Happy New Year

Every time I don't write for awhile, I start to get a case of blogger guilt. I imagine my blog as a stage, my readers as the audience, and I'm up on stage with nothing to say.

Anyway, I'll try to piece something together.

2009 was a great year for me, though it had its ups and downs like every year since 2006. For a little while when things were tough, I must admit I cursed the north. However, I quickly pointed out to myself that the north is never the reason things are difficult; life happens no matter where you are. If you're not happy here it's so easy to blame Nunavut for it, but Nunavut is rarely the cause for difficulty. In my humble opinion, anyway.

Likely due to my age (young), and how much has happened since 2006 (a ton), I can say without a doubt that nothing is ever static up here for me. Friends leave, situations change, the north grows. In the industry I work in, I watch friends/coworkers leave throughout the year. This would really bother me if new people weren't also arriving throughout the year.

Overall, 2009 treated me well. I started a new job, finally moved into my own apartment, and I started to settle down here. I made new friends, lost 30lbs (yeehaw!!), took up curling, started working out regularly, went on 2 awesome vacations, and bought some nice things (like this 24" iMac).

In December I went down to Sarnia (my hometown) for Christmas. It was the first time I'd spent Christmas in Ontario since 2005 (pre-Nunavut). I had an amazing time and really enjoyed myself. My brother, his fiancée, my sister, and my best friend were in town and it was awesome to see them. My best friend moved away in 2003 or 2004 so that was really the last time she and I had hung out in Sarnia. My 17 days of holidays were VERY jam-packed. There were 2 nights where I didn't even get a chance to sleep. All in all, it was probably my favourite vacation I've ever been on. I decided early into it that I would start spending every Christmas with my family/friends. Life's too short to spend so much time away from the people who mean the most to you.

Anyhoo, 2010 promises to be a year like no other before it. I'll have a visitor in spring and late fall, I go on holidays in May, and my brother is getting married in November. As for my blog, it is going to be under yet another metamorphosis but we won't get into that just yet.

I'm sorry I don't have much to write about these days. February 1st marks my 3.5 years of being in Nunavut and so it is increasingly more difficult to imagine my life from a southern perspective. I am open to topic suggestions, though.

Happy 3 Years

(I apologize for the tininess of the photo; it won't seem to upload larger.)

Congratulations to me! Today is my 3 year anniversary of moving to Nunavut. This time 3 years ago, I was probably sitting in the apartment in Rankin Inlet, staring out the window in shock.

I don't know if I ever wrote about this, but for probably the first 2 or 3 hours after landing in Rankin Inlet for the first time, I felt nothing but panic and dread. As much preparation as you do, as many pictures as you see, nothing really compares to the moment you look out your new apartment at a completely strange and different world. I felt like I had just landed on the moon. I'd never been so far away from my family and friends, and knowing it would be months before I'd see them again shook me to the core. I was, as you might say, freaked out. It was August 1st and I'd just come from a 45C humidex in London. It was 4C in Rankin Inlet that evening. I put on a toque and we went out for a walk. I stared at Hudson Bay in fascination. I breathed in the fresh air, looked around, and officially decided I liked the place. From then on, I've loved Nunavut and have never looked back.

This place has been good to me. I consider myself to be a very lucky person in that I have everything I want and more. I have Nunavut to thank for that. It's difficult to imagine what my life would have been like had I never moved north. I'm not sure I could even fathom a guess at what I'd be doing right now in Ontario if I never left. I've changed so much from the days of riding the Cherryhill bus in London everyday; from the days of freaking out about spending $90 at the grocery store; from weaving through crowds at Masonville mall.

Anyway. Thanks for 3 great years Nunavut, and I'm sure there will be at least 3 more great ones ahead.

Oh! And to everybody who mocked me when I said I was moving north, especially to the person who told me I'd never last and all the people who said I'd hate it: You were dead wrong, losers.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone! 2009 is going to be a good year, I can just feel it. I'm not sure what I thought about 2008 when it first started, but I do remember feeling like it would be a year unlike any other.

I achieved several goals in 2008. I made a point of being as independent as possible and it has served me very well. 2008 was one of those years where I feel like if I could get through it, I could do just about anything.

Highlights of 2008 include:
-Moving to Iqaluit and living by myself for the first time
-Adopting Moon Unit and Dweezil (kittens)
-Buying my Suzuki
-Going on vacation by myself to BC
-Getting my tattoo and snug piercing
-Meeting my current boyfriend
-My best friend from Ontario coming to stay with me
-My boyfriend coming to Iqaluit for Christmas

On December 11, my best friend came to Iqaluit. Tori lives in Toronto and loves it there, so I wasn't sure what she'd think of little Iqaluit. She's always open-minded, though, and so she did end up enjoying it here. She told me she knew she'd never want to move here, but she did have fun experiencing a different lifestyle.

I wanted to take her out and do something cultural but unfortunately it fell through. I had contacted North Winds to take us dogsledding and I was annoyed by the fact they never called me back. I had to basically hound them to get an answer. We were supposed to go sometime between December 12 and 16 and they were going to call when they knew which date. December 15 rolled around and I had to call several times to get a hold of someone and I finally got an answer that night. Apparently their car had been in the shop for awhile and so they couldn't take us. I was polite, but pretty disappointed with their lack of customer service. It would have been nice to know that way ahead of time so I could have booked with someone else instead of finding out at the very last minute and only because I called multiple times. I'm only writing this on the blog so others can avoid North Winds and their lack of customer handling.

Tori and I did manage to go out and do some things and I really enjoyed having her here. Tori, come back anytime!

Anyway, back to 2009. I find if I have a certain goal, it helps if I mention it a lot so I feel more committed to it. Here are my 9, count 'em, 9 New Year's resolutions:

1. Exercise and eat healthier...the usual resolution! I'd like to lose some weight before I go to the Dominican Republic this spring.

2. Get my credit card bill down and keep it down. I went as far as reducing my credit limit on my main card. I'm sorry, but I don't need $25 000. Nice try, CIBC, raising my credit limit without asking me first. I reduced it down to a limit even lower than my original limit and I've cancelled all but one other card.

3. Actually save money this year. Since this is a public blog I won't disclose how much I'd like to have, but it's much more than what I have now.

4. Start going to bed on weeknights by 11pm. I've been awful for going to work on very little sleep and I curse myself all day for it. I spend almost every weekday wishing I went to bed earlier so I'm going to start doing it.

5. Start work a half-hour earlier than I normally do. Getting out of work at 4 is amazing.

6. Take my vitamin pills every day. I've been taking vitamin D and I've noticed a big change in my moods, it's great.

7. Re-join Atii Fitness Centre so I can go to aerobics classes.

8. No more shopping sprees. I may even go so far as to impose a budget on myself, but I'll see how it goes without one.

9. Bake something to bring to work once a month. I've only done this once but it was a nice boost on my kitchen self-esteem, which I lack in badly. Everyone enjoys seeing people enjoy their food creations.

That's it...we'll see how it all goes!

Also, I have a question for anyone who is qualified to answer this:
My Suzuki doesn't like to start if it's colder than -30. I have a battery blanket and I keep it plugged in of course. I also have the proper oil and I had the vehicle winter serviced in November. Is there something else I can do? No snarky answers like, "Move south!" please and thank you.