As many of you already know, I became a Canadian citizen yesterday.
The ceremony was great. The participants came from 22 different countries, with every (inhabited) continent represented. There was talk of rights, freedoms, responsibilities, tolerance, and the Canadian family.
But the best part?
The oath was administered by a scientist!
One I’d heard of!
Me with Robert Hancock
Dr. Hancock talked about his own experience of becoming Canadian after time spent living in England, Singapore, Australia, Germany, and the US. And he also delivered a very strong message about protecting the environment of this beautiful country.
Beautiful indeed… and hot enough for a swim in the Pacific yesterday, despite the snow on the mountains
The icing on the cake of a wonderful day.
And after the cake, the champagne…
…in plastic cups, because you’re not allowed to drink alcohol on the beach.
We didn’t get caught, but for the first time, I wasn’t worried.
They can’t deport me any more.
Excellent! Congratulations. Perhaps I’ll be going through the same ceremony in a few years. I appreciate that they emphasize maintaining the natural beauty of the land in the commencement ceremony. Go Canada indeed!
You got your oath delivered by Bob?!?! how cool is that? Did I ever tell you that I was accepted into his lab for a PhD studentship, but ended up doing it instead in his friend’s lab a province away? Bob is awesome – what him and Finlay are doing with their company and their research is great!
I don’t know whether this is celebratory, or a warning:
Thanks Eric! I recommend it, it’s worth the hassle
this photo taken to commemorate the end of the hassle
Kyrsten, I didn’t know that! He seemed like a great guy.
Bob, I’d call that celebratory – good stuff!
Did you sign a piece of paper that said you had to start saying the vowel construction ‘ou’ like a long u?
I don’t know what you’re talking aboot
Congrats Cath! You can pull the “I didn’t know I’m not allowed to drink in public” routine anymore though. That foreigner perk is gone. A fair trade for sure!
Thank you!
My accent still sounds foreign enough (actually, Australian) to most Canadians that I might be able to swing it, especially if we hang out near the international youth hostel. (Yes, I’ve done this before ;))
Repeat after me:
“dustbin” is pronounced “gairbidge can”
“garage” is pronounced “ga-raaaaj”, not “garridge”
“coffee” is pronounced “Timmy’s”
Sorry, all that was probably on the citizenship exam. Congratulations! And you’ve got to like any scientist whose lab homepage is “bob.html”. :)
your accent doesn’t sound Australian in any way!!??
Richard, I don’t mind using different words, but I am trying to resist different pronunciations unless necessary for comprehension. “ga-raaaaj” is what posh people say in my part of the UK, for example! So I’ll stick with “garridge”.
Oh, and if “water” was supposed to be pronounced the way North Americans pronounce it, it would be spelled “warder” ;)
Darren, most North Americans who guess my accent guess Australian. My former Aussie room-mate had the opposite problem! My favourite was when I used to hang out with a Kiwi friend who’s since moved to the UK. People used to always ask if we were both from Australia, despite us having completely different (non-Aussie) accents! But then my former Canadian room-mates couldn’t hear the difference between my accent and those of my visiting friends, one from Essex and one from Edinburgh.