Congratulations!
Now hopefully I can replace you in the States by becoming a permanent resident here. Keeping things balanced, you know?
Enjoy Canada!
*Only in a polite and welcoming Canadian thread can someone toss out a statement like “prepare the beaver” and not have anyone take the joke further.
I was going to say, “Buy tires? At Canadian Tire? Oh, you wacky immigrants.” 
Congratulations.
Wait till you get to the citizenship part, it’s even more fun.
On an unrelated note, what’s New Westminster like? I’m living in Vancouver for the next year, and shopping around for a permanent spot, likely in BC.
Yeah, just like does anyone actually go to London Drugs to buy medication? I’ve got flash drives, wireless routers, a toaster oven from there, but I can’t ever remember buying so much as an aspirin from them…
Yeah, or like going to Taco Bell for Mexican food.
What?
Last time we were in Toronto, we asked around for a good mexican restaurant. No less than 4 people said there was a Taco Bell nearby. Never did find any good mexican, but we did have a great seafood dinner that night.
So, if you didn’t have the right to enter the US, would you be required to take a trip overseas and back in order to “land”?
You didn’t go to Hernando’s Hideaway on Yonge? I haven’t any idea whether it’s ‘good’ Mexican food, but I am certain that it’s better than Taco Bell. Admittedly it’s hard to pick out among the clutter of Vietnamese fusion places…
However, I am informed that for authentic Mexican food, you have to go to Bradford. This is apparently because of the large number of Mexican labourers who come up every summer to work in the Holland Marsh agricultural area. How true this is, I’m not certain.
We ended up having the seafood instead of mexican because no one seemed to know of any that existed. (beyond the aforementioned Taco Bell.) It seems that we were around the Eaton mall when we were looking for something.
You have five years to learn the national anthem in both official languages.
My impression is that New Westminster is kind of industrial. I could be totally wrong, though.
[sub]You’re just plotting to get closer to Vancouver Island, aren’t you?[/sub]
(hijack)
That’s because Toronto, despite its profusion of incredibly cheap and delicious ethnic eats, has a serious lack of good Mexican grub. I do know of one place, but it’s a fair bit off the beaten path and not so special that I’d send someone out of their way for it.
Toronto’s Mexican food shortage is a regular topic of discussion on the Toronto board at Chowhound. Kind of like their version of the airplane on the treadmill.
Also, the Eaton Centre is a total culinary wasteland… we’re really trying our best to make it as much like Times Square as we can. 
(/hijack)
[QUOTE=On an unrelated note, what’s New Westminster like? I’m living in Vancouver for the next year, and shopping around for a permanent spot, likely in BC.[/QUOTE]
I personally like New West. It has more of a “small town” feel, as I think there are really only about 50 000 residents. It’s completely contiguous with Burnaby, though. It has lots of funky old houses, as it was the original capital of BC, and a nice riverside area (Westminster Quay). The main street (Columbia St.) has tons of bridal shops and pagan/wiccan bookstores for some reason. I think it’s a mix of an older population and funky younger people. It’s also got a couple of Sky Train stops, so you can get around quite easily. Property and rents used to be lots cheaper than in Vancouver proper.
Hey, I’ve bought tires at Canadian Tire. Also bug spray, work boots, paintbrushes and rollers, a Skilsaw, garden tools, a football, an alternator for a 1990 Jeep YJ, a socket set, ammunition, a baseball bat, and a coffeemaker. Among other things.
At least they live up to their slogan.
Must be a Golden Horseshoe thing. Mexican food is very hard to find in Western New York, too, except for Mighty Taco and Taco Bell. Here in Cleveland, however, it’s everywhere. Having lived in New Mexico and feasted on the “real deal” for four years, I can say the Mexican food in Cleveland isn’t that bad.
Haven’t been able to find good pizza north of the border, either.
Depending on how my job hunt goes, I may be heading north too.
It is only out of deference to this comment that I am packing up the post I had originally intended to make here.
Don’t know if it’s still there, but Bitondo’s, on Clinton Street in Toronto’s Little Italy, has got to be the best pizza I’ve ever had in my life. The heavily-advertised chains with the memorable radio jingles…well, they’re pizza if they have to be, I guess. Anyway, next time you’re in Toronto, you may want to look Bitondo’s up.
I believe you could head to the Caribbean somewhere, or Mexico, or the isles of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, though I’ve never heard of anyone doing that. Then, the US border isn’t as permeable as it used to be…
Congratulations and Welcome Seven and whomever compiles in your ‘we’!
I shall eat a hearty breakfast tomorrow at Timmy’s in celebration!
Thanks all.
It seems the date I can become a citizen is Sept 13th 2010. That’s not so far away.
Now, topping off this good news, we just made an offer on our first Canadian house. The owners said yes last night.
If all goes well I’ll be a Canadian Permanent Resident homeowner next monday.
(I never thought I’d be paying over a half million dollars for a house, but thanks to real estate prices in the area,… gulp. It’s a cool house though.)
Congrats. People think I’m kidding half of the time, but I’ve considered moving to Canada myself. My wife is from Minnesota so she has Canadian family and apparently they love it there. (I have no intentions of ever living in my home town again, or state for that matter). I know a german Sergeant Major that retired a year ago and moved to canada with his wife. (his son actually is a coworker of mine and says his parents aren’t coming back to germany to live ever.) I guess Canada’s da bomb right now.