Day 160- August 30- Guy Forbes

Guy is a Secondary French teacher at our school. He has been in GR for longer than any of the other southern teachers, and has a wonderful family, with possibly the most unique and creative kids I have every met! Guy is the funny man of our side of the school, he often keeps everyone in stitches during the sector meetings. He teaches Science and Math, but loves spending time outdoors- camping, berry picking and fishing with his family. Enjoy the pic!


Theme Song for today: Trapped In the New Scene by Octoberman

Day 159- August 29- Rosie Etok

Rosie works at the school with me. I've known her since my first year in GR when her son Joe was in my very first homeroom group. She's been helping work with different special education students since that time. This picture of her is taken in front of the school where a few of the teachers/former teachers/students made a certain gardening project to make a nice area for the students to relax on their breaks during the day. Enjoy the pic!


Theme Song for today: Simple Kind of Life by No Doubt

Day 158- August 28- Anita

I love Anita. She's my neighbour's newest daughter, only maybe 2 years old or so. Despite her age, she is wise beyond her years, knows how to please everyone if you know how to work her correctly. She must be personified like this because she has a name and it is much more fun that way. Mark really knows how to get her going and her product wakes us all up! Oh Anita, I love you. Mark, thanks for sharing her with us all!




Theme Song for today: Loving you is Easy by Sarah McLachlan

Day 157 -August 27- Dave MacMullen

Dave insisted on trying to avoid my camera. I know that I do the same often to others. I feel like it's a game, so that's why I had to put three pictures for Dave's entry, even though Francois and Dan only got one each. Maybe it's a little mean of me, but I couldn't help myself. It brings a smile to me face thinking of how much of a challenge it was.

Dave is one of the most important resources KSB has. He is quite possible the most talented educator, mentor, curriculum developer that I have ever met in my life. I had the privilege of working with him when I was teaching science and math in the last few years. He listens well and can quickly analyze what you are really asking, even when it is still unclear in your own mind. He can connect with students, read their comprehension and present even difficult concepts in a creative, fun and effective way almost all of the time.

All the secondary teachers were in a training session for the new Math and Science secondary program this week. He has a talented team hat he is working with, and they've managed to create materials that are fun, hand's on and challenging in a very short period of time. It was really nice working with him again. Superstar of Math and Science!



Theme Song for today: Famous Last Line by The Jukebox Romantics

Day 158- August 26- Dan Elbling

Dan is actual a giant. I mean look at the size of that cup in his hand! Okay, I'm kidding but not about his giant status. He is a giant when it comes to his enthusiasm, creativity and sense of humour. He was one of the trio training the secondary teachers for the new Science/Math program. Right away, I felt like he was a kindred spirit from the teaching world. I have always felt that whatever content is communicated in my class, whether dull or not, can become the most exciting thing ever to learn about if communicated with enthusiasm in your voice. It has worked flawlessly for me when tackling boring stuff in class, and he did the same thing while presenting the new program. He seemed excited, spoke with energy and fervour and made us all want to become science teachers.
KSB is lucky to have found him for working on these programs. Intelligent and enthusiastic, a killer combo in our field. I wish him lots of success in the future! It was great working with you, Dan!

Theme Song for today: Battery by Metallica (Get it, he had lots of energy- battery- ha ha, oh and did I mention he's also really a fan of using puns! Rock on, Dan!)

Day 157- August 25- François Frigon

Francois Frigon. We've been lucky in GR to have had him come to work on different projects over the last three years or so. He's a science guru, and has since taken the job of being one of Dave's replacements. Francois has visited our town at various times- for Mad Science presentations to the primary students, for Science Camp, for a secondary sustainable energy/ windmill building project and now as a PED counsellor. He's a connoisseur of sushi and technology. He loves gadgets and multimedia. On one of his visits we created a movie theatre in my neighbour's house with his video projector and did back to back movie nights projecting it onto their window blind. Never a dull moment! He'll be travelling around Nunavik sharing the new program with the other communities. Have fun, we'll probably see you again soon!


Theme song for today: Gaia Bleeds (Make Way for Man) by Set Your Goals

Day 156- August 24- Johanna Annanack

Johanna is a super sweet girl. I've taught her off and on the last few years. She is meticulous and thorough in the work she does. She is bright and desires to do well in her school work. She comes from a nice family. I really hope she keeps working hard and trying to try hard for her dreams!



Theme Song for today: Dreams and Tragedies by Midday Blackout (some of my old Ottawa friends' band, they made an album or two and are incredibly talented musicians)

Day 155- August 23- Minnie Ittulak

Minnie is a twin sister. Her and her twin are both in my Sec. 2 class this year. They are kind, beautiful, funny and friendly girls. They both have a wonderfully warm smile that makes my remember why I love teaching so much! There are so many extraordinary young people that come through my classroom every day and I really appreciate their willingness to work hard and try to create a positive and fun environment for learning! Enjoy the picture!

Theme Song for today: Wild Angels by Martin Sexton

Day 154- August 22- Andrea Brazeau

I went on a boat ride today with Mark, Nancy, Imaapik, Tuniq and Stephanie today. Sadly, Heather Rose didn't come too because it was an incredible day!! The water was crystal clear, the sky was incredibly blue, the wind was warm and yet the flies weren't as bad as one might expect on such a summer-like day! We went near that mouth of the Koroc River to check the cabin and see how it faired against the wandering bears of summer. We tried our hand at fishing, but had no luck. Nancy picked berries, Mark, Steph and Andrea sunbathed on the giant rock near the cabin and Imaapik and Tuniq imagined secret, invisible characters to fight and had an adventure hiking around through the bushes. I took a few pictures and then decided to strip down to my base layer and go for a swim. It was so refreshing, chilly but refreshing.


Andrea enjoyed wading through the water as well as helping Imaapik who joined me in his skivvies in the water. She is an incredibly talented, intelligent and resourceful girl! I am very excited to be teaching her English and Social Studies this year. It's my first time with her as a student. I'll never forget one of my first years how she decided she wanted to earn money and approached the Northern manager to see if he'd pay her and a couple of her friends to pick up the garbage around the store. She'd also bake and go door to door selling her muffins. I was always impressed that even though she was 8 or something like that, she was incredibly hard working and willing to not just beg her folks for cash, but wanted to earn it with a little elbow grease.

More recently, she has taken up hockey, and in the winter, she lives, breathes and dreams hockey. She has improved immensely since her first year and is very committed to her conditioning and training. She has a very keen mind to the strategy and technique and will likely be a very positive leader on the team if she continues working at it! I am constantly impressed with the quality young woman she is becoming! Enjoy the pics!








Theme song for today: Mediterranean Sundance / Rio Ancho by Di Meola - McLaughlin - DeLucia

Day 153- August 21- Throatsinging Drum Dancers of Ulluriaq Secondary

Last year things changed a bit around the school. Some of the changes were in personnel, some was in the students effort and behaviour, and some of the changes were in the actual building itself. One of the more beautiful changes was some Inuit themed murals in the lower hallway of the secondary wing at the school. I liked this one near the boot rack. Enjoy!






Theme Song for today: Ilangani by Beatrice Deer

Day 152- August 20- Molly Etok

Molly Etok is one of my students. I have taught a couple of her siblings since arriving in George River 7 years ago this month.
It's incredible to see how my students, their families and the town in general has changed in the last 7 years. I feel pretty much the same, but the school and school board has changed tremendously. Students are given a higher standard of expectation and are really working to the challenge they are facing. They are trying their best to show their capabilities and learn more than those I had in my first few years. I see great things for the future of this town as the people take their own personal development and education more seriously than ever before. They are getting themselves prepared to stand up for themselves, their culture, their communities and also offering their children a quality of life that might not have had themselves. I am so proud to be here, to be a part of the process and to be here as a supporter and encourager to the students I teach.


Theme song for today: Grounds for Divorce by Elbow

Day 151- August 19- Nancy's Naomi

Naomi is the daughter of Nancy Kooktook (from a few days ago). She is a sweet little girl. A few girls tried to make her laugh for my photo, she chuckled and covered her mouth in a very adult style way. It was so funny to watch. Enjoy the picture!


Theme song for today: Sugar coated by Natalie Lynn (She was a young guitar player/ singer that I saw back home in Yarmouth last year. Incredible talent!!)

Day 150- August 18- Ella Annanack

Ella has been in a variety of my classes before this year. I have always enjoyed teaching her. She is not the most out-going student, but she is consistent, respectful and very mature! I call her Ella Bella and it's because she really is one of the most beautiful kids I have met. She seems to (as far as I know) rarely be in conflict, and is willing to go out of her way for family and friends to support and help them. I love her smile, her presence in a room, the way she can bring a calm to others around her. Enjoy the photo!





Theme Song for today: Hey Princess by Allstar Weekend

Day 149- August 17- Nancy Kooktook

Nancy K was a Sec. 4 student when I first arrived. I didn't really have the chance to teach many courses to her since in those days I was more often than not the teacher for the younger secondary classes. It's pretty fun to se where some of those original students have ended up. Nancy is now working at the school in one of the K-2 classes. She travels all over the place showing her throat singing skills and has a daughter, Naomi. Enjoy the pic!


Theme Song for today: Mother's Little Helper by the Rolling Stones

Day 148- August 16- Bright Blue Honda

It's a stretch for sure. But I felt a little anti-social today. I felt like driving. I rode around town up hills, down by the bay where no watermelons grow. I breathed deep, I relaxed, I tried to get my school work and the pressure of work and standardized exams and multi-leveled social studies classes and how far behind I am on my blog and papers that I have to find to fax to people and ... I just breathed deep. I looked around, I reminded myself that the world is big, it's beautiful, it takes things as it comes, it's been around longer than my troubles and pressures. I re-focussed and thanked my bright blue honda for getting me away, even if only for a few minutes.


Theme Song for today: Don't Let Your Feet Touch Ground by Ash Koley (AWESOME SONG CHECK IT OUT!!!!)

Day 147- August 15- Little Lisa

Lisa has to be one of the absolute sweetest girls that I ever met in my life. She has one of the best smiles ever, and is almost always cheerful and lovely. I have taught two different sisters of hers. Both were bright, creative, out-of-the-box thinkers. Her family is always very kind to me, always makes sure to say hello and see how I am doing. Families like this make me feel so happy to be here in G.R. Enjoy the pic!


Theme song for today: Shadow by Ashlee Simpson

Day 146- August 14- Lisa Annanack

This morning I went out on the boat with Mark and Nancy and their fam. It was a calm beautiful day, so the plan was to go to the secret spot for fishing or driving around looking for seal if the flies were too bad near the shore. As we launched and pulled away from the slip, we saw a boat spinning quickly around in the little harbour back towards town. It isn't the deepest water, so we knew something was up. The only plausible reason they'd be driving quickly and spinning wildly around in the boat was for an animal, and suddenly we saw a beluga head peep out of the water. We joined them and started following around with our eyes opened. It was incredibly exciting. We seemed to notice beluga popping up in two different places. that was when we realized there was actually more than one whale.

Before we knew it, the whale was just beside our boat. There were people all along the shore, tooting their horns, pointing excitedly and waving madly when they'd see it. We weren't equipped for a hunt so we waved the other hunters over to spear the whale. We had blocked it in enough that the hunters could pull up and get him. It was very interesting to watch the speed and skill of the spear men. Once that whale was dragged back to shore, there were more boats out on the water and we all started trying to track the other belugas. We saw around 5 different whales during the day out on the water. The hunters managed to bring in two. It was very impressive. We also stopped to chat with different boat loads of people while we were out. I chose Lisa to be my photo of the day. As we talked, she kept scanning the water for a head or arching back. We were all so eager and excited! Enjoy the pictures! Everyone in town is now eating the food of the gods today, I saw lots of very excited faces bringing home lots of meat!



Theme Song for today: Fix You by Coldplay

Day 145- August 13- Mary Baron

I choose someone for my photo for many different reasons, sometimes because I find them to be a genuinely interesting and then find out that they are extremely camera shy. Mary was one of these wonderful people. She has been working as the teacher training counsellor for longer than I have been at Ulluriaq School. She insisted however that I could only take a picture of her in her car... then we discovered that the window was jammed. We both had a good laugh at the circumstances.





Theme song for today: Enter Sandman by Metallica

Day 145- August 12- Alice Baron

Back in George River, getting ready for school to start. Here's my photo of the day, Alice, our Centre Director. She's been in the post for the last few years. The school structure is pretty neat up here, there are two lead people in the school- the principal, who makes the decisions regarding curriculum, the school program and teacher related issues. The Centre Director is responsible for the building and maintenance side of things, payrolls, school functioning, community liaison and management of the other school resources such as the housing and workshops. It is a nice partnership, usually with and Inuk and qallunaat working together making the school a fantastic place for the students.

Theme song for today: Let it rain by Amanda Marshall

Day 144- August 11- Maggie Emudluk

Maggie has been my friend since 2002 when I came to George River. At the time I know her only as the Principal's wife, but from that time I have learned a lot more about her and consider her to be a very close friend of mine. She is one of the most intelligent women I know. She is committed to Inuit culture and livelihood and is working very hard for the people of Nunavik as the President of KRG (Kativik Regional Government). Maggie is an inspiration to everyone she works with. I am happy to be her friend!





Theme Song for today: Life in the North by Beatrice Deer

Day 143- August 10- Priscilla M.

I arrived in George River today, flight was delayed and only touched down around 6 or so and by the time I got my luggage, drove to my house and threw everything inside it was dangerously close to the Northern closing time. Normally, this is not a concern but when you have been out of the house for 4 months you need everything from margarine, to milk, to vegetables and even mustard. I bolted, as quickly as I could, wallet and shopping bag in hand.


I got to the door when they were locking up, but did some puppy dog eyes, telling my sob story of plane delays and promising to run- Supermarket Sweep style- and they kindly let me in. As I filled my arms with the most necessary items, and brought them to the cash. Priscilla was extremely helpful- looking at my items and suggesting other things I had forgotten and allowed me to take all the time I needed. She's a super kind woman, even though we've not had much time to hang out together as she moved to town in the Fall of last year while I was off on my year leave. Thanks again, Priscilla!! (Sorry it took so long for me to finally get your pic for this post that I have had ready for quite a few months!!)


Theme Song for today: Hey Baby by Pitbull Ft. T-Pain

Day 142- August 9- Uncle Doug

I grabbed this pictures tonight during Doug's recreational paddlers course at Lake Milo. I actually took the course in early July and was talking about it to him about the course and how great I found it, learning a lot of technique and having the chance for some supervised practice. I really enjoyed following his class out on the water. Doug was very confident looking and seemed to really be enjoying himself a lot, despite it being only the third evening of the class.

Doug is an incredibly talented businessman and interesting guy. He really has a 6th sense about people, service and public relations. He's very generous and helpful if he can be to anyone who requests his assistance. He is well known in my hometown, across the country and really internationally for top customer service in any Hyundai dealership. His top service designation comes from his commitment, honesty and down to earth values.










Theme song for today: Bottom of the River by The Tom Fun Orchestra

Day 141- August 8- Kenneth Warner

I couldn't resist. I had to find some of my favourite photos of my brother, Kenneth, to go along with this, even if some of these pics were from a few years ago. I love Kenneth a lot. He's zany, unpredictable, funny, reliable and really quite whimsical. Of course, he has as many vices as the next guy- sometimes undisciplined and irresponsible, but really they all work together in his charm. He and Paul are really polar opposites and that makes it fun for me, since I love them both in very opposite ways. Where Paul is sensible and you can discuss more serious, complex situations with him; Kenneth is more liberal (and I say that in the non-political, little "l" liberal sense), enthusiastic and sensitive and and you can do more creative, unpredictable things with him.

I wasn't around for Kenneth's high school years. I was off to Germany and then university in Ottawa when he was just entering grade 10. We became closer moreso after his post Christmas visit to see me the year I couldn't manage to get a flight home for Christmas. He arrived the 27th (or something like that) and stayed with me until Jan. 3. We spent time sightseeing, and discussing his post high school plans. It turned out two years later that he had fallen in love with Ottawa on the trip and decided to attend Carleton as a result. We would meet up occasionally while he lived there, but I left for the north a couple years later leaving him to maintain a Warner presence in the capital.

Kenneth was the first of the family members, who came up north too. We had an incredible time. It was during a sort of low point for him, having just finished a very tough year at school and just breaking up with a girlfriend. I co-ordinated Aeroplan points from a friend and money for the Air Inuit ticket for him to come up for a week and a bit. It was incredible timing for him and will always be a very fond memory for me as well, despite our "getting lost in a snowstorm" experience on the way home from camping. Over the last few years, and especially during my year off, we've really bonded over the arts. We both really love making art- whether it is in photography, movie, music, written word- and being creative. We discovered an incredible musical chemistry for making zany and spontaneous songs together. We can sit down with no plan, find a beat inspiration on the computer or drum machine and play for hours without getting bored. I wish we lived closer for those things! When I spend time with Kenneth, it is normally light, easy going, enjoyable times of unpredictable fun. Almost always accompanied by a few pots of coffee, and sometimes ends with cooking, or baking, or creating new things in the kitchen as well.

Kenneth is quite possibly the most skilled salesperson/ public service person I have ever known. Put him in front of people and he is in his element- people LOVE him and he always seems to enjoy them. I am anxious and excited to see where and what he will find himself doing in the future. I wish him all the best as he navigates the opportunities and choices ahead of him in the next few months. I hope he can decide on the best path for himself and the best timeframe to make it happen! Enjoy the pictures, if you don't know Kenneth, hopefully the pictures can give you a hint to his vibrant personality.















Theme Song for today: The Happy Hat by... Us on one caffeinated afternoon... Maybe I'll post it somewhere, someday...

Day 140- August 7- France Muise

I love Yarmouth because the people are for the most part very proud to be from Southwestern Nova Scotia. Young people are also eager to come home and work hard to continue that reputation of being a happening place to be in the summer. Every year lots of summer students work all over Yarmouth in the service industry, serving visitors and citizens and sharing some of their own enthusiasm for the region. France is one of those young people. I met her through events at Seafest and saw her at pretty much every event with her crab hat.





France strikes me as the type of young woman that has inner strength, confidence and will go very far in life. She knows how to work hard, knows how to communicate with others, knows how to coordinate, problem solve and make things happen. She has a maturity ahead of her years and was a really big asset to the Seafest committee this year. She wasn't afraid to get her shoes dirty (was out on the island for the rum running) or to do the disgusting, or should I say less desirable jobs, like the above photo (picking smelly, gooey mackerel guts off of the public wharf after the mackerel toss event). That is the true sign of a good leader, one who is humble enough to get their hands dirty and who is not just there for the high profile jobs and the glory. Nice meeting you, France! Thanks for being my photo of the day!


Theme Song for today: Volunteers by Jefferson Airplane