Well, I do declare!!!

Canada Duty-Free Limit: Cross-Border Shoppers Enthusiastic, Canadian Retailers Worried..................

and they should be!!!

We have been overpaying for many years now - as I expressed in my rant here (as you know the goverment

reads my blog daily - and I think this was the push they needed, lol ) 

Once upon a time, many many years ago - in the land of trust and innocence - we used to cross the border constantly - and it was always such an easy process between custom officers and travellers - have a good day folks - wecome to the States -  wink wink nudge nudge..................

We would come back hiding all of our treasures - and very innocently say to the Canadian customs - Oh nothing to declare - just went to enjoy the day, lol - and 99% of the time you were simply sent on your way.
But for a long time now we have been under immense scrutiny upon entering the States and then again upon returning to Canada.
It's become a headache - even though Montreal is only a half hour or so from the N.Y. border.

Wow - we can now spend 800 dollars if we go for 2 to 7 days - I can cram a lot into my suitcases with that!
And online shopping will become more feasible as well.

Anything to declare Ma'am?
Yes - a big huge THANKS!

BTW - I really am a little torn with this - it's going to hurt CDN retailers big time - but maybe - just maybe this will turn things around?  I mean our dollar is now on par - shouldn't our merchandise be also?  There is going to be a lot of CDN dollars going into the U.S. economy until things shape up at home I'm afraid.
In the meantime

Hobby Lobby - here I come ( the drawer pulls - the stencils - the crafts - oh my )

XXX

Cleaning out my computer and laughing out loud

I am deleting a bunch of old emails - and came across this - laugh at loud funny - it can go for any country I am sure! ( at least here on the good old North American Continent )

The truest things are the funniest

Happy wknd all

XXX

  A letter to the Canadian Passport office

  Dear Mr. Minister,

  

  I'm in the process of renewing my passport, and still cannot

  believe this.

  How is it that Radio Shack has my address and telephone number

  and knows that I bought a t.v. cable from them back in 1997, and yet, the

  Federal Government is still asking me where I was born and on what date.

  For God sakes, do you guys do this by hand?

  My birth date you have on my social insurance card, and it is on all the

  income tax forms I've filed for the past 30 years. It is on my health

  insurance card, my driver's license, on the last eight fricking passports

  I've had, on all those stupid customs declaration forms I've had to fill out

  before being allowed off the planes over the last 30 years, and all those

  insufferable census forms that are done at election times.

  Would somebody please take note, once and for all, that my mother's name is

  Maryanne, my father's name is Robert and I'd be absolutely astounded if that

  ever changed between now and when I die!!!!!!

  SHIT!

  I apologize, Mr. Minister. I'm really pissed off this morning.

  Between you an' me, I've had enough of this bullshit! You send the

  application to my house, then you ask me for my #%^ address. What is going on?

  You have a gang of Neanderthal assholes workin' there!

  Look at my damn picture. Do I look like Bin Laden? I don't want

  to dig up Yasser Arafat, for shit sakes. I just want to go and park my ass

  on a sandy beach.

  And would someone please tell me, why would you give a shit whether I plan

  on visiting a farm in the next 15 days? If I ever got the urge to do

  something weird to a chicken or a goat, believe you me, I'd sure

  as hell not want to tell anyone!

  Well, I have to go now, 'cause I have to go to the other end of the city and

  get another ^&*%$ copy of my birth certificate, to the tune of $60!!!

  Would it be so complicated to have all the services in the same spot to

  assist in the issuance of a new passport the same day??

  Nooooo, that'd be too damn easy and maybe make sense. You'd

  rather have us running all over the ^%$* place like chickens with our heads

  cut off, then find some idiot to confirm that it's really me on the damn picture

  - you know, the one where we're not allowed to smile?!  ( &^%^& morons )

                     

  Hey, you know why we can't smile? We're totally pissed off!

  Signed - An Irate %$#% Canadian Citizen.

  

  P.S. Remember what I said above about the picture and getting

  someone to confirm that it's me? Well, my family has been in this country

  since 1776,  I have served in the military for something over 30 years and have had

  security clearances up the yingyang.

  I was aide de camp to the lieutenant governor of our province for ten years

  and I have been doing volunteer work for the RCMP for about five years.

  However, I have to get someone 'important' to verify who I am - you know,

  someone like my doctor WHO WAS BORN AND RAISED IN COMMUNIST

  China and has only been here 4 years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!