Pictures from Baker Lake

For those who don't have access to Facebook, below is a link to pictures that I took during a trip to Baker Lake, Nunavut, in April 2008. Enjoy!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=114440&l=7ac5f&id=741685633

Revealing the landscape...

In the past month, Iqaluit's landscape has changed significantly. The snow in town is mostly gone, and the snow and ice in the mountains is melting away. Below are pictures from a recent treck to the Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park at the end of May. A friend from Toronto was in town and we strolled and picnicked in the park.

A quick storm

Storms seem to whip through here. This morning the weather was calm and mild at about -7C. By lunchtime, the winds were up to 50km/hr. Then we had snow blowing and the power went out! Aww joy. An hour or so later the wind was calm again and the temperature was up to -2C!!

Meanwhile the days are getting longer quickly. I created a makeshift blackout curtain for my bedroom this evening and also shifted my bed again so that I'm less likely to be awakened by the light in the morning. I didn't seem to have this trouble last summer when I moved here, but I guess the "gradual" progression into longer days is affecting me differently having had such short days not very long ago.

Hopefully I'll get some restorative sleep this weekend before the busy week ahead. Next week Iqaluit hosts the 2008 Nunavut Mining Symposium. The following week I'm heading to Baker Lake for some public meetings (provided bad weather doesn't prevent us from getting there). The week after that I'm attending a conference in Ottawa! Busy, busy, busy!!!

8 months on the job

So I've been a little neglectful of this blog...sorry. As of today, I've been working in Iqaluit for 8 months. I've just come back from a business trip to Toronto with a side trip to Kansas. Busy, busy, busy. I returned home to "mild" weather: -18 with a windchill of -27. I'm tired but have community choir rehearsal in 45minutes.

The shelves that I ordered in early February have arrived. I may try to assemble one of them before choir and the rest afterwards...we'll have to see how that goes! I hope that they fit where I planned to put them!!!

Ah well. Hopefully I'll update this a little more frequently in the future. :)

Into the night...

21 days till the shortest day of the year. The sun officially rises after I get to work (after 8:30am) and then sets at 2pm. Awww...the joys of living "North of 60".


I've now visited 2 out of 3 of Canada's territories, having just spent a week in Yellowknife. For some reason YK felt a lot like Cornwall, Ontario to me. While visiting the "big city" I got a haircut (only $35 including tip!!!) and did some shopping...it's dangerous to be that close to a Wal-mart and Shoppers Drugmart when you haven't visited them in 3 months!


I also had my cast replaced today for a smaller and tighter version. Below are pictures of the old cast...to give you a sense of the fun people have with markers and drinks at the end of a bonspiel! I like the "Curling Queen 07" one myself. ;)

Time...has it really gone by so much?

I hadn't realized it had been quite so long since I last wrote. A lot has happened since the end of September. I started to learn to curl, won a bonspiel, then hit my head...and then I broke my wrist!

It's also decidedly winter outside. Temperatures are rising and falling, but we've already had a few days with the windchill down to -32C.

I'm lucky that I had the day off work today to continue to get a handle on doing things with just my left hand. I also dosed a bit. Hopefully I'll be okay at work tomorrow. Wish me luck!

It arrived!

My Parka arrived yesterday!!! Here I am modeling the new coat that will keep me warm in the coming months! :)