Northern Exposure...Summer Beaver: Six Days and Counting........

Friday, June 13, 2008

Six Days and Counting........

Just a few more pictures to share. Have been quite settled into the work here now. Some busy days and some slow days. I have taken in the experience and have truly learned a great deal both culturally and professionally. Completing all aspects of care has helped to solidify much of what I need to know.

I do know that this is just the beginning for me and that there is much more to learn and look

forward to the future challenges. The weekend is upon me and will see what kind of patients we see the first one this evening was a gastro, IV bolus and gravol and away you go. I will post likely Sunday and maybe one or two more times next week. Thursday I am going back to Summer Beaver for a last sunset on my favorite piece of property. Can only hope for sunshine. Friday am up and out by 1030 and back into Ottawa by 7pm. I am looking forward to coming home

but will have to start duty at the Giff rez unless for some miracle Rob is cured. So not to worry hun your private nurse is almost on her way....

Well take care and will talk to you soon.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...: Well I am also counting the days until my private nurse returns because in my wildest dreams I would never have imagined being laid up for this long.
It has been a incredible journey and I just wanted to thank you as I am sure everyone else that has been following your journey and posting comments, would also like to thank you for taking us along with you, you have given as a remarkable insight into your Northern experience, as only you could have done.
I am so Proud of you and your accomplishments and yes the Journey has just begun on a challenging and fulfilling career..Luv Rob; June 14, 2008 at 11:35 AM
Anonymous said...: Been great reading about your experience Cindi,Have a safe trip home.........Scott; June 16, 2008 at 3:13 AM
Anonymous said...: I can't beleive how quickly the time went! I am sure it didn't feel like it to you somedays, but you did it! Me, like everyone else, are so proud of you and all you've done! I can't wait to hear more stories when you return. MOstly I can't wait to see your smiling face!! Being at your house yesterday was great, but it wasn't the same as with you there!
I told Rob yesterday, it's gonna be kind of sad when you get home, casue there will be no Blog to read each day! Maybe you can start a new one...The Adventures of the Athens Medical Centre???? hahaha!!

Have a save trip home. I hope to chat with you on MSN this week, but if I don't, I will be thinking about you on Friday! Miss you! Love you!; June 16, 2008 at 8:51 AM
Anonymous said...: Just 4 more sleeps until you are back in Athens...Luv Ya Rob; June 16, 2008 at 10:25 AM
Anonymous said...: Well Cyndi we have certainly enjoyed your trip......a blog is certainly a great way to keep in touch while off on your exotic travels.....maybe you could do one from Panama, which would be great for many that are unable to attend.....something to think about?...I will take some pictures for you.....safe trip home, see you very soon....Love Jerry & Shirley; June 16, 2008 at 2:16 PM
Anonymous said...: Well as they say this is it....1 day left....take care, safe travels.....see you next weekend...love Jerry and Shirley; June 19, 2008 at 1:35 PM

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Pemmican, one of the ladies had made this for the feast.......

Pemmican was a staple of the Plains people’s diet with the name originating from the Cree word, “pimikan”, or ‘manufactured grease’. Pemmican was made from buffalo meat, although antelope, deer, elk and moose were also used. It was a mixture of dried meat pounded to a powder, a quantity of rendered fat, Saskatoon berries or choke cherries, and sometimes peppermint leaves. The whole mixture was stored in parfleches, or skin bags, where it could be stored indefinitely. Pemmican was portable and highly nutritious with 1 kilogram equaling 5 kilograms of fresh meat. It was one of the most important contributions native people made to the survival of the Europeans through the harsh Canadian winters.

How to Make Pemmican
To make pemmican the Indians began by cutting meat into thin slices or strips and drying it either in the sun or over a fire. After the meat was dried, it was spread out on a stone-headed mauls and then pounded. This pounded meat was called "beat meat" by the natives. "Beat meat" was then mixed with melted fat and marrow. One early European observer noted that 40 pounds (18kg) of fat were added to 50 pounds (22.6kg) of beat meat. Sometimes a paste made of fruits or berries were added to this mixture.
Pemmican was stored in folded rawhide containers called parfleches. They were flat which made them easy to store and transport. Parfleches were greased along their seams to keep out air and moisture. Pemmican could therefore be kept fresh for years. Three-quarters of a pound (.34kg) of pemmican a day was a sufficient ration of food, although a hard-working traveler might eat between 1 and 2 pounds a day.
"... to make this essential food, the women would cut buffalo meat into very thin strips and hang them on hooks or a rack over a slow, smoky fire. The fire was used mainly to keep flies off the fresh meat. After a day or two the fire was discontinued and the meat was allowed to dry in the sun and wind. Three or four times a day the women would crack the meat open to allow the outsides of the strips to dry. After the drying process, which took about a week, the meat was broken into small pieces and put inside a flour sack. The women then pounded the meat into powder. This powder was mixed with dried berries, and melted buffalo fat was used to bind the substance together into balls. The pemmican balls were then placed into bags made of green (untanned) buffalo hid, and sewn up tightly. A bag of pemmican, made properly, could be cached in the ground for several years and still remain usable.
Rubaboo is the name for a stew made of pemmican and any wild vegetables at hand. Boiled in a pot of water, the chunks of pemmican would fall apart. Additions - the likes of onion, turnip, asparagus, parsley, sage, bullrush root, cattail heads, dandelion root, wild parsnip, wild carrot, mushrooms, pine nuts, daylily roots, or wild rice, would turn it into an appetizing stew.

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