Grrrrrr................

Today I had a parent call in to complain about me to the principal because I wouldn't let her (disrespectful, lying) daughter (I'll call her "Rude Girl") go to the Halloween Dance. I called her and she asked if we could meet after school. I said yes and suggested that she bring "Rude Girl" with her. She agreed to this and then showed up at 3:30pm but her daughter was nowhere to be found. She figured her daughter left.

We spoke for about 25 minutes when when another student came into my classroom to ask me a question. When the student saw the girl's mother she mentioned that "Rude Girl" was downstairs. Mom asked where and the girl told her she was at the dance. The mother said, "Oh, she's in the office..." and then stood up to leave. The girl repeated "No, she's in the dance."

#@*% - I went downstairs and had another teacher haul her out of the dance. I asked her why she was there and she said "I forgot". This girl knew perfectly well she wasn't supposed to be there. You know what I think?! I think that mom was sent in as a diversion so that her precious "Rude Girl" could go to the dance! Either I am paranoid or these parents are worse than their rude and incredibly disrespectful children. - Hmmm....they must have learned the behaviour somewhere!!!!

Welcome to the daily 'stuff' we as teachers are forced to deal with!

October 2006 in Inuvik

These pictures were taken at the "Top of the World Sporting Association". Tom and I managed to get ourselves positions on the Board of the Association. I am the Secretary and Tom is a Director. These pictures were taken at the shooting range just outside of town on October 7th, 2006. As you can see, there was no snow at the time - in fact it was very nice out! I don't want to worry my family at all, so I will let you know that I took the Firearms Safety Course for both non-restricted and restricted firearms and I am fully licensed to buy and use these firearms. By the way, because I am sure you are all wondering...I am a pretty good shot, especially for a city slicker!



We went out for a drive today (Sunday, October 29th, 2006) to get out of the apartment. The temperature was about -12 degrees C while we were out. You will notice that we did get some snow (about 5 inches). In the top picture, Tom is getting back in the truck after we took a walk to the lake where our water supply comes from during the summer months. The next picture is from the top of the Marine By-pass Road (exiting the driveway of the Hidden Lake Water Treatment Plant). You can see the Richardson Mountains in the distance.

We tried to upload a few more pictures but it's not working right now. We should go get some things done, but before we go there are a few things we would like to say...

1) Congratulations to K and D on the birth of their beautiful baby boy!
2) We wish a very Happy Birthday to Kacey (October 9th), Sister (October 28th) and Brother (October 31st)
3) Happy Halloween

First Snow of the Season (and this is late!)

We had our first snow yesterday! It was late coming this year, too! Last year our first snow was early September and our first big dumping occurred on September 28th and lasted through the (long) winter until May. The year before the big dumping was October 1st. Tom keeps repeating, "We're on borrowed time!" I knew that, but I still didn't want the snow yet! The good news is that it was gone by early afternoon, which means the mud was back! There are 2 seasons here - the snowy season and the muddy season (OK - there is a 3rd season consisting soley of dust...dust on the ground, dust in the air, dust in your eyes, etc...but when that dust gets wet, we have mud - and lots of it!) Although the mud is a pain, I still do not want snow yet. I am not ready for the cold. I would like a nice, warm, dry long weekend, and the same goes for all of next week when I am participating in a conference and walking back and forth between my school and the high school.
I would like our first snow-free thansgiving!

Weather update for those of you still toasty warm:
Inuvik Currently Observed at: Inuvik Airport 6 October 2006 4:00 AM MDT
Fog
Temperature 1°C
Humidity 97 %
Yesterday: Max Temp. 2.4°C / Min Temp. -2.6°C
Regional Normals: Max Temp. -1°C / Min Temp. -8°C
Today: Sunrise 9:25 Sunset 20:00

I hope all of you enjoy a warm and Happy Thanksgiving!

Coming in 3s

Here is some information about me...and like all good things, they come in 3s.

3 smells I love:

- Freshly baked bread
- Apple cinnamon (apple pies baking, warm apple cider, pot pourri)
- Fresh laundry

3 smells I hate:

- Strong perfume
- BO
- Tom’s running shoes
3 jobs that I have had in my life:

- Certified Coffee Agent at Second Cup
(I actually write an exam in order to get this title)
- Telemetry Technician for Ducks Unlimited
(I followed around ducks with radio transmitters surgically implanted in their bellies)- Day Camp Director
(Ran a Nature-Based Day Camp at the Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre)

3 movies that I could watch over and over:

- Something’s Gotta Give

- The Shawshank Redemption

- High Fidelity

3 days of fond memories:

- My wedding day
- An almost fishing trip with my family
- Sitting by the river in Linsday with Tom and a Tim Horton’s coffee

3 jobs I would love to have:

- Wildlife biologist

- Outdoor/environmental educator

- Anything 9-5
3 places that I have lived:

- Leask, Saskatchewan

- Calabogie, Ontario

- Lindsay, Ontario

3 things I like to do:

- Go for nature walks
- Go for drives

- Cook

3 of my favorite foods:

- Sushi

- Loaded baked potatoes

- Chinese food

3 places I would like to be right now:

- In my own log cabin/home on tons of acreage

- In Ontario

- Hanging out with my cat(s)

3 favourite colours:

- Brown

- Blue

- Green

3 favourite things to wear:

- New pink top

- Brown and blue shirt

- Brown earrings

3 websites that I visit daily:

- My email accounts (www.yahoo.ca)

- Some Blogs

- Real estate sites (www.mls.ca)

3 things that make me cry:

- Onions
- Sad movies

- Watching the news

(Honourable mention: My job)

Out with the OLD, in with the NEW

Don't laugh, don't criticize...just hear me out.

I feel old. Period.

Once upon I time I was able to get up at 5:30 am and be at the gym by 6:00 am ready to go! I would work out for an hour, shower and head to work with fully energized feeling lasting throughout the day. If I can drag my arse out of bed before 7:00 am it's a miracle these days! I would love to get up and head for to the gym for an early morning workout, but getting to the gym at all has been challenging enough! "One thing at a time." I told myself. So I did it, I bought the gym membership and I will do my best to get to the gym at least 3 times per week (hopefully more). I am not a fan of the gym facilities here, but beggers can't be choosers - also, Tom (and I'm sure the rest of the people sharing this building) is tired of me doing my cardio workout in this thin-walled, vibration-prone apartment. (- not that my home workout happens very often either, but the sound of my aerobics shoes on the hardwood floor is annoying!) I did manage to get over there today (YAY for me!) and did some weights and stomach exercises. If I can get there daily, I will alternate between cardio (there are treadmills, eliptical machines, and stair climbers that can not be seen in the pictures) and weights.

Last year I went swimming on Tuesday and Thursday nights. The pool is very nice. My friend and I swam laps and then played volley ball or walked against the current in the swift-moving water of the lazy river for extra torture. I sometimes even climbed aboard an inner tube and floated my way around or went down the waterslide for fun. I have been there exactly 1 time since I returned to Inuvik seven weeks ago. Two new bathing suits and I have been there only once! I did more swimming during the six weeks I was home last summer than I have since being back here (Thanks again, R, J & Baby T for the swims!)

Another reason for feeling old is that I think I am losing my memory. No - really! Just the other day a student asked if he could take his chocolate money (he was selling chocolates to raise money for sports teams) down to the gym teacher. I sent him on his way, took the attendance and sent it down to the office. A few minutes later a student walked into my classroom. I asked him for his late slip and he looked at me, quite confused, and said he was downstairs giving Mr. B the money. Oh Yeah! I had to send him back downstairs to let the office know he was at school and not to call his parents regarding the absence I wrote in the attendance book. Another example of my memory loss occurred last week. A student of mine asked if he could take the money he raised selling chocolates down to the gym teacher. I let him go. In the mean time I sent my attendance down to the office and put this poor child down as absent. You can figure out the rest! These are just a few examples of many!

Finally, I went out yesterday and realized how much I need my glasses! At the beginning of the year I woke up one morning and went to work. I looked up at a poster on the wall and it was fuzzy. My eyes really started to bother me last January so I waited until my trip to Edmonton in March to have my eyes checked. He wrote me a mild prescription and I finally picked out and received my glasses in August. Now I am taking them off, putting them on, taking them off, putting them on...No doubt I will soon be donning a lovely pair of bi-focals!

So now that I have discussed the old, I would like to wish all of you who celebrated Rosh Hashana last weekend and are celebrating Yom Kippur this evening a Happy NEW Year! I wish all of you a year filled with much health and happiness!