Reflections

It will be 7yrs of living in Canada this July. Hard to believe! And now that I am a Canadian citizen I have cause for some reflection as I look back on my time here. I remember the most challenging obstacles that made it hard in the beginning to adjust. As silly as they are (and I knew they were at the time too) they all caused much stress in my life. 

Milk in a bag. After drinking milk from a gallon jug all my life, I was not amused by the milk in a bag. Originally, I bought the white plastic container that the bags go into. So cheap and ugly (I know, like the plastic gallon jugs are attractive). Some might say I was down right bitter about the whole thing. Knowing this my dear husband gave me the most precious gift he could have that Christmas. He went to a paint your own pottery place and painted a ceramic jug himself. On it says "This is the day that the Lord has made" on one side and "Let us rejoice and be glad in it" on the other side. Well good grief, how could I ever fuss about the milk in a bag while reading that? 

A trip to the grocery store ending in tears. This was a shock for me - truly. I had always walked into a grocery store and knew the brands I always bought and approximately how much I'd pay for it. Instead there you'd find me staring blankly at the shelves of canned whatever, confused by the french side and horrified by some of the prices. Meat -well, forgetaboutit. I still can't get over how expensive it is but since Wayne has no intention of becoming a vegetarian anytime soon I try to take advantage of sales. 

Yankee candles. I know - what the heck. Up until this point we always lit a Yankee candle in the evening. The scent would depend on the season or holiday. It never crossed my mind before we moved to stock up on these. I practically hyperventilated when I realized Yankee is American (duh) and may be challenging to find around here - not to mention that when I did the markup was crazy. OK, so I REALLY over reacted in retrospect and my first trip back to the States I bought an copious amount of candles in numerous varieties of scents so I will never run out. And indeed, even to this day, I have not and have no fear that I will for many, many years.

Target. 'nough said.

Ok, so now it's 7yrs later and I've embraced the country as my own. What happened?

Milk in a bag - I've come to prefer the taste. When I have it from a plastic jug now the milk tastes like plastic. And after all, this is the day that the Lord has made. Who can argue with that?

Grocery store - I am still amazed by the cost of many items but I guess I'm over it. After all, what am I going to do - we have to eat. But the big thing I really appreciate about my local grocery store is the diversity of flavours. Because of the many different cultures represented from all over the world that live in this area, they offer many authentic food products from a variety of countries. Mexico may be the exception - I've learned to make much of my own for that. I'm talking an amazing Asian selection - Chinese and Indian (my family and I just discovered Indian food and we are inhaling it. I try and make curry once a week now!) Then there's Italian, Greek and whatever else I run across. I love my grocery store. There. I said it.

Yankee candles. Well, as previously mentioned I have enough to last for years and I admit I may have over done it. 

Target. Watertown, New York is an hour and a half away and has a new Target and Kohls. This will have to do.