My Canadian Moment

Today is Canada Day for some reason having to do with the British Crown deciding to throw them a bone that resembled self-determination, which they accepted without much of a fuss. I'm actually not sure, which is to be expected, since Americans know so little about their neighbors to the north, while they in turn are so completely on to their southern neighbors (that is, "neighbours").

Personally, I never met a Canadian I couldn't get along with (but for two exceptions, both from British Columbia, one of them an old Scout leader who spends too much time in the woods to develop a sense of social grace on the internet, the other a Catholic writer who spends too much time lecturing others about civility on the internet to practice it herself, but those are each another story ...). This video is a completely false but not necessarily misleading account of the story of this great and generally-more-polite-than-American nation, as told by Will O'Neill.

Tonight I'll raise a glass to them all, probably Moosehead. It's the least I could do … eh?
 

My Canadian Moment

Today is Canada Day for some reason having to do with the British Crown deciding to throw them a bone that resembled self-determination, which they accepted without much of a fuss. I'm actually not sure, which is to be expected, since Americans know so little about their neighbors to the north, while they in turn are so completely on to their southern neighbors (that is, "neighbours").

Personally, I never met a Canadian I couldn't get along with (but for two exceptions, both from British Columbia, one of them an old Scout leader who spends too much time in the woods to develop a sense of social grace on the internet, the other a Catholic writer who spends too much time lecturing others about civility on the internet to practice it herself, but those are each another story ...). This video is a completely false but not necessarily misleading account of the story of this great and generally-more-polite-than-American nation, as told by Will O'Neill.

Tonight I'll raise a glass to them all, probably Moosehead. It's the least I could do.
 

Art-For-Art’s-Sake Theatre: Walk Off The Earth “Royals”

Time once again for our usual midday Wednesday feature.

We've seen these guys before, haven't we? Walk Off The Earth is from Burlington, Ontario, and one of the guys who plugs the other videos towards the end only sounds Australian. Don't ask me why. Apparently their specialty is "low-budget" videos of originals and covers. That's pretty obvious here, since there wasn't much overhead for scenery.

We'll keep watching these guys, of course, because this looks like fun. On the other hand, running behind the camera to keep circulating the ukuleles -- well, that ain't for the squeamish, don't you think?

Or don't you?
 

Art-For-Art’s-Sake Theatre: ISS (Is Somebody Singing?)

Time once again for our usual midday Wednesday feature.

David Bowie wrote a song about being in space. Now from the collectives pens of Ed Robertson of Barenaked Ladies, and Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, comes this number they wrote and perform together, only Robertson is on the ground, and Hadfield is "up there" somewhere at the International Space Station. They are joined by the Wexford Gleeks from Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts, who were all (except for Hadfield) at the CBC studios in Toronto.

Download the lyrics, and read the story "behind the music" here.
 

FAMW: Rags Against The Machine!

Chris Hadfield is an astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency (Agence Spatiale Canadienne), currently assigned to the International Space Station. Here he performs a simple experiment designed by two students from Lockview High School in Fall River, Nova Scotia, who won a national science contest held by the Agency, with their experiment on surface tension in space using a wet washcloth. Some serious stuff that would blow your mind sufficiently, to qualify for this week's Friday Afternoon Moment of Whimsy.
 

Christ-Mass: The Vigil

“The Huron Carol” (aka “Jesous Ahatonhia” or “Jesus He Is Born”) is Canada's oldest Christmas song, written in 1643 by Saint Jean de Brébeuf, a Jesuit missionary living amidst the Huron nation in what is now Canada. Written in the native language of the Huron/Wendat people, its melody is based on a traditional French folk song, "Une Jeune Pucelle" ("A Young Maid"). This translation is by Father H Kierans, and is sung by Heather Dale.

'Twas in the moon of wintertime
When all the birds had fled
That mighty Gitchi Manitou
Sent angel choirs instead
Before their light the stars grew dim
And wondering hunters heard the hymn.

Jesus your King is born
Jesus is born
In excelsis gloria.

Within a lodge of broken bark
The tender babe was found
A ragged robe of rabbit skin
En-wrapped His beauty round
But as the hunter braves drew nigh
The angel song rang loud and high.

Jesus your King is born
Jesus is born
In excelsis gloria.

The earliest moon of wintertime
Is not so round and fair
As was the ring of glory
On the helpless Infant there
The chiefs from far before Him knelt
With gifts of fox and beaver pelt.

Jesus your King is born
Jesus is born
In excelsis gloria.

O children of the forest free
O seed of Manitou
The holy Child of earth and Heav'n
Is born today for you
Come kneel before the radiant Boy
Who brings you beauty, peace and joy.

Jesus your King is born
Jesus is born
In excelsis gloria.

The Jesuit missionary was captured by the Iroquois in an inter-tribal war in 1649, and was awarded the crown of martyrdom by way of torture. He is included (along with Saint Isaac Jogues and six others) among the "North American Martyrs" in the Roman Calendar of Saints.