The West Island has a unique culture, a unique style and a unique outlook. West Islanders like what they like and they don’t make any bones about it. Family restaurants, free parking, pets, tree-lined streets and getting involved in our community organizations, whether they are local pools or volunteer organizations. This week’s editorial is meant to poke fun at those things that make us who we are. We are West Islanders, for better or for worse.

You know you’re a longtime West Islander when you still refer to your favourite community newspaper as The News & Chronicle (although the twinned newspaper formed by The North Shore Chronicle and the Lakeshore News simply became known as The Chronicle about two decades ago!).

The words Sources, St. John’s, St. Charles, Pierrefonds, Gouin or Lakeshore fit into the directions to your house or anywhere else you are going.

You’ve killed some time in the Herzberg basement. You don’t see anything wrong with wearing socks and sandals.

You’ve received a $75 ticket for drinking, smoking, making out or... gasp... talking in a park past the 11 p.m. curfew. On July 1, you go out with your friends to celebrate Shadfly Day.

‘Soccer mom with a minivan’ isn’t just a suburban cliché to you: you either are one or will be someday.

Pumpkin-, strawberry- or apple-picking at Quinn’s farm is not considered child labour, but a fun field trip every elementary school must make at least once a year.

If you don’t have a car and can’t afford a taxi, your night out ends in time to make the last bus home from Fairview Pointe Claire shopping centre.

You don’t know Ile Bizard is an island.

You’ve been to Fairview without having any intention of buying anything.

You trust a parking lot full of amusement-park rides that have been set up in a few hours and will be taken down three days later. You think Hudson is the country.

You can tell the difference between Valois, Pointe Claire, Dorval and Beaurepaire villages.

Anything past the Ikea building on Highway 40 is ‘downtown.’

Going out to dinner means driving along St. John’s Boulevard and choosing which one of the 80 large restaurants you want to eat at tonight.

Anywhere that is more than 15 minutes drive from your house is ‘far.’

Your city has a “Welcome to_________” sign made out of flowers.

You have spent as much money on your lawn as other people spend on vacations. When young and poor you dream about the day that you’ll have a car and go downtown ‘all the time’ then when you have it you a) can’t afford the gas or b) are scared of driving downtown looking for parking and facing traffic or crazy drivers.