Tracks in the earth........????

Today is Saturday and I have a new roommate in the appartment. He is a Dentist, and is from Montreal here for the week. Dreary day all day rainy and overcast. Tried to go for a walk but scared myself so came home. I heard a rustling in the bush so of course immediatley think of a bear so headed home....what a chicken eh? The pictures I took tonight on my walk I started into the woods and these are the tracks I saw looked kinda big not sure if a bear so that is why it spooked me.
Do you think I am crazy or what .....dog tracks? I guess they have lynx and mountain lion and stuff and then the bears.
Have had some calls this am. One lady cut herself with a knife filleting wallaye but unfortuanely did not have to suture.....(sicko). Guess the fish are plentifull here as well and everyone out in full force. Hope I can find someone to take me out love to fish.......hate to eat them though. Apparently this reserve is less traditional then Summer Beaver and that is what it seems to me as well.

Not sure if I had told you before but water is a big issue in the North. You can't drink the water at most reserves and this has been true with both that I have been at. Had a fella in with gastro last night who told me that they are dumping their sewage into the lake this time of year and he thinks that it is affecting the fish. He went fishing and had fish for dinner and then was violently ill. He is very upset about this but said he can't speak up to the band leads as he would be treated badly if he opened his mouth. Apparently some say funding has been there but not sure where the dollars are spent. So kinda political. Not sure if that is what caused his gastro because everyone is eating fish this time of year and he is the first case. Talk soon and Get Well Soon Hun!

Settling In..........

So another day in. Three weeks left and I will be home and I have to say I am looking forward to it. I moved to Bearskin Lake because Summer Beaver was not that busy and I have to say so far Bearskin is not either. 5 patients today but the staff say it is so unusual it is never this quiet so I am beginning to think it is me. I bring good health I guess. So we shall see what next week brings. Todays visits were very minor nothing too interesting. The pictures I posted today is taking you on the first part of my walk.

I am sure I mentioned before that birch trees are in great abundance and as you can see they are. I walked through the forest behind the Nurses Station to the water. It is only about 7 minutes to the water. It is really a pretty forest that is for sure and when I got to the water the picture below is what I saw. Could not get a good spot to sit like my property at Summer Beaver but I will keep searching for my perfect place. I also put a picture of something that I saw throughout the woods and did not know if anyone could tell me

what it is. I am not sure if it is coming from the trees or what. They are everywhere. From the forest I started my walk into town. It is a longer walk then Summer Beaver about 15 minutes puts me into town. This town has a few stores I think three and three churches and even a chicken dinner restaurant. I ran into a teacher who teaches at the school and she has been teaching in the North for 5 years and will be returning South because her daughter is soon going to school.

This seems to be common up here. The pay is higher and well depending on your profession the accomodations are cheap. A teacher only pays 500.00 per month and that includes her utilities. She is married to a NADAP police officer though and the police get their accomodations for free so they are living free. I thought the police up here had to be native but this is not true. Many are actually not native at all. Anyone can apply and do their training in Orillia Ontario.

The Nurse who works here full time tells me she makes 150,000 per year but much of this is due to the OT and call backs (not sure if you are interested). She has been up here 5 years with her husband and two children but they too will be heading south soon to put kids in school.

The Picture tothe left is a picture of an old church that I pass on my way to town and the one below is what seems to be a place for construction equipment and supplies.

Although this town seems a bit more modern the area is still unkept. Today was gargage clean up day and walking through the town I think that maybe people forgot?

Well that is it for tonight. Will keep you posted over the weekend. Hope you all have some fun in the sun. Take care.......

Bearskin Lake a city compared to Summer Beaver

Well thought you might want an update on wazzup. Not a whole lot yet, took me two weeks to settle into Summer Beaver so I don't expect too much at this point. Staff here are great. This is a three nurse station, Summer Beaver was a two nurse station. The station itself is much newer than the last one and as you can see from the pics of the room I am staying..... a step up. The clinic again was slow but guess that is the way it goes up here feast or famine.



It was OK today as I am just trying to find things anyway. Took a walk into town and I can notice an immediate difference. It is certainly more updated. They have two large stores, both carry groceries and one carries many other supplies including electronics. The prices are still high but gas is only 1.49 per litre. There are many more cars and trucks on the road here. The houses are newer, still run down but really much better than




Summer Beaver. I really did not go to far tonight as I had some other things to do but have lots of time to explore a bit. Not sure I will ever find a peice of property like the one in Summer Beaver. My first patient today is a 23 year old who has an addiction to Oxycontin. He is trying to quit and was here for some additional support. The nurse in charge at the station told me that alcohol is not a problem on this reserve it is drugs. I am sure I




will learn more about the people here but I am told every reserve is different. Our station is sitting very close to the lake and there is a path to the lake so I think I will take a walk tomorrow night and scout it out. I wish Elijah was here I am sure we would test our luck with the fish.

You may be wondering why I took the pics of the food above. Just wanted you to see how exensive things are and most stuff does not look fresh as



from the rotting oranges. The grapes cost 12.61 and the corn on the cob was 1.25 per ear. But more food in this store that is for sure. Well have to scoot homework tonight and may get to bed at a decent time. Talk soon.

On the move try on the run.......

Well today I had a bit of excitement as you heard I have moved to another reserve. There was a possibility of this happening, an outside chance and well guess it did. Summer Beaver is a very nice reserve but not all that busy so I was given the opportunity to move to a larger reserve so why not. Why wouldn't I, the ministry picked up the tab so I would have been stupid not to. So where am I....well I have moved to Bearskin





Lake. You will see the picture of the station to the left. If you find it on the internet you will note that I have moved Northwest of Summer Beaver. It is by the Manitoba Border and quite a bit farther north. I arrived at 8 pm your time, I have crossed a time zone so one hour ahead of you. Yeah very fast switch but had to decide quick before someone changed their mind. So long flight, tired again and need to settle in. The



topography again was beautiful, almost as much water as land in the region. I have posted a few pictures of what I saw on the way. I will miss the people of Summer Beaver but was so glad I went fishing with Elijah. I am not sure who is still tuned into ths Saga but wanted to say I do miss everyone. I will have to get out and check the place out tomorrow and let you know what is going on in Bearskin Lake. Oh yeah I have upgraded my accomodations that is for sure I will




try to post pictures of that on the internet tomorrow. It is a brand new Nurses Station and I am living high and mighty..... The flight was interesting some lakes still covered in ice and others clear see below. So needless to say I am beat again. Up early saw patients this am and then in transit from 3 to 8 with a pit stop in Sioux Lookout.





The flight again was a little rocky, as much of the flight we were low to the ground due to stopping at a couple of reserves. Again thank goodness for my little DVD player that my husband slipped me before I left. Good thinking babe you are just too good to me!

ON THE MOVE

To all Cyndis faithful readers.

Today at 1210 hours Cyndi was handed a plane ticket and informed that a plane would be arriving at Summer Beaver at 1500 hours to take her to Souix Lookout were she would connect with a flight to Bear Skin Lake first Nations Reserve. At this time she is scrambling to move and I have no other information other then her arrival at Bear Skin Lake is around 9 oclock tonight. When information becomes available Cyndi or I will Post.. Praying for her safe arrival to Bear Skin Lake...For Your Info...Rob

A Night at the Creek......

So I got a call at work today from someone who works at the clinic as the night guard...This is the same person that I met the first night and then could not sleep because I was, well uneasy or maybe a bit freaked out...He asked if I wanted to go fishing, wow pretty lucky for me. I checked him out first to make sure he was not taking me out to murder me and after asking around found that he was OK. So I decided to go. We had a great evening warm to start then got colder but we caught some fish. We caught Pike and Pickerel but we let the pike go, guess he did not like to eat them? We used, get



this Vicky, fishing poles called the Ugly Stick....and leurs no bait, 8 lb test line and it was magic. Had to drive about 5 km to get to the rapids to fish and he said he would pick me up in his quad......so check it out.

We fished for two hours and let about 7 fish go they were all pike. We kept 7 and he fillet them there and showed me a few tricks yeah for all the fish I will be filleting.







So this is Elijah, he loves to fish and is going back to the rapids after taking me back to the station. It is very interesting that most of the people here have a biblical name. Anyway Elijah told about a remedy that they use from pine gum that is dry. He said that if they cut theselves that they scrape the pine gum into a powder and put this powder on an area that they are bleeding from. He said it stops the bleeding and acts as a bandaid. He said "this is our bandaid" and laughed.







Here is the quad we drove to the rapids in. Just starting to get dark when we were leaving.

Monday May 26th......

So not really much to report today thought you might like to see our one and only police truck. He is back from holiday and here to maintain law and order. Well I know we had a call to the Nurses Station because I saw him outside restoring order. Yep that is right the nurses who work here did not know how to connect the bbq tank to the bbq so called the police......I had been on my nightly walk and saw this wise use of the tax dollars.

At the clinic we had a usual day. Nothing to crazy to report. I started to notice though I have been getting calls from locals. Asking one question or another. Guess they must be testing out the new nurse.....

I saw a number of patients that I had to use an interpreter with. That is interesting....lets just say you cant break any speed records for a visit.

Oh there is my dog again, likes to follow me around.

Sunday May 25th...............Quiet Day

So thought I would post a picture of this version of the Superstore (picture at left). I have two pictures one is of the main store and the other is a version of Beckers (below). It is open when the Superstore is closed. I had posted a picture of another little store a few days back and they call that one the chips and pop store. Not much in it but a few staples.

So I was listenting to the local radio staion Sunday when I was doing my homework. The radio station connects all of the 1st Nation Reserves. It is very interesting to listen to, again the genre is mainly county with a mix of old and new favoritews as well as songs in their native
tongue. The radio plays a song by Faith Hill in English and the announcer is talking in Ojicree. I have noticed how the broadcast is shared among the reserves depending on the daily activities. The post I put down below of the gospel was broadcast from Summer Beaver and Sunday the broadcast was from another Reserve. The Reserves often celebrate somthing and then hold a Gospel. At the gospel the locals get up and show their tallent (and for some not so much). It is really interesting, at times kinda like a Karoke. Local people sing songs across the broadcast and anyone can call and and request a song. The locals take turns singing to the radio listeners. Tune, pitch and timing are unimportant it is enjoyed by all. A pause in the music and the Lords Prayer and a reading from the scripture. I did not realize how strong the faith was throughout this community. A community plagued with an underlying sadness and depression that I read every day at the clinic in their charts. 5 attempts at hanging, ETOH abuse these are the most common findings in thier past medical history. I talked to a woman who told me that she had a problem with alcohol, she binged, she said that when she starts drinking she drinks for 48 hours straight. She was having an CT scan of her head because her husband beat her up with a frying pan.

Saturday May 24th........

So today I walked up to the power station. It was on a dead end road off the beaten trail past the 5 star motel I told you about. The road to the power station is quiet and there are no homes it is basically wooded and on a penninsula. I was half way down the road and I cought a glimpse of vehicles that belonged in a wreck yard, piles of roof tin, and other pieces of old machinery. I, for the first time felt uneasy. I had hoped noone had followed me or better yet that bear had not wakened up from his long winters nap.
I just put my earphones in my ears and pushed the thought out of my head. The day was beautiful I wore a tank top and guess what no bugs.....
Checked my internet to find out I was still out of luck. I was disappointed as I know that some of you like to keep tabs on me. So after seeing these pictures do you think you may have been a bit uneasy? I just kept thinking I think I have seen a movie like this and I am sure that the person got killed.....





More abandoned vehicles....





Walking up to the power plant.

I still am not sure how this works maybe someone out there reading can post if you have an idea. Do you think it is really run by diesel like a local person told me?




This is so common, one of the first days that I was in town I noticed some men that tied their aluminum boat to a ski-doo and towed it across the ice to some open water. They like to go to the rapids to fish as the fish are spawning and as you know there are not rules for hunting here it is open all year long. In this picture they are carrying the boat but as you can see the open water in front they better hold onto the boat....

Friday May 23rd the day I lost touch with the rest of the world!

Friday afternoon I went for my nightly walk and have decided to claim a spot as my own. Yes I now have a small piece of real estate for me to escape and watch the sunset and sunrise across the water's edge. I have taken a picture and although this was not the best day due to clouds I am sure you will agree it is a beautiful location. Today I met two first year med students who have been in the community for one month to learn the culture. The entire month they have spent hanging out with the locals and touring around.

This is included as a part of their education and is provided through the University (must be a hard course?). These two actually stayed at our local 5 star accomodation (running water, bed and a kitchen) at 100.00 per night and that is without the food. I have taken a picture for you so you can check it out who knows maybe instead of a wedding on the beach in Panama Josh and Heather might want to come here and stay at this luxury motel....... I was amazed that this cost 100.00/night but sure enough and there are no discounts for longer stays.

I can tell you that all of the things that others told me to expect has not exactly been my experience here. Things are rather quiet, I have not seen anyone who has been impaired (even me unfortunately), out of control or aggressive.

Well Friday was a slow day at the clinic. One thing I forgot to mention before that seemed interesting is how all of the residents are referred to by their band number. All documents and conversations with anyone about the client seeks a band number. So it is just as important as your name and DOB. The interesting story for the day today was my last patient at the end of the day. She was a 7 year old with a very bad infestation of lice. Certainly not isolated to this population as we know how common this is with children. The saddest part of this was that the child came from the school with a teacher and we had to take her home as the mother could not come up to the clinic. I had to deliver the Nix treatment and explain how she was to treat the family and the other necessary actions with lice. They had no running water so had to go to another home to use the water for bathing and on the way out the door was a 5 gallon pail that was filled with water and body excretion (to say this politely but use your imagination). This was a family of 6, 4 small children can't imagine. I did talk to the manager of the health clinic who is first nation and he told me that many people leave for months at a time and go to Thunder Bay or Sioux Lookout and don't prepare their homes in the winter and the pipes break so the band office refuses to fix them. Not sure if this was the case but we are looking into it.

Another question that I can answer is about how the residents get their clothing. There is a limited supply of clothes in the store. Cammo Cammo and more Cammo..... but there are also several catalogues in which many order from including the Sears Catalogue! Bye for Now!

I am BACK..........

WOW off line since friday, feel very disconnected. I will be posting my daily notes and will be sure to go back to friday so you won't miss a day! I am just posting this quick message and will do the update later today. Take care all and will share soon! CyndiSue

Update From Cyndi

Cyndi asked me to post a note to let you all know she is fine and that the computers are still down and probably will be until Monday. She has new pictures to share and will post and update you all as soon as the system comes back on line..For Your Info ...Rob

Message fom Cyndi

To all her regular readers, cyndi would like to inform that they have had a power outage in Summer Beaver, she will return to posting when things get back on line.

Check daily and she promises to update with new info and happenings

For Your Info Rob

On my walk last night I came across several of these teepee's. They infact are not used for living in they are used for smoking their meet. I had a chat with our night watchman last night and he told me that this is done frequently especially with moose and fish as the meat stays longer smoked. Interesting man, showed me many pictures of their fishing trips. Amazing the number of fish they catch at one time. He said that this time of year they go to the rapids at night with a light and a net and come home with a feast of walleye. He also said that across the bay at the beach they are so close to shore you just have to put your hand in the water and scoop them up.

Apparently their is a fishing camp frequented by the Americans 25 miles from here called Fishbasket lodge? Have not had a chance to look it up but worth a google.

The picture to the left you see is across the road from the picture above so this is the house on the lake. The lawn ornaments are very common here again I am sure you have noted in several pictures.

Found the name of the papoose that was posted yesterday for anyone interested it is a Tikanogan.

Cute pup I saw on my walk, lots of dogs here I am sure most are not spayed or neutered.

I had a busy day at the clinic again with much the same as back home. Interesting though the other things you have to consider. You can't drink the water here so we always have to consider this in our clinical decision making. Questions like do you drink the water, do you boil it etc. Saw a 51 year old female today that wanted a ganglion removed because it bothered her when she was cutting wood. Truely a different life.

Well I am really tired tonight so I will sign off for now but will get back to this tomorrow. I do miss home and all of you! Take care......

Todays adventure........

Ok I know all of the women reading this blog are saying awwwwwe so cute. Babies are often carried by this means and they told me the name but again did not have a pen so could not write it down and hard to understand the language. I really have not seen anything sweeter. I met them on my nightly walk. They were so friendly. I think I am starting to be accepted in this community. I have made a point of walking into the village almost nightly. I have so much to tell and I know not enough time. Well I did some suturing today. Funny thing our dentist is in town and he told me I could hang out a bit with him and I could suture sockets after he pulls the tooth. I know some of you are thinking I am really sick but I guess I am.....hahah. It was interesting and I will do some more tomorrow if I have time. Wendy P we need you up here it is so bad. As you know many diabetics and no regular follow up, that is until I arrived. My whys are routine why aren't we drawing for ............. so now I just do it. Obesity is quite prevalent and the oral contraceptive of choice is Depo...for obvious reasons. So todays visit included pneumonia, strep throat, viral URI, low back pain, atopic dermatitis, a few stop by for injections, well baby check, post partum assessment, diabetes assessment one after hours knee trauma (knee sprain) and of course my fun trying to be a dentist haha.

I am trying to answer some of the questions posted by you all daily i will keep looking for the answers so dont give up. Rob this one is for you. Interesting way of getting power. You asked me where the power lines go to and I have found out. Summer Beaver is powered by Diesel fuel. So the lines go to the fuel which I have seen. They are the biggest tanks I have ever seen with Diesel. The nurses at the station told me it was likely for trucks but I have found the real truth from a local who tells me that the Diesel gives them power and when the Diesel runs low they loose power (yikes). Scott thank you for being worried about me, yes I have lots to eat. I had brought so much had to pay 150.00 extra for being over on weight, mind you I was only allowed 35 lbs so someone is making a killing. Oh yeah there are now three of us sharing my room so it is one big happy family. I have so much more but I will save for tomorrow. Take care to all of you and will post again tomorrow.

Gospel at the school

I wanted to give you something different tonight so I have added a clip of the local band Northern Eagles. I have a picture of them on the left. The tall guy at the back in the black shirt works at the clinic he is our driver. They tell me they do have a CD they sell at the local store so I may have to have a peak. Today was a busy day and that is why the blog is so late had various patients at the clinic much like our population back home.


Wendy I know you were curious about what I am seeing and really it is quite similiar. The differences are really their histories are full of depression and suicide attempts. In fact my day started off with a 46 y.o male who I treated for strep throat. He told me a very sad story about his son who had comitted suicide 1 year ago today. He told me he would have been 17 May 4th if he had been still alive. Today was this clients birthday the anniversary of his son's death. He went on to tell me that there was a pow wow at the school that I could visit in the afternoon, a feast followed by a memorial gospel. I unfortunatley had to work late so only made the memorial gospel and that is the clip you see when you play it. Idid not do the whole thing but wanted to give you a sense. The music is very much country. The band played a couple english songs and the rest in ojicree.

One week down 5 to go, a day with the children.......

A trip to the local public school today. We went to the school as a part of the sexual education program. It was really interesting. The school is fairly new, the old school is quite run down I will post a pic of that another day. One hundred students from Kindergarden to grade 10 attend here and after grade 10 they can complete their education in Thunder Bay or Sioux Lookout. Some dont go any father then grade 10. The boys of the class we taught range in age from 12-15 all dressed in hoodies and ball caps. The girls much what you would find back at home. I was impressed with the murals puts athens to shame and most painted by the students, with assistance.

I now have to share my room with a dentist that is here until friday. He comes up from Toronto a couple times per year. He said it is pretty sad. Basically he spends most of the day is just pulling teeth. He said he fills some but pulls many more. Tomorrow it is three's company as the Doctor arrives for the remainder of the week. We shall be cozy in the apartment that is posted below.

Not too impressed when I woke up today to find snow on the ground and it was snowing. Talked to Peter today the man who was going hunting yesterday. He got 3 ducks and his partner got 15. He said they were out until 12:30 am and often stay out until 2 am.
This picture is of the newly built school. It is the nicest building on the reserve. They also have one school bus that drives around the villiage and picks kids up for school.

Child safety is really not enforced here. As I said before they feel that children have to learn for themselves. Yesterday when I was walking in town I noticed a car with one of the back windows covered with a plastic gargage bag and a child hanging out the window on the other side standing on the seat.

Playing basketball at recess. They had an indoor recess because the teacher said it was due to the weather. I did not find it that bad and I know back home out teacher would kick us out even if it was -25 and said dont forget you hat.....

Picture of Nancy (right) the nurse I am working with, Sara (left beside me) teacher she is married to a first nations and Victoria she is a worker here at the clinic helps interpret.

Spent have the day at the clinic and the other half at the school. Getting a little more familiar with the lay of the land here. Saw 7 patients with upper respiratory infections, ankle strain and earaches etc and again I was the lab tech drew blood and the pharmacist mixed medication and dispensed.

I was a little concerned for these kids out on the ice. There are some open spots here and there and I was so afraid I would see them fall through the ice. Guess they know more than me.

Happy Victoria Day........

This picture is for you CA…. you have been looking for people. I have been pretty careful taking pictures, as I do not want to offend them. I want to gain their trust and that takes time. This is an elder who makes leather crafts. She is very busy. She makes purses and moccasins. She showed me how she creates the beaded patterns for her items. She is very talented. She does not speak a word of English but we seemed to communicate pretty well. I am going back to have tea with her this week. The picture below is her home. Quiet day at the clinic, as it is a holiday. It is sunny and cold but just nice for a walk through the village.
Met the gas station attendant that informed me that gas is 1.65 per liter. I also asked him about how one can get some money here in the village. He told me that the money machine never has money in it but if you ask the store clerk they may be able to help me. I did find some money but what a process…the store does not have any money but the place to buy guns at the back of the store did which was lucky for me because they apparently do not have much cash in the village on hand.

They have an interact machine at the store in which you can use to purchase groceries but because they do not have cash you cannot do a cash back so lets hope I have enough to keep me until the end of this journey.
It is really different walking around this village. I get a sense of what it must have been like 100 years ago. The village is quiet the sound of a dog barking, the smell of wood burning from the chimneys and the sound of skidoos and four wheelers in the distance. No one is in a very big hurry. Few cars on the unpaved roads, houses sitting close together and every one knows everyone in this community. Met a familiar face on this trip, the caretaker from the station. He was on his four-wheeler getting ready to go hunting. Today he is after ducks, called them long tails. Some of you reading will be very interested to know that there are some weeks throughout the year here called cultural week. This is the first week of each hunting season. Individuals are given the week off work with pay (often more, last one lasted three weeks) if they are employed. It is their right as it is their way of life.