I discovered something when I worked in Sundre for the summers; it is customary to give a casual wave as you pass another vehicle on a gravel road. This ranges from a nod to a raised hand to just a single finger (never the middle) lifted off the steering wheel as you pass and make eye contact. I’m not sure why it’s done. It may be a case of seeing so few other humans that they feel the need to show a bit of solidarity "Hey, we’re both human." or "Hey, we both drive trucks." It could be "Thanks for not running me off the road." or "Thanks for slowing down a bit and not dusting me out." It might be a bit of tradition left over from when you actually knew every single person on the back roads, or at least knew them by association, and the custom has now transitioned to pass that little touch of friendliness on to strangers.

It’s a friendly little tradition, quaint and instantly comfortable, but one that just doesn’t make the transition back to busier parts. I can’t even imagine trying to give a finger wave (not the hair kind) to every single person you drive past in, say, Toronto. You would develop a repetitive strain injury within two blocks. (Although there are some people that try to do this with the wrong finger, but we won’t say what we think of them.)

My partner in Sundre once brought her mom down to visit and took her on a tour of the area. Melissa explained the whole "casual wave" custom to her mom. Her mom was so excited about it that the first truck that passed she sat bolt upright in her seat, plastered on an ear-to-ear grin and waved as if she had found her long-lost twin. The old farmer nearly ate his beard and drove off the road. The poor man probably spent months wondering why this crazy Dutch woman was hitting on him.

Apparently, people who ride Harleys have a similar tradition of nodding to others riding Harleys. Since I have no first hand knowledge, I’m not going to expand on this in particular. I just thought that the similarity was worth pointing out by way of contrast.

I have just discovered that the cane people do the same thing. Seriously, there is a "cane people" culture. My friend’s boyfriend has injured his back and has been walking with a cane for the past month or so. They have discovered that when other people with a cane pass him on the street they will give a nod as if to say, "Got a cane? I approve. I, too, have a cane." or "Hey baby, nice cane." or "Cane solidarity! Viva la revolucion!" At any rate, there is an entire cane culture that we had absolutely no idea was out there.

What’s next? Walkers? Crutches? We’ll I can vouch that there does not appear to be a crutch culture, but let me tell you, the next time I’m on crutches I may start one.

"Viva la revolucion!"

(I bet you thought this was going to be about little men made of candy canes in the style of gingerbread men. Boy, were you wrong.)