January 24, 2026

Good morning

The story this week is the weather! It is darn cold. The temperature fluctuates between minus 18 to minus 60. The cold temperature increases as the wind picks up. Because there are no trees here, there is nothing to stop the wind. It is not uncommon for the force to be between 20 and 60 or 70 k an hour. All you have to do is to dress for it. I have snow pants, parka, gloves, goggles, balaclava, toque and fur lined boots with retractable spikes. I also use walking sticks for balance. The secret is to keep every inch of your skin covered, and to keep moving. The Inuit don't move quickly, but they are always moving. There is a lesson in there for me!

We have had a couple of blizzards, with heavy fog, blowing snow. The ice on the ocean has formed, and it is getting pretty thick. Occasionally the polar bears get lost. Their eye-sight is not very good so they really can't see where they are going--not a lot of land marks. But, their noses work really well. Last week, a young one was spotted near the water plant which is just a stones throw from my house. The polar bear patrol spotted it, and set the alarm. Soon, there were several ski-doos out roaring around trying to find it. They were successful in chasing it away from the village, but they could not find it. Quite troubling because the mother and sibs probably are not too far away. We all car pooled for the next couple of days. The advice from the boss is to be really aware of your surroundings before you go out!! I was able to copy the pictures from facebook, and send them on facebook, but I am unable to transfer the pictures to this platform.

This morning again, the fog is so heavy, you can't see the village, and the wind and flurries are picking up. A good day to get caught up on my practicing, house work, art work, and the exercise program on utube! I may wonder over to the school to finish up some planning. This type of weather shuts the school down. Since being back, we have had 4 and 3 day weeks. Not good, but there it is. Further, the delivery and take away of water is seriously burdened. The trucks can't get up the hill because of the snow--we are on water rations--no showers, no washing clothes, and flushing once a day. Think about that when you are having a drink of water.

On the bright side, a parent brought me an Arctic Char. It was caught in the afternoon, and by the time he delivered it to me in the evening, it had froze, solid. After consulting my friends about how to prepare it, I decided to try baking. First, it took nearly 24 hours for it to thaw, then, I removed the head, tail and fins. I scored the fish, placed fresh garlic and onions in the cuts, and then prepared and applied a super spice rub. Included in this rub was a package of dry mushroom soup. I also added veg broth. Oven was set at 425, and cook time was 20 minutes, in deep covered roaster. To my surprise, it was done perfectly, and it was moist, tender, and delicious!! It was way too much for me, so I phoned several neighbours to bring a container over, and to have a taste. Within minutes, 8 people arrived with containers in hand!!

Time is flying by. I met with the principal and colleagues last week, and have mapped out and planned for the special needs students. I also introduced the idea of examination prep, for all exam candidates. When you do that, you realize how little time there is. There is 8 weeks before spring break, and after that there is 9 weeks until the end of the academic year. Mix into that loss of days because of weather, Culture Week, water and sewage issues, the time will disappear, and my northern adventure will be over.

Inspite of the frustrations of the situation, I am enjoying it, and I really love those little kids. I can't wait to get to school in the morning to work, play and have fun. They will do anything that I suggest--absolutely no management issues, just pure learning opportunities. These kids are hungry to learn, and it really is a privilege to be here to be part of their lives.

Digging the hole in the ice for ice fishing