-8 and overcast in Tsiigehtchic today.
Sunrise at 8:45 and Sunset at 21:18.
40 more minutes than my last blog! Will this nice weather stay or are there more freezing temperatures to come?
BINGO TALLY -11 Losses and 2 Wins!
I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes on Friday. Everything went well. I took Jello home the night before so it would be ready on time. Berry flavour blue jello just to make dessert a little freaky. Turned out great!
The meatloaf and mashed potatoes went well. I went back to the house once for an extra pan. Things disappear from the gym kitchen if they are left behind so there are no real pots and pans to use in the gym cooking area. It requires a lot of thinking to get all the right pieces together to cook a meal.
I was surprised to see the number of people that drive in Tsiigehtchic. Not surprised that people have licenses or cars but that they drive everywhere even if it their destiantion can be seen out their front window. I walk back and forth with all my pots and pans to the school and people wave at me from their cars. I usually can't wave back because I have my hands full. I figure it makes me look tough and people will be worried about trying to get in the way of that crazy wellness worker who walks through town carrying all those heavy packages.
I pulled an old dresser out of the Wellness Centre that was breaking into pieces. I set it out on the curb by myself one morning. Perhaps it will reinforce the message not to mess with the fiesty kid in the Magic Bus. I also made a list of all the things I cleaned and took care of in the Magic Bus when I first arrived and gave it to the landord. The faint of heart would have been hopitalized by now.
Bannock wasn't on the menu today but there was a young helper in the kitchen who really wanted to do some baking. She measured out the flour and labouriously patted it down evenly into the pan while I was stiring the potatoes. Yes, I didn't have a mixing bowl and we made the bannock in the same pan that we used to bake it in the oven. I intervened in the flour feng shui and added the other ingredients into the mix. My helper and I had all our hands in the dough and it was sticking to us more than it was being shaped into dough. Bannock is a stickier dough than traditional bread recipes. I pulled the extra dough off the little fingers of my helper to facilitate the process. I mixed up the ingredients more thoroughly and held the big ball of dough in my hands while my helper took the time to wash the pan. I had to enlist some extra help to stir the vegetables and potatoes while I was otherwise occupied. We shaped the dough into separate balls and placed them in the pan about 15 minutes before supper needed to be ready and put it in the oven. I developed a plan to have the bannock dropped off after it was ready and left with the meal.
I had my meal ready on time and my ride arrived to pick everything up with expert timing. Everythng was served on time and without incident. Then someone asked if I had made some bannock. I told him there might be some in the school gym if he was willing to go for a walk and pick it up. No takers. Probably a good thing because when the bannock arrived it looked suspiciously more brown that expected. It was also crunchier than expected. Oops! We forgot to turn the temperature down from the one it was set to for the meatloaf! There were some who ate the middle of the bun but most of the bannock was lost to the trash heap. Better luck next time!
The program is in process of ending until the application to continue the funding is completed and approved. We'll see if they invite me back for another season. The review on the meatloaf and potatoes definitely received a 10 strong stamp of approval. The effort on the bannock did not go unoticed and good graces were given for another try. Stay tuned for season 2 - more unconventional cooking with teapots and fingerprint patterns in the flour to die for!
I am looking forward to completing part of a special project this coming week. I am getting a picture of the church on the hill engraved into granite with a printed Gwich'in saying that recognizes the contribution of the elders to the community. We will be having a feast to show them community support and let them know who they can turn to if they find that they are being victimized by individuals in the community. I am working on addressing the issue of elder abuse and have a follow up speaker who is going to come in from Yellowknife to discuss it with the community. It is not uncommon for family members and bootleggers to take the debit card of various elderly individuals and get money for themselves. There is a strong community connection that obligates parents to care for their children's needs even when they are being taken advantage of by their own friends and family.
The RCMP are stationed in Fort McPherson about 45 minutes South of Tsiigehtchic. They patrol the area on a regular basis but need input from the community regarding issues of concern. When the roads are blocked during the ice break up in the Spring and freeze up in the Winter there are no RCMP in the community. There never have been. There is a nurse that stays in town twice a year for the six weeks the roads are blocked. A person can be removed for medical care by helicopter and there are people trained in first response medical care.
Tsiigehtchic is a dry community and alcohol is prohibited so bootleggers charge a lot of money for alcohol. The community is realizing that the RCMP needs to know what is happening in order to intervene and more efforts are being put in place to get the right information to the police. Bootleggers leave their stash on the side of the road and drive into town looking for police vehicles. They go back for the alcohol when they see that the coast is clear. It is easy to spot trails into the bush off the side of the road so many have figured out that you can throw bottles individually into the snow where they are relatively undetectable.
You may go hunting for some of this treasure and hit the jackpot on your own. This happens in the spring as there are many lost bottles that were not successfully retrieved. Not quite the same as the gold rush!
Drin Gwiinzii
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