Finally Canadian

I've been a landed immigrant in Canada since I was a child in 1957, crossing the Atlantic from Britain on the rolling and pitching SS Newfoundland. Its been a wonderful adventure in a terrific country, but I never went for actual citizenship I guess because I'm a procrastinator with an aversion to paperwork. After 9-11 there was suddenly a requirement for a $50. plastic card to identify all the dastardly immigrants which I found quite insulting after all my tax paying years. Renewable at $50. or more every 5 years. So I got the card because I had to, and then we had occasion to cross the border into Maine, wherupon the opportunistic american border guards fleeced me for $6.00 because I had a british passport. No explanation given for such discrimination. When I asked the Canadian side about it the man was completely unaware of the fee.

So with a stupid $6.00 rather arbitrary toll cutting into my fun at Mardens Discount Everything in Calais, ME, I decided that's it, the last $6.00 the buggers will get from me. So I paid my $200. to the Canadian government (It's the principle of the thing) and a year of aggravating paperwork later, Im waiting for my swearing in ceremony that was promised in may, and I see in the newspaper to my dismay, a photo of the said ceremony attended the day before by a large group of colorfully clad happy immigrant/new citizens fresh off the boat so to speak. "Wait a minute ! I've been here since 1957! How could you not invite me to the party??" Paperwork screwup, I got lost in the mail somehow. So the nice people at citizenship & immigration scheduled my own private swearing in ceremony yesterday. I am now a fully fledged Canadian Citizen. Take that america!