The school year ended on a positive note, graduation was very successful....The faces of the Kindergarden kiddies were precious, as were the grade eights who are now entering high school.
Ricardo and I are enjoying the grandson and his antics, while taking in the city life.....restaurants, cinemas all commodities not present up north.
I sign off from this public domain and will continue to journal on my msn for privacy issues these days.
Happy summer to all!

Life in Wunnumin has been quite enjoyable since the warm temperatures have arrived to stay. Ricardo keeps busy between his last three courses for his B.A. in Political Economy, his canoeing/fishing expeditions during the day, and his adult literacy students in the evenings. He took this picture on an early morning outing and caught another dozen fish.

Moopy has become quite the snake hunter (bootlaces), and does venture out for some fresh air in the mornings under close supervision.

I keep busy with the school and all the year end activities, assessments, ordering texts, curriculum planning etc....
And so life goes on....with its joys and tribulations. Last week I spent a few days with a very close friend who lost her husband to cancer, too suddenly. Goodbye Ron, you will be in our hearts and memories....

To add to our collection of athletes in the family, my brother in law ran the Brazil Ironman again at the end of last month and made better time than last year! Way to go Jor!!
And...our youngest now joins the club after running his first triathlon, woo hoo....

Me? I just keep running round Wunnumin twice a week, while I listen to Abba on my CD player. Just to keep the ol' bod' working....

Time is beginning to fly... I can't believe there are only six weeks left of school! Gearing up for the exciting days ahead, sports day, graduation, boxing day (when teachers dismantle their classrooms).
I'm posting my April message from our Newsletter as it is quite informative of the changes wrought in the school:

You see me enjoy these days because……


I see happy faces instead of angry expressions,
I see hats instead of hoodies,
I see playing instead of fighting,
I see helping instead of complaining,
I see curiosity instead of indifference,
I hear singing instead of cursing,
I hear laughter instead of crying,
I hear encouraging words instead of criticism,
I hear jokes instead of put-downs,
I hear drumming instead of silence,
I feel energized instead of oppressed,
I feel accompanied instead of alone,
I feel supported instead of confused,
I feel accepted instead of rejected,
I feel positive instead of down,
I know we are learning together,
I know we are helping each other,
I know we are getting better,
I know we will not forget the lost ones,
I know we are making progress, each and every one of us!!

It turned out to be a poem in the shape of an E, so I ran with it....

The weather has been unbelievably beautiful these past two weeks, well with exception of two stormy days all the rest have been sunny and warm. This morning we went our for fish, no not your usual trip to the supermarket...portage down to the water, paddle for 20' and hook into the water. No wonder the locals say the best fishing is in May, goodness in less than 5' the fisherman here got this baby. Northern Pike, 25 inches long and big teeth....and he isn't what is called big here.

Moi? Here not catching some sun rays...trying to dry off my foot! And that was when it was only one......
I think I need to buy some rain boots, or just wash my runners every week. Good thing I only wet my feet, the water is still icy cold.
The best part of working up here in the north is that it feels like being on holidays.
This spot that we're at is a rock promontory called 'the point', off the shore. We paddled about 20' to get there, and 30' to get back as we were against the current. It makes for good exercise as well as topping up the fish stash for the cat in the fridge.

There are some beautiful Kingfishers around now that the milder days bring them out searching for food. These are the northern version, with stripes and a longer beak. This picture is from the web, can't take credit for this beauty.
It has a fish in it's beak, hence the name of the bird...
Our nearest community neighbour is called Kingfisher Lake thanks to these fellows.

So much has happened in the last two weeks....

Over the Easter break we had some interesting events. Some social unrest sparked by protest signs in one of the local's home resulted in the community having no police, and the school losing two teachers. Additionally we lost four more days of instruction, but after having several meetings, one of which was a support show from the parents towards the school. We are now back in business!
The ice on the lakes continues to melt, here I took a picture of the cracks that soon will expand and become liquid. Some areas are melted, and you can see fishing boats out there with their motors. Ricardo is planning to take out the canoe very soon...
Some sad news is that Nanook, his canine friend was shot by one of the locals. Apparently he went for another of the cats, and paid dearly. It reminds me of the old days back in Argentina, when I'd go out to the country and feel very upset when dogs were shot as a means of controlling their numbers.


Ricardo put together a nice fire pit area behind the house which has quickly become an area of socializing. He just picked up odds and bods lying around, and built benches and a small table as well as the pit. It also came in handy two days ago when the community lost power due to one of the generators malfunctioning. A good fire provided for spaghetties for lunch and some hot beverages. The day we took this picture, it was so hot! I think we got up to 30 celcius...
Now we are back to seasonal temperatures, between 0 and 15....

Happy Easter Everyone!

I wasn't able to get a picture of the skating rink with the children on it before it melted....here is the rink anyways. You can tell that it's in the morning, as kids here can't be seen until after 11 am. Many of them are up quite late, and hence the absenteeism problem on school mornings.

Last week we had another round of teacher interviews in Toronto, so I was able to see Alex, Gloria, Thomas and Jason. I also acted as tour guide/driver as I had one of the Education Board Members, Sharon with me. We drove to Niagara Falls, zoomed by Niagara on the Lake, and enjoyed a live band with Alex and a friend the previous night downtown Toronto. A great dinner at a restaurant by Queen's Quay (poor Alex froze at the temperatures had dipped....).

Three days ago, at lunch time we suddenly heard a big bang....a bolt of lightning hit close by. It didn't rain, but made for a good picture composition with the black sky, white lake and green trees....

Today it was snowing again, but the temperatures are too warm for it to stay on the ground, so back to the slushy, sandy grounds again. Yesterday I got stuck in the middle of the road, the back wheels of the F250 I drive got buried in the sand, as the road was too soft. Fortunately Ricardo came to the rescue and was able to engage the 4x4.
As you can see, I'm in my shirt ouside at noon so the temperatures are climbing. The patches in the lake are the areas that are getting thinner, still snowmobiles venture out...

The great meltdown!

Spring has arrived and the temperatures have shot up. Here is our proof at 8 in the morning.... I walk to school without a hat and gloves, enjoying the plus temperatures....
Yesterday and today it wasn't too bad, as there are a lot of patches of sand to walk on, but Monday and Tuesday was quite the feat, or should I say feet challenge? The ground was like a skating rink, as the snow had melted over the weekend but froze again at night. I kept thinking where are my cleats when I need them? or my skates? Stuck in some box back in our storage in St. Catharines.
The fun part is to watch the kids come to school, splashing through the puddles..... Here you can see a couple of munchkins just behind the gymnasium, quite willing to pose for the picture. They are quite used to it obviously, as we don't have any kids coming in soaking wet. Rubber boots and a good sense of humour will get them in dry and ready for classes. People still zip by in their snowmobiles, taking advantage of the little snow left. It's quite the picture of creativity to see them forking through the trees....
The ice on the lakes doesn't break for another couple of weeks though. Right now, there is still three feet of ice and the winter road is still in use.
This last picture is a frozen puddle at our front entrance. As you can see it makes for a great ice-skating rink. I've yet to get a night shot of the kids playing hockey on the outdoor rink beside the school. I'll try tonight....