Wednesday, September 19, 2007

O Canada!


As I mentioned in my 1st post, I enjoy traveling to Canada to visit friends. I've been interested in Canada since I was a kid and the Weekly Reader had an article about the then new prime minister Pierre Trudeau. I'm not sure I'd ever paid attention to the country north of us before that.

In the 1980s other things happened to renew my interest. I started reading mysteries novels by Alisa Craig, a.k.a. Charlotte MacLeod. She wrote 2 series set in Canada: The Grub and Stakers series (1st novel "The Grub and Stakers Move a Mountain") and the Madoc Rhys series (1st novel "A Pint of Murder"). The 1st is about a young woman, Dittany Henbit, living in the small town of Lobelia Falls, Ontario. The Grub and Stakers is the gardening club she belongs to, and as in most "cozy" mysteries, she's an amateur sleuth. The series is very funny and charming. The Madoc Rhys series is about a Mountie does not fit the stereotypical image and in fact looks more like a plumber's assistant. This series is a bit more serious, but Madoc is charmingly old-fashioned and fun to read.

In the late 90s, I met another cataloger -- over the Internet -- who became my closest friend. She's from Saskatchewan and we visit when we can. I love visiting the prairie. It's really beautiful. Endless skies. Fields of yellow canola and blue flax and golden wheat. Just beautiful.

Finally, I mentioned in my 1st post that I watch too much TV. Well, one of my favorite shows is a Canada sitcom titled "Corner Gas." It's set in the very small town of Dog River, Saskatchewan, and, in my opinion, one of funniest comedies on the air. My Sask friend sends me the DVDs for Christmas, so I'm pretty much caught up on all 4 seasons it's been on up there. And I'm happy to say that an American station has picked it up. WGN is starting a regular schedule for "Corner Gas" tonight at 7:00 central time. Two episodes will be on. I highly recommend it. If you give it a try, I hope you enjoy.

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