no longer the Av's goalie, of course--he's still in the news as one who encourages fighting in hockey, however.)
The little hockey I've watched has looked like soccer--extended periods of "not much happening, passing the ball/puck back and forth, still not much happening, not much happening, people must be doing something meaningful if only I cared what it was, I wonder why people find this interesting," followed by a moment of attempted scoring, to riotous cheers or boos, popcorn and sodas flying.
However, since moving to Canada, I have learned a little about hockey. No, scratch that. I have heard people talking about hockey. Specifically, I've heard them reminisce fondly about what I would have called "pick-up games" but which are apparently officially called "shinny."
I, of course, ignored the conversations for a long time and then vaguely listened and thought they were saying "shimmy." My husband (no hockey fan himself) got a huge laugh when I asked him how to spell it for yesterday's post.
I was going to use "shimmy" as another example of something that sounds like more fun than it is. To some of us, anyway. However, now I guess it's just an example of a stupid "me" thing, not even a stupid American thing because presumably some Americans know about shinny, and presumably some of those Americans are female so it's not a female thing either. It's not quite even a mondegreen, a term I learned from Facebook, just to show that the hours I spend there aren't all a waste.
So now you know how little I know. At least I'm willing to pass it on.
The little hockey I've watched has looked like soccer--extended periods of "not much happening, passing the ball/puck back and forth, still not much happening, not much happening, people must be doing something meaningful if only I cared what it was, I wonder why people find this interesting," followed by a moment of attempted scoring, to riotous cheers or boos, popcorn and sodas flying.
However, since moving to Canada, I have learned a little about hockey. No, scratch that. I have heard people talking about hockey. Specifically, I've heard them reminisce fondly about what I would have called "pick-up games" but which are apparently officially called "shinny."
I, of course, ignored the conversations for a long time and then vaguely listened and thought they were saying "shimmy." My husband (no hockey fan himself) got a huge laugh when I asked him how to spell it for yesterday's post.
I was going to use "shimmy" as another example of something that sounds like more fun than it is. To some of us, anyway. However, now I guess it's just an example of a stupid "me" thing, not even a stupid American thing because presumably some Americans know about shinny, and presumably some of those Americans are female so it's not a female thing either. It's not quite even a mondegreen, a term I learned from Facebook, just to show that the hours I spend there aren't all a waste.
So now you know how little I know. At least I'm willing to pass it on.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Doldrums
It's been a long and eventful week since I was last here. And I'm pooped.
Some of those events have been positive. President Obama has come and gone safely home. Whew. He endeared himself to this country by waving to the crowd and by making an impromptu stop for donuts. (What could be more Canadian, other than an improptu game of shinny?) The Prime Minister appeared to be gracious. But it was the Governor-General who made a big hit with the president; she and her family have been invited to Washington. (Harper wasn't.)
For the rest of the time, what I've been doing isn't all that interesting.
I do have one addition to the list of things that sound like more fun than they really are: Somali pirates. Doesn't "pirate" sound all exciting and swashbuckly? Don't be fooled: Captain Jack Sparrow they ain't.
I've been involved in various other projects over the past several days that have been tiring if rewarding and are, at last, over.
So it's time to get back to work, which includes taxes in two countries and a little long-term financial planning--unless that's a concept that doesn't even make sense these days, in which case I'll just meet with the planner and pretend, thanks.
I think I'm not the only one who feels a little caught in the doldrums. People seem to feel just sorta blah.
And can you blame them/us/me? Now that there is actually a new president in the U.S. and the Canadian government is somewhat functional, the political news is back to (yawn) mostly boring. And what is there to look forward to? The president's visit created a frisson of interest, but he's come and gone. The economic news is grim, the situation in Afghanistan is getting more attention that uses the word "deteriorating," and the 2010 Olympics are still nearly a year away.
We're inundated with "frugal chic" and "comfort food on a budget" and "replicating the Oscar look for le$$" and "potluck parties." A sign at the gym today exhorted, "March is coming! Let's have some fun with it!" Because apparently February was a bust, and wearing flowered t-shirts will cheer us up.
Today is Mardi Gras, the ultimate party that ushers in six weeks of contemplation and denial. Woo hoo. If only we could be sure it would be only six weeks, instead of six years, or sixteen.
Still, in the midst of this limbo, I find comfort in the returning sunlight. I know that spring is nowhere near arriving--check back in three months--but at least the sun rises near 8 and sets at 6.
No matter what else we're doing to the planet, it continues its looping circles. And while not all movement is progress, some is. It must be. And so, I too will keep moving.
Some of those events have been positive. President Obama has come and gone safely home. Whew. He endeared himself to this country by waving to the crowd and by making an impromptu stop for donuts. (What could be more Canadian, other than an improptu game of shinny?) The Prime Minister appeared to be gracious. But it was the Governor-General who made a big hit with the president; she and her family have been invited to Washington. (Harper wasn't.)
For the rest of the time, what I've been doing isn't all that interesting.
I do have one addition to the list of things that sound like more fun than they really are: Somali pirates. Doesn't "pirate" sound all exciting and swashbuckly? Don't be fooled: Captain Jack Sparrow they ain't.
I've been involved in various other projects over the past several days that have been tiring if rewarding and are, at last, over.
So it's time to get back to work, which includes taxes in two countries and a little long-term financial planning--unless that's a concept that doesn't even make sense these days, in which case I'll just meet with the planner and pretend, thanks.
I think I'm not the only one who feels a little caught in the doldrums. People seem to feel just sorta blah.
And can you blame them/us/me? Now that there is actually a new president in the U.S. and the Canadian government is somewhat functional, the political news is back to (yawn) mostly boring. And what is there to look forward to? The president's visit created a frisson of interest, but he's come and gone. The economic news is grim, the situation in Afghanistan is getting more attention that uses the word "deteriorating," and the 2010 Olympics are still nearly a year away.
We're inundated with "frugal chic" and "comfort food on a budget" and "replicating the Oscar look for le$$" and "potluck parties." A sign at the gym today exhorted, "March is coming! Let's have some fun with it!" Because apparently February was a bust, and wearing flowered t-shirts will cheer us up.
Today is Mardi Gras, the ultimate party that ushers in six weeks of contemplation and denial. Woo hoo. If only we could be sure it would be only six weeks, instead of six years, or sixteen.
Still, in the midst of this limbo, I find comfort in the returning sunlight. I know that spring is nowhere near arriving--check back in three months--but at least the sun rises near 8 and sets at 6.
No matter what else we're doing to the planet, it continues its looping circles. And while not all movement is progress, some is. It must be. And so, I too will keep moving.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
The American's Coming!
As in President Barak Obama. He will be here for about 6 hours on Thursday.
Canadians are trying to make the best of what the Secret Service must be considering mostly as a dry run for a "real" foreign visit. People here talk about "disappointment" that the visit isn't longer. Nobody is saying that they feel brushed off. Even six hours is better than nothing.
In fact, that six-hour trip is one of Obama's wisest investments. For a very small fraction of his time, energy, and attention, he's making more than 30 million people very happy.
I have no data to back this up, but anecdotal evidence and my gut feeling combine to tell me that it's fair to say that most Canadians have felt alienated from the U.S.--certainly from the political leaders, though perhaps not from individual Americans--during the past eight years.
So the 30 million-plus Canadians who will be waving at the president on Thrusday aren't inconsequential. Canada is currently set to pull out of Afghanistan within a year or two. While the numbers of troops aren't equivalent to those of the U.S., Canada has some credibility in the international community and has been a player in that conflict. Canada can and should be involved in defining "success" in Afghanistan, and the Canadian role in the region should be acknowledged.
And the president's no dummy--he's meeting with Prime Minister Harper, of course, and also with Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff. Because one never knows when the Conservative party will start talking like conservatives again, and the Liberal party will back in power. And of course he's meeting our own barrier-breaker, Governor-General Michaelle Jean.
So here's my take on what's happening on Thursday. President Obama is taking Air Force One out for a spin. The protective services agents get to test their mirrored sunglasses. The Canadian ego gets soothed a bit. "Steve" gets to be acknowledged as a leader of a real country, and a couple of Harvard grads get to say "hey" to each other.
Sounds like a win-win-win-win-win, especially in a long winter of bad economic news.
Canadians are trying to make the best of what the Secret Service must be considering mostly as a dry run for a "real" foreign visit. People here talk about "disappointment" that the visit isn't longer. Nobody is saying that they feel brushed off. Even six hours is better than nothing.
In fact, that six-hour trip is one of Obama's wisest investments. For a very small fraction of his time, energy, and attention, he's making more than 30 million people very happy.
I have no data to back this up, but anecdotal evidence and my gut feeling combine to tell me that it's fair to say that most Canadians have felt alienated from the U.S.--certainly from the political leaders, though perhaps not from individual Americans--during the past eight years.
So the 30 million-plus Canadians who will be waving at the president on Thrusday aren't inconsequential. Canada is currently set to pull out of Afghanistan within a year or two. While the numbers of troops aren't equivalent to those of the U.S., Canada has some credibility in the international community and has been a player in that conflict. Canada can and should be involved in defining "success" in Afghanistan, and the Canadian role in the region should be acknowledged.
And the president's no dummy--he's meeting with Prime Minister Harper, of course, and also with Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff. Because one never knows when the Conservative party will start talking like conservatives again, and the Liberal party will back in power. And of course he's meeting our own barrier-breaker, Governor-General Michaelle Jean.
So here's my take on what's happening on Thursday. President Obama is taking Air Force One out for a spin. The protective services agents get to test their mirrored sunglasses. The Canadian ego gets soothed a bit. "Steve" gets to be acknowledged as a leader of a real country, and a couple of Harvard grads get to say "hey" to each other.
Sounds like a win-win-win-win-win, especially in a long winter of bad economic news.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Call Me...or Name Me...Irresponsible
This is about names--specifically, about how names sometimes don't match their objects.
Case in point: the Tamil Tigers. That has got to be the BEST name for an organization that is at least separatist and rebellious and generally considered downright terrorist. My reason for liking the name is obvious: it's like a football team. Go Tigers! Yes, it's a terrible, irresponsible reaction. But it shows the power of a name.
Here's another great name in world news these days: Tzipi Livni. What a positive-sounding name! (It's the two short "i" sounds.) It's energetic. It's a role written for Debbie Reynolds (back before we knew how hard it would be to grow up with her for a mother--thanks a lot, Carrie Fisher). Tzipi is your go-to politician; she'll get things done. It's a perky name; it's a cheery name. It's Katie Couric squared.
But Tzipi Livni is lucky for the "tz" combination. "Tippy" is a little too cheery (not to mention cheesy) and even a little unstable. "Zippy" would be over-the-top, the Israeli version of Scooter Libby.
Now there was a case of an unfortunate name for a person unfortunately inflicted upon the world for a looooong time. Scooter Libby, as you recall, was a White House aide who broke the law and was caught doing it, probably taking the fall for Cheney and others.
From her position as armchair psychologist to the world, Dr. Marion says his problems stem from the fact that he apparently never took himself seriously enough to claim a real name. No adult should be called "Scooter," except by his wife who knew him in Grade 7, and even then they should keep it behind closed doors. (Ewww.) Certainly no adult in the White House should go by a nickname like that.
In my less mild-mannered moments, I consider Scooter Libby to be responsible, in large part, for turning the White House into the Frat House for eight years.
Please understand that except for Scooter, I am responding only to these names--I have no political opinion about Livni vs. Netanyahu, except that the Israeli election makes the name-calling and other political rhetoric in Ottawa seem downright decorous. I do not support the Tamil Tigers and I do not know enough about the situation in Sri Lanka to say anything else about it.
But, as I pointed out about Bear Sterns, just keep in mind the importance of a name.
Case in point: the Tamil Tigers. That has got to be the BEST name for an organization that is at least separatist and rebellious and generally considered downright terrorist. My reason for liking the name is obvious: it's like a football team. Go Tigers! Yes, it's a terrible, irresponsible reaction. But it shows the power of a name.
Here's another great name in world news these days: Tzipi Livni. What a positive-sounding name! (It's the two short "i" sounds.) It's energetic. It's a role written for Debbie Reynolds (back before we knew how hard it would be to grow up with her for a mother--thanks a lot, Carrie Fisher). Tzipi is your go-to politician; she'll get things done. It's a perky name; it's a cheery name. It's Katie Couric squared.
But Tzipi Livni is lucky for the "tz" combination. "Tippy" is a little too cheery (not to mention cheesy) and even a little unstable. "Zippy" would be over-the-top, the Israeli version of Scooter Libby.
Now there was a case of an unfortunate name for a person unfortunately inflicted upon the world for a looooong time. Scooter Libby, as you recall, was a White House aide who broke the law and was caught doing it, probably taking the fall for Cheney and others.
From her position as armchair psychologist to the world, Dr. Marion says his problems stem from the fact that he apparently never took himself seriously enough to claim a real name. No adult should be called "Scooter," except by his wife who knew him in Grade 7, and even then they should keep it behind closed doors. (Ewww.) Certainly no adult in the White House should go by a nickname like that.
In my less mild-mannered moments, I consider Scooter Libby to be responsible, in large part, for turning the White House into the Frat House for eight years.
Please understand that except for Scooter, I am responding only to these names--I have no political opinion about Livni vs. Netanyahu, except that the Israeli election makes the name-calling and other political rhetoric in Ottawa seem downright decorous. I do not support the Tamil Tigers and I do not know enough about the situation in Sri Lanka to say anything else about it.
But, as I pointed out about Bear Sterns, just keep in mind the importance of a name.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Our Top Story Tonight
...is that Canada is hosting the 2010 Olympics!
No, seriously! Canada--specifically, BC in the greater Vancouver area, will host the Olympics!! And we need to lead the news broadcasts with it, both on CBC and CTV, even though CTV will be covering them!!! Because it's really really really important for you to know that these Olympics, they're coming sooner than you think!!!! In fact, the shebang starts JUST ONE YEAR FROM NOW.
Meanwhile, yesterday stats came out that indicated that Canada is in a trade deficit for the first time in 33 years. Trade deficit! Thirty-plus years!!
How did this happen? How much of it is due to decrease in the volume or nubmer of goods, and how much of it is a decrease in the price of oil? What percentage of trade was cars that nobody in either country is buying?
I wouldn't have found answers to those questions on the news last night (perhaps partly because I was too sleepy to stay up for the whole thing, but still). But I could have watched interviews with various accomplished individuals who are pumped, like, totally pumped and think it's totally awesome that we'll get to compete on our home territory next year. Which is good, because I was afraid that the athletes were, like, half-pumped and thought it would be semi-awesome to compete.
Sheesh.
I realize that everyone has priorities, and mine are usually out of synch with the world around me. I also realize that people would like to "focus on something positive," instead of hearing all the "negative" news about the economy. (I might wonder aloud how Canada will pay for the festivities--because the Olympics has its "negative" news. I might also express a desire to see a story about the economic sectors that are doing OK at this point. Because not everything is good OR bad.)
I also realize that these trade deficit statistics, released yesterday, are thus now by definition yesterday's news.
But honestly. Both broadcasters led last night's evening news with breathless "coverage" of the Olympics. What is there to say? Various entities are spending money that is increasingly scarce to put on a pageant in a year. That's 365 days. Lots more stuff can happen between now and then. Stuff like budget bills passed or not, that reform employment insurance or not, that does or doesn't support people who are out of work, which might or might not be due in part to their own incompetence.
But let's not think about that.
Don't get me wrong: I'm a big fan of escapism. If I'd been alive during the last Great Depression, I'd have been on the front row of the movie theater singing, "Oh, Rio, Rio by the sea-o" along with Fred and Ginger.
But that happened in movie theaters, not news broadcasts. Perhaps news broadcasts could continue to cover business, economic, and social news?
Now THAT would be totally awesome. I'd be pumped.
No, seriously! Canada--specifically, BC in the greater Vancouver area, will host the Olympics!! And we need to lead the news broadcasts with it, both on CBC and CTV, even though CTV will be covering them!!! Because it's really really really important for you to know that these Olympics, they're coming sooner than you think!!!! In fact, the shebang starts JUST ONE YEAR FROM NOW.
Meanwhile, yesterday stats came out that indicated that Canada is in a trade deficit for the first time in 33 years. Trade deficit! Thirty-plus years!!
How did this happen? How much of it is due to decrease in the volume or nubmer of goods, and how much of it is a decrease in the price of oil? What percentage of trade was cars that nobody in either country is buying?
I wouldn't have found answers to those questions on the news last night (perhaps partly because I was too sleepy to stay up for the whole thing, but still). But I could have watched interviews with various accomplished individuals who are pumped, like, totally pumped and think it's totally awesome that we'll get to compete on our home territory next year. Which is good, because I was afraid that the athletes were, like, half-pumped and thought it would be semi-awesome to compete.
Sheesh.
I realize that everyone has priorities, and mine are usually out of synch with the world around me. I also realize that people would like to "focus on something positive," instead of hearing all the "negative" news about the economy. (I might wonder aloud how Canada will pay for the festivities--because the Olympics has its "negative" news. I might also express a desire to see a story about the economic sectors that are doing OK at this point. Because not everything is good OR bad.)
I also realize that these trade deficit statistics, released yesterday, are thus now by definition yesterday's news.
But honestly. Both broadcasters led last night's evening news with breathless "coverage" of the Olympics. What is there to say? Various entities are spending money that is increasingly scarce to put on a pageant in a year. That's 365 days. Lots more stuff can happen between now and then. Stuff like budget bills passed or not, that reform employment insurance or not, that does or doesn't support people who are out of work, which might or might not be due in part to their own incompetence.
But let's not think about that.
Don't get me wrong: I'm a big fan of escapism. If I'd been alive during the last Great Depression, I'd have been on the front row of the movie theater singing, "Oh, Rio, Rio by the sea-o" along with Fred and Ginger.
But that happened in movie theaters, not news broadcasts. Perhaps news broadcasts could continue to cover business, economic, and social news?
Now THAT would be totally awesome. I'd be pumped.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
A Blast from the Past
More accurately, it's a blast from out west somewhere. However, today's weather creates a sense of deja vu in me, for good reason.
We're having an unusual bout of ickiness: freezing rain with wind and temperatures hovering just above and just below freezing. Things are slick. People are unable to get from A to B and back.
And I have to go out in it this afternoon.
I'm sure it will be fine. Crews started sanding and salting and I-don't-know-what-else last night. They've had ample time to work on the roads today. My car warms up quickly; its gas tank is full. I know to leave extra time to get to my Point B today.
It's just that this weather reminds me of my growing-up years in Oklahoma. This is normal winter weather there. It comes in waves--perhaps three big storms in a season. Mostly, people deal with it by calling off school, calling in "never" to work (or nowadays, working from home), taking their time, doing their best, trying not to slip and fall. One year when I was in high school, we missed most of two weeks of school, but that was pretty bad. A day here and there was more common.
Weather like this made winter scary back in those days. Cars ended up in ditches. Homes would lose power for days or weeks. For all of my mother's dire warnings about winter here--snow on the ground from Thanksgiving till May, and that's Canadian Thanksgiving!--these icy ickies feel more dangerous.
That's partly because Oklahoma, even in the cities, is set up in such a way that people have to drive cars to get around. Thunder Bay too--the city bus service, though extant, isn't particularly convenient.
Normally, I enjoy winter, because winter weather isn't normally like this. This is what I moved from. Now it's the weather's turn to move along, away from me.
We're having an unusual bout of ickiness: freezing rain with wind and temperatures hovering just above and just below freezing. Things are slick. People are unable to get from A to B and back.
And I have to go out in it this afternoon.
I'm sure it will be fine. Crews started sanding and salting and I-don't-know-what-else last night. They've had ample time to work on the roads today. My car warms up quickly; its gas tank is full. I know to leave extra time to get to my Point B today.
It's just that this weather reminds me of my growing-up years in Oklahoma. This is normal winter weather there. It comes in waves--perhaps three big storms in a season. Mostly, people deal with it by calling off school, calling in "never" to work (or nowadays, working from home), taking their time, doing their best, trying not to slip and fall. One year when I was in high school, we missed most of two weeks of school, but that was pretty bad. A day here and there was more common.
Weather like this made winter scary back in those days. Cars ended up in ditches. Homes would lose power for days or weeks. For all of my mother's dire warnings about winter here--snow on the ground from Thanksgiving till May, and that's Canadian Thanksgiving!--these icy ickies feel more dangerous.
That's partly because Oklahoma, even in the cities, is set up in such a way that people have to drive cars to get around. Thunder Bay too--the city bus service, though extant, isn't particularly convenient.
Normally, I enjoy winter, because winter weather isn't normally like this. This is what I moved from. Now it's the weather's turn to move along, away from me.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Where Exactly is "Local"?
Phrases like "trade war" and "protectionist" and "Buy American!" and "Buy Canadian!" and "international trade agreements" have been flying thick and fast of late--on both sides of the border.
I have no real insight to offer that larger discussion. However, I do wonder what constitutes "buying local."
My stepdaughter owns and operates a jewelry store, Glimmer. (Up here, it's a jewellery store.) She does not make the rings, necklaces, bridal veils, tiaras and other products--she chooses them and sells them. People have hinted (very politely, of course; this is Canada) that she isn't really a "local" store because she's not selling hand-crafted things.
Recently, a pharmacy started a new ad campaign: it's one of two locally owned pharmacies. Outside its storefront, it has hung a "buy local" sign. As is the case in the U.S., where a Walgreens and a CVS occupy opposite corners of most intersections, chain pharmacies have been buying up the pharmacies here. So this local pharmacy owner decided to highlight her local ownership.
Which is great and swell and yahoo to her. But nobody questions her right to call herself "local." She sells many products--drugs, equipment, over-the-counter medications, corn pads, talcum powder, you name it (except fingernail polish)--and nobody asks where they are made. She didn't make them, but that doesn't seem to preclude her from advertising herself as a local business.
So why is it less "local" to buy and sell pins and earrings? What if my stepdaughter made necklaces? What if she used findings and stones from somewhere else--which, realistically, she would pretty much have to do unless she's using locally produced flour to make paste to glue local amethyst crystals onto strings made from wool spun from local sheep--would they still be "more local" than the things she does sell?
Answers to these questions might depend on the reason you're buying local in the first place. If it's to support local residents and the local economy, then Glimmer is as local as the next store. It supports a family that pays taxes, buys food and clothing, and sends kids to school--all in Thunder Bay.
If you're buying local to save the environment, then we in Canada may have a special set of constraints on our purchases. It's often closer to buy something from the U.S. than to buy something from Canada. For example, apples grown in B.C. have to come farther than apples from Wisconsin.
So where, exactly, is "local"? I guess the real message, from politicians on both sides of the border, is to shop there, or wherever, for whatever you can afford to buy.
I have no real insight to offer that larger discussion. However, I do wonder what constitutes "buying local."
My stepdaughter owns and operates a jewelry store, Glimmer. (Up here, it's a jewellery store.) She does not make the rings, necklaces, bridal veils, tiaras and other products--she chooses them and sells them. People have hinted (very politely, of course; this is Canada) that she isn't really a "local" store because she's not selling hand-crafted things.
Recently, a pharmacy started a new ad campaign: it's one of two locally owned pharmacies. Outside its storefront, it has hung a "buy local" sign. As is the case in the U.S., where a Walgreens and a CVS occupy opposite corners of most intersections, chain pharmacies have been buying up the pharmacies here. So this local pharmacy owner decided to highlight her local ownership.
Which is great and swell and yahoo to her. But nobody questions her right to call herself "local." She sells many products--drugs, equipment, over-the-counter medications, corn pads, talcum powder, you name it (except fingernail polish)--and nobody asks where they are made. She didn't make them, but that doesn't seem to preclude her from advertising herself as a local business.
So why is it less "local" to buy and sell pins and earrings? What if my stepdaughter made necklaces? What if she used findings and stones from somewhere else--which, realistically, she would pretty much have to do unless she's using locally produced flour to make paste to glue local amethyst crystals onto strings made from wool spun from local sheep--would they still be "more local" than the things she does sell?
Answers to these questions might depend on the reason you're buying local in the first place. If it's to support local residents and the local economy, then Glimmer is as local as the next store. It supports a family that pays taxes, buys food and clothing, and sends kids to school--all in Thunder Bay.
If you're buying local to save the environment, then we in Canada may have a special set of constraints on our purchases. It's often closer to buy something from the U.S. than to buy something from Canada. For example, apples grown in B.C. have to come farther than apples from Wisconsin.
So where, exactly, is "local"? I guess the real message, from politicians on both sides of the border, is to shop there, or wherever, for whatever you can afford to buy.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Say What?
A salvo from the pronunciation wars, and one from the "which country am I in again?" wars.
First, pronunciation. Those wacky Brits and their "r" sounds. I used to work with a guy from somewhere in the UK who kept talking about "Bob," and I didn't know Bob, but then I figured out he meant our coworker Barb. He called her Barrrrrrrrb for the next few years to avoid the teasing.
Last night, some official or other in London said of their several inches of snow, "We know this happens every morning in Canader." Eh?
On our current favorite show, Time Team, one of the experts is named Carenza. They would say "she's called Carenzer."
I guess they have leftover "r" sounds that they don't need for names like Barb and they use them up by sticking them onto trailing vowel sounds.
On to "which country am I in?" As some of you have gathered, I was in the U.S. for two weeks recently. While there, I had occasion to mention my late-November trip to the U.S. to spend time with my brother and his family.
In discussing this visit here at home, I had been careful to say, "I spent American Thanksgiving with my brother." With practice, it does become easier to remember to say it that way.
Therefore, in Tucson I had to edit myself again, this time to say, "I spent Thanksgiving with my brother." Saying "American Thanksgiving" would have seemed a bit precious, as if I wanted to remind everyone that I live in Canada and WE have a Thanksgiving, TOO.
Never mind that it's just an excuse for a long weekend in October, a time when people put up their Halloween decorations and drive to Duluth to see what's on sale. It's OUR Thanksgiving, and we are PROUD of it.
I know I've said this before, but it's still true: it's the holidays that get you, every time.
First, pronunciation. Those wacky Brits and their "r" sounds. I used to work with a guy from somewhere in the UK who kept talking about "Bob," and I didn't know Bob, but then I figured out he meant our coworker Barb. He called her Barrrrrrrrb for the next few years to avoid the teasing.
Last night, some official or other in London said of their several inches of snow, "We know this happens every morning in Canader." Eh?
On our current favorite show, Time Team, one of the experts is named Carenza. They would say "she's called Carenzer."
I guess they have leftover "r" sounds that they don't need for names like Barb and they use them up by sticking them onto trailing vowel sounds.
On to "which country am I in?" As some of you have gathered, I was in the U.S. for two weeks recently. While there, I had occasion to mention my late-November trip to the U.S. to spend time with my brother and his family.
In discussing this visit here at home, I had been careful to say, "I spent American Thanksgiving with my brother." With practice, it does become easier to remember to say it that way.
Therefore, in Tucson I had to edit myself again, this time to say, "I spent Thanksgiving with my brother." Saying "American Thanksgiving" would have seemed a bit precious, as if I wanted to remind everyone that I live in Canada and WE have a Thanksgiving, TOO.
Never mind that it's just an excuse for a long weekend in October, a time when people put up their Halloween decorations and drive to Duluth to see what's on sale. It's OUR Thanksgiving, and we are PROUD of it.
I know I've said this before, but it's still true: it's the holidays that get you, every time.
Monday, February 2, 2009
In My Dreams
The groundhogs have spoken. Six more weeks of winter. Traffic to the website is too high for me to create a link, though, so you just have to believe me.
Canada has its own groundhog, Wiarton Willie. Canadian schools also have educational resources for groundhog day available online.
So: six more weeks? See the subject line.
Actually, I enjoy winter and winter weather. I like being able to be outside, though. I'm slowly slowly figuring out how the "wear snow boots, bring shoes," "hang coats outside meeting rooms" rules work. I get stir-crazy when it's too cold (say, below 0F) to enjoy being outside much. I'm still searching for boots that actually keep my feet warm, but it's a fun search.
It's also possible that the weather will be different mid-March. But it won't be spring. The ground will still be frozen. The snow cover may be thin--possibly too thin to ski. The lake will still be frozen. And whatever it's called, it's a season that requires alertness: water/sewer pipes actually are more likely to freeze without the snow cover.
But if this year is like last year and the one before, mid-March will still be mostly white. Then comes April, the brown month. Spring? Late May, early June.
So really, more winter? Okay. It's the dentist (today, 2 p.m.) that I don't like. (Nothing personal.)
Canada has its own groundhog, Wiarton Willie. Canadian schools also have educational resources for groundhog day available online.
So: six more weeks? See the subject line.
Actually, I enjoy winter and winter weather. I like being able to be outside, though. I'm slowly slowly figuring out how the "wear snow boots, bring shoes," "hang coats outside meeting rooms" rules work. I get stir-crazy when it's too cold (say, below 0F) to enjoy being outside much. I'm still searching for boots that actually keep my feet warm, but it's a fun search.
It's also possible that the weather will be different mid-March. But it won't be spring. The ground will still be frozen. The snow cover may be thin--possibly too thin to ski. The lake will still be frozen. And whatever it's called, it's a season that requires alertness: water/sewer pipes actually are more likely to freeze without the snow cover.
But if this year is like last year and the one before, mid-March will still be mostly white. Then comes April, the brown month. Spring? Late May, early June.
So really, more winter? Okay. It's the dentist (today, 2 p.m.) that I don't like. (Nothing personal.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
