{"id":7915,"date":"2003-11-30T17:24:32","date_gmt":"2003-11-30T23:24:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wend.ca\/?p=7915"},"modified":"2015-12-30T22:32:48","modified_gmt":"2015-12-31T05:32:48","slug":"what-canadians-do-for-fun-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wend.ca\/?p=7915","title":{"rendered":"What Canadians Do For Fun: Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Saturday night I found myself after dark, hiking through a long snow filled pathway in the woods. It was about minus 10 degrees but felt like minus 15 with a wind whipping through the trees. The snow was deep, up to my knees in places, and I remember cursing because I hadn’t thought to bring gators for my boots. Luckily I was wearing thick corduroy pants and the snow wasn’t getting into my boots and short socks.<\/p>\n

Why would I do such a thing on a cold dark evening when I should be sitting in front of a roaring fire wrapped in a quilt with a good book? I do it because I am Canadian and was going to a party. See, this is what Canadians do for fun on the weekends: they hike through snow to sit around a fire, complain about how cold our feet are, and drink mulled wine or beer.<\/p>\n

The party was the Guy Fawkes Bonfire — a yearly tradition for many around the world. And, I wasn’t alone at this party: there were about a hundred other Canadians warming their butts by the fire and complaining of how cold their feet were (read: those who weren’t wearing a “beer jacket” were complaining). In contrast, once the actual bonfire started, people were stripping down to t-shirts because alas<\/em> it was too hot.<\/p>\n

Entertainment included jousting, stick fighting, musicians, snowball fights, snow angels, fireworks and outdoor camping. There were lots of people stumbling around, falling in the snow; kids playing on the swings in their parkas, one mitten or boot lost; some had plastic bags on their feet to keep their socks dry.<\/p>\n

This was pretty much a typical Canadian winter party. And, as one person stated: “A good time was had by all.”<\/p>\n