The wonderful Canadians who visit Phoenix and Southern California


I've lived in Phoenix, and Southern California, for all of my adult life. And if you're like me, today, January 25th, in Phoenix, the cold rain, while it's "good for the crops" is kind of annoying. I like to go out and pedal around, but it's been raining on and off all day, and it's only in the high forties. Brrrrr!

But I just did a quick pedal over to my local McDonalds to get my coffee a few minutes ago, because I saw a break in the weather, and besides it only takes me a few minutes there and back, and I put on my nice thermal undershirt, and a shirt over it, and a jacket over that, and my gloves and braved the cold.

And while I was standing there, leaning against the rail, facing the cold wind and sipping my coffee, I was greeted by some Canadians, who made this day much, much, better for me. And it's something that Canadians have done for me for the past forty years and more, they remind me how wonderful it is here.

While everyone else I saw go through the drive-through had their windows tightly rolled up, and presumably their heater on, a couple of guys in a Shelby Ford truck rolled past me, windows down and shouted that I was wearing a "Canadian Tuxedo". In a long life I thought I knew everything, but I'd never heard that term before - it's denim with denim. I'm wearing bluejeans and I wore a jean jacket, which is the heaviest jacket that I own. I took a "reflection selfie" to show you.

These guys were just outrageously happy. Part of it, of course, was youthful energy (my best guess is that they were in their twenties, couldn't have been much more than thirty), but mostly they were just so happy with the weather. After I clarified what they meant by a "Canadian Tuxedo", I learned that the temperature was forty eight, which to them was absolutely wonderful. I told them that I was freezing my ___ off (we're guys, after all) and they laughed. And I just love being reminded of how I felt during my first winter in Phoenix, having grown up in Minneapolis.

My friends and I in Santa Barbara always called anyone that we saw in the ocean in the winter "Canadians", and it was a bit of a snark from the locals. The people who had grown up there couldn't possibly understand, but I did.

Thank you so much, Canadians! You're wonderful! Welcome to Phoenix!
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