Memories Of Times Gone By and Remembering Our First Border Guard
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
Canada
June 25, 2016 5:38pm CST
My friend @crazyhorseladycx said something in a comment on a post of mine and reminded me of an unforgettable trip I took with my children.
When my husband was recruited to work in Canada we were happy, it was something he had been dreaming about for years and here it was right in front of us.
We were living in Kansas.
He left me in Kansas so the children could finish the school year, a moving Van arrived for our stuff and I took the kids in the car for a trip that was to be nothing but fun. We stopped and spent several nights with friends we made in the years we had moved around the state of Kansas. Then we drove to Indiana and stayed with friends we made there.
By the time I got to the border with the legal papers that allowed us to enter the country I was really tired. To the point of being a “space cadet”.
The Border guard asked me if we were “landed” and I said. NO WE'RE STILL HOVERING!
The look on his face made me KNOW I should not have said that. I learned quickly to keep my mouth shut and just answer the questions at the border.
I apologized and told him I was really tired and asked what “landed meant”. His response was if you don't know what it means then you aren't. After checking my papers he bent down with a big smile to the level of my children and talked to them and got them to laugh. Then he sent us on our way wishing us happiness in Canada.
We beat our Moving Van so we spent a night with Daddy in a Hotel in Hamilton. The kids love hotels...Hubby had already rented a house on the shore of Lake Ontario for us.
The kids and I left the next day to cross the border again and visit with my parents (NY) and his parents (MASS) for the summer while he worked and waited for our furniture.
Later that summer when the house had furniture we headed back to Canada.. It was a lovely home, very peaceful and a quiet neighborhood.
To this day those Border Guards still make me nervous. They must practice that stern face.
Sometimes traveling is truly an adventure.
The photo taken by me on some trip...
14 people like this
11 responses
@jaboUK (64346)
• United Kingdom
26 Jun 16
Love the photo.
Your experience reminds me of when my husband went to work in France. He went 3 months before us, then I packed everything up and drove with two small children to the coast, took the ferry and then on down through France.
Like you, I was tired by the time I got there.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64346)
• United Kingdom
26 Jun 16
@PainsOnSlate Yes they do, but I had a smattering of French anyway.
2 people like this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
26 Jun 16
It is exhausting when the children are little, potty stops, tummy aches, traffic and boredom all makes it tiring. At least going to Canada there was not a language difference, Do the border guards speak English in France?
2 people like this
@rebelann (117267)
• El Paso, Texas
26 Jun 16
Nope, decades ago I'd go with mom to get gas or whatnot @PainsOnSlate but I personally never go over there ..... right now I don't because it requires a passport and mine is severely outdated.
2 people like this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
26 Jun 16
I've never driven into Mexico, Do you ever do that?
2 people like this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
28 Jun 16
@rebelann My cousin is going to visit Niagara Falls so I invited him to stay at my place over night...his response was no passport...will call you when I get a hotel... because I have duel citizenship I have both US and Canadian passports.
1 person likes this
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
3 Jul 16
@PainsOnSlate So I must wear that innocent face too when I cross that border.
1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
2 Jul 16
The border guards are always there. Every time we cross the border, we have to show our passports and answer jest ions, I crossed the other day and it was a young man who asked where I was going and I said camping, he didn't look into my car or ask anything else. He handed my passport back and said Have a good time. ....it was my innocent face...
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (174657)
• United States
26 Jun 16
Your picture looks like some type of airport landing strip with the target lanes all lit up and ready to guide you in! LOL!
Uhm ... yeah, trying to joke with a border guard might not have been the wisest decision you made that day, hon!
1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
27 Jun 16
It was my first encounter as an adult, I thought it would be easy, not the way it worked out.
@sallypup (69217)
• Centralia, Washington
2 Jul 16
@PainsOnSlate Dogs do add a little excitement to the mix.
1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
2 Jul 16
I just read your post. My children all have dogs, they usually go camping with us and experience the border ofte,this years camp is going to be dog free...
1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
2 Jul 16
Yes, when you become a legal immigrant but not a citizen, you are a landed immigrant. It's allows you the benefits of a citizen, like free medical. We were landed after being here a short time , we had to go to immigration on both sides and get passports US and Canada, and then allowed to live there as long as we wanted. When or children wanted citizenship (son was considering military, and daughter was thinking politics) we all became duel citizens.
@Juliaacv (56358)
• Canada
26 Jun 16
They make me nervous also, and even moreso since the events of 9/11, but your story is so cute.
I remember a number of years ago, we crossed to shop for the day.
My Dad was driving with my mother in the front seat, a sister-in-law, our then teenage son and myself were in the backseat. Totally by accident, my Dad got into the Nexus line, and it being just about 6 weeks since the 9/11 attack, without a Nexus pass, my Dad was asked to pull his vehicle over. There was a small sticker placed on our windshield and he was asked to go with the patrolmen. It was a very innocent accident, he did not see the small sign. The next thing we knew there were patrolmen at all of the doors of the SUV asking us to get out and they were so intimidating. I just held my breath hoping that our son wouldn't say the wrong thing. We were escorted in and each interviewed as to where we were from and where we were going and the purpose of our trip. We never cross the border without remembering that incident-it was a bit excessive, but given the times I can understand it.
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
2 Jul 16
Since we are so close to Niagara we cross often. I have had my car searched often before 9/11 but now it seems easier because everyone must have a passport, I haven't been searched in years...I've never been pulled in and questioned...that must have been scary...I accidentally went through the wrong lane a few months ago and ended up paying $50....it came in the mail.
1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
2 Jul 16
I go from Canada to the US often only because I live about 30 minutes away from the border
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
3 Jul 16
He was a tall, handsome black mam in uniform. It was an impressive sight to see 
I would have enjoyed the event if I hadn't been so tired. I knew I was very close to where we would see my husband.
I would have enjoyed the event if I hadn't been so tired. I knew I was very close to where we would see my husband.1 person likes this
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
2 Jul 16
We get used to it, there have been stressful crossings, usually when they a re looking for someone, but that doesn't happen often. And the older I Get, the less interest is given, this old lady...
1 person likes this
@RubyHawk (99367)
• Atlanta, Georgia
2 Jul 16
@PainsOnSlate that's one good thing about getting older.
1 person likes this
