Oh, Canada

This morning I boarded a plane for Phoenix and then Edmonton, Alberta. Once a year I have to travel to Canada because our academic program is also taught at an extension campus about an hour's drive south of Edmonton.

Flying into the airport mid-afternoon, I snagged a car (with some difficulty; I hadn't noticed that the rental office was off-airport) and then hopped onto Highway 2 south, pushing the speed limit and hoping I wouldn't get a ticket. I walked into my committee ten minutes late, which was survivable even though I was chairing the committee. Once our task was completed we were off to a little Chinese restaurant in the small town where the campus is located, and proceeded to enjoy one of the most delightful meals I've had with any educational group, with such hilarity that we probably disturbed everyone else in the establishment.

It boils down to this for me: I can't think of a Canadian I've ever met that I didn't like. I don't know if it's the national personality formed by surviving hard winters, or the fact that much of the country is rural and thus people live closer to nature, or some other reason. But it seems to me that Canadians are just plain nice people, even before you get to the fact that they are friendly, thoughtful, have a good sense of humor, make great connections between conversational topics, and write the most interesting blogs.

So my cheer goes up today for all my Canadian friends and acquaintances. In two weeks I'll be heading to Chilliwack, BC, where I'll get to enjoy your fair country and fine people once again. Can't wait.