Uqalurait

In less than a week I will be heading into the great unknown. Some friends gave me a book to read while I'm in Cape Dorset and the title caught my imagination... It's called "Uqalurait", which is apparently the Inuit word for tiny patterns that form in the snow when the wind blows. If you know enough about them, they will tell you which way to go to find shelter.

In a land with no trees to guide you, being able to read these patterns is a crucial life skill. The book is a collection of transcribed stories from Inuit elders that talk about traditional knowledge. I am hoping to get a small understanding of the culture and way of life by reading it.

Meanwhile, I feel as if I am heading into another world... I am used to being a fairly competant person, but in this world I know nothing.

Canada Games and beyond

Well the Canada Games are finally drawing to a close and I can breathe a little easier... I was heavily involved in the archery competition this week since my husband Sean has been coaching two members of the Nova Scotia team, and I went along for moral support. The two boys Sean was coaching did an amazing job, setting personal bests against the top archers in the country. Both of them have only been shooting for a short while, but they performed like seasoned pros under incredible pressure. We are all extremely proud of them and can't wait to see how they will do in the future!

Now that the pressure of the Games is off, I am starting to realize how little time is left before I head up North, and with lessons to plan for my school here in Nova Scotia right up until the day before I leave, it's going to be hard to get everything done.

I was really happy to receive a welcoming call from my host family a couple of days ago... but when she asked me if I had any questions, I hardly knew where to begin! I know so little that I don't even have questions yet. I'm sure I'll think of some as the day grows closer.

I have also been e-mailing back and forth with my host classroom teacher, Emma Anso, who sounds like an amazing person. When I went on line to find out more about Sam Pudlat School I found an article about her class from last year, who managed to create a book for a time capsule project (If you're interested, the whole article can be found here). I also discovered that another teacher from the school has just begun a choir (again, the whole article can be found here). All in all, it sounds like it's going to be a really creative group... I'm looking forward to meeting them.

I have done a lot of workshops over the years with my trusty harp, and assuming that I don't encounter any huge barriers about bringing her along (more about my trials and tribulations with trying to get information from Air Canada Cargo to come in further blogs I'm sure), I am looking forward to showing her off to the kids and hopefully getting a chance to record some of my trip in new songs.

Every day, as I nail down more and more of the details, this trip is becoming more and more real for me.

Connections

One of the things that excites me most about teaching (and particularly about teaching in Cape Dorset) is making connections... The world of Nunavut seems so far away from the world I know, and yet we are part of the same country!

While I am in Cape Dorset I hope to connect my class with a class in Nova Scotia, whether electronically (through e-mails or skype conversations) or through snail mail letters back and forth, or through whatever means I can devise. I mentioned this to a friend of mine, Jane Baskwill, who is a specialist in children's literature at Mount Saint Vincent University, and she told me about a project she is involved in called Publish It.

Essentially, this is a project whereby students, parents and community members can create and publish simple picture books. After a short conversation, we decided that this would be a wonderful concept for me to take to Cape Dorset.

We still don't know how everything will sort out, but I now have the software for creating the books on a removable hard drive and I have some samples to take with me. I'm really exited about the idea of bringing Inuit culture back with me and I'm looking forward to the possibility of creating some books about life in Cape Dorset (maybe even in Inuktitut if the students can help me out!).

If you would like more information about Jane Baskwill's Publish It project, you can find it Here.

And I am still looking for a "sister class" here in Nova Scotia who might want to connect with me and my students while I am in the North, so if you're interested, please send me an e-mail!

Learning a language

It's never easy to learn a new language.

I love languages, but as I mentioned before, Inuktitut is so very different from any other language I've learned. According to everything I've read, the Inuit languages are related to eachother throughout the circumpolar region, but they don't resemble any other language groups- They seem to have developed independantly. The grammar is quite unique in my experience, and there are a lot of unfamiliar sounds to try and produce.

Obviously, I'm not going to be able to learn nearly enough before I leave, since I am up to my ears in a wonderful practicum here too, but I have found a great website where you can listen to the Inuktitut language and learn some of the grammar...

http://www.tusaalanga.ca/

I'm hoping to spend at least a little time on this website before I go.

What to wear continued...

So I'm all set for the cold, but I started realizing that my harp, is not.

I realized that I was going to need a really good case if I want her (she has a name; "Gwenivere" and a personality too!) to survive the three day journey.

Yes, you heard me right; It will take me three days to get to Cape Dorset. I fly to Ottawa, then I stay overnight because the flights to Iqualuit don't match up. The same thing happens the next day when I fly to Iqualuit- I'll be staying overnight in order to get my final flight to Cape Dorest on the third day. I'm not complaining, I am really excited to be able to see my sister in Ottawa and spend an evening in Iqualuit before arriving, but it will be a long voyage!

Ah, but I digress. I started this post because I wanted to show how incredibly supportive Sean (my husband) has been.

Almost as soon as he knew that I was applying for this opportunity, he began constructing a new case for my harp so that she could come too.

This is hardly an easy task. A few years ago, when I had to travel to the West coast with Gwenivere, I made a bulky, but acceptable styrofoam mold of her, put it in a cardboard box, and it served as a passable flight case. Shortly after that, when we had the chance to showcase at the East Coast Music Awards in Saint Johns, Newfoundland, I got a more "official" wooden road case made by a company called "Ocean Cases". Although this case worked quite well, it is still very bulky. After my friend Dave Carroll's experiences with airlines and musical instruments (check out "United Breaks Guitars" on youtube if you don't know who I mean), Sean decided I needed something stronger.

First he took the old styrofoam mold I had made and whittled it down until it was shaped more closely to the dimensions of my harp. Then he put several layers of fibreglass over the form, took the orginal foam out and hey presto! he had a basic shape for a case. He then proceeded to paint it with a rust coat paint and drill holes to attach the hardware (hinge, clasps, handles etc.).

Finally he painted the whole thing gloss white, and cut high density foam for the inside into a perfect shape for Gwenivere.

I got some imitation crushed velvet fabric (on sale cheap!) and he cut it to fit perfectly. Then he made a pocket on the inside for my tuner, microphone etc. and now I have this amazing, high tech, indestructible case for Gwenivere...

She'll be warmer than I will be!

I have been trying to figure out the airline regulations on oversized or overweight baggage. It's not huge, but I think it's definitely heavier than 50lbs, so that will be the next problem to tackle...

But that'll be a story for another blog.

A picture is worth a thousand words...

About five and a half minutes and well worth the time. This video was uploaded to youtube by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and gives a little insight into the community of Cape Dorset. I hope to be able to visit some of these art studios while I am there...

What to wear?

Here it is in all its glory.. the survival suit!

It's pretty bulky, but it's supposed to be really warm. I looked online and the average temperatures in Cape Dorset last year during March and April hovered around -5 to -25, but there is also the wind chill factor to consider...

My only trouble is deciding how to pack this- right now it's looking like I can either take my clothes for the month or this outfit.

But it's such an attractive look...

In all seriousness, I need to be warm, so I'm going to try and pack this. I'll definitely take the gloves and the boots, they are really practical- they both have removable inner linings that can be separated and kept inside so they'll be warm. The snowsuit is meant to be able to protect me for at least three minutes even if I fall into the water.

Hm. and they won't lose me in the snow.