150 uniquely Canadian things to celebrate country's 150th
What started as getting a simple speeding ticket has morphed into one of the most Canadiana of adventures for a pair of Alberta teachers — doing 150 uniquely Canadian things over the course of 2017 in celebration of the country's 150th birthday.
Calgary teacher Sarah Roston was heading for a day in the mountains with a friend last year when she was stopped for speeding just outside Bragg Creek.
"My friend turned to me and said, 'There's not a whole lot more Canadian than getting a speeding ticket from an RCMP officer, with Tim Hortons in the car, on your way to go snowshoeing,'" she told the Calgary Eyeopener.
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"Then I got thinking, 'Wow, I wonder if I can think of 150 things,' so I started writing them down."
Roston got to about 80 when she got stuck, so she turned to social media, asking friends on Facebook to chime in with ideas of their own.
Friend and fellow teacher Alyssa Andreachuk — who lives and works in Lethbridge — saw the post and wanted to join the fun.
"We're actually going to Ottawa for the Canada Day celebrations so I thought, 'Hey, I want to join in on this because we'll be doing a lot of the things together," she said.
Some of the ideas are things many Canadians do on a daily basis — wear a tuque, shovel your neighbour's sidewalk and listen to the CBC.
Others are a little more adventurous — take part in a polar bear dip, swim in the Great Lakes, and pan for gold.
Andreachuk managed to tick the first item off her list Tuesday — watching the Calgary Flames beat the Florida Panthers at the Saddledome.
Other adventures on tap include watching a Toronto Blue Jays game, driving across the Confederation Bridge, going to a powwow, dancing to a Tragically Hip song, taking in a lacrosse game and having back bacon for breakfast.
They're doing most of the items as a team, but each has her own individual list.
"A lot of ours are going to overlap but we do have ones that are unique to where we are because I'm in Lethbridge and she's in Calgary, and just what our interests are," said Andreachuk. "I want to have poutine at a local Quebec restaurant."
Roston, on the other hand, isn't a fan of the fries and gravy with cheese curds dish.
The pair has a Twitter account to document their adventures, along with a blog.
"We want to expand what we know about Canada and what's special to other Canadians," said Andreachuk. "And I'd love to share the experience with my students as well."
With files from the Calgary Eyeopener
