Some quick things for tonight...

I think it is great that a woman Inuk from Nunavut was named federal health minister. Yeah Leona! She is a wonderful person and I hope she gets the support she needs to get the job done in Ottawa.

The Nunavut election took place earlier in the week and while I was disappointed with some of the results I can't say I was surprised either. Next step is the appointing of ministers and the premier. According to one source the secret ballots have already started but I can't find anything to confirm that. Time will tell.

My new job title is Personnel Manager. I will get to do all the HR stuff, including create an HR Manual. If you have one or parts of one you'd like to share...please feel free to mail it to me northofnain@hotmail.com

The moving company arrived and apparently I own just under 3,000 lbs of 'stuff'. Hmmm. Try as I might I just can't get my 'stuff' boxes, you know the misc kind of things down to less than two small boxes. Things like extra cords, odd things I have collected on my travels, papers that I don't need but certainly want to keep. You know, that kind of stuff. The packing is 80% complete. I could have finished it today...but you know...I am trying to enjoy the rest of my time off before I head back to the office. So a balance between packing and watching movies is in order.

I am anxious to get started with my new life in Edmonton.

I went to the Calgary Tower today and took some photos. I'll download them in the am when I can see...lamps have all been packed! Then spent a lovely evening having supper and just hanging out at the mall with my bfa. I'll miss her. Sure, Edmonton is only 3 hours away, but it is hard to do Friday after work drinks with a 3 hour commute.

Anyone looking for a great apartment in Calgary??? I know of one coming up for rent soon.

I'm hopped up on sugar and cream so if portions of this post don't make sense..that is why.

I have just returned from a cooking class. One of the wonderful couples I met in India (who happen to live here in Calgary) mentioned in early September that they were going to this class and would I like to join them. I would indeed. We had shared many a dessert in India and they knew I'd like the menu.

So tonight we learned how to make:
Creme Brulee
Pumpkin Flan with Pumpkin Seed brittle
Creme Caramel
Panna Cotta

YUMMY!

It wasn't a hands on class where we do the actual cooking. We watched the cook at the front on one of those great mirrors and partially on tv. It was a very interesting class and I learned that I just might be smart enough to make these at home. In fact, we are supposed to get a small torch for the brulee....they didn't have them tonight but I should be able to pick it up in the am.

A good time was had by all. But I gotta say by the time you are on sample 4....the sugar overload takes hold. We crashed and flew during the class and no doubt I'll crash big time shortly.

I've always wanted to do a cooking class at the Superstore...so this may inspire me to take a couple more when I hit Edmonton. No doubt someone in Edmonton offers them.

I think I'd like to do a Japanese class next or maybe Italian.

Anyway...that was my fun today. I'm now having a nice cup of honey bush tea (which doesn't actually have honey in it) to help settle my sugar filled tummy before I head to bed.

The packing is coming along great. I basically have the kitchen and all my photos left to do and then I'm done...except for having to take apart my new Ikea shelf. Damn.

The packing has begun. I picked up some boxes on the weekend and packed up my beautiful shelf. I was having a moment of clever and I marked the squares and the boxes so when I unpack I can just place it on the shelves...no need to make decisions on where to put things. Now, someone may just need to remind me in a month why I have boxes marked 3C and 4B.

One of the moving companies is stopping by tomorrow afternoon to look over my stuff and give a better estimate. I am frantically (ok, maybe not frantic yet) packing things as I realize my time before I leave is getting short even if my belongings are not coming for awhile. On my mental list of things to do is laundry. I figured today, Monday, would be a great day for that...but apparently no one in my building is working today. I managed to get there first, but two people have since showed up so I may need to formulate a plan b.

Another round of purging is going on. I have decided I have way too many Christmas decorations. I have a multitude of Christmas moods and the decor to go with each mood. Now I know my Aunt F would say I don't have enough decorations for the festive season. Her home is decked out every year from top to bottom in wonderful trees and other festive trimmings, but...I think I need to cut down on some of my personalities. I have the 'retro' decorations, my traditional green and reds, my black and silver modern look, the 'craft' creations and a ton of other bits and pieces collected during my travels.

I went on a ghost walk last night. I've seen this type of event offered in a number of cities but have never stepped up to the plate. I got invited along with a group last night and decided to take a chance. Our tour guide did a great job and all 23 of us had a super time. Basically someone does a lot of research into the area and based on sightings and mysterious events they create a tour. We stopped at various locations in Southern Calgary (a ten block radius including Fort Calgary) and heard tales of murder and death and how the people involved may still haunt the sites. We didn't see any ghosts or spirits, but you never know when you might. I took a couple of pics that I think are ghostly looking...if that counts.







Guess I should stop blogging and get back to packing!

I'm sure it will come as no surprise to anyone but I'm moving again. Yeah...
I was offered and have accepted a position in Edmonton. It will be a great fit for me. A little bit of travel...to Cambridge Bay (Nunavut) and a bit in Western Canada. The salary is where I had wanted to be...what I thought my southern worth was. They are going to put me up till I find an apartment and they will pay for my stuff to be brought up from Calgary. Oh yeah, and it seems like it will be fun and challenging. The company has their Admin office in Edmonton and I will be joining the family the beginning of November.

I'm super excited about the position and while it means a new community and starting over again...well...I'm sure I can handle it. Now I need to get some sleep...tomorrow is a big day...lots of stuff to do before I start packing!

Oh, I almost forgot. I have been asked for a copy of some of my Northern pics. A couple of the Hamlets that I visited are having trade show booths made and my photos may end up on them...how cool is that? I am shipping off a cd with the pics tomorrow to the designer and will know in a couple of weeks if they will want some of them. It's been a heck of a week.

Reporting to you from Edmonton...
Ok, I'm not reporting but I am in Edmonton. I drove up yesterday and spent most of my day in a quasi interview. It started with lunch and ended at 5pm. I'm not sure how it went so don't even bother asking. And I don't know when I will be finding out about it..and I won't be telling what company...don't want to jinx it. Oh, and I had an interview on Monday as well with a well known coffee company. Not to serve it...HR stuff. Not sure how that one went either...I was sleep deprived.

Worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights this past weekend. Got to hear the Feist concert and Neil Young. The concert Sunday night didn't end until after 11pm which meant I got home after 1am and by the time I got to sleep it was well after 2. Then up at 6:30am to get ready for the interview at 8:30am. Ugh. Note to self, check work schedule next time before agreeing to an early interview.

So here I am in Edmonton with the fish. I didn't ask for a fish sitter before I left so decided the safest thing to do was take them with me. I know it seems like an odd thing to do...but I did it. And they seem to be enjoying the change of scenery.
I'm hoping to get back to THE mall tomorrow to bum around, do some window shopping and maybe drive around a bit and then head back to Calgary.

Just another day in the life of me.

Considering how many take out restaurants there are around my apartment I am surprised by the lack of take out menus that appear in my mailbox. In fact, to date I think I've only gotten two. It isn't that this is making or breaking my life, I'm just surprised. I came to this thought as I was walking home from the grocery store tonight and past a little take out joint and thought..."hey, I wonder what they serve." Sure, I could have gone in and picked up a menu, but loaded down with my groceries, flowers and wine I decided just to continue on my way. Maybe next time I'll stop in on my way TO the grocery store.

Yesterday was my lunch date with the Flames. There were about 20ish tables of 8. 6 staff and 2 Flames players or coaches or owners. I sat with Eric Nystrom #23. He was really nice. We chatted about travel, food during travels and then one of the guys at the table took over the conversation and the rest of the meal was hockey chat. At one point though I think he could tell that most of the table was not interested in the conversation and he sort of apologized for all the hockey talk. Yes, it was a Flames player and of course hockey would be the main topic of conversation, but this was a stat talk from like 15 years ago.

Some people brought BAGS of stuff to be signed. I brought a work shirt for signing. And I only got Eric to sign it. I felt weird going up to players I didn't know...in or out of uniform and ask for an autograph. And I was a bit afraid I'd ask a non-player as well. LOL. Wouldn't that have been funny? Getting one of the guys who works in the beer tent to sign it would be a riot. And I'd likely be fired. LOL. Here's a pic of Eric. I didn't take this one...it's his official pic.


My new laptop arrived today...I have named it Daisy. It has a bright yellow cover. I thought that maybe since I had named the last one Mike...that could be why it kept overheating...cause of the boy/girl thing you know. No wonder it kept overheating...sitting on my lap all the time.

The job hunt is still on...well, you know how it is. At least now I have a computer that doesn't over heat after 7 minutes of use and I can surf the internet and apply for jobs from the comfort of my couch.

The weather is still holding. The skies are blue most of the time and the temp is generally always over zero. There were a few days when it was just under zero, but it didn't seem to bother me much. Guess I am still climatized to the North!

Not much else new and exciting going on here. Calgary continues to be full of cowboys and cows. Next week I am headed to the Calgary tower for some pictures for you.

Taken in Iqaluit shortly before I left the North. The boys and I did a photo shoot for the Annual Report. There are some great photos of them in it and a bunch of pics of all the communities we visited. I can't wait to get my good copy in the mail. BTW, it is hard to see, but I am wearing a pair of leopard print sandals. I climbed over rocks and down gravel slopes that day in those shoes. If you are going to do a photo shoot it is important to have good shoes!


I'm a rock star!! Well, not really but I do have a wonderful cult following. You...my wonderful readers.

Thanks for all the kind words today.

I had dreams of hosting my own radio call in show at one point in life. I decided after hearing my voice on radio that it would never happen, but the idea of it and the blog are the same. I get to ramble on about my life and people tune in. Writing my blog is like having my own tv show. I write the scripts, I film it and I star in it. What could be better. LOL.

I can't remember if I mentioned that I am having lunch with the Flames next week. They do a staff/player lunch every year and only a select few get to attend. That is because there are over 1400 pt staff and not that many players (or space to have a sit down lunch!) It is catered at one of the lounges in the Saddledome. Because there are over 1400 pt staff, and I think close to 100 full time staff they draw names. And I was chosen. YEAH! From what I understand they put one player at each table and about 10-12 staff. So the only folks who will likely get to talk to the player is the one next to them. But I don't care. It should be fun. I'm taking my camera...you never know...and if nothing else it should be a good meal.

I work Saturday night. It is the first home game of the regular season. Should be fun! But before that even more fun. I am going out for supper tomorrow night (Friday) with 3 people I have known since grade 9. One I have been in touch with almost daily since then. The other two we lost touch at certain points but thanks to facebook and location am in touch with again. It should be a fun night of...remember when.

Because the rest of this post is depressing and full of "PITY ME" Here's a funny cartoon. Enjoy the cartoon and come back to the blog on the weekend when I've got something more intelligent to talk about.



People keep asking me how I am adapting to life in the city. Frankly I'm not sure. I usually say fine. What is there to adjust too? I have been to a big city before...Boston, New York, Paris, Delhi, etc so I think that the move from 'country' to city isn't as big as one might imagine. But...some days I just don't enjoy it. And not it in general...just simple things.

Today I finally made it to the Dr's office. I checked the list of Dr's accepting patients and found one about 8 blocks from my apartment. I walked down in the am and was told indeed the Dr is accepting new patients and in fact they have had a cancellation and could take me at 4pm. YEAH!!! So I spent the next 6 hours downtown hanging at the library (working on my resume and applying for jobs) and having many drinks at cafes while putting in the time. Yes, I could have gone home..not the point of the story. So I show up at the appointed time and am finally taken to a room and left to read the info for new patients.

Apparently I am going to be asked questions about my medical history...not surprising, I am in a doctors office after all. What did surprise me was that I can only have one ailment per visit. The nurse was very specific about this point. She said that if I had a sore throat and a wart on my foot I needed to decide which reason I was there and to make an appointment for the other. I showed her my list of ailments. We picked one and she made me an appointment for another and told me to make the others out at the desk. Fine.

Dr comes in. We make 30 seconds of small chat and he starts asking for my medical history. We don't finish it. He must think we are done and he gets up says it was nice to meet me and starts to leave. "Wait! What about my eye?" "Only one issue per appointment. Today it was history taking." But...my eye. And he is gone.

I sulk out to the front desk and tell the lady I need to make an appointment cause I didn't get to see him about anything. "Standard procedure." And she finally makes me an appointment for Friday. Let me tell you that I am not a healthy looking person as I stand in front of her. My eye is acting up. It is red. Puffy and the little inner corner is about 5X the normal size. And yet...they couldn't help me today and she did not want to book an appointment for me...cause I already had another one booked. The nurse booked it after our chat. The receptionist wanted to know what it was for. I said (in a very loud voice) that I was not willing to tell HER what my issue was in front of a room full of strangers! Jeez.

So I left. My doctor spent maybe 3 minutes with me and that was it. I now need to go back to have my eye looked at. I need to go back and pay $120 to have a medical so I can get my drivers license changed over to Alberta. And then I have another appointment for reasons I will not divulge to the receptionist. AUGH.

Maybe that doesn't seem big city issue to you...but it is for me. While I haven't had a family Dr since oh, 1991 when I graduated from HS. I have been lucky the past few years to have had some wonderful nurses to look after me...and they accept more than one ailment at a time.

As I was walking back to my apartment this afternoon I was wishing I was back up North. Maybe I am not cut out for city life. Maybe I need/want the simplier way things were. Maybe I am having a bad week and just need some cheering up. Maybe.

It is hard to stay 100% positive this week. I have been sending out resumes for a couple of weeks and haven't had any calls/emails yet. I know it has only been a couple of weeks but still...I have my moments of worry. The last time I was out of work and looking for work it took four months to find something. The job I finally landed had a closing date of February 14 and I started work in mid-April. I know gov't tends to move slower than a lot of private companies, so hopefully it won't be that long a lag this time.

Please, no pep talks on how great a person I am and how wonderful my resume looks. I know I'm awesome. I know my resume looks great. I just need to wallow for a bit. Everyone should be allowed to wallow now and then...right?

It is just going to take a lot to convince the city mice that this country mouse is ready, willing and able.

Do you ever have the need to tease your hair up real high, wear a plaid shirt and a giant belt buckle? If so, have I got the event for you...the RODEO!! And it helps if you wear the ten gallon hat, cowboy boots and wrangler jeans.

I have been waiting to see a rodeo since my arrival in Alberta and Sunday I finally got to have the experience. I had a great time...it was every bit as fun and exciting as I remembered it. And considering I haven't been to one in about 20 years I think that is pretty impressive.

Most of the 372 photos I took are blurry. The camera and I are still working out our issues. I did use the mega lense today which was a good call cause I could get some amazing close ups...but they are blurry close ups.

When you look at the pics try to imagine the smell of dirt, sweat, animals, manure, popcorn, hotdogs and anticipation...it will make the experience really come to life for you.








More photos when the computer decides to behave.

I mentioned the other day that I bought new fish. I named them today. Allow me to introduce Gary. He's red all over and tiny. I expect he will grow over the next couple months under my tender loving care. The other fish is a teal blue and I have decided to name him Cal. The name(s) came to my on my way home from the grocery store. I was trying to come up with an Inuktitut name for each of them but couldn't think of anything that I thought fit the situation. So Cal and Gary it is. ;)

I got a library card yesterday. Yep. I'm special. For the low cost of $12 a year one is eligible for a library card. I need to investigate and see if they have a program for low income families or a program where you can buy a card for an under-privilaged child. I think that would be a wonderful idea....since it isn't free. The library downtown was nice and has all kinds of computers to use. I was there to take advantage of the computers as mine has been acting up lately and I can't seem to write a resume in under 10 minutes.

I have sent the resume out to a few friends and am hopeful they will get back to me with some useful suggestions. One has already gotten back to me with many useful hints and suggestions that I need to fix. Her comments were great and I appreciate the feedback.

And I have finally solved my computer problems. I have ordered myself a Dell online. I choose a payment plan (lets face it, a girl who is unemployed should not be ordering computers...but...I NEED it.) and the laptop should be arriving in a couple of weeks. It's yellow and looks quite cheery. My parent's still have the first Dell that I bought and it still works quite well so I'm hopeful the new laptop will be just as great.

I'm not sure why this computer has decided to die. I have treated it well over the years but you know its a machine not a thing with personality. Ah well. The only difficult part will be the transfering of the files. If anyone knows an easy (and cheap) way to do it please let me know. I don't want to lose any of my photos.

Tuesday afternoon I walked downtown got on the train and headed for the zoo. I’m still not sure how I got on and off the train without a ticket but I did. Oh well. Chalk one up for the newbie. The zoo was wonderful. I saw lions, tigers, and turtles and all kinds of other animals, birds and reptiles.

I then managed to get a fabulous haircut at a place called Diva Daves. After the haircut I went to Starbucks and ordered a white hot chocolate. Yes, it was 25 degrees, but there aren’t many beverages at SB’s that I enjoy. I walked home with it allowing it to cool. Finally seating in the comfort of my living room I took a sip. And almost spat it out. It was coffee. YUCK. I still don’t like coffee. And no matter how much stuff you put into it...flavor shots, etc it still tastes like coffee.

Not to take away from my excellent day I got in the truck and headed to Ikea. Ah, Ikea. The perfect time of day/week to go is a Tuesday evening. The store was practically empty and I was able to park within 7 rows of the entrance. I had taken the time to measure ALL of my prints earlier in the day and found frames for all of them. Finally, my prints will be hanging in style. I also found a few other things to buy and two trips through the cash later I was in the truck. And headed to the pet store.

Yep. I have new fish. I haven’t names them yet. That will come. They seem to have settled into the apartment nicely and are doing well. After purchasing the fish I headed into the future and bought my new tv. I sold my tv before moving from NU and have had a loaner since arrival. Truck full and bank account empty I headed back to my apartment to unload my purchases.

Wednesday was almost as productive. I spent my day cleaning the apartment, framing all my prints and deciding where to put them....that is the hardest part of all. I still have a few that don’t have a place yet...but I am hoping to lure a friend over on the weekend and force her to help me hang them. A trip to the park was in order as well. Who can resist the mid 20 temperatures we’ve had all week? Certainly not me. I packed blanket, pillow, book and set out. First stop. Crave. It is a cupcake store. I almost don’t want to recommend them. They are a bit addictive. At just over $3 for a cupcake one might feel the cost is too much for such a simple treat...but trust me. Well worth the money. I had a chocolate cupcake with a strawberry icing. Mmmm. Heavenly. I plunked myself in the park close to my apartment read, ate the cupcake, took a nap and enjoyed the sun. (I've only had two cupcakes since my arrival in Cowtown.)

Today saw yet another trip to Ikea. I had a few slip ups on the purchases from Tuesday and had to get some additional frames. I then headed to the Superstore. I love the Superstore...at least I love the one in Charlottetown. The one here is horrible. I can never find anything I want in this store. Tonight I wanted one of those pre-cooked meals from the deli section...nothing. Hmmm. Next on my list was potting soil. It isn’t in the store, it is outside of the store. I asked someone who works there where it was and then when I realized that I couldn’t easily get it set my basket down and walked away. While this may seem minor, at this store it is so inconveinent it isn't worth the hassle. This isn’t the first time I’ve had problems at this store. It seems everytime I go I have a bad experience. The last time I had the cashier commenting on my food among other things. I think I have decided not to ever go back.

Then I went to Canadian Tire where I explained to the lady at the customer service counter what I wanted. “It’s yellow. It helps you hang pictures. You hang your picture on it and then put it on the wall and it makes a dent where the hole should be. I saw it on tv.” She had no idea what I was talking about. Which didn’t surprise me cause neither did the folks at Walmart, RONA, Linens and Things or anywhere else I looked for this thing. But she called someone else and he knew what it was and even went to get it for me. YEAH. So now I have everything I need to hang my gallery of prints.

Tomorrow is Friday. I’m going to head to the library downtown so I can work on my resume. My computer is lasting only about ten minutes at a time before it overheats and shuts down. Which is why it has taken my three days to write this entry. I even have a cooling pad for it which doesn’t seem to be doing any good. I’m also going to help a friend look for an apartment and then off to the Saddledome for another Flames game. Busy, busy, busy. Phew. I need a break from not working. LOL.