At the moment, I'm on Spring Break (which means, of course, that i have time to blog again)! But, it's still just below zero and a snowstorm hit today. Hmmm, let's do a quick recap of the last three months. Bear in mind there's a lot of things I won't discuss in this particular forum, so you'll just have to ask me in person :).Got some pretty interesting stories, so remind me!
Got to go skidooing for the first time. And again. And again. I think it'll take me a long time to get bored of that! One of the teachers was kind enough to offer up his skidoo any time I wanted to use it, which was really generous and really appreciated. Took it on trips up and down the river, and out onto the lake. Ran out of gas one time just as I was leaving town (about an hour walk back). That was a good lesson, but a tough one (still, could have been worse)! Had to call in some favours to get driven back out to the abandoned skidoo in the dark. Skidooing is phenomenal fun, although quite expensive. It also really opens up your outdoor mobility in a town like Hay River. Toronto, not so much.
Got out on the land, a bunch. Sometimes through school programs (trapping camps, which were great)! Sometimes through helping people out, and sometimes through the amazing generosity of the people in town. All of those experiences were wonderful, and I learned a great deal about hunting, trapping, and living in the north. There were certainly some enlightening times (learning how to skin beaver and other animals, learning how to set large animal traps and snares), some exhausting times (hauling water up from the river, driving a skidoo through dense bush all day), and some exciting times (watching the ice break in the wake of the skidoo and getting splashed, chopping straight through inch-thick ice as I was testing it, and having a string of bad luck while out setting beaver traps). There are a few times I've been petrified out here, and most of them happened on the land while riding on the back of someone's skidoo!
Finally got my ultimate program off the ground! Getting about 6-10 people per night, playing 2's or 3's in the gym. It's a good group, and I'm excited we're finally getting it going!
Took a firearms safety course and am now completing my application for a license. Alister claims that this is the beginning of my descent into shotguns, handguns, and then assault rifles. Interested in hunting when I get back to Ontario, but is it really that practical? I have no gear whatsoever, and I can't think of many people who would want to come with me. Anyway, I eat meat. I think it's way more poignant to kill and prepare your meat yourself, rather than buy those little packaged bundles at the grocery store. It makes you appreciate the process more. You see what it took to grow the meat, and that you had to take a life to have meat. I think that's a really valuable lesson about where we fit in with our environment. I do not enjoy killing animals for sport. I enjoy being outdoors, being sensitive to the environment, and participating in the full process of harvesting meat. I'm aware that this is probably going to ruffle some feathers, so feel free to email me and discuss!
Oh, I got into Northwestern!Looking forward to starting the program in September, although I admit it was difficult to go through the admissions process while being up here. It's also tough projecting my mind 6 months into the future, and trying to be clear and present in Hay River. For a month I was seriously considering staying in Hay River for another year. I'll still consider coming back. But those of you who know me well know that I'm seeking a particular type of work, and you can't find that work up here. So something has to give. Maybe in the end, I'll decide that the work I want to do doesn't exist, and move back. Of course, that too would ruffle a few feathers!
Oh! Bernice came up! That was an awesome and intense week! I don't think Bernice thought we'd be so busy! Spent the weekend on the reserve at the K'amba Winter carnival, watching hand games, dogsled races (we followed in a skidoo! Just like the locals!) and eating fry fish and bannock. Went to the falls and hiked around. Ate at many different houses, all of them with fantastic food and wonderfully friendly people. Had a nice couple day on the skidoo. We played around on the river for a bit and then went out along the lakeshore where I flexed my muscles and made a fire. Ate some buffalo stew. Yum! Speaking of buffalo stew, we ate a ton of wild meat (courtesy of another generous friend in Hay River). Maple moose breakfast sausage, buffalo stew, buffalo steak. Yum yum, it was awesome. I don't think bernice expected to eat that well either :)
I've been thinking a lot about my time in the North, especially since I'm not into the last quarter of my year here. I've been criticized a bit for spending most of my waking time volunteering (either at school, or at after-school programs, or helping people out with various projects). There are people who feel that I'm being taken advantage of, and perhaps in a sense I am. Most of the work I do is done for free. But I also feel that I learn a lot from each experience, and that's why I put myself wholly into each one. I've never been so involved with a community, so invested and so accepted. For me, that's going to be the toughest part about leaving the north. I've contributed a great deal to this community, but I've also been given a lot back. I learned what it means to love where you live. I learned what it means to help people out whenever you can, and how much of a difference that makes. My hope is that the lessons and knowledge I gained here stay with me, and are not forgotten when I return to the city.
Finally, I haven't posted pictures in a long time! So here they are, courtesy of Bernice! The astute observer will note that my hair colour is different (it used to be purplish but it's faded to a beaver-esque brown) and that the big frozen lump in one of the photographs is in fact the same waterfall I posted pictures of last Fall. I actually walked behind those falls while they were semi-frozen. Got some great shots, but not an experience I am likely to repeat (far too scary)! Also, look at the fire we made and trees I brought down with my bare hands! Grrr! Manly! Also, Bernice I am sorry I make a face every time you take a photo of me. Now everyone can share your pain!
I hope this extra-long boring post makes up for the preceding extra-long boring time of no posts!
Good luck to you all,
Galen
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