Canada vs. The World

[AzureAfire]

Apparently there is an idea spreading through some threads that us Canadians have a hard time understanding the languages, word-phrases and cultures of other countries represented here on CC (I guess since we are isolated in igloos all year round and constantly surrounded by very hungry and determined polar bears, we are cut off from other places and ideas in the world).

So I thought I'd start this thread so that the handful of us Canadians here can be given pieces of wisdom and education from all the other countries represented on CC.

I will start with some basic preliminary questions from my very limited-Canadian perspective:

1. To my American cousins, since you guys don't have proper health care (as opposed to Canada's excellent health care system) what happens when you get injured or hurt? Do you pay out of your own pockets for medical service, or do you just roll into the nearest ditch and ironically sing "Only In America" as you wait for the end to come?

2. To my many filipino cousins here on CC, at what time of the year do your beautiful Philippine's beach's freeze-over so I can play hockey when I come there for vacation??? You guys do get snow, right???

3. For my Australian cousins, I have just one question: What ever happened to Crocodile Dundee? He was your country's greatest export!!! (Don't tell Hillsong or Eric Bana I said that!!!).


If anyone has questions for us Canadians about Canada, feel free to ask here. But please understand that everything there is to know about Canada can be exhausted in just three phrases: Toonies, Loonies, and Tommy Chong (yes, he was born in Canada, and when he first saw Canada's flag as a child he immediately became hooked on marijuana!!!). Check out our flag, and you'll understand why!!!

Oh WOW!! XD made me laugh so hard, brother!!

Yeah, i know, i know....we don't have snow. Rub it in my face, why don't ya? XD i have never seen snow in my entire life. The closest i've been to seeing snow is at an amusement park here (i loved the experience, by the way ), although, of course, it doesn't come close to the real thing. What we do have are lots of tropical depressions, alphabetically named (A-Z). So much, that, at one point, we had to start back at letter A within the same year XD

In all honesty, i find Canada more interesting than America. I don't know why that is, actually. But i do hope to visit both countries some time in the future. Who knows, i might end up living there after all XD

Oh, you don't want to see our beaches freeze over, just to play hockey on XD they're too awesome to cover with sheets of ice. Come over, and see for yourself

Good thing you're not asking our state of health care XD the health care here is just...i don't have even decent words for it it's that sad! I'm just fortunate to be a doctor, since professional fees are waived for us when we seek health care from colleagues. My parents, future spouse and kids will also receive the same benefits

 

[zeroturbulence]

When I was in the pharmacy industry many years ago, it was interesting the questions Americans would ask me about Canada. Mainly the weather if it was summer- sometimes exceeding their temperatures. But many of them seem to think that we're frigid all year round. I was once asked if we celebrate New Years Eve here. That said there were some Americans that I spoke to that were very knowledgeable about us. I remember when Harper got elected, an American had mentioned to me that he was disappointed because Harper gives off an American vibe. I hope one day Justin Trudeau will get elected.

So do you celebrate New Years Eve there or not?

 

[NukePooch]

in response to your #1...
I experienced Canadian "Health Care". I'd broken my right ulna & radius (both the bones in my forearm) while bouldering in Nova Scotia. The accident happened just before breakfast. My skin was not broken, but as I splinted the arm with rubber bands and magazines (to make it a little more stable for the drive to the hospital) it was blatantly obvious that my bones were protruding from their normal positions, midway up the forearm.
I understand ER triage. Both my parents work in healthcare. I'm not the average idiot when it comes to being a "healthcare consumer".
I also know that I sat in that ER, with nurses bringing me nothing stronger or more nourishing than 3 year old magazines from the waiting rooms on other floors (this is an international problem), & artificially flavored banana popsicles...until it was so very far past the dinner hour that when we did finally leave we barely found any restaurant still open & serving. An anti-inflammatory, such as Advil (Ibuprofen), would have made the time a little easier to pass and what was to come later a little more bearable.
When I was seen, the doc spoke no English... or French. One of the nurses knew a little Spanish, so they were barely able to communicate through his Portuguese + Pantomime. Some how, after much attempts at communicating that made me think the Marx Brothers were trying to cheat and get the college entrance exam answers from the three stooges on the other side of the room...the doc managed to study the x-rays and pull of a double bone setting that involved himself and three nurses pulling traction in ridiculous ways that would have been slightly less uncomfortable without all that nasty swelling from the last 12 hours of wishing I had some Ibuprofen. To his credit, once this was performed to his "instructions" and the after films were shot, it did not have to be redone a second time, just a single re-do. Ouch.
They apologized, knowing that with me traveling, a fiberglass cast would have been much better than a plaster cast. The reality was they had used all of their fiberglass casting materials in the first month of the fiscal quarter and could only give me plaster... to compensate some, they ran one of two cuts that would be needed to remove the cast (once the plaster had dried), then wrapped it an elastic bandage.
I needed a sling for this giant albatross of a cast that ran from above my elbow to past my thumb. They had ran out of slings, too. Also in the first month of the quarter. They could not order more, until the next quarter and could not get more than their allotment. They could, however, pay RN's to stand around all day cutting bed sheets to use as slings...since they could get more sheets whenever, and could give the RN's overtime.
They were kind enough to send me with all of my x-ray films for my doc back home (though I wondered if they kept anything on file for their own liability's sake).
I gave them all my contact information, my health insurance information, and they still were incapable of figuring out how to bill me for Anything... not even a co-pay or a full bill that day.
My arm did heal properly,though.
This was essentially the antithesis of the experience that would be expected in any similar sized hospital in the US.
Except for the ancient magazines that likely held more communicable disease than the whole of the CDC.

^^^^^^
This.

In the US, you get excellent, and expensive, care. If you don't have insurance (as I haven't for some time) you make payments.

In Canada, the cost for care is covered by taxpayers...so you pay for it anyways. Don't worry, though, Canada. America's health care system will shortly be much, much worse than yours.

 

[SeatBelt]

^^^^^^
This.

In the US, you get excellent, and expensive, care. If you don't have insurance (as I haven't for some time) you make payments.

In Canada, the cost for care is covered by taxpayers...so you pay for it anyways. Don't worry, though, Canada. America's health care system will shortly be much, much worse than yours.

Though the waiting room magazines will still be exactly the same.... no really, the Exact Same Ones from the last 15 years will still be Exaclty there... just more coughed on.

 

[Fenner]

Do you celebrate Christmas in Canada? I know that you all celebrate Independence Day because being that Canada is America Junior you want to celebrate being independent too.

You forgot to add Alynas Morrisette, I don't think she's made an album in years and I for one appreciate that. If you keep her in Canada I'll buy you all a box of Tim Norton's Glazed.

 

[zeroturbulence]

Though the waiting room magazines will still be exactly the same.... no really, the Exact Same Ones from the last 15 years will still be Exaclty there... just more coughed on.

None of the hospital waiting rooms I've been to had magazines. And I was just at one like two weeks ago.

 

[PopClick]

Descyple! Your thread has made me realize something very, very important.


I realized that I forgot to send you this:

 

[Descyple]

Descyple! Your thread has made me realize something very, very important.


I realized that I forgot to send you this:

Too funny, Popclick!!!

I was wondering why we were having so many full moons lately!!!

 

[Descyple]

Oh WOW!! XD made me laugh so hard, brother!!

Yeah, i know, i know....we don't have snow. Rub it in my face, why don't ya? XD i have never seen snow in my entire life. The closest i've been to seeing snow is at an amusement park here (i loved the experience, by the way ), although, of course, it doesn't come close to the real thing. What we do have are lots of tropical depressions, alphabetically named (A-Z). So much, that, at one point, we had to start back at letter A within the same year XD

In all honesty, i find Canada more interesting than America. I don't know why that is, actually. But i do hope to visit both countries some time in the future. Who knows, i might end up living there after all XD

Oh, you don't want to see our beaches freeze over, just to play hockey on XD they're too awesome to cover with sheets of ice. Come over, and see for yourself

Good thing you're not asking our state of health care XD the health care here is just...i don't have even decent words for it it's that sad! I'm just fortunate to be a doctor, since professional fees are waived for us when we seek health care from colleagues. My parents, future spouse and kids will also receive the same benefits

Hey AzureAfire, if the Phillippines ever wants some snow, just ask us and we will ship some over to you in very large igloo-shaped beer cooler (but please send the cooler back, because we need it to store our food supply in during winter season - which is ALL YEAR LONG!!!).

 

[iTOREtheSKY]

I'll be honest...if it weren't for the fact that Canada has produced so many bands I have come to enjoy over the course of my life I would file it under "waste of space" right next to Maine! lol (ironic how they are neighbors)

 

[Descyple]

Do you celebrate Christmas in Canada? I know that you all celebrate Independence Day because being that Canada is America Junior you want to celebrate being independent too.

You forgot to add Alynas Morrisette, I don't think she's made an album in years and I for one appreciate that. If you keep her in Canada I'll buy you all a box of Tim Norton's Glazed.

Yes Fenner, we do celebrate Christmas in Canada, however our country is the only one that has Bethlehem Nativity scenes that replace the stable animals with snowmen (I think ours is more historical accurate!!!).

And we actually didn't forget Alanis Morrisette, we just don't believe she is really Canadian because of her aggressive and disparaging attitude (isn't that what Americans are known for, or am I mistaken???)

 

[NodMyHeadLikeYeah]

What's........... Canada??

 

[Descyple]

What's........... Canada??

Nod, Canada is a magical place that flows free with milk and honey (wait, I mean bacon and beer), and where everyone is "Frozen in Time" - literally!!!

 

[Descyple]

I'll be honest...if it weren't for the fact that Canada has produced so many bands I have come to enjoy over the course of my life I would file it under "waste of space" right next to Maine! lol (ironic how they are neighbors)

Actually, all our good "Canadian" bands are actually Americans that we kidnap on horseback from Maine, and then we use a cow-brand to label them as "Certified Canucks", which seems to be fooling everyone so far!!!

 

[iTOREtheSKY]

Actually, all our good "Canadian" bands are actually Americans that we kidnap on horseback from Maine, and then we use a cow-brand to label them as "Certified Canucks", which seems to be fooling everyone so far!!!

I nearly spit out my coffee on that one Sir...and for that you get the highest honor I can give you!

 

[arwen83]

Do you celebrate Christmas in Canada? I know that you all celebrate Independence Day because being that Canada is America Junior you want to celebrate being independent too.

You forgot to add Alynas Morrisette, I don't think she's made an album in years and I for one appreciate that. If you keep her in Canada I'll buy you all a box of Tim Norton's Glazed.

We're not American Jr. America is not our parent country. We are Britian's child, and brother to the US. We're still attached to the monarch in some way (not sure exactly how), where American is independent from her. So we do not celebrate Independence Day. We do have Victoria Day (which is attributed to Queen Victoria for some reason). Need to freshen up on my Canadian history.

 

[Descyple]

We're not American Jr. America is not our parent country. We are Britian's child, and brother to the US. We're still attached to the monarch in some way (not sure exactly how), where American is independent from her. So we do not celebrate Independence Day. We do have Victoria Day (which is attributed to Queen Victoria for some reason). Need to freshen up on my Canadian history.

We are attached to the Queen's cast-iron hip for support!!!

 

[Fenner]

We're not American Jr. America is not our parent country. We are Britian's child, and brother to the US. We're still attached to the monarch in some way (not sure exactly how), where American is independent from her. So we do not celebrate Independence Day. We do have Victoria Day (which is attributed to Queen Victoria for some reason). Need to freshen up on my Canadian history.

You know I'm joking right?

 

[Fenner]

Yes Fenner, we do celebrate Christmas in Canada, however our country is the only one that has Bethlehem Nativity scenes that replace the stable animals with snowmen (I think ours is more historical accurate!!!).

And we actually didn't forget Alanis Morrisette, we just don't believe she is really Canadian because of her aggressive and disparaging attitude (isn't that what Americans are known for, or am I mistaken???)

If I was Canada I wouldn't claim Alanis either. My children used to watch Cailou, although he's a bit of a whiner I think Canada can claim him.

 

[arwen83]

You know I'm joking right?

Nope. After all my years of experiencing Americans asking me questions about Canada, I figured it was genuine lol.