And I am Off!

I know I was going to talk about my adventures exploring Kimmirut in my next blog. but I found out I will be traveling to Igloolik to do a relief for their store.

I was a little hesitant at first because I am comfortable in my store and I know the ins and outs.  Igloolik is on an island off of mainland Nunavut about 2 and a half hours flight from Kimmirut . The town and store is much bigger than mine ( population is 1700ish)

I leave tomorrow from Kimmirut and overnight in Iqaluit . I have a 7 am flight from Iqaluit to Igloolik and will arrive there around 9ish. I am pretty sure I will be put right to work.

I am looking forward to seeing another community and maybe getting a picture of a walrus.

The next update from me will be in Iqaluit or Igloolik which ever I get inspired by first!

I have been Horrible

I have been a horrible blogger.

That is right it has almost been almost 2 months since I have updated my blog. I did not mean to fall by the way side. It always seemed that life interrupted and by the time those things I was too tired to write.

I have also been suffering from writers block for a bit too. Alot has happened since I came back to the North from vacation and I have had a few new experiences but just did not have the "bug" if you will to write about them. Not that I did not want to share my experiences with you ... I did but just did not know how to get the thoughts out in a decent post.

My blogger notepad is full of half written posts about a few different things .I am looking forward to updating everyone on my current goings on in Kimmirut. Personally I have been on a path to a healthier me and part of that is keeping up with this blog. So that means now there will be more frequent posts by me. :)

Upon my return to Kimmirut I purchased a four wheeler. According to my friends that practically makes me a Nunavut lifer now. I on the other hand feel it gives me more of an opportunity to explore Kimmirut and the surrounding area.  So I have had fun learning to drive it ( that was an adventure and a half) and exploring places that I only ever knew the general direction of ( Reversing Falls and Soaper Lake)

Tonight's blog is going to be short ... mainly because I have to get up early in the morning . I will be posting some new posts this weekend about my first few excursions on the four wheeler this weekend...(psst there will be lots of pics!)

Enjoy!

The Days are Running Together

WOW!

Time is flying by here in the North I cannot believe that we are already into the second week of December. It has been a really hectic time here.


When I first got to Kimmirut my store manager Sheryl told me that Christmas would be our busiest time of year. I didn't think it would be that busy but oh boy! We run alot of events at the store from Moonlight Madness to Ladies night and more

Each of these nights has games, specials and more. It is pretty fun running them everyone is hyped up for the games and really get into the spirit which is awesome to see.

The past couple of weeks have seen many parcels come through the door of our store from my family back home . I am not allowed to have them because they are sooo sure I would peak and or unwrap my Christmas presents early ( I soo would) so they are in my bosses name and I will get them when it is Christmas Day.

I have to say that this Christmas is going to be tough for me being away from my family. I will be the first person in my family to miss Christmas at home. It sucks and I wish I could be there but I knew when I signed up for this that I would be here for Christmas . It was even a source of many days worth of tears when I first found out about coming to Kimmirut.

I am so glad that my family has been sending me care packages filled with Christmas goodies and decorations. I have been able to keep certain Christmas traditions alive such as putting up my Christmas tree the first weekend in December ( I slightly preempted this) and making Christmas cookies.

This is my first fake Christmas Tree!

When I first came North I was so sure Christmas would suck for me without my family and while it will not be the same  I have found that some of my friends will be in town over Christmas. Most of my friends are transient like I am and we have formed a great group. So I will not be at home alone sitting on my couch  crying ( like I imagined myself in the early days of moving North) I have two (possibly three) Christmas dinners to go to and one of my good friend's I met here is going to stay over at my house Christmas Eve.

I am also looking forward to seeing how the Hamlet celebrates the holidays .. There seems to be games and fireworks and a skidoo parade I am sure I will be out there snapping pictures and trying to capture it all so I can have it for keeps.

On a happier note I also (Finally) got my Canada Goose parka! I don't know if I shared the saga of my parka with you all or not but I ordered my Parka once I was in Kimmirut and I ordered the Canada Goose Resolute men's 2XL parka and I waited.... It took two and a half months to get here. In the mean time my boss let me use her parka I then found out hers was a 1XL men's parka... Needless to say when it got in it was too big! Which lead to a call to Iqaluit Northmart to see if they would swap my parka for a smaller size. They were cool with it and then came back and told me they had a 1XL Expedition parka in Red and Black... I chose the black and packaged up my parka to be sent to Iqaluit.

I got the "new from Iqaluit" parka and it was a 2XL... I was slightly pissed but then I tried it on and found it fit wayy different than the Resolute parka and still fit nicely so I kept it.

Here is me rocking out to my new parka!

Liebster Award Nomination!!!!

The other night  I came home from having a get together with friends at about 1am and was checking my email and found a Tweet from my friend Sarah who blogs as www.sarahontheroad.com telling me she nominated me for a Liebster Award and giving me a link to her blog post ... I had to admit I was curious as to what exactly a Liebster Award was.

The Liebster Awards are given by bloggers to up and coming bloggers who do not yet have 200 followers.

                                                       

The meaning: Liebster is German and means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome

RULES:

1. Each Person posts Eleven things about them
 

2. Answer the questions the nominator made for you, and create 10 more questions for the blogs you nominate.

3. Choose nominations and link them to your post.

4. Go to their page and tell them.
 

Here are Eleven Random Facts about Me !

- Books are a passion and something I cannot go a day without reading! My friends have even described a bibbliomaniac and I fear some days it is true! I have spent many a nights awake just finishing the last pages of a book sometimes even the sun is coming up!

- I love to bake but I hate to clean up my baking dishes... I wish I had a person just to clean up all the dishes you accumulate from baking.

- I hate mornings .. it is kind of sad how much I enjoy sleep I have the most annoying ring tone on my old cell phone as I can ( a Roster crowing ) and I set my alarm for three different times before I wake up..

-  My favorite city to visit is Boston so much history and love walking around Cambridge

- I have way too many travel ambitions and they vary from wanting to see Greenland to lounging on a beach in the Bahamas

- Before moving North I would never eat anything that was not Chicken , pork or Beef ... Now I love seal and muktuk... but I would still never eat a Mushroom

- I am a huge Criminal Minds and NCIS freak.. I could watch them for ages and never get bored

- I believe there should be a recipe for everything... Soups , baked beans and things that my family tell me is just a bit of this and that annoy me so I make them give me more precise measurements

- Grocery Shopping relaxes me.. Nothing better than finding yummy foods to eat and being able to take as much time as you want... Grocery shopping on the fly frazzles me

- My musical tastes vary depending on my moods... I love everything from rap to classical , heavy metal and country

- Nothing is better on a cold winter night ( or in this case Fall night) then watching Disney cartoon movies... reminds me of being a kid!

My TEN Questions form Sarah are:

1. Where is your happy place?  My Happy place is sitting outside in the sunshine reading my books.

 

2. What is your least favourite thing to do? Dishes... I don't know why but that is my least favorite chore

 

3. Why did you choose to live where you are living? I didn't choose Kimmirut per say as this is where they placed me but I did make my preference known for Nunavut and above the Tree Line.

 

4. What is your absolute comfort food? It may sound gross but elbow macaroni cooked and then you take a can of Campbell's tomato Soup and do not dilute it and mix it with the macaroni... it is my child hood favorite.

 

5. If you had to pick three friends to be on your team to survive a zombie apocalypse and explain why they are on your team! Humm that is a hard question.. I would say Jen because she is the person that I think would have the most level head and could keep the hysteria down. My friend Hanna would be the one who would find food because she is always trying new things and could probably convince us to eat crazy things.  My sister Whitney because she has enough survival skills to keep us all alive!

 

6. What is your most favourite song? That is for sure a hard question! I like too may songs but if I had to say if there was one song I favorite is a Parody of  LMFAOs Party Rock Anthem... Called Potter Rock

 

 

7. What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done?  Craziest thing I have ever done was break out dancing and singing loudly in the middle of  the store I work in because the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" came on

8. If you could have coffee with anyone in the world who would it be? and why? I would love to have coffee with Hannah Howell she is my favorite author and I would love to just talk to her about how she comes up with her ideas and can make them carry on through many books.

9. If you could go on an all expenses paid holiday for 2 weeks – where would it be? I would go to the Scottish Highlands... it has always been a place that fascinates me the mystery and the history .. I would explore every castle I could.

10. When did you start blogging and why did you continue to blog? I started this blog because I wanted to share my experiences living in the North. I also wanted a way for my family to keep in touch with my adventures without having to send out a million emails every time. As well not everyone gets to experience the North and alot of people have questions so I hope my blog answers some of them.

My 10 Questions for my Nominees are:

 

1) What is your favorite move of all time?

2) What is one skill you do exceptionally well?

3) If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go an why?

4) What is one food you would never stop eating?

5) What is your worst habit.. Would you change it?

6) What is the one thing that always comes with you on all your moves?

7)  If you could dance with one celebrity for an hour would you dance with?

8) What drew you to area where you live?

9) What is the one piece of clothing in your wardrobe that you love?

10) Why do you continue to blog?

 

 

My Nominees:

 

 Darcy- http://eighteightyone.blogspot.ca - A former Nunavut Blogger who now resides in Fort Mac and I love reading his adventures out West.

 

Townie Bastard- http://towniebastard.blogspot.ca/ - The Godfather of Nunavut blogging ... Have to say he is a plethora of information!

 

Golda- http://justgolda.blogspot.ca/- A teacher here in town who has become a great friend this blog is her adventures as a teacher in the North

 

Hailey- http://allofitornunavut.blogspot.ca/- A teacher in Whale Cove NU, her adventures in the North

 

I am Here!

It has been so long since I wrote a blog post I figured  I should let all my readers know I am still here!

It has been hard to get motivated to write sometimes as things are getting busier and busier. October so far has been great here in Kimmirut! We already have snow on the ground and the temps are definitely what I would call winter back in New Brunswick , however they keep informing me that it is only fall!

To kind of give you an update on what I have been up to thus far in October ( yes I know it is almost over) I went to two Thanksgiving dinners! One with my group of friends here in town ( it was pot luck and oh so yummy!) and the second with my store manager Sheryl and her family.

For the first part of October we were getting flurries off and on until finally it just decided to snow! Here are some pics from our first "official" snow fall....

 
I also finally ordered my Canada Goose parka! I really debated on weather or not to buy the Goose or to go with a three in one parka.. After input from people I know who live in the north and knowing the wussy I am I ordered the Resolute parka.  I was not adventurous and ordered it in Navy. I still haven't gotten it yet ( it is probably sitting in Iqaluit waiting to be shipped to Kimmirut) I will let you all know how it is once I get it.

Until I get my parka I spent the earlier part of this month layering cloths! I only had the spring jacket I came up in May with which definitely did not cut it when the wind was whipping through Kimmirut. Sheryl lent me her "winter" parka ( She is much more acclimatized than  I am ) as a Training Parka... I feel like a Nunavut toddler!

I also got some new items in October! I bought an upright exercise bike from amazon.ca which is awesome and will keep me somewhat active in the winter... and my friend Golda brought me back a single serve blender from her trip down south..... I am loving making smoothies in it though I do need to find some recipes that are not so blah!


On October 16th my Nannie arrived in Kimmirut from New Brunswick, I cannot tell you how awesome it has been to have a familiar face from back home here. She will be staying with me until November 2nd ( I will post more on our adventures in another blog post). It is really awesome just to hang out with her and have company to talk to. She is really enjoying it here so far! She didn't even freek out about the matchbox sized plane you have to take to come to Kimmirut!

I promise I will remember to post more! Until then here are a few pics for my friends who do not reside in the North!

 

 

 

Sealift

For those of us from the south going to the grocery store and getting food or any products is easy the store orders them a truck brings them to the store and we go in and buy it.

It is not the case here in the north. All of our food and other necessities are flown in. Well most of the time. Sealift is an easy way to get a number of heavier items or bulk orders of items to the North in a cost effective manner.

Around March and April books start to appear in Northern stores across the North. These books have lists of shelf stable foods and long lasting products such as cleaning supplies and such.  The store it self makes a big order and individuals are able to as well. So you place the order in March or April and in July a ship comes floating up the Atlantic Ocean into the Arctic ocean and on to your community to deliver goods.

I knew a bit about sealift from my information session with the North West Company but to experience the first one was nothing short of an adrenalin rush!

We were anticipating our sealift on July 14thish We got notification that due to Ice in Frobisher Bay into Iqaluit the ship would be hitting Kimmirut first. So we posted our signs looking for additional staff for sealift re stacked our old sealift pop and waited. Well we got another update stating that the boat was going to Cape Dorset due to ice in our harbour. After Cape Dorset we thought that we were next ... nope the boat went on to Coral Harbour.

I had developed tendinitis about a week and a half  before sealift so I was hoping I would be better but that was not the case. I decided that I would still do my best and Sheryl said that heavy lifting would aggravate it so I was not going to be doing that.

Sunday July 15th was our confirmed date of sealift from the Captain of the ship. Sunday Morning I was awake early ( I didn't need to be awake for work until 11am) I called Sheryl to find out what our plan was going to be for the day... She had been out earlier that morning and found that the ship was docked way out around some inlets... We couldn't even see it from town which sucked because we could see the fuel tanker so clearly !

Sheryl let Me now that the barges would not be coming in until 630pm! Wow all day at work I had to answer questions " Is your boat in?" Once we closed the store Sheryl came in and asked if I wanted to go for a cruise to see where the barge was . It sucked because I  didn't have my camera to take a pic of the SHIP! We could see it from the top of the satellite hill.

Once we confirmed where the barge was Sheryl and I returned to the store I asked what my plan of attack would be for the night. She let me know I could go eat for an hour or so or if I could be back in 20 mins I could go with her to the boat launch to meet the barge. .... I will let you guess which option I picked .... That is right twenty mins later I showed up with a hoodie on , hat and bug net and my camera!

 There it the barge coming in from the ship

Its coming!

                                                               
                                                                       Almost here!

 It is here! The three blue things are sea cans it turned out that two of them were ours and they forklift them from here down to the store.

This is Gord our Grocery supervisor stacking some of the 1800 cases of Coke we got on sealift.

Seacans waiting to be unloaded

New Honda ATV's out back of my house .... I wish one of those was mine!

Sealift for me was over at 10pm.. I had to open the store and although I wasn't an active participant ( I was the gofer and made coffee) I still had fun.

A Big Update and Lots of Pictures!

Ok so I failed a bit at blogging this past week. It was not because I didn't have anything interesting to blog about because I did ... I just didn't feel like blogging. We have had some great weather here and then some not so great weather. Both lead to feelings of not wanting to blog and both for very different reasons!

Last Saturday I took the day off work for my older sisters wedding.... No I did not make a trip back to New Brunswick. Through the technology guru of my sister Whitney and Skype I was able to see the entire wedding and most of the important parts of the reception!

So what does being Skyped into a wedding look like? Well when I get the pics I will show you!
It was kind of sad not being there but at the same time I was glad to miss out on the heat and humidity!

After the excitement of the wedding I went for a walk on the harbour floor while the tide was out. I wanted to take some pictures of the huge "icebergs" since we are now into WATER not ice!

Here are some of my cool shots:

I also go to take part in the Hamlet's Canada Day celebrations on July 2nd. Our original celebrations were set for the first however on June 30th they found the body of our former mayor. He had been missing since late November after not returning from a hunting trip. I am glad that his family has closure .

I took a bunch of pictures of Elders ,adults and kids alike playing games however my camera decided to eat them! I tied for 1st place in one game and got a cool set of three baskets ! Currently they are sitting on my table until I find some cool uses for them ( I am thinking sewing gear is going to be in them!)

The past three days have been very icky weather wise, cold rainy and overcast! We have not had a plane since Thursday.... However today we got a plane!!! Woot 

We also have come into Sealift season! Twice a year here in Kimmirut we get Sealifts which are barges that bring in containers of non perishable foodstufs, vehicles (ATVs and such) and anything that is shelf stable. Tonight when I came home from work I found that there was a sea barge in the harbour. It was not ours .. I don't think so anyhow I believe it is the Co-ops but still cool to take pics!

This is what sea barges look like:

Breakfast...and Settling in

This morning as I was walking to work I met my boss and her daughter walking to the store.  Normally she take her kids to school and daycare then to work. It turned out that this morning the school was having a "cold " pancake breakfast.

So Sheryl and I get all of our opening prep done so that we can go to the breakfast. From what Sheryl was telling me that pretty much the whole community comes out... well when we got there it seemed like most of the people in town were there.

Breakfast was cold pancakes, grilled hot dog half's, toast and scrambled eggs and juice. It was great! Sheryl and I were sitting with two of the towns elders, both of whom only spoke Inuktitut which was cool and intimidating as well. I am definitely glad that Sheryl was there to translate.

After breakfast Sheryl and I went back to the store to prepare for opening. Once the store was open and customers were coming in the ones that saw me at breakfast were asking how I enjoyed it. It was a really great feeling of inclusion into the community.

I know I have been here two weeks... it seems wayy longer some days. I am starting to recognize our regular customers and am able to joke around with them. I am looking forward to getting to know more people. I definitely love the feeling of community that Kimmirut has, very few places hold a breakfast and the majority of the town shows up.


It is cool to hear the kids who come into the store saying my name , almost like they want to know if I will respond to it . Alot of kids also want to come visit, mainly because I have a cat and my bosses daughter comes to visit.

I am hoping the snow and cool temperatures have left us behind! I wanted to go out on the ice and take pictures but I don't think I would do that right now ... the ice looks kind of sketchy! I am hoping to get an opportunity to go fishing or something "out on the land" just to say I have had the experience!