My Take on Canada's Military
Despite what many Canadians say and think about it, our Armed Forces give me warm fuzzies. I grew up in the Air Force. My dad flew search and rescue missions in the Rockies and throughout coastal BC. Once he was sent up North, to support a naval operation looking for a dark Russian submarine near Baffin Island. It was top secret at the time and we didn't know where he was - even my mother, who played single parent to three kids for weeks on end.

Because of our military background, I:
- have lived in six places in four Canadian provinces. I don't know anyone else who can say that. Most people I know have lived in one place their whole lives.
- have fished for salmon in the Georgia Strait, have skated the Rideau Canal, have survived a Winnipeg winter, and picked apples on Montreal's Rive Sud.
- have flown over the Rockies more times than I remember.
- know that Nanaimo is a place AND a dessert.
- could fly across Canada for $3.00, or overseas for $10.00 - space allowing.
- always, always won the "my dad could beat up your dad" game.

My "Canadian military" is vastly different from most people's "Canadian military". I don't think of the aging equipment, lack of federal support, or decaying planes; rather, I think of what it felt like to fly in a Buffalo or a Chinook, what the hangars smelled like, fun squadron displays and air shows, events at "The Mess", how smart Dad looked in his dress blues, the excitement of another new school, how happy we were when he came home after a mission. It was a different way of life with a special - less permanent but still special sense of community. People made friends, but didn't expect them to be around for very long; I attended four schools in as many years. That's likely responsible for my determination to never ever move again (barring large lotto win), but I have only wonderful memories of all the schools, all the houses, and all the people I met along the way. That's my military. The planes were shiny then, and like me, everybody was very proud.