Grad Fund raiser

Hey Everyone

As promised in my last post, I said I would try to be a more frequent blogger.Last week we had a really successful fund raiser for the graduating class. I the north there is not mucu money set aside by the local DEA's for these events so the responsibility falls onto the shoulders of the staff and grads to raise money for decorations, meals, and other grad stuff. Monetarily the graduation should be fine now. We are just not so sure about the rest of us.

One thing about any local gathering involving staff and the community is there always are lots of laughs and good natured ribbing.

This item provided lots.

Is it a char net or seal net?

Bad Blogger !!!!!

Hey Everyone

This is the longest time I have ever gone between posts. The biggest reason is that I moved into my own place and didn’t bother with internet access,. It really isn’t that inconvenient because I am able to use it whenever I need to at school and not having it at home gives me more time to read. I also don’t find the time as long after Christmas because the days are longer with more beautiful sunshine. I may think differently next year during the long cold days of fall and winter that come upon us prior to Christmas. Two months from today I will be barbequing on my deck back in New Brunswick. I almost have my third year completed in the North and I find the time has really flew.
It will really be nice to get back home to my kids and wife. Speaking of my wife I just got off the phone with her. A little over a year ago she started to run. Working her way up from 1 km to 5 km to 10km. Gradually she has built up her stamina and running longer and longer distances in shorter and shorter periods of time. Today she ran in a 15km race in Grande Digue New Brunswick in a around 1 hour 27 mins. That is pretty phenomenal considering when I watched her run a 5 km last summer she said she was never running any longer distance than that. She truly committed herself to it and the only thing that will bump the running will be her family. In order to come and visit me this past fall she passed up an opportunity to run a race that she had been training many months for. I guess she loves me.
I am also watching with interest the Swine Flu epidemic that has hit the U.S., Canada, and especially Mexico. Because my wife is an Infection Control Nurse this will really take away from her running. I even noticed our fearless Health Minister, who happens to be the MP for Nunavut, on the news tonite telling us not to worry. My wife feels it is something we should all be wary off. Remember to wash your hands everyone.
Our school is also involved with a YMCA student exchange involving students here and students from Toronto. They leave this week and the group from TO arrive the week after. It should be really exciting. There is other big news happening here in Cape Dorset. The next time I blog I should be able to tell you about it.

Cheers

Blake

Belated Happy New Year

Hey Everyone

It sure has been a long time since I posted anything. But I guess the fact that I was down south for three of those weeks is probably some excuse. When we got back to Cape Dorset we found out that the school froze up. The student washrooms were all seized up so we were late getting them in. The first day for them was Monday so we spent a couple of really long days Thursday and Friday. School seems to fly by and be a lot more fun when you have students present.
The weekend was really quiet here as I was busy unpacking my bags, which thanks to Air Canada, arrived late Friday and I was here since Wednesday. They sure piss me off as they never take responsibility for any of their screw ups. I am in the midst of a pissing contest with them over canceling a flight unilaterally and causing me to spend a night in Ottawa which I never counted on.On the other hand First Air has been ever so helpful and I have a feeling that if Air Canada doesn't cough up, they will. I will keep you posted.
Christmas as all you southern expatriates know is a very busy time when you go back home. It was even more so for me as my mother in law was very ill and her eventual passing on January 1st made it a Not So Happy New Year. I did get to see a ton of people but a funeral home isn't the nicest place in the world. Thanks to all who have expressed their condolences and to all those who are keeping my wife and family in their thoughts.
This event made it harder than ever to return to Cape Dorset on time, but Merita said she would be fine. She will certainly keep herself busy with work and chauffeuring Emily around to her places of work. I hope she doesn't find the time too long and all her many friends keep her busy. I just finished purchasing my ticket to go home for Easter Break and 10 weeks from tonight I will be getting ready to land in Fredericton (weather permitting).
On the lighter side, on the weekend I got into a wrestling match with the toilet and the sewer truck. They beat me miserably. Thankfully it has all been cleaned up and no one is the worse for wear. A very good chuckle after the fact indeed.
Well exams are next week. I better go do some prep for that.

Till later

Blake

Does Anybody Care????

Hey Everyone

I am not going to be real specific because I might get in trouble but there are few things that really piss me off in the north. I know I have ranted in the past about airlines, the post office, prices at the stores, and other little things that after a few weeks I seem to get over them. This last event may take more than a couple of weeks. The most precious resource we have here in the North, as far as I am concerned, is our youth, and when the powers that be decide that they do not care enough, by their absolute inaction and fail to make decisions based on the best interest of the children, it certainly shows me that they do not care. I am more convinced than ever that the North is not the place for me and I must move to an area where the "care and safety" of children is tantamount.
I will leave it at that.

On another note, while my wife was visiting last week I learned what an etching was. I thought they were a drawing on paper, but the artist actually smooths out the soapstone and draws on it. My wife was extremely taken with the beauty and simplicity of them and has ordered me to gather up a bunch of them to take them home as Christmas gifts.



Speaking of Christmas, 4 weeks from tonite we will be in Iqaluit wending our way home for the holidays.

Cheers for now

Blake

My 1st Visitor

Hey Everyone

I just got out of a staff meeting and decided that I should make a little post about a momentous event that just passed. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, my wife has come up for a visit and sadly for me has now returned to New Brunswick. I was so glad she visited though as she could see first hand why I enjoy my time up here in the north. The first reason is the people I work with. She truly enjoyed meeting all the staff. She can totally understand why I enjoy my work up here so much. The other thing I think she really liked was the fact that it is such a relaxed lifestyle. The phone hardly ever rings, at least what she is use to. There was no responsibility of running the roads picking up kids, driving them to jobs, or taking them to speacial events. Not to say she doesn't enjoy doing those things, it is just that it is nice to have a break from it once in a while. Some of the things she didn't enjoy was the cold temperatures and the wind. She was also shocked by the prices of food in the grocery stores and was so very stressed about having to spend a night , or two or three, all alone in Iqaluit. She also was very lucky to have been able to get through both ways without any delay at all. She also brought with her a couple of little friends that we ahd to take pictures of. I am sure you have all heard of the traveling gnome. Well she brought with her some traveling pigs. These pigs were taken hostage last winter during a Christmas party (but not by my wife). They have since toured Australia, Lebanon, Syria, and now Nunavut. The owners, Moses and Elaine, are going to be elated to get them back sometime in the next few weeks along with pictures of all the places the piggies have travelled to. This is probably one of the few vehicles in Cape Dorset with a valid registration.

Cheers

Blake

Tomorrows Almost Here

Hey Everyone

I just finished checking the weather for tomorrow and normally the only reason I check it is to see what ill winds blow for Cape Dorset that might possibly bring us a snow day this time of year. Because Canadian North is bringing my wonderful wife in tomorrow, I wanted to see what kind of traveling weather she would have as she wends her way from Moncton to Cape Dorset by way of Ottawa and Iqaluit. What do I see but a weather warning in effect for the Ottawa, eastern Ontario region. They describe it as such, " a humdinger". I hope she gets through before the full force of the storm hits. She is only visiting for a week and losing even one day would be terrible. I would certainly have to adjust the sight seeing schedule as I wouldn't want her to miss anything up here.

Here is hoping she has a safe and uneventful trip.

Blake

9 more weeks till Christmas Break

Hey Everyone

The last time I posted the only sure thing about me staying up here is that I wasn't going to go home before my sealift arrived. That was true until this weekend and I decided that I will be finishing out the year. I was also pretty sure up to last week that this was going to be my last year in Cape Dorset. After this weekend I am only about 66% sure. I guess the telling date will be around the end of April when we have to notify QSO if we are resigning. Since the snow arrived on Friday evening it is so much more bright, crisp, clear, and clean. I think it is probably time to dig out the Uber-parka for the season. The only bad part about this time of year is that the walking is so treacherous and slippery. A good pair of ice grippers solves that but I have yet to find the "perfect" pair. In order to stay on your boots they seem to have to be so tight and then they squeeze your foot inside an otherwise perfectly form fitting pair of hikers. If they don't squeeze the crap out of your feet they always seem to fall off. Then there is the other factor that they never seem to hold up. A strap breaks or some of the studs fall out in which case you feel like you are walking on a curling slider.
This is also the week the sealift arrives. The cupboards are pretty bare so I can't wait to get them restocked. I had a great chuckle yesterday after checking out the transactions on my credit card. I noticed Marche, the sealift supplier, had given me a credit of $17 or so. The funny thing about this is that one of the staff had an extra charge on theirs for around $100. I have no idea how they would come up with the number. They charged us all for the initial order back in July and the only unknown in the shipping equation would be the price of fuel and we all know where that sits from earlier in the summer. My sealift order generally lasts me a couple of years so this will definitely be my last one regardless of whether I am coming back or not.
The other big thing going on is the ALCS. I certainly hope the Red Sux (no thats not a typo) meet their ultimate demise this evening. I use to be a big Red Sox fan but after the way they treated Bill Buckner for his blunder in the 1986 World Series, and their ability to blame him for their loss in the Series, I grew to greatly dislike them. Major League baseball seems to bend over backwards for the Beantowners whenever possible. The team as a whole is really just a bunch of whiners. Go Rays.

Here are some random pictures taken of the community since the snowfall Friday night.