Exit...Stage Left

At the first sign of oncoming WINTER, Murphy takes a powder

As much as I will miss my daily view of Frobisher Bay, it was time to fish or cut bait, and reality of working full-time just was not in the cards. After 2 months of meeting new people, working a variety of volunteer and part-time work and a mix of indoor and outdoor sports...I had to either get a real job and stay the winter or head home.

Bucket List

Staying the winter would have been a check off my Bucket List, but realistically, my mix of volunteer and part-time work was not going to get it done. Since I also pay to keep a house going down South, I would need a real job, with Northern allowance, subsidized housing and a minimum year contract.

Yes, I could have saved enough $$ to travel at my standard for most of another year, but the thought of being nailed down for at least a year just rubbed me the wrong way.

When I retired, I traded some financial security for freedom. The choice is still valid for me.

Another of my favorite views, the look back to Iqaluit from Apex

Inuit Culture

I have always held that we have treated our First Nations people poorly. That being said, it is a very complex situation, with no simple answers and definitely no short-term solutions. It is very easy to disagree with government policy, either sitting at home in NS or actually in Nunavut. What is not easy is to have a better alternative that works on any sense of scale.

It used to be gov't policy to take kids out of their communities and try to give them standard educations down South. I personally find that mind-boggling. The idea was to get them out of toxic environment. Nice idea, lousy implementation. There is still a whole lot of alcohol-fuelled social problems in the North. Again, no simple black&white answers

The import jobs in Iqaluit tend to be high-paying with lots of nicities like travel allowances and subsidized housing (which drives a big bubble market) and attract a fairly mobile population. Higher education (and the jobs that go with it) are still quite new to the local Inuit. It will take a few generations to have a chance to achieve any sort of balance...but the kids growing up now are getting very Westernized at the same time. Lots of dissonance everywhere.

My work in the soup kitchen and men's shelter showed me the sadder part of a population and it colours my impressions.

A friend of mine was gracious enough to let me photograph his medallion.

What Did I Learn?

Well, it was a very interesting trip. I enjoyed the town, the people I met, the tundra hiking, the different jobs.

- I like showing up in a new town and making my way from scratch
- I like meeting new people, trying different jobs
- I like volunteer work
- I like the freedom to come as go as I please
- I enjoy doing web design work
- I do not want a full-time job
- I certainly do not want a year-long contract
- Teaching is not on my list for now

As long as I have and $$ for a house in Halifax, will spend the most of my time there.

The lighting on the harbour was magical..everyday.

Habitat House

My volunteer list was high in this town. It put me in contact with a lot of new people and was rewarding in a number of ways. I worked a thrift store, soup kitchen, kid's Fall Fair, men's shelter and Habitat House.

Iqaluit is a small town, so you volunteered with people you met playing badminton, or hiking or socializing in the Legion. It is a very busy town with what surely must be a higher than average commitment to volunteerism.

I am now a MASTER gyprocker...definitely

This was the end result of a bunch of silliness...You Talkin' to Me?

Gary and I have seen little of each other for 20+ years.

Shore Leave for everyone!

Iqaluit Harbour is a happening place and I got to see new things everyday, mostly the Inuit fishermen going out in their small boats for clams or seal. I was hoping to stay long enough to get to know someone who would take me out in a boat. I got to know one fisherman a bit, but it would have been a stretch to ask for that favour.

Come in, they said. The water is fine, they said.

Goodbye Iqaluit

Who know if and when I'll get back here. Situations change...people change. I was up North back in the 70's on a research vessel and made it up to the top of Greenland (Thule) and above Devon Island, which is above Baffin Island.

I always wanted to get back here for a visit...and still would like to spend a full winter in the Arctic...but I guess, not this time...but as we all know, the Clock is Ticking.

My daily view: Frobisher Bay...always different. Fantastic lighting

Homeward Bound

Coming home is always a bit of a shock. I spent 6 months away this past year and have been averaging 4 months a year away for the past 5 years. Freaky!!!

Have never seen this on a plane, between cloud inversions

Where The Sun Don't Shine

IQALUIT 2013

Back in the day, a bunch of Gonzos got together for an evening of travel slideshows and creation of Bucket Lists. It was a hoot. Some of the items on people's list were 'pie in the sky' (or were they?).

One item that has been on my list thru all the years' iterations has been to work in a cold climate. The idea to see what it is like to handle 24/7 darkness. I have been working up in Northern Canada and Greenland on a ship during the 24/7 light...and it is freaky.

Something tells me the darkness aspect might be a little harder to deal with.

I am off to Iqaluit, Nunavut for a few months. I have an old college buddy living up there and I will be house-sitting for him while he spends some time in NS. After that, who knows.

I bought a one-way ticket and am getting my old NS teacher's licence updated. I hope to work while I am there at whatever casual type jobs come my way and to get to at least a few Nunavut communities for some sort of visit. I'd also like to get to Yellowknife and count being in all CDN provinces and territories. The future is open.

Packing will be different from backpacking in various countries. I can't just count on picking up things I need at the corner store...it will be expensive, if it is there at all.

B