compiled and updated by, your friend:
"The Joketender"
a.k.a.: Blair B. Stobie
at least that's what they say in the line up at imigration.
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* Canada is the fifth-largest producer of diamonds by value in the world, after Botswana, Russia, South Africa and Angola. By 2010, the Northwest Territories, the only place in Canada where diamonds are mined, is expected to produce as much as 15 percent of the world's diamonds.
* In 1968, it became legal to stand while drinking beer in Manitoba beverage rooms. The regulation required a patron to have a seat "but a drinker does not have to be in his seat to be served. He can wander around the room carrying his glass". However, the patron still is not allowed to drink while standing.
* In the year 2000, British Columbia planted more than 203 million seedlings to help reforest areas that were harvested, destroyed by wildfire or damaged by insects and disease. Over the course of the year, that's 6.4 seedlings per second.
* Norma Macmillan of Vancouver was the voice of Casper, the Friendly Ghost. Macmillan, who died in March 2001, was also the voice of several other cartoon characters, including the bendable green Gumby and Sweet Polly Purebred in the Underdog TV cartoon series.
* When the Dionne quintuplets were babies, they lived in a hospital nursery named Quintland in Corbeil, Ont., where they became a money making tourist attraction. In Quintland's heyday, the girls brought in about $500 million, which at one point outstripped the tourism revenue earned by Niagara Falls.
* Prince Edward Island began as three islands. When glaciers of the last ice age melted, the water level of the Atlantic Ocean rose and only on P.E.I. remained, likely about 3,000 years ago.
* Up until 1973 the Yukon Territory had its own time zone. It then changed to Pacific time.
* About 31 per cent of Canadians are involved in some kind of volunteer work. In most years, about 7.5 million Canadians volunteer 1.1 billion hours of their time. Two thumbs up, eh!
* The most dramatic diamond discovered to date in Canada is a 10.22 carat pearl shaped diamond cut and polished from a rough diamond and valued at $522,000. It was unearthed at Lac de Gras in the North west Territories. At its widest point it is about the size of a dime.
* Francophone residents of Quebec are Canada's most avid viewers of television, watching an average of 26 hours each week, says Statistics Canada. The rest of Canada spends an average of 22.7 hours in front of the television.
* In 1903, Ontario became the first province to issue car licences, which took the form of patent leather plaques with aluminum numbers. At the time, other provinces issued individual motorists with a number for their vehicle and left it to the owners to make their own plates, usually from wood, metal or leather.
* Famous cartoonist Lynn Johnston, best known for her strip "For Better or Worse", began her career illustrating medical journals.
* On May 1, 1900, in Winnipeg a horse buggy and car collided in what was Canada's first recorded auto accident. No word on who got the worst of it, the guy in the buggy, the car or the horse?
* Canada is the world's largest exporter of forestry products, with more than 16 percent of total world exports.
Resourses, including lumber and paper, represent about 20 percent of the country's total exports, compared with 40 percent in 1963.
* Canadians love to drink their water, as evidenced by a 31 per cent increase in the sale of bottled water in 2001. By comparison, carbonated soft drink sales rose by just one per cent. Milk drinkers downed five percent more milk in 2000.
* In 1903, Canada tried to acquire the Alaskan panhandle which runs along the coast of British Columbia, but an international tribunal of three Americans, two Canadians, and one British representative voted 4-2 to award the land to the U.S..
* One of Exeter, Ontario's clames to fame is that it's home to a rare type of squirrel. Though they are a genetic anomaly, the squirrels are not albinos.
* There were more than 10 million beavers in North America before European settlers arrived and started the fur trade.
* Some hockey players have long careers without ever winning a championship. An the there is Jean Beliveau. The former Montreal Canadiens captain has had his name engraved on the Stanley Cup more than anyone - 17 times, 10 as a player and seven as an executive.
- Canadians reached a debit card milestone in 2001, using the Interac Direct Payment (IDP) service 2.24 billion times.
- About 47 per cent said they use IDP most when paying for goods and services.
- 29 per cent said they use cash most when paying for goods and services.
26 per cent said they use IDP five or more times per week.
Source: Interac Association Survey
March break spending trends.
Data collected from credit and debit card transactions over the March break (March 11 - 17) revealed the following:
- Overall spending on debit and credit cards increased 4.46 per cent.
- Spending at sports apparel stores rose 23.6 per cent.
- Health and beauty spa sales were up almost 87 per cent.
Source: Monteris Solutions
Woman gave away savings by mistake!
NEW BRUNSWICK A Kelowna woman is trying to recover $40,000 after accidentally tossing it into a charity bin earlier this month, CBC.ca reports.
The woman, 63, had dropped off some old clothing for Big Brothers and Sisters of Canada.
But she forgot that inside the box was a small pouch holding 80 $1,000 bills - about half of her life savings.
The woman didn't realize her mistake until a week later, the RCMP said.
One person has turned in $40,000, and police are searching for the rest.
Source: MetroToday News Services
Canadian golf facts:
* The Canadian Open is the third oldest pro championship in the world.
* North America's oldest golf club is located in Montrea, Que.
Arnold Palmer's first professional victory occured in Canada.
* On a per capita basis, Canada is home to more golfers than any other country.
* About 71 million rounds of golf will be played in Canada this year.
Source: Waterside Sports / Pro Canadian Golf Association
More Canadian news to come!