Date: January 1, 2006
Weather: -20°C and cloudy
Sunrise: 6 days to go
Sunset: 6 days and 15 minutes

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a great time last night. I hope the New Year brings prosperity and good things to everyone.

I have to admit that I have a bit of a sore head today. We actually had no intention of going out last night. In fact I was asleep in the sack when friends of ours called and asked us if we wanted to go to a New Years bonfire and fireworks with them. We decided that that would be a pretty good idea. There was some wine and some whiskey and some beer and then Scotch…a little too much as it turns out. Oh well! The cure this morning was some Newfoundland music on the new stereo, and a stiff cup of coffee.

Because we went out last night, the Partridge soup was delayed, and I am making it now. It smells great cooking away on the stove…mmm…can’t wait till it’s done.

I’ve talked a bit about the shopping up here; there are some unique aspects to the shopping opportunities in the north. One of them is expiry dates. There are certain joys and money savings associated with expired food. Most of the milk and bread and cheese that one buys here, is actually expired. We have gained some measure of expertise in determining just how expired something can be and not make you sick! Turns out those expiry dates are really just guidelines! Sometimes the flavours can be a little off though. All part of the experience, I suppose.

Lorie made a delicious meal this evening. It included baked ham and scalloped potatoes, with tea and apple pie for dessert. Even with that trouble of finding decent quality food, she seems to be able to keep us well supplied with tasty meals.

The impending sunrise festival is definitely the talk of the town. People are making plans to attend the community celebration. The town has a bon fire and then fireworks planned. The sunrise cycle is not like in the south. The sun will be rising very late in the day and setting later and later each night. I am told that by the end of February it is light out well into the night. This is perfect since that light can be used for snowmobiling and ice fishing. I can’t wait to get some fresh fish. The fish in the grocery stores up here is like everything, poor quality and very expensive.

I want to let everyone know that I am working on a blog to replace this one. It will look a little different than this one, but will follow the same format - I intend to keep up the daily postings because people tell me that they enjoy reading them. Some folks have even told me that they make reading my blog a part of their daily routine. I think that’s great! However, I want to change the name of the blog to reflect daily life in Inuvik rather than the journey, since that part has now ended. I am working on the new blog and I will post the address when I feel it is ready. So please continue to read this one for now, and prepare for an enhanced and even better blog experience!

Cheers!