Happy Friday, here's the story of Ripples the Cat, a freedom-lovin' feline who grounded an Air Canada flight for four hours yesterday after he bolted from his carrier and stormed the cockpit. Ripples's owner, Debbie Harris, tells the Associated Press the trouble started after she went through security and someone didn't properly close the carrier after taking Ripples out for inspection. Once inside the plane's cabin, Ripples made his move: more ›

Fans of hot dogs, Canadians and Japanese food will want to head down to St. Mark's Place pronto: Japadog has landed. The hyped Vancouver transplant opened its doors last night to hungry folks looking to indulge in the kind of hot dogs you just won't get at Gray's Papaya. Like the Terimayo, a hot dog topped with teriyaki sauce, mayo and seaweed. more ›

The US Border Patrol is supposed to keep us safe from wars of Canadian aggression started by John Candy, but for the last several years they've been boarding buses and trains, arresting anyone who doesn't have proper "papers." more ›

A tour bus from Canada headed to New York City crashed into a tractor trailer in Waterloo, NY, about 270 miles from the city. The two vehicles crashed on I-90 around 1:30 a.m. in the morning and burst into flames; both vehicles were destroyed by fire. The tractor trailer's driver died while 30 of the bus's 52 passengers were injured. more ›

Yankees manager Joe Girardi has leveled accusations in recent days that division rival the Toronto Blue Jays "could be" stealing signs using illegal methods: “Signs are coveted. Anywhere you play in the game you have to protect your signs. Sometimes we have inclinations that things might be happening at certain ballparks and we’re aware of it and we try to protect our signs. The last thing you want is the hitter to know what’s coming.” Could Girardi just be sore that the Jays beat the Yankees by a combined score of 23-8 in two games in a row, or are the Jays the New England Patriots of the MLB? more ›

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge—who you know as Will and Kate, or Pippa's relatives—are coming to North America! And their itinerary for their 11-day tour looks something like this: Canada, Canada, Canada, Canada, Canada, Canada, Los Angeles. What gives Will and Kate, New York City showed you so much love prior to your nuptials! more ›

A "mildly autistic" Staten Island teen says that he was body slammed by an assistant dean at his school, leaving his left leg broken in several places. Brian Shane said he got into a fight with two other boys during gym class earlier this week at South Richmond High School when assistant dean James McKeon intervened. His parents said that the dean "grabbed Brian around the chest and wrapped his leg around Brian’s leg. They both flew backward in what my son said was like an Ultimate Wrestling move." We suppose this is one way to guarantee a spot on the dean's list. more ›

Canadians are finally jumping on the Jersey Shore bandwagon, where they will surely ride it all the way to that special place in Hades reserved for reality television enthusiasts... or it could go the other way, and they'll save civilization. Anyway, they're ready to debut their own version of the show called Lake Shore (how quaint!), which will star eight cast members (chosen out of, we find out from the preview, hundreds of hopefuls). Perhaps hoping for their own Guido-esque backlash, they've decided to refer to these cast members by ethnicity. Below, check out “The Turk,” “The Jew,” “The Albanian,” "The Romanian Jew," "The Lebanese," "The Pole," "The Czech," and "The (other) Czech." [via The Hairpin] more ›

A young environmental activist from Brooklyn was killed by a tractor trailer in Canada last week. The accident occurred last Thursday afternoon as 23-year-old Andrew Wolf was riding through New Brunswick with a group of other cyclists participating in the Ottawa-based Otesha Project, which promotes environmental responsibility among young people. Wolf was riding with two other cyclists when they were struck by the tractor-trailer; the other two were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. more ›

The government of Alberta, Canada has started a new campaign in Times Square designed to promote Canadian oil sands. And they're doing so with a minimum amount of guilt tripping. more ›

A speed bump by a school in Canada is getting decorated with a two dimensional trompe-l’œil of a young girl chasing a ball. When drivers get closer to the speed bump, the girl’s elongated form "appears to rise from the ground as cars approach, reaching 3D realism at around 100 feet, and then returning to 2D distortion once cars pass that ideal viewing distance," according to Discover Magazine. As you can see, it's pretty convincing, except that Pavement Patty's sneakers are bigger than her head, and for some reason she's playing by herself in a parking garage. Maybe that's how Canadian kids get their kicks? more ›

Waffle Day be damned. As officially decreed by a group of CU Boulder students in 2004, today is International Bacon Day. And unfortunately, the Canadians seem to have us beat on celebrations. The Official Republic of Bacon will be giving away free bacon to the first 10,000 Canadians to "Love" bacon on their Facebook page. And we're jealous, because we'd settle for Canadian bacon if it were free. Any Canadians out there feel like getting us some meat? Pat Kiernan? At least we can always go to This Is Why You're Fat for inspiration on how to celebrate. more ›

Got plans Wednesday night? Break them and go see Plants and Animals headline Bowery Ballroom, where the ebullient Montreal trio are sure to get the room grooving with their melodically fuzzy post-classic rock. The group just released the follow-up to their warmly received debut Parc Avenue; called La La Land, the record was recorded entirely in analog, mostly in an old mansion outside Paris. The result is grittier and bigger-sounding than Parc Avenue, but that elusive spirit of West Coast bonhomie remains, as does their mastery of irresistible pop hooks. A captivating live band, Plants and Animals have the rare ability to get your head bopping at first listen, as we discovered when we saw them upstage Wolf Parade at Warsaw so many years ago. Last month we spoke with the band's drummer and vocalist, Matthew Woodley, from the road. more ›

The above photo comes with a caption which reads: “Reopening of the South Fork Bridge after flood in Nov. 1940. 1941 (?)” The photo is believed to be real and unaltered, and can be found at the virtual Bralorne Pioneer Museum. So, what is that modern-day looking hipster with the fancy camera and sunglasses doing in the 1940s? Clearly, we have a time traveler on our hands. more ›

There's been a big increase in the amount of illegal drugs—heroin cocaine, marijuana and ecstasy—smuggled across the U.S.-Canadian border, and Senator Chuck Schumer is pretty bent out of shape about it. In a special Wednesday press conference, Schumer unveiled his plan to "push back hard against the recent rise in drug smuggling across the Canadian border." The surge in drug seizures by northern border agents is indeed dramatic! more ›

Canadian lawmaker Brad Wall decided to announce a fundraising pig roast with a colorful image of... the World Trade Center in flames. Never forget: the BBQ? (Coming up on April 10th!) more ›

A Manhattan judge wasn't happy when a former United Nations researcher blamed his child porn downloads—which included pictures of a 2-year-old girl having her genitals mutilated—on his curiosity. "Stop rationalizing your actions," said Judge Paul Gardephe, who sentenced 42-year-old Jose Antonio Ortega-Osona to 2 1/2 years in prison and fined him $12,500 for his collection of nearly 5,000 photos and 108 videos. "Your problem is not mere curiosity." more ›

Certain Brooklyn bagelheads have been heading to Mile End Deli in Boerum Hill today to snatch up some specially-delivered bagels from Montreal. The bagels, from St-Viateur bagel bakery, are $2.50 a pop (or a dozen for $22) and traveled overnight to get here. The folks at Brokelyn think this is très absurde, saying, "There are so many things wrong with this scenario that the mind reels trying to count them." They suggest hitting up the Bagel Hole for an 80 cent doughy delight. more ›

After shutting out the U.S. women's hockey team 2-0 and winning the gold medal, the Canadian women's hockey team celebrated their victory by—what else—breaking out beer, champagne and cigars on the rink's ice. Photographs of the revelry were taken and it did not please the International Olympic Committee. The AP apparently told the IOC's executive director of the Olympic Games, Gilbert Felli, who said that an investigation would be conducted, "[This is] not what we want to see... I don't think it's a good promotion of sport values. If they celebrate in the changing room, that's one thing, but not in public. We will investigate what happened." more ›

Last night's win by the U.S. Olympic hockey team over the favored Canadian team might indeed be a "Minor Miracle on Ice", as the Post puts it. The NY Times said of the win, "With a hard-earned, thrilling victory Sunday, the United States surprised Canada, both the hockey team and the nation." more ›

An elderly Carroll Gardens woman recently fell for the old "your grandson's in trouble" con, but this one had a clever Canadian twist. A man identifying himself as "Constable Karl Moore from the Canadian Police Department" telephoned a woman at her home on Henry Street Friday morning with some bad news: her grandson "had gotten into trouble with the law" during a trip to the north country. more ›

Much of the primo, hydroponically-grown herb you'll find in New York comes from Canada, where an untold quantity passes across the border at the Akwesasne Mohawk reservation, which stretches five miles along the banks of the St. Lawrence River. Naturally, the authorities would like to pull the plug on this source, so six weeks ago Joseph Resnick, the head of the NYPD's narcotics division, took a trip up there to see what could be done. The good news for tokers is that the Mohawk smugglers have this down to a science, and Resnik is "astounded at how lenient the border is." more ›

If only seal sightings were reserved for vast seascapes. PETA sent one of their "seals of disapproval" to the Grand Hyatt Hotel this past week "to protest Canada's seal slaughter while the country's prime minister, Stephen Harper" was attending a meeting inside. The organization notes that tens of thousands of harp seals are slaughtered in Canada each year, and even baby seal's skulls are bashed in during slaughter season. more ›

Hey New York, you may be clearing out the fridge for beer and hot dogs in preparation for our nation's birthday, but let's not forget about America's hat, eh? Today is Canada Day, and we asked everyone's favorite anchor, Pat's Papers and NY1's Pat Kiernan, for some tips on how we could all celebrate his native country.

Pat Kiernan’s 5 Tips for New Yorkers to celebrate Canada Day more ›

A "high-living" and "prominent" Manhattan lawyer whose clients include Jon Bon Jovi was arrested by Canadian authorities. Marc Dreier, of Dreier LLP, was charged with impersonating "another lawyer on Tuesday at the offices of a large Canadian pension fund," according to the NY Times (which calls the arrest "bizarre"). See, Dreier went to the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, claiming to be a different lawyer (even had his business card), but an OTPP employee knew the lawyer Dreier was impersonating, so the cops were called. Dreier, who has been under investigation for possible fraudulent activity, is out on bail; his lawyer said, "No money passed, no money is missing and no money was ever missing." But Dreier's 250-employee law firm is crumbling: The WSJ's Law Blog reports that the head of the bankruptcy department told client he and other bankruptcy lawyers were leaving and would start their own firm. more ›

By next June, the Department of Homeland Security will start requiring passports for all border crossings. In order to make it easier for New York drivers, Governor Paterson today announced an “enhanced” driver license [EDL] which will be accepted by border security in lieu of a passport. Paterson says the EDL will “help to ease long lines at our New York-Canada border crossings, allowing commerce to flow more freely and securely in and out of the state.” more ›

The elegant 7th floor roof garden at Rockefeller Plaza is usually off limits, but for the next two evenings the general public is invited up to sip cocktails while savoring the twilight view. The only catch is that you have to absorb a lot of information about Canada, because our northern neighbor's tourism board is the one footing the bill. But since their national sales pitch comes with free food, music, drinks and hand massages, who's complaining? more ›

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• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on 109th Ave. and Merick Blvd. in Queens, a person under a train at Sutphin Blvd. in Queens, and a cyclist pinned beneath the wheels of a bus on 14th St. and 1st Ave. (looks like victim will survive) in Manhattan.
• The tech-savvy youth who got himself arrested for stealing a Sidekick mobile device and then allowing its owner to track him down via MySpace remains jailed on $20,000 bail.
• Welcome Abigail Fulop. The Leap Year Baby was born on Staten Island at 2:23 a.m. on the 29th. Her parents Dave and Michelle will be celebrating their daughter's birthday on March 1st three years out of four.
• A scholarship endowment fund has been established in the name of Ossie Davis to aid young actors who are not only pursuing performance arts, but embodying the activism of the late actor. Davis died in 2005, was the husband of actress Rubie Dee, and was a featured speaker at the funerals of both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.
• Hoboken, NJ police officers are now claiming that they were forced to go to a Hooters restaurant and hand over their automatic weapons to scantily clad waitresses while posing cheerfully for photos.
• Red Hook's new IKEA manager isn't from New York. The Brooklyn Swedish mega-furniture-mart boss is from North York, in Canada. Will the perfidy of our pleasant and polite northern neighbors ever cease?
• We find this harder to swallow than a cat fur-covered Milkbone: AIBO robot dogs are as effective at relieving lonely old persons' isolation as actual living dogs.
• Colson Whitehead is an established and successful author who lives in Brooklyn. If you're only 50% there, get over your zip code and give the attitude a rest. Apparently, Brooklyn writers are the new actor-waiters.

Two female Key Food employees at the Avenue A and East 4th Street store were attacked by a knife-wielding man. The police originally said one of the woman died, but it turns out that one is "clinging to life" while the other is in critical condition. more ›