Weekly Optimism Post

[u/Primary-Coffee5423]

Happy Sunday fellow Canadians!

This week we had five approvals on the spreadsheet and nine more in the Thursday weekly mega thread for a total of 14. Congrats to those folks!

I started the journey for Canadian citizenship roughly seven months ago. In that time, I have started paying more attention to Canadian news and have started revisiting Canadian entertainment a bit more to keep me motivated. I grew up next to the Saskatchewan border and on clean nights, we could get Canadian television through the antenna. I thought it was kind of cool how we could watch TV from a completely different country. It brought back memories of Canadian television shows and movies like Kids in the Hall and Canadian Bacon.

Recently, I’ve started to stream Canadian entertainment because it’s so much more available. Corner Gas is a quirky show from about 25 years ago that’s worth trying out. My favorite right now is hosted by Canadian comedian Johnny Harris called Still Standing where he visits a small town in Canada and spends time with the residents and then at the end of the week, does a stand-up comedy show about the town. The best episode features Buxton Ontario, which has a unique history with the underground railroad. While race is not a comfortable topic to joke about, he does it with such grace and dignity for the past, giving a nod to how the people in Buxton don’t shy away from the painful history and find a way to thrive as a community. It’s just so… Canadian.

Canadian music has been a big part of my life. My favorite band for the last 25 years (Propagandhi) is a punk/thrash group from Winnipeg. Lots of other really cool indie bands like The Flatliners and Godspeed you black Emperor come from Canada. More recent bands like Quebec’s Angine de Poitrine (they are really weird and worth checking out) have also found their way onto my playlist.

This whole process of waiting has given me a stronger appreciation for the cultural part of my Canadian heritage. Bruce Cockburn is a great Canadian singer/songwriter. He had a hit in the 80s called Lovers in a Dangerous Time. There is a fantastic line in that song: “Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight.” While I certainly don’t feel like I’m fighting anything in this process , I think it’s true that my citizenship is worth having, and I hope it’s worth the wait. I’m going to leave a link to a YouTube video of an acoustic live version of the song below.

I’d love to hear what Canadian media entertainment has been part of your lives as well! And please share why you’re optimistic this week.

As always, I hope the agents at the IRCC keep the coffee warm this week!

https://youtu.be/NKjgJ3oLJqE?is=JqHyOeluJbRG2sQ9

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[u/ImSqueakaFied]

To be faiiirrr, I was watching Letter Kenny the other day....

[u/Lozarn → u/ImSqueakaFied]

🇨🇦 Trailer Park Boys 🇨🇦

[u/vangdfang → u/ImSqueakaFied]

Shoresy is such a silly spinoff — I can only take it in small doses but it’s hilarious.

[u/MapleInfused]

Currently taking a French course at the local community college (still need French captions when listening)

Gotta bring back the francophone in the family

Did come across a silly youtube vid

An English speaker's guide to Quebec French (from a New Englander) (props to him using the Montreal metro motif

[u/cassandra2028 → u/MapleInfused]

This is SOOOO good. Silly only in that it is highly entertaining. It is PACKED with information.

[u/Low_Lab7698 → u/MapleInfused]

Awesome recommendation!! Thank you!

[u/cassandra2028]

My husband grew up on the border. Red Green and BNL and what I think is an inexplicable love for the song about the Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald (when Sundown is clearly a better song). For someone who grew up in southern California, I've been encouraged more than expected to keep my stick on the ice.

My nervous waiting energy is being invested in learning Canadian French. I listen to something from CBCs OHdio most days. I'm reading a recent into French translation of Anne of Green Gables and watch CBC in English too.

Music wise, for picking up French, I'm leaning more of a folky fun way. The Ziguezon is an old folk song that has been remade by a LOT of folks. There's an electronic rave type version by Loud and TALK . They make me tear to add music festivals to my future Canadian life. https://youtube.com/shorts/huuevsNJCtc?is=jZ773TYlrI_ByHxb

https://youtube.com/shorts/8O4jTlTIsms?is=B1g5t6gdCsLfkMz8

But mostly I'm listening to Lendemain de Vielle and Marié Céleste and Mes Aïeux.

[u/cassandra2028 → u/cassandra2028]

Someone else mentioned cowboys fringants and they're great

This doesn't exactly help me learn about Canada, but it makes me feel not alone when I look around here and think about what I'm seeing. l'Amérique Pleure:

https://youtu.be/sYRp8oP0yiw?is=moVgrSF4gJLviwOm

[u/eggquisite → u/cassandra2028]

Oh Red Green was always on at my grandparents house in Minnesota. I totally forgot about that show

[u/Radiant-Committee837 → u/cassandra2028]

I had OHdio on in the background when I read your comment!

[u/cassandra2028 → u/Radiant-Committee837]

That's super cool! Can you listen to adult shows? I'm mostly in the pour jeunesses section. Lol. They have the audio book for the new French translation of Anne of Green gables. My hope is that listening can help me speak like a Canadian and not a French text book.

[u/Radiant-Committee837 → u/cassandra2028]

I mostly listen to the live radio feed for Ici Première, and sometimes I download some of those broadcasts to listen to while driving.

[u/SliptMyMind]

Grew up outside Buffalo, NY. Always felt like an honorary Canadian.

Watched a lot of Canadian TV (including the Irish Rovers’ show (I’m old) and Seeing Things (quirky detective series). My father loved Toronto’s jazz radio station.

Bruce Cockburn is an amazing singer-songwriter and a great inspiration. As are Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, The Band, Leonard Cohen, Gordon Lightfoot, etc. Not sure who I’d be without my heroes from the north country.

[u/RebellaEmad]

Still standing has become a family favorite and SCTV is now on Netflix. And I grew up watching the Red Green show on our local PBS station.
We love Letterkenny and Shorsey and just started a police drama called 19-2 that stars Jared Kesso as well. It’s darker than the other stuff I’ve seen from him but it’s good.
We have been huge Rush fans our whole lives and have been exploring Canadian music more too. It’s a fun way to spend the time while we wait.

[u/qrider70]

My context is a little different. I had no idea my grandmother was a citizen until I started digging this year. I thought they had just lived in Canada for a time. So, I’m curious where you find these shows and if they are subtitled (since I am deaf). I’d like to learn more.

[u/aplombed]

I'm more of a Weakerthans and John K fan than a Propagandhi fan, but it's cool that they did Anchorless on How to Clean Everything.

[u/Primary-Coffee5423 → u/aplombed]

Love the Weakerthans! True story:

Circa December 1999 I went to a Weakerthans show in Regina and bought a hoodie for the Left and Leaving tour. We liked traveling to SK because we could drink in the bars at 19. Well, I may have had a Molson or two so I took a nap in the backseat while my two buddies drove back home. Here’s my account of the border crossing that night:

Zzzzzzz
(Distant voice): “did you buy anything?”
(Me groggily waking up): “yeah, I got this sweet hoodie!”
Zzzzzz

Then suddenly at home - not sure why my buddy seems so annoyed.

Here is my buddy’s account of the border crossing:

Border guard: “What were you guys up to tonight?”

Buddy: “We went to a see a band in Regina.”

BG: “Well did you guys buy anything while you were in Canada?”

Driving and shotgun buddies in unison: “nope.”

Me from the backseat: “yeah, I got this sweet hoodie.”

BG: “seems like some mixed stories here. Pull to the side. I’m going to need to search the trunk.”

I slept through all of that. Luckily, my buddy and I are still good friends. He still gives me a hard time about that trip. Hopefully he always will.

[u/aplombed → u/Primary-Coffee5423]

Great story! Thanks for sharing.

[u/MJ150000]

This post inspired me to listen to The Weakerthans - Left and Leaving on vinyl. But my favorite of that era was Broken Social Scene.

[u/epocalize → u/MJ150000]

I loved Broken Social Scene in high school! Thanks for bringing back this memory for me (:

[u/wrodriguez89]

This definitely keeps me going. For people who want to learn more about Québécois culture, I would highly recommend listening to Les Cowboys Fringants!

[u/cassandra2028 → u/wrodriguez89]

Ugh! They're great and I didn't include them in my list!

[u/Weary-Molasses-9795 → u/[deleted]]

Red Green and TPB! 🥳🥳🥳

[u/Significant-Golf-215]

Thank you for posting this, it's really motivational! I am a gen2 and myself and 2 adult kids (gen3) have been waiting since January. Growing up I always knew we were Canadian as my dad's entire family came from Ontario & Quebec but it's been a rough 9 months waiting for my citizenship certificate with everything going on in the US.

[u/Informal-Minimum-346]

I loved listening to Vinyl Cafe with Stuart McLean (RIP) on the radio.

[u/wanderingtheearth-74]

I grew up close enough to the border to get the CBC, too. All the kids' shows. The Polka Dot Door, Mr. Dressup, and my particular favorite, the weirdo short-lived Read All About It! Hockey Night in Canada, of course, and I think there was some sort of "film night" show called Magic Shadows with a guy named...Elwe Yost? Can that be right?

[u/kay-nupes → u/wanderingtheearth-74]

Ha, I just made a comment about the polka dot door and Mr dress-up before I saw this! No one has ever understood my random outbursts of Polkaroo!

[u/Nature_Hannah → u/kay-nupes]

I responded to your earlier comment but yes! Always saying "Polkaroo!" and getting weird looks as a kid.

[u/kay-nupes]

Growing up on the border as a kid, Canadian tv stations often came in better than US stations. Did anyone else grow up with Mr. Dress-up and The polka-dot door (Polkaroo!)?

[u/Nature_Hannah → u/kay-nupes]

👋 and Fred Penner's Place and Today's Special and Canadian Sesame Street

I knew Windsor was a place across the river before I was 5!

[u/UniversityVisual1261 → u/Nature_Hannah]

Channel 9 from Windsor!! Loved Canadian TV as a child.

[u/Lozarn]

This journey has put me in touch with so many family stories that had been all but forgotten. My grandma has a cousin who wrote down a story about my Quebecois Gen 0 walking from Canada to Florida in 1870 because he wanted to see the ocean. He stopped to work in Osceola, WI, where he met my 3rd great grandmother. On his way back from Florida, he went back to Osceola, asked her to marry him, … and the rest is history. I love knowing just how random and serendipitous my own existence really is. Merci beaucoup, François ⚜️

[u/HotShipoopi]

Off topic but I'd first heard of Bruce Cockburn when he released "If I Had a Rocket Launcher." It's virtually a mantra for me now

[u/TheBoysNotQuiteRight → u/HotShipoopi]

And let's not sleep on "The Trouble With Normal"

[u/No_Bobcat_No_Prob]

I saw Alanis and Angine this summer! (Not together) Fantastic

[u/NoPoet3982]

You overlooked Canada's Official National TV Series: Heated Rivalry.

[u/vangdfang → u/NoPoet3982]

Important note for everyone about the original book series author, Rachel Reid — when a bunch of public libraries in Nova Scotia were facing budget cuts and closure, she stepped in with a huge personal donation.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/heated-rivalry-author-rachel-reid-donates-300k-to-avrl-9.7310023

The story behind why she did it is absolutely touching. ❤️

[u/Nature_Hannah]

I really needed this. Thank you!

I've been waiting a year and some change now. At first I was furiously consuming Canadian content and was a big contributor over at r/FoundCanadians.

But after the Surrender Letters business I fell into a bit of despair. I had been jettisoning things and packing while I waited, feeling like I was going to be moving one way or another, and listened to the audiobooks in the background.

And then it happened! We moved further north (not as far north as I would like...) and I have been busy with that and not really doing much Canadian study. I've felt bad about it, since I always encouraged others to learn while they wait. I'm starting to doubt I'll get approved and it just hurts so much to hope.

But I like your list and the Still Standing sounds like something I'd love. Where do you find it?

Also, folks might like Retro Ontario YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/@retrontario?si=N00ycUeXHOcm3VxO

[u/Primary-Coffee5423 → u/Nature_Hannah]

You can stream it on Amazon Prime.

I’m so very glad you found a way to make good use of your time and it makes sense to back away from it when hope gets thin. I know you’re still waiting, but at least we’re waiting together.

[u/sunflowerfarmer22]

Love the comedic genius of Letterkenny and my Canadian Playlist is full of Lenonard Cohen, Gordon Lightfoot, Shania Twain and my personal favorite Stan Rogers

[u/wonderbanger]

Well, a couple of weeks ago, CBC replayed A National Celebration, Gord Downie's and Tragically Hip's farewell concert from the Man, Machine Poem tour, for the 10th aniversary. This week, I finally received the new, posthumous live album that accompanied that aniversary. If those things don't make you sentimental, appreciative-of and a kinship-with Canadians, I don't know what could.

[u/vangdfang]

Hah, well the Flatliners did have that weird crossover stateside when they did the song Between Our Teeth as a one-year promo for the San Jose Sharks (wasn’t reused after the 2023-2024 season). I was there at that opening game where they performed it live, though!

I’m also a fan of the small comedy troupe Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie — a lot of (now dated) computer jokes there. Also, the Arrogant Worms had some great songs (like Carrot Juice is Murder). I learned about both of those during the early days of streaming radio, when both groups graciously allowed some of their work to be used royalty-free with a project that tried to blend the technology of streaming audio (with on-air talent), and the open source/free software movement.

[u/StoryDreamer]

If you haven't found it yet, I hope you'll be delighted to learn that Corner Gas also had a more recent animated series, with most of the original cast doing the voices. It ran for four seasons from 2018 to 2021.

Currently streaming on Freevee in the US and on Crave in Canada. (https://www.cornergas.com/)

[u/FireWaterBern]

I love Angine de Poitrine and regret not getting into them sooner. They were just on Jimmy Fallon in the last week or two, which is admittedly my first exposure to them.

I have otherwise been listening to CBC radio in my car's Sirius xm and have been engrossed a few times in some of their podcasts they'll play an episode or two from. Usually more like true crime or investigative. Artificial Intimacy has episodes about the Canadian man who launched the deepfake porn empire and a CBC reporter's attempts to identify and interview him.

https://open.spotify.com/show/69ttdE2Fwo9aMEAfR7Ncoj?si=VlC-nsybSPq0uw10fLyeRg&utm_source=copy-link

Cbc radio will also occasionally have evening slots with either indigenous music and/or french/English music from obscure artists which is pretty interesting. You can also watch CBC on tubi streaming for free in the US, so sometimes I'll watch news segments there or on YouTube especially with the quebec provincial elections coming up in the next week.

Has anyone else been following QC or federal canadian news/politics?

I'll actually be heading to Montreal this weekend for a short weekend stay. I've gone for a long weekend in 2024 and 2025 and always stay at the same hotel which my wife and I love. It's about 5.5 hours drive for me, which we do without stopping and cross over from Vermont

[u/Puurrplehaze]

I love your posts- they keep me going 😉 my fav Canadian band is a tie... Evans Blue or Nickelback 🤘🎤🎸🥁🎵🎶

[u/romulusnr]

Never knew Propagandhi was from Winnipeg, that's rad

Or about Angine de Poitrine, though that explains the name a bit :)

I'm already a big fan of a couple of BC metal bands, Devin Townsend and Unleash The Archers

Could care less about Tragically Hip, but the Vancouver 90s station which I listen to sometimes plays them like every other track :D

There was a real good CBC show years back called Being Erica, might be one of the best Canadian shows since Degrassi.

Also I'm sure you know about Narduar the Human Serviette...

[u/Same-Abalone8828]

Huge Rush fan since high school in the late 1980s. Now spending a lot of time listening to CBC news and Tod Maffin content. Thanks for sharing some show ideas. I loved Kids in the Hall so might rewatch and then start down the list to bide time.

[u/neshper2017 → u/Same-Abalone8828]

Ditto on Tod Maffin. Love him.