Photo by futureatlas

With our country’s Independence Day coming up, this story from the far off land of Canada — well, the Canadian Embassy, that is — reminds us that there are other countries out there that have trivial problems too, just like us! Up until this year, the Canadian Embassy has celebrated Canada Day with open arms and doors. Maybe not the first thing one would think of doing on a Friday night, particularly one before our own July Fourth celebrations, but an interesting one nonetheless. But this past Friday Canada festivities at the embassy were minced, having called the open house a “Canada Day networking event” and limited the guest list to approximately 100 embassy contacts and relations.

Much like the budget wrangling on this side of the border, cost cutbacks are the reason for the “downscaling,” which is brow-raising since previous years have featured traditional, yet decadent, Canadian fare such as hotdogs, hamburgers and beer. (Sorry, no foie gras poutine or caribou meat pie)

Just remember, Canadians have had a rough past month, so go ahead and welcome a Canadian expat to your festivities tomorrow and party with your neighbors to the North.