21 months later

Life In The Arctic has become just plain life for me, and I have decided that I am going to end my (semi)regular posts with the end of 2010.  The last 21 months have been an amazing experience - I have learned a lot about the north, medicine, and myself, and I'm looking forward to discovering more.  I don't know how long I'll be here, or where I may head after this, but I'm looking forward to finding out.....

No (good) excuse

Ok, ok.....I know it's been over a month since the last post.  I'm actually impressed that I've maintained this blog for this long with only a few big gaps in posting time!  I usually use a photo that I've taken as inspiration for my posts, but I don't seem to have brought out the camera much lately, or been struck by an idea that I thought was worthy of sharing.

So what have I been up to?  Lots of work, a quick conference in Toronto which led to a week in Quebec (oui, oui - c'est tres bien!!), a little bit of time with the dogs (I can't stay away.  They're so smelly, but so cute!), I've picked up facepainting, and the curling season has started again.  

The Iqaluit Curling Club is completely volunteer run - mostly with the hard work of about 6 or 7 dedicated people - and the aim is essentially to introduce curling to anyone who is interested, build skills, and hope they have fun.  There are a few people who have been curling for many years, but for the most part the league is full of beginners and you often see someone from one sheet of ice helping out players on the next sheet with advice, coaching, or rule clarification.  All in all, it is a relaxed and fun atmosphere that makes for a good night out.

This summer I was lucky enough to get some facepainting lessons from a real clown - thanks, Bubbles!!  These were some practice butterflies on a friend's arm - I later put similar ones on the cheeks of many 4 year old girls at a birthday party!  I also had a lot of fun with it at Halloween, as some of my friends let me embellish their costumes with face/body paint.  I painted a Snow Queen with snowflakes, the Element of Fire with flames, and a police officer with a handlebar mustache, among other things.  I was having so much fun, in fact, that I forgot to put on my own costume for a large part of the evening!

Everyday cool

Taking for granted, or overlooking, things that you see everyday is something that I think most of us do.  I reminded myself of that the other day when I re-noticed all of the amazing sculptures and rock carvings that are randomly and abundantly placed around the main part of town. Some of them are rough and abstract, and some of them are incredibly detailed.  This one is one of my favorites, just outside of the post office doors, because of the way that it catches the light in all of the grooves.  They also catch snowflakes, which makes for a really pretty effect in the winter.

I was on a break!

I took some time off to take a break from work, and remind some of my family and friends 'down South' what I look like. I had a fun and busy time, and managed to stop over in 3 provinces along the way. While I definitely reveled in a few of the luxuries of Southern life - microbrewed beer, Italian markets, a vehicle with shocks - I found myself less enamoured, and less panicky about doing/seeing/buying/going to all of the the things available. I suppose that's a sign that I've gotten comfortable with the simplicity of Northern life. Or I'm just more apathetic. I'd like to think that it's the first option....

Sunset over Spring Lake

Teeny, tiny shells in Tofino

Sap! (in Jasper)

22 kids and counting...

For the last couple weeks I've been looking after some sled dogs....17 adults and 5 puppies!! It has quickly become my favorite part of the day, going out to feed them, check on them, and pet them. They recognize me when I arrive and are always very vocal in letting me know they're excited to see me. (That may have something to do with the fact that they know that I'm the one that feeds them!!) They all have their own personalities, and it's fun to get to know each one of them and figure out how best to handle them.

This is Udlu as she is patiently waiting to eat while four of the puppies are exploring her food bowl. They are still too small to eat the kibble, but they sure find it interesting to push around with their noses! A few minutes later she finally nudged them out of the way.

This little guy is my favorite of the puppies so far. He's very adventurous and was the first one to approach me on his own and climb into my lap.

You can see quite a few of them in this photo, with Woody at the front.

Goofy

Big Wheel

Fun in Frobisher Bay

Last weekend a couple friends and I decided that it was time to go swimming in the bay. It wasn't a particularly warm day, but we didn't think it would make that much of a difference since the water is so cold - only a few degrees above freezing. While the term "swimming" is a bit generous, we did get completely submerged. The bay is very shallow so we had to walk pretty far to get deep enough to actually get under the surface - the walk into the water was way colder than the walk back to the beach, probably because the numbness sets in quickly! We got out of the water and were immediately given hot chocolate and then sat in front of a wood fire which was quite rewarding. I cannot imagine though, what it would be like to fall out of a boat or somewhere that you couldn't get warm and dry quickly. Deadly cold, is the most appropriate term I can think of.

Nunavut turns 11!

July 9th was the 11th anniversary of Nunavut becoming an official Canadian territory. It is a territorial holiday - Nunavut Day - and a large number of the community of Iqaluit was out to celebrate the occasion. Much like Canada Day in other places, this holiday is a day for outdoor music, children's games, contests, barbecues, and general frivolity. Unlike Canada Day the contests were to see who could skin a seal the fastest, and there were muskox burgers on the barbecue!! For the record - it is truly incredible how fast a seal can be skinned, and muskox cheeseburgers are delicious.

If you remember my blog entries from last July you will remember how enamoured I was with all of the tiny tundra flowers. I'm just as taken with them this year, but I will restrain myself and only post one photo.

We're a month past the solstice already, and so we are starting to get proper sunsets again. This was a particularly beautiful one, just the other night.