Lessons Learned

From the comfort of my cozy office back in Calgary I thought I would ponder some of the lessons I learned during the installation of RISR-C in Resolute Bay.

1. Pepsi does not taste better when it costs $126 for 24 cans. Seriously, on the first day in Resolute one of the RKO boys (who shall remain nameless in case his wife is reading this) went into town and paid $126 for a two-four of Pepsi at the Coop. This might seem pricey, but considering the critical role Pepsi played in our survival it was probably worth it (nobody wants to sit around drinking straight rum). Of course when Pepsi costs this much, you don't want to waste too much in your drink so the rum was flowing like a river.
   
2. You haven't lived until you have shared your lip balm with an iron worker. Before you get any strange ideas, it was the 'stick your finger into the pot' kind of lip balm, not the 'put it on like lipstick' kind. Still, this level of intimacy with a construction worker was not a part of my plans when I got on the plane. It was so dry up here the first week it was incredible. My shower couldn't fog the mirror in the bathroom no matter how long I ran it (frankly, on Sunday morning after having a few of the aforementioned Pepsi's I am amazed any of us could "fog a mirror").
3. When the going gets cold, go home and let Cody and Jarrett take over. I left Resolute Bay on the last flight out before a huge storm that canceled flights and scheduled work. It is now -10 C up there and Cody and Jarrett are slaving away. It was over 30 C in Calgary this weekend and I wore shorts the entire time. I think I am winning ...
4. Never let an ex-hippie play your guitar. Perry, our "man on the scene" tends to get a little musically rambunctious. After spending 15 minutes trying to tune his guitar he broke the neck off. No big deal, a couple of lag bolts and some epoxy and it is as good as new. There is also a 'communal' guitar that kicks around the hotel and it has been reported that during the storm he drop kicked through the ceiling. Take that Hendrix.
   
5. There are two kinds of cooks, and both are dangerous in their own ways. On my last visit to Resolute the food was inedible. We would barely fill our plate, throw most of that away and spend all of our time complaining about hunger pains. Imagine my joy when I discovered that this time the cook could cook! It was crazy, Earl used these funky newfangled things call "spices". Wow! After every meal we would groan and swear that next meal we would eat less. This never happened. I saw Spanky load up a plate with 30 Cod nuggets, 1/2 a pound of french fries and then smile at Earl and say 'This is all I am having today". Turns out that 20 days of eating this mouthwatering food 3 meals a day had some highly predictable side effects.

Wow.


Until next time ...