A more appropriate question would be, where on Vancouver Island have I NOT gone? LOL! I think I've managed to go to every community on the Island at least once in all the times I've been there ..between adult-life and going there on family vacations when I was growing up. My oldest brother, 12 years older than I am, would bounce back and forth between Vancouver and Victoria ..he couldn't decide where he really wanted to live I guess...LOL ...he had great employment opportunities in both cities and had friends in business who would always offer him great jobs ..so one year he'd be in Van ..the next, Vic ...and that went on for a good 10 years or so. The same thing happened when he lived in Alberta ..he couldn't decide between Jasper and Banff (that decision was pretty much made for himself when he had a pretty bad skiing accident at Sunshine Village and was told he couldn't ski anymore ....it was right after that when he came back to BC and did the whole mainland/island hop thing ..) Now he and his family live back in our hometown here (save for 5 years that he moved his family to Victoria -- again -- and he wants to go back ..I guess he loves island living!) Other than Victoria on the Island, I have spent most of my time with friends in Ladysmith (they're moving to Port Alberni now tho ..) and I had a cousin who lived in Port Hardy that we would quite often visit. Driving up and down the Island (and even the entire province) is such an experience ...there's nothing quite like it! There's a reason why our province's motto is "BEAUTIFUL BRITISH COLUMBIA"

I totally agree!! Beautiful British Columbia indeed.
Sounds like your brother can make a home no matter where he lives. What kind of job does he do that allows him to move around so much?
I have lived on the Island for 24 years and just moved to Vancouver in September for school. One thing I know for sure, is that I will always live near water. I don't know if I would be able to breathe properly if I didn't.

You said that you have gone to Port Hardy? Do you have to go all the way down to the Lower Mainland to catch the ferry and then drive all the way up to Port Hardy? That seems crazy!

I guess because you live further up North it tends to be colder then the rest of BC. Have you been having sunny weather, or has it been rainy like it is down South?

Again, a better question would be: what kind of job has my brother NOT had ..LOL! When he was in Banff/Jasper he worked at the resorts ..ski instructor mostly but whatever he could get his hands on ..I'm like him in that respect that we're workaholics (I'm an on-call security guard who has been known to put in 113 hours in a 2-week period ..) When he lived in Vancouver, he was a high-end car salesman (think: Mercedes, Bently, Porsche -- he would always call and say "Guess what kind of car I get today?" from the car phone -- and that was a HUGE deal because this was way before cell phones were invented ..LOL ..) and in Victoria he was a painter (he's a Journeyman by trade) ...his last job in Vic he was one of the supervisors at the Victoria Shipyard. Now that he lives back here, he's the head painter at the pulp and paper mill (Eurocan/West Fraser..)

Where abouts in Vancouver are you living now? I love that city but I think I've been to it too much that the idea of going to Van for a solo-holiday is no longer exciting to me ..lol ..it's just a stop along the way now -- a day or two at the most and then I want to be on my way. I love that airport ..LOL! And the Island ..where did you live there? It's definitely beautiful ..expensive but beautiful! I understand what you mean about having to live near water ...every time I "leave the area" I get a bit of a head cold for a few days as my body adjusts to the climate/elevation changes. When you've lived your whole life at sea-level, it's a big adjustment when you go to even smaller elevations! I'm a Flatlander by heritage but I sure didn't keep those genes as I grew up ..

My family usually chose to drive to Van and then hop the ferry over to the Island but that isn't our only option. Prince Rupert is about a 2.5 hour drive from here and they have BC Ferries terminals which has a run to Port Hardy. I remember taking the ferry that way only twice: once was an overnight that I slept the whole way almost ...and the other was the day sailing and my other brother was soooooo sick, my parents HAD to get a berth so he could rest ..haha! It's still about 16 hours I think by ferry as well so you're not saving any time ..just milage. And, it's pretty expensive to take a vehicle.

Oh, has it been rainy down south? You have my sympathies We've been having relatively nice weather ...warm, but quite windy. We haven't had rain for awhile now (I've just jinxed us now ..lol) We will TAKE the nice weather because we're located in a temporate rainforest so we do get a lot of rain (wet snow/rain in the winter ..)

This is great ..I've been on message boards for the better part of 8 years for various reasons and I've never found other people with similar interests as me who live in the same province (or country, really ..LOL) who I can chatter back and forth with.

Hey there Christine,
My goodness, that's quite the long post! I'm very impressed

Sounds like your brother is quite skilled in many trades. You mentioned he moved back 'here'. Is he back in Kitimat?

I'm living in Burnaby right now. It's great because I live about a 1/2 hour sky train ride from downtown. One thing that we don't have in Victoria is the sky train. I love it! It's 100% better then taking the bus anywhere! I did start the year off with a car, but because I'm going to school full time and not working, I couldn't afford it. I couldn't believe how expensive insurance was for my tiny little car! I was paying $240 a month, which is double what I was paying back home. And now with the price of gas, I suppose I'm lucky. Although, it would be nice to have a car, for convenience sake.
I was born and raised in Victoria, but have traveled most of the island (except for the top third). My younger brother constantly goes to Cape Scott and other places at the top of VI for camping and hiking. I live vicariously through his adventures and the photographs he takes along the way.

I can't believe I didn't even know that there was a ferry that went from Prince Rupert to Port Hardy. I think I assumed, but I never actually knew. And it's 16 hours?!?!! That's insane!! Oh my god, I just checked the price online because I was curious ... and it's $141.20. Wholy crap!! I will never complain about the price of the ferry again!!

It has been quite rainy down here, I don't mind too much though because I haven't really had a chance to work on my tan yet
I didn't know Kitimat was located in a temperate rain forest. It makes for beautiful scenery I bet, even if the weather is shotty at times. I'm glad that you're getting sun right now though. As long as it's shining somewhere in BC

I can't believe you've never met anyone from the same province on message boards. I suppose West Coasters are a rare breed online because we'd rather be outside enjoying the scenery!! Haha. My excuse is it's been rainy and cold here, so I'm allowing myself to be online.
I'm glad I found another fellow BC-er. I always love meeting people from Canada, and even BC if I'm lucky enough.

~Laura

Yep ...biggest brother is back here in Kitimat ...so everyone's back where we started 32 years ago when we moved here from Sask. He's the only one who ever left, but there's a saying about locals if you spent most of your childhood here: you might move away, but you ALWAYS end up coming back. It's really a great community to raise a family. The last few years, there hasn't been much employment-wise but we're gonna boom with the Alcan expansion coming up. There's also a pipeline project coming in so ...there's gonna be LOTS of work. Our housing market is already on the rise ..it's crazy!

I've never actually taken the Sky Train, that I really remember. I think we may have taken it in '86 when we were there for Expo but I can't be sure. I know the premise though and would love to have that kind of convenience in a big city like that. I cannot BELIEVE your car insurance was that much! $240 a MONTH? Okay, I'm not gonna complain about what ICBC charges me annually again ...here I was thinkin $1100/year was crazy ...but apparently it's pretty cheap! Sorry you had to give up your car But yeah, even with the price of gas, I'm really re-thinking exactly how much driving I NEED to do. We're sittin at $1.429/litre here these days ..it hurts when filling up! You guys must be about the same price at the pumps eh?

$141.20 for the ferry from Rupert to P. Hardy? You must have checked the walk-on prices cause I know for us to go it was nearly $500 and that was years ago for our family of four. Check this though: my dad wants to go to a wedding in the Queen Charlottes in August ..asked me to price the ferry for him and his wife plus the truck and 5th wheel. He's oversize and overweight ...the cost is astronomical -- nearly $1000 each way! I know they really want to go to the wedding but I think he's really re-thinking going. He's retired and isn't exactly bringing home the bacon anymore.

I guess I just don't go to the RIGHT message boards to meet anyone relatively close to me. LOL! I have a couple of friends online who I met through message boards who live in Canada but they live in Ontario. I guess I just have different tastes than other BC'ers ..LOL ...so I'm glad I have found this place!

Yeah, I have a serious case of verbal diarrhea ...I apologize and I can promise to try and keep it shorter but, really, it probably won't happen. It annoys some; others welcome it. I'm just me ..can't help it!

Christine,
Wow, you moved from Saskatoon? or Saskatchewan?
That's awesome, I'm glad things are getting busier for you in your town. More job opportunities are always fantastic. Do you have little ones that you're raising?

Last time I checked, the price of gas was 148.9 .... It's definitely the highest I've ever seen it.

Hahaha, oh god. I never knew would have guessed $141.20 was the cheap price!
$1,000 each way for a wedding??!!?! You may as well buy a plane ticket to Hawaii for that price!

And I don't mind the long posts, it gives me a nice reading break from the usual 3 word posts
Great to talk to you. I'm making this one short because I'm heading to bed

~Laura

Well, Saskatoon is in Saskatchewan ...but no, my family is originally from Regina, but we were living in a tiny town called Gull Lake when I was born (though I was born in Regina ..small town hospitals, eh ..) Yeah, we moved out here when I was 3 months old (according to my biggest brother, I was 2 months old ...who should I believe, him or my parents? He was 12 when we moved. My parents were 34 )

Wow, so even with all the gas company competition down there the price is still skyhigh. I never would have guessed it would be higher there than here, considering we have to pay the huge transport fees to get it here!

Hawaii? Nah. Australia would be my choice -- and about the same price, yeah Hey, if they don't want to go ..I'll gladly take the vacay!

This is probably my shortest post ever ...for the same reason as you gave ..it's bedtime. Sweet dreams!

Haha, I had to reply one last time and then I'm going to bed!!

Funny that you were born in Regina. That's where my mom was born, although she was born there 30 or so years before you! And if memory serves me right... big brothers are liars!! I'd believe your parends

*dreams about Australia* ... ya I'd definitely want to go there too My #1 place to visit right now would be England. There's just something about it that draws me to it. All I know from it is pictures and shots from movies, but I've already partly fallen in love with it. And plus the fact that everyone talks to you with an accent!!

Ok, that's all for now. I'll check back tomorrow

~Laura

Hope you slept well

Australia has always been "IT" for me ..it's the ONE place I want to see before I go from this earth. I think the koalas and kangaroos have something to do with it ..LOL!! One of the girls I met while in South Africa has since moved to Australia -- she's pretty much the only one I've REALLY kept in touch with on a regular basis since my trip there 10.5 years ago -- so I would have a place to stay. She's sent me pictures and stuff and I would be there TOMORROW if the airfare wasn't so high ...it is gorgeous!

I could do England, although not high, high on my list. It used to be, but for some reason, as I've gotten older, it's lost some of the fascination ..I don't know why. If I ever decided to visit though, one of the guys I met in South Africa now lives there so .......

Come to think of it. Most of the people I met and spent a lot of time with in South Africa have LEFT South Africa. I LOVED it there, they all hate it ...

Haha.. I think we're officially taking over the Canadian DC fans post!!

And I did have a good sleep... until it was ruined by the fact that I had to get up for school

Australia is definitely in my top 5 list... even my top 3. Okay, it's my 2nd place! I did a project in grade 7 and have just wanted to go there ever since. I think you're right... it might very well be the koalas and kangaroos!
That's hilarious that you have friends all over the map. It comes in handy for when you want to leave on a whim... ya, I never do that either... but it's nice to dream about it.

I find myself living vicariously through other people, so feel free to share your trip to South Africa as much as you want. I encourage you to post pictures if you're up to it too!
Or you could p.m. me pics if you feel more comfortable.

I think one of my favourite things to do is look at other peoples pictures. Just to see the things that they see. That's the best kind of photography.

~Laura

Well, we may be monopolizing the thread but anyone can jump in at any time ....feel free to do so!! We just seemed to catch a common thread and have made it more conversational ..hehe!

That's funny how you say that about your report you did in grade school. I did mine on Egypt ..yet I really have no desire to go there. I mean, of course, the pyramids and such so I WOULD if the opportunity arose but I don't think I would ever PLAN a trip there (circumstances depending, of course ..things might change ..lol!) I have been on the Internet for over a decade now and have made friends all over the world ..many of whom I have actually met face-to-face but many more I would like to! Just so happens that one country I visited, all the occupants decided to jump ship ..lol ..but yeah, it definitely gives incentive to go visit other places, for sure!

Pictures are my thing too ..I love em ..taking them and looking at them! I'll see what I can do about finding some pics from my trip to S'Africa for you ...although that was before the age of digital cameras ...I only scanned my photos once and decided to play doctor with them so they aren't the greatest quality. I have it on my to-do list to rescan them now that I know what I'm doing but I just haven't gotten around to it yet. I took over 300 of them so the task seems kinda daunting, but I'll get there one day

i always wondered what the rest of Canada is like. so far, in my quarter-century of life, i've only been to New Brunswick. i have quite a few relatives there, they all seem to be situated in Bathurst. a couple are in Campbelton,
it's been years since i've seen anyone from there. and also, my cousin got married last October, and she sent pictures!! that was really cool.

i think i bored you guys enough now.

~Carrie~

Ya, Egypt would be a cool place to go for that whole pyramids = one of the seven wonders of the world thing... It's on my travel list (to be honest, so is every other place in the world) but I probably won't get to it for a while.
That's so neat that you managed to meet some of the people you met on the internet. I find it a strange reality being friends/accomplices with someone online and then meeting them in the flesh and blood. It's almost like you've made this person up because you can't actually see them and then when you do, you realize you're not crazy after all!!
I got your pm and I'm just about to head to bed again, but I will answer you back by Thursday for sure. I usually just come on here for a quick little question and answer session at the end of the night during my school days and then on my days off I really go to town on the happenings of the internet.

Travel question (anyone can answer this): What are your top 5 places that you would love to travel to?


No not at all Carrie. It's not boring

My top 5 ..

1. Australia (as stated previously)
2. The Netherlands (Holland -- my best friend/siamese twin sister lives here ..we were separated at birth, born 9 years apart on different continents to different parents. You know when you just have that connection with someone? Yeah, mine's with her...we're so alike we scare ourselves sometimes ..heh)
3. New York City (I've been there once and fell in love INSTANTLY. I want to go back sooo bad)
4. Italy (mostly for the fooooooooooood!)
5. LA (it's been a dream of mine since I was about 7 ..)

OK, since everyone is doing this, I might as well ...
My Top 5:

1. Egypt
2. Kenya
3. LA
4. Australia
5. Russia

Although I did put LA after Kenya, it's probably a tie ...
being in LA goes along with my obsession with Hollywood and anything that glitters
Hope to be there at some point next year, but we'll see ...

That's an interesting fact ... I sure hope he decides to include Canada in his tour plans and not just the big centers but that's probably asking too much.

Hi everybody!!
Im another DC fan from Canada, in Quebec! Im so sad because I would not be able to see David in Toronto!! snifff... Hope you guys will tell me how the show was! Oh and Sorry for my english, I speak french:P

From the information that's available, 8 of 16 have had higher positions in Canada than the US. If we remove the ones that we have no Canadian data for, it puts it at 8 of 10. I bet if I scoured deeper, I could find chart info for the 6 missing titles but I don't have time to do so right now. Not bad since Idol only airs here and we have no voice in the votes. He's just gotta include us when he tours ...

"Dream Big" US: 15 CAN: 21

"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" US: 22 CAN: 17

"The World I Know" US: 28 CAN: 24

"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" US: 42 CAN: 43

"Billie Jean" US: 47 CAN: 41

"Always Be My Baby" US: 67 CAN: 59

"Hello" US: 73 CAN: 57

"The Music of the Night" US: 77 CAN: 73

"Eleanor Rigby" US: 92 CAN: 83

"I'm Alive" US: 99 CAN: No chart info available

"Little Sparrow" US: 101 CAN: 96

"Hungry Like the Wolf" US: 103 CAN: No chart info available

"Innocent" US: 104 CAN: No chart info available

"Day Tripper" US: 114 CAN: No chart info available

"All Right Now" US: 118 CAN: No chart info available

"Happy Together" US: 125 CAN: No chart info available

Hey Cath ... welcome to our little Canadian Forum ... don't worry about your English ... it sounds ok to me.

I will definitely let you know how it goes in Toronto ... pics will be posted on our Facebook page ...
Canadian Cookies

Thanks for the info on the charts, by the way ... I'm sure that he'll make Canada a major stop on his tour ... we'll show him so much love at the Toronto show that he won't have a choice.

Are any of you guys watching Canadian Idol this season?

I sure am! I can't believe we're to the Top 22 Show already! Time flies with Idol!! LOL!!



Seeing a lot of good talent tonight but A LOT of them are cracking under the pressure...

YAY!! I've just "Been Cook'ified"--my 50th Post!!

You bet! Was really hard the first week, hearing that music and knowing I wasn't going to be seeing that familiar face after the opening sequence. *le sigh* But yeah, I've watched every season of CI except for the first. An acquaintence of mine has made mention that there's a local boy who auditioned in Vancouver and made it to the top 200 ...I don't know the kid though, never heard of him. This is a really small town but we have like, ZERO music scene here and all the bands that form always move to Kelowna (we've had 2 success stories so far! Any of you guys ever hear of Glasshead or Anything August? Both those bands were formed here ...the guys from Anything August provided hours of entertainment at my last job at a convenience store when they'd come in in the middle of the night for their sugar fix ...they're great guys ..very polite/funny! Addicted to Jalapeno Miss Vickies chips and Sour Apple Jones Soda ..haha! They had some success on MuchMusic with one of their videos ..was in pretty high rotation over the summer 2 years ago... but I digress ...) Kelowna....that's where CI says this kid is from so, who knows. I don't know much at this stage of the game.

I thought it was killa hilarious the other week when Ben was like "Welcome to the new season of American Idol!! ....Canadian ...Canadian!! CANADIAN IDOL!!" I nearly peed my pants!

I definitely am ... not bad so far. Some people they put through are questionable, but I think Drew looks interesting ... and few more do, too, but their names escape me right now.

I have to admit that after the excitement of AI and Cookie this year, I am having a hard time getting into it. I fear he's ruined all other Idol shows for me ... aaahhh! cookie, what have you done???

I kinda feel the same way, having a hard time getting into it after the great David's showdown .. but it gets a bit better each week.

Sweet list Christine


Thanks for sharing yours too Deena
You also have some great locations on yours.



Here's mine:
1. England
2. Australia
3. Bora Bora (when I eventually meet my future husband BB is where we're having our honeymoon)
4. Costa Rica
5. New York

This list makes me dream of happy places

Dreaming of happy places ... part of the joys of life.

Oh, can I add David's arms to my list of happy places?

Oh I think that one is implied and automatic, my dear!

Good point ... I suppose it is implied

Hey all, what's happening? Everyone is so quiet lately ... what's new in the world of cookies north of the border?

Well, I'm sitting at home with my deck door wide open, sweating in the 35* weather, without air conditioning, trying not to move. My cat keeps rubbing her warm furry body against me... I don't think I've ever wanted to shave her more
I want to go out, but I'm waiting until the sun sets a little bit more so I can go to the mall. It's a 20 minute walk and I'd prefer not to sweat the whole way there
Don't take this the wrong way... I love love love the sun and I'm so glad it's finally stopped raining.

I'm also sitting here thinking about the fact that in 2 weeks exactly I will be at the American Idols concert....


What's going on with you Deena?

Hello again!

I dissappeared for a while!!! I had a lot of school stuff and then I moved. I finally got my internet connection back...and you can guess what the first thing I did was It's REALLY soon until the A.I concert in Toronto. I'm so excited!!!

And yeah it's really hot here. But it's Canada day. And a happy Canada day to everyone!!!! I'm going down to the lake to watch the fireworks! Have a good day/night wherever you are!!

bumping this !! only 21 days till the day of the show!!!!!!


join us!

Facebook! canadian cookies

myspace! canadian cookies

Hello fellow Canadians.
I have one huge thing to complain about - that the American Idols only went to Toronto!!! I live in Alberta. That would be a fun trip. I might as well just go to one near the border, if I could find a way to get there, that is...but, I digress. The only reason I would even go to the show would be so I could see Cookie. He better tour Canada one day, or I'll be mad. Haha, okay, I'm done venting to people who will actually listen.

Hello everyone I'm also a huge DC canadian fan and I'm from Montreal now currently living in Laval. At first, I wasn't really into going to the AI tour but after hearing all the excitement from fans going, I had to go. I almost didn't get to go since I couldn't buy my ticket online but one member here miss gloria is keeping one ticket for me. ( Huge thanks, whoooo!! although I'm spending alot for my bus ticket ( i'm going back home right after the show but to see Cookie it's all worth it. ) I can't wait and to all of you going, any ideas on what to wear or are you making a sign to stand out or anything. It'd be great to have a Canadian DC from david-cook.org gathering before the show. P.S this is my first AI concert and I want everything to be perfect. For those who asked, I'm also billingual. Peace

HEY!!!! I'm Canadian. Vancouver FTW?!
DC rules. yada yada. I'll be back to post in here after I've slept...its 6am and I haven't gone to bed yet... damn insomnia.

Hi Canadian West Coaster
Hope you got the sleep you needed.
Did you happen to make it down to the Tacoma Idol tour stop?

Well, Canadian Cookies ... how awesome was the show? And did anyone else meet david before the show, at the Meet and greet ... i did and it was phenomenal ... just as I had imagined it.

I'm from Montreal as well! I really hope he makes a stop in Montreal when he tours...otherwise, I might have to make the trip to Toronto....but I really don't feel like driving 6 hours to get there!!

Greetings to all you Canadian DC fans. Glad I found this place! I was at the Toronto concert and please help me, someone please. I had been in a depressed state for several days before the concert and still had a cloud over my head that Saturday. Can you imagine how angry I was, waiting all that time and not being able to shake this mood? Was it me or was David angry/sad at our concert. I cried for days thinking that he hated us or that we didn't show him enough of our love and that he would not tour here.
I can't bare this thought. It took another week for me to feel normal again. I sure would like to get some feedback. I don't know how to manoeuver through facebook or my space so this is my only venu.
I waited around for two hours after the show and to add insult to injury, David and Ramiele were the only two who didn"t come out that evening.

I'm not sure what you mean about him being angry/sad ... we met him at the meet and greet before the show and he was rushed, but perfectly nice to us. We gave him a basket that he loved and he was smiling and laughing. I think he was just rushed cause they were doing press and they were late (for one reason or another). He went through everyone in line, when he signed things, he asked for everyone's name and he was just awesome, as I thought he would be.

Sorry you didn't get to shake his hand, but I'm pretty sure he'll be back ... he told us he would when we asked before the show. I hope you get to meet him then ... he's awesome!

Deena,

Thanks for the info. Nice to know he told you he would be back. I was wondering if he got a sense of how much he is loved here in Canada for his music, charm, personality, wit, etc. during the ACC concert in Toronto. The Archie fans were very loud. I couldn't tell from where I was sitting if we were just as loud for him. My reference to him being sad was a feeling I had because he mentioned something about visiting a child who had leukemia, I think.
My reference to thinking he was angry was probably the "rock persona" part of singing rock. I had watched all his performances from the other cities and he seemed to have talked more to the other fans. That's where my insecurity lies.

Can anyone enlighten me or give me their take on their concert experience.

With much gratitude

M

Hey
Deena, I was born and raised in Montreal thou I left in 73. Don't you guys have your own Idol? Well, I don't blame you for liking Cook - he's a magnet!

Hey all!
Ontario loves their Cookies
Unfortunately, I cannot go to the ACC for the tour.
Its a shame. I live VERY close to Toronto.

omg they came to Toronto!! As in Canada! haha, I went to America To see them

Hello ALL! I have an announcement to make ...
as of November 18, we will have a proper site, and I'm hoping to get it working in conjunction with this site and all other sites that love David.

It's www.canadiancookies.ca

I have been working on it for months now and hope to get it up and running the weekend before the CD release.

Thanks for your support and I look forward to seeing you all there.

Thanks Deena for the info!! If you need any help with graphic designs or codes for the new site, please let me know.


Stephora

site is up! go see what a beautiful job Deena had done.

www.canadiancookies.ca

Hi, I just registered here, and I knew from the very begining of AI just how good our Cookie is. All of the other contestants, except for Amanda Overmyer and Carly Smithson, got by based on how cute they were.
I said to my mother "he's really good. I hope he wins." I think that everyone underestimated David Cook. Even Simon admitted that he was wrong to berate David C the way that he did during the finale.
I'm just glad America voted based on who was the most talented and not on who was the cutest. I was super annoyed when Bo Bice lost to Carrie Underwood in season 4 because everyone thought that she was so cute. I hate it when people vote for AI contestants based on who's the cutest and not on the talent that the contestants put forward.
I hope they vote that way again in January.

Oh! I just found this thread.
Hi all my Canadian Cookies!!!
I want to see him in concert terribly. This videos are nice and all, but I want the whole live package!!! He must come to Ontario once the tour starts!