on may 6th, 2004 i finally became a canadian citizen. yeay!!!

tis true, the mama of the maple lounge was not a canadian...til now!

they let you bring your own holy book. i aint so holy, but i decided to bring the power of compassion by the dalai lama, just cause i could. word to the man since he was in town...

there were line ups...

and paperwork...

it took money, months and hours, but it was all worth it...

my good friend (and fellow brit) paul thorpe joined reid and i for the big day...

even skydigger/maplemusic andy maize showed up to investigate and support...
thanks andy... how ambassadorial of you...

i cried like a baby...

especially when we sang

o canada

75 people from 33 different places joined me in swearing the oath.
it was an oath to uphold the laws of canada, and strangely enough pledge allegiance to the queen of england. the judge gave the most touching and inclusive speech. we sang the anthem in both english and french. pins and flags and certificates were disbursed.

i was born in sunderland england in 1969. i came to nova scotia in 1975,
then hitchhiked to toronto when i was 19 in 1988.

canada is a great country and they pretty much treated me exactly
the same as a citizen though i was only a landed immigrant.

except i couldnt vote. and that was a big deal.
every year i would harangue at least a dozen people to vote in my stead.
this year i get to vote. how delightful!

please vote if you can.

elections.ca