New BLOG!

Hello everyone!

As promised, I've created a new blog to go along with my new adventure.  You can access it by clicking the link below:

http://dubaijthompson.blogspot.ae/2013/08/re-learning-how-to-sweat.html

I hope you enjoy my new desert adventure!

Summer Time!

I've been back in Ontario for a little over two months and what an intense two months they've been! Spent some time at the cottage in Bracebridge http://www.bracebridge.ca/ and had an experience that makes me truly believe that the world is a very small place.  

Sarah Zoolander and I decided to go to town, walk Manitoba Street to peek in the shops, and then head for supper.  The most incredible thing happened.  We parked and got out and were soon approached by two guys pushing a stroller.  They politely asked if we knew the closest place to buy beer.  I directed them to Muskoka Brewery http://www.muskokabrewery.com/ but it was after business hours so it was closed.  Then next closest place was The Beer Store/LCBO plaza but that wasn't in gentle walking distance so the guys offered to buy us a 12 pack if we drove them.  I NEVER pick up hitch hikers but the baby in the stroller sold me on the idea, plus Sarah knows kung fu.  Anyway, we jam the stroller into the trunk and all jump in my car.  On the way to The Beer Store we do a round of introductions: Phil is a marine biologist from BC, Leon is an awesome baby, and Ian is a teacher from Pond Inlet... who just so happens to be science buddies with my friend Adam from Gjoa Haven.  SMALL WORLD. So yeah, 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon or whatever and here I am taking pictures with a fellow Arctic teacher who I met and picked up randomly on the streets of Bracebridge.  Go figure.



Ian decided it would be a super idea if we take a photo to commemorate the world being small.



The week spent at the cottage only continued to get better.  I lit a fire with one match and got to spend my birthday with some super wonderful people.


July was filled with wedding preparations for Melanie and Chris.  Everything went off without a hitch.  Here we are looking glamorous. 

This summer also marks a big change in location for me.  I sought out a teaching position in The United Arab Emirates.  My next adventure is as the ELL teacher at a private school in Dubai.  I leave this Saturday.  Some would argue that the huge temperature extremes may be hard to deal with.  But I just flippantly say I'm trading one desert for another.  I'm going to see about setting up another blog or see about changing the formatting of this blog.  Will keep you posted.

And the walls come a tumbling down AKA spring in Gjoa Haven

Spring is here!  The sun has been bright and beautiful the last week and temperatures have been hovering in the minus teens and just recently close to zero.  It has been wonderful walking around in a light parka and hiking boots and not having to worry about having a part of my body frozen off.  The snow on the ground has been strangely melting despite the temperature never going above zero and the predictable mud and puddles have been steadily building.  

What we didn't expect, however, and the part that is most distressing is along with the snow, our house is also melting.  We first noted the melt de maison when the sound of dripping brought us to the back door (until recently we couldn't open the door because it was frozen shut so we used the back porch as storage). That was when we determined the sky to be falling. Literally.

 The walls rippling with water behind the paint appeared to be melting, the (badly) taped dry wall seams blowing apart under the strain.  At 930 Friday night we put in an after hours call to Housing.  

Oh, Housing....  

A nice man named Bruce came by to check it out. He stood there silently watching the water stream from the ceiling into a bucket.  Kelli and I were dancing around frantically planning to climb onto the roof to shovel the snow, offering to lift Bruce up into the attic to go save the day etc, and all Bruce would do was shrug with a quiet "maybe we can come fix it on Tuesday."  

Back porch roof :(

I know this sounds crazy but letting water damage sit for any amount of time is counter intuitive in my world thanks to the family business - Terra Restoration Steamatic Hamilton (business plug!).  So the idea of having someone come "fix" the flood in 5 days didn't sit well with either me or Kelli. 

We peppered him with helpful suggestions about how it should be fixed asap and perhaps he should call some friends to come shovel off the roof etc.  Poor Bruce, didn't know how to handle The Thompson-Hanson Tag Team and we ended up bamboozling him into calling Sophia the acting head of Housing at home requesting that she call our house immediately. We did however pat him on the head reassuringly (because not many people can withstand The Thompson-Hanson Tag Team), gave him some delicious homemade granola bars, then sent him on his way.

Let me preface the next part with we've had several run ins with the acting head of Housing in the recent past and we both believe this woman to be bat shit crazy.  The History kid in me wants desperately for there to be a footnote function on this blog so that I can take a tangent into the frozen pipe debacle of April 2013 where I can detail without breaking the flow of the blog the gong show so that you too can feel the baffled rage we felt thanks to the acting head of Housing.  I like to prevent further damage so when my sink pipe was frozen I acted immediately and expecting Housing to do the same.  It's crazy I know but I figured an after hours call to prevent a burst pipe would be worth the overtime.  I got told in a lispy German accent that "you do not live in Paris or Vienna and that you must wait your turn. Maybe we come to see it tomorrow but until then you can use the bathtub to wash your hands."

Super.  

Anyway, Housing, she called us - almost immediately defensive - telling a story about her water leak being much worse.  I wasn't certain if she was trying to make me feel better about the state of my house or if she was making a bigger statement about the terrible state of Government of Nunavut Housing.  I'm not one for nepotism but seriously, if I ran Housing I wouldn't have a leaking roof - that's just foolish. 

 I know what I felt: rage.   I badgered her into coming to see the leak Saturday morning at 10am and I got my sorry butt out of bed to meet her.   

The walls appear to be melting.

Kelli fielded this little visit having a bit of a grudge from being told to "be quiet and listen" several times during our frozen pipe escapade.  She was ripe for a fight and really quite worried about the state of the house going into a summer where her house would be sitting vacant full of all her things.  According to this Housing woman practically everyone else in the town of Gjoa has a leak in their house that is much worse than ours and therefore we should just put down some towels and wait.  

That didn't sit well with Kelli.

Black mold.  Really two little words that are scary as hell.  Because that little spore doesn't like wet drywall - that's crazy talk.  After a heated discussion about the purpose of a roof and how waterfalls in the house are NOT ok Kelli talked the Housing woman into calling CAP maintenance to start the ball on getting it fixed.  They came quickly and said they'd notify Housing that the problem is much worse than the original "get some towels" situation the woman tried to sell us on previously.  But it would probably not be fixed in the next few months because Housing is going to drag their feet on approving the work order.

It didn't end there.

Next we found water bubbles protruding from exterior walls.  My first instinct: pop them.  Kelli's first instinct: let's see how big they get.  The we can't beat'em join'em attitude let us approach the melting house shit show with better attitudes let me assure you.

Water bubble in the living room.  

Water bubble in my bathroom under the towel rack

It didn't stop there.

Call it paranoia, call it searching for a great adventure, but we went hunting throughout the house looking for wet spots on ceilings and walls.  I was tickled - you can imagine - when I found a growing water spot directly over my bed just waiting to startle me awake in the wee hours when it decided to break.  

Who doesn't love a good water bed? 

Water spot over my bed just waiting for me to fall asleep :(

The water spurred us into action and we were both able to get a lot of packing and purging done while we raced around mopping up puddles.  Unfortunately, I'm not sure where I'm going to sleep tonight since at this point my room is more like water world. I made the executive decision to prop my bed against the wall that is currently dry, the towel is directly underneath the seeping water spot and the shower curtain drape is strangely fitting.

my room :(

I just got finished standing on Kelli's bed poking at her ceiling and by the looks of it we will both be camping in the living room where it is currently dry-ish.  We've also identified a spot just right of the entertainment system so we've shifted everything to the left.  We put the towel where we are expecting the dam to break.

Ah-mazing!

Nunavut Housing is quality.  

Tell your friends.

And the walls come a tumbling down....

LAND TRIP!

It's that time of year again! LAND TRIP!!!  Two days on the land with good people, country food, and wonderful sunshine!  Gotta love end of the year trips. The first thing we did when we got to the lake today was drill some holes for fishing.  If there was ever any doubt as to the thickness and therefore safety of the ice all of my doubts were assuaged when  we didn't find water until we extended the ice auger...

... to 6+ feet and we wouldn't have found water if we were just a few inches shorter.  No fish though.  Not even a nibble.  I even sang the "here fishy, fishy" song.  

-14 with windchill and clear sunny skies made for an excellent day for a land trip.  I rocked 100spf sunscreen, kept my face covered and my back to the sun and I still ended up with a pretty wicked goggle tan.  I spent most of the day sitting around a fishing hole much like the one pictured above.   

Looking fabulous in the standard Arctic uniform: Canada Goose, fur mitts, big boots, and goggles. 

I was worried that the kids would be bored because there wasn't any activities organized but then again I'm a fool.  Kids in Nunavut don't need organized activities! For kids who - on good days - have some trepidation working independently in the classroom, don't even hesitate when getting organized on the land.  They pushed a kamatik (much like the one we're sitting on in the photo) up to the top of the hill, behind us, and created their own rollercoaster.  There was even a "weeeeeeeeee!" periodically. The kids also organized the heck out of the hole digging, bonfire building, snow wrestling fight clubs etc...

We tried without the goggles but just ended up squinting and slightly blind.

Gotta love a land trip!

Sundogs and Rainbows over Gjoa Haven :)

I didn't have my camera with me Monday so these pictures are pirated from my buddy, Adam.  I give him and his Iphone full credit for the following pictures. Their scientific name is Parhelia but they are commonly known as Sundogs. 

At this point we were walking around like fools quoting the Crazy Double Rainbow Guy.

It was about 4pm when these pictures were taken Monday.

 According to Wikipedia they are made by refraction of light through ice crystals called diamond dust. The crystals act as prisms, bending the light with a minimum deflection of 22 degrees. Sundogs are not exclusive to the Arctic but they are most commonly found here.  I'm tired and I'm having a hard time stringing words together into sentences, so I'm going to keep this short and sweet, allowing the photos (that I stole) to speak for themselves. Enjoy!

Sundogs and rainbows over Gjoa Haven :)

Just another reason you should probably come to the Arctic :)

Square Dance Showdown, Gjoa Haven 2013

The kids at school have been JACKED for the past two weeks.  Counting down the number of sleeps until the Square Dance Showdown has preoccupied their every waking moment.  They have been vibrating with anticipation, unable to focus on anything else.  All the cool kids especially the boys (and I'm not being sarcastic) are on dance teams.  They have been practicing their hearts out.  Teachers have been both frustrated and baffled by this phenomena. I mean, I say square dance and my first thought is some old Hungarians at the cottage dancing around the living room in front of the fire to accordion music.  The idea that the social leaders at school all actively practice square dancing and promote the participation of family and friends is mind boggling to me. And yet, no teacher in their right mind would ever discourage students taking pride in something. It would be nice though, if the kids would also participate in school with the same enthusiasm...

One of the visiting teams.  They had really great kamiks (seal skin boots).

I have been craving live music. Like, missing it with my whole heart - craving. I didn't realize that I had been missing it until I sat down at the Square Dance Showdown this weekend and heard the band.  I literally welled up and got goosebumps... for square dance music.  That's how much I missed live music.

The band.  The guy with the fiddle alternated between that and the accordion.  These guys were CHAMPS with some routines running as long as 40 minutes.

The Square Dance Showdown is an intense three day competition that I don't think can accurately be described in words but I will try my best.  

Dance teams come in from all over the Kitikmeot region.  They don't fly in, no, they skidoo hundreds of miles from their own communities to dance.  Baker Lake, Taloyoak, Kugaruk, Kugluktuk, and Rankin Inlet all had teams come to compete. Most communities are a 2-3 day skidoo trip away and most communities sent skidoo caravans with 14+ machines and fully loaded kamatiks (wooden sleds).  Gjoa Haven's population increased by several hundred this weekend with all our guests bunking with friends and family - no one stayed at the hotel.  We actually cancelled school for kids the Monday and Tuesday after The Showdown because of how intense it is... at least we have realistic expectations.  Heck, the  dancing probably won't stop until 3am Sunday night/Monday morning.   

You can see the judges to the right of the spinning couple.

This was an intense fusion between traditional drum dancing that you see in Aboriginal ceremonies, traditional Inuit clothing, and European Folk dancing.  There isn't a caller like in American versions of square dance but a lot of the spins and hand positions are similar to the American Style. 

 Starting at 5pm the dancing goes allll night.  The pictures are from Saturday night and early Sunday morning.  The last team took the floor at 2am... and after that there was a couples square dance competition that each couple paid 5 bucks to dance in.  We didn't stay for that because I heard it wouldn't be over until at least 4am and after sitting on the gym floor for 8 hours I just couldn't do it.  My core hurt from bopping around to the music and my butt hurt from being so closely acquainted with the gym floor for so long.  My hands hurt from clapping to the beat for 8 hours straight and my jaw hurt from biting back the words I really really wanted to use on the children.  Ohhhhh the children.  

Gjoa Haven's youth team made up of kids from grade 6-8

 This event was simultaneously incredible and a nightmare (for a teacher or someone with first aid).  The dancing was incredible. The tiny tot fight club that took place in between dances stressed me right the hell out.  The dance crew would take a bow and leave the floor and at that very moment when the band played their last prolonged note, hundreds of kids would rush the floor and proceed to go B-A-N-A-N-A-S.  Full out youth mosh-pits filled with angry aggressive 4 and 5 year olds where kids would literally be dropped on their heads, get up close-line the dropper and fight club it out all without any parental intervention despite them being conveniently seated within arms reach. My weekend mantra went something like: "I'm not in charge, they are not my kids.  I'm not in charge, they are not my kids."  At one point I had to cover my eyes and my housemate Kelli leaned over and asked me which part was affecting me: the fist fights? or one kid strangling another kid?  
Picture a conga line with mixed martial arts liberally sprinkled in.

I had a hard time articulating. But I was somewhat calmed by the fact I wasn't the only one mentally climbing the walls at the live portrayal of The Hunger Games during intermissions.      

Gjoa Haven's Adult Team. Instead of Seal Skin Kamiks, these dancers favoured Dene style moccasins.

Overall it was an incredible weekend.  The music and dancing gave me some much needed excitement. My entire body hurts today and I didn't even dance. I'm really glad I got to see The Square Dance Showdown 2013.

You know it's gonna be alright!

I'm smiling today:  not a cloud in the sky, negative 10 with a breeze from the north north west, and sunshine.  I headed to the school just after lunch to get crackin' on some paperwork and I walked the whole way with the wind at my back, the sun on my face, and a great big grin. I've been lamenting about the quality of the sunshine here in the Arctic since 2008; it makes everything look like it is part of some ethereal winter fairy land.  Yes, I said ethereal winter fairy land.  I have an English degree that I use intermittently but mostly I just forget the commas, and run my sentences together.  This is quite possibly the best argument for me to go back to school: my mental degradation.   

Back to my point about the light - Look back at my pictures from 2008 and see for yourself or maybe just look at my profile picture for proof.  It's straight up magic and it makes me happy.  Anyway, I'm also smiling because I got some great news about my tax return - I'm not going to say much but just know that you should all come work in the north because the T2222 form is all sorts of awesome and yet another reason why I'm smiling.

We decided to stay in tonight - the hustle and bustle of Gjoa Haven's night life was almost too much to handle...  I kid! I kid!  Other than some intense radio BINGO and a teen dance, nightlife in Gjoa is relegated to kitchen dance parties and card games. So I got crazy and Frankensteined a pot of chili (which was all sorts of yummy) and talked Kelli into watching Across The Universe and Silver Lining's Play Book.  I love belting out Beatles songs but I get a bit itchy when I watch things about mental illness :s So it was a draw on the movies. The only reason I'm admitting to watching either of these movies is because of the pictures that follow.  In between the movies (see, I have a point), I took Nigel the dog out and then promptly forced my housemate Kelli to get her coat on and bring out her Ipad for a photo op.  Poor girl was a bit shell shocked when she stepped of the plane in August so I go out of my way whenever possible to show her the beauty of the north.  It was just after 10pm here in Gjoa Haven, minus 24 with windchill and a clear sky, perfect for taking pictures of civil twilight. 

First we have a view of down town.  No light pollution here, folks.  We are the only 1200 people on the island of King William in the North West Passage.  Not quite the top of the world, but pretty darn close.  To orient all you map lovers out there, the pictures is shot facing south from across a ravine that separates up-town and down-town.  

This next photo is my favourite of the three.  Facing west-south-west at 10pm Saturday April 6th you can see some of (because it never really translates properly in photos) the pretty colours of our civil twilight and one star for good measure.  

And finally, facing west into the civil twilight with our neighbour's house to the right.  Look at all the light!  And here you felt sorry for us when I posted those pictures of the pitch black at 3pm just before Christmas.  I was talking to Kelli about the light here, and I actually feel as though there is more light than dark here. 

Now before you go getting all scientific on me about the earth's rotation and actual hours of daylight bla bla bla, hear me out.  It FEELS like there is more light.  Sure the darkness is disorienting but at night we sleep through it and during the day we work through it.  Leaving the school in the pitch black in December isn't so bad, not any worse than it being dark by 5pm in the south or on days that it's overcast and grey.  Point being, you miss most of the darkness because of work and sleep and it's not unheard of for it to be dark during the day.  But if feels like there is more light because of the 10pm sunsets in April, and the midnight sun in May.  You get up to pee in the middle of the night and you have to squint into the daylight streaming through the bathroom window.   The light is everywhere all the time for a good part of the year.  Suntans in the middle of the night are not possible in the south.  Daylight at night is weird, hence why it FEELS like there is more of it.

An analogy if you will: my perception of the amount of darkness is like sitting beside a big man on an air plane in coach who sits still during the red eye and reads his book, uncomfortable but relatively unremarkable. Now my perception of the amount of daylight in the north is like sitting beside that same big man in coach but instead of quietly reading his book he talks you into drinking the complementary red wine and singing show tunes with him for the duration of the night flight - significantly more noticeable and frankly out of place because really, what airline doles out complementary ANYTHING never mind red wine?

So yeah, there's more light.  

Cheers to tax returns, Beatles songs, and daylight!  
Smile!
You know it's going to be alright!

Drop the Pop, Sunsets, and Canada Goose makes it better!

Aula class getting busy on a strawberry smoothie.

         March madness, seriously.  I thought February evaporated out from under us but March went poof into the ether.  Nunavut has a "Drop The Pop" Campaign that gives funding to schools that want to run a week long healthy beverage initiative.  So keeping with the McThompson DTP from Qik, I reinstated the smoothie contest but made it bigger and better.  Each class submitted a recipe, the Aula class got their volunteer hours making and distributing each recipe during 4th period each day to the entire school, and each day we included a healthy snack.  The winning class(es) win a smoothie party worth $200!  We culminated this event with an Inuit Games Fun Friday where I announced the two classes with the top number of votes.   

Inuit Games are something else entirely.  I participated in the leg wrestling and had my butt handed to me by a grade 9 student.  I feel like there is definitely a strategy involved there that I don't have the slightest clue about.

Girls Inuit leg wrestling action shot!

Action shot!

Then there is the finger pull, where you link middle fingers with the other guy, one of you takes the defensive position (the guy in the green) and one of you takes offense, and you literally pull until the other guy's finger gives out and then you switch.  Now I'm not entirely sure if it is the amount of time you hold on or if it's who gives out first.  I will get clarification on that one and get back  to you.

This looks like it hurts so bad.

Handsome Nigel.  He wasn't at the Inuit Games.  He's just handsome.

So handsome.

 I got my Canada Goose package in the mail today and although the pictures are too bright and slightly unfocused you can see that my NEW hood has toggle pinchy things that slide up and down my hood strings.  The hood is also significantly deeper.

...dirty mirror...shhhh don't tell my mom!

 The hood being so deep, in order to make it manageable the put a strap on the back to allow for it to be shortened or lengthened at will.  They also double lined the hood making it that much warmer and better than the previous hood.  Well done, Canada Goose.  Well done. 

NEW HOOD!

AND THEN... I thought I'd show you the 8pm sunset... or at least that's what time the sun went down two days ago.  It will set 15 minutes later tonight :)  We are stampeding towards 24 hour daylight! Pretty soon I will be blacking out my bedroom windows so that I can sleep.

Sunsets on the top.

Cheers from the top!

Oh Canada Goose, You Know Not What You've Done...

Ok, so I'm angry.  Two words: Canada Goose. I am going to let our correspondence speak for itself... or lack there of from CG.

01/03/2013

Hello!
I picked up the Mystique parka last Christmas and until this past winter have thought that it was, quite frankly, the best purchase I've ever made... until I moved to Gjoa Haven, Nunavut. The parka is beautiful but the design is flawed and I've had to make some alterations that I think you should consider including for safety and practicality. The parka hood doesn't have a draw string or a way to fasten the hood around your head so in the wind the hood blows back off your face or even off your head completely no matter how much you manipulate the wire in the hood ruff. This exposes your face to brutal wind and cold that would otherwise be shielded by the deep hood and warm fur ruff. I have rectified the situation with an ice-skate lace, a leather needle, and some sinew. In order for the parka to protect me from the high winds and extreme high Arctic temperatures, I had to sew the skate lace on either side of my hood so that I can tie it under my chin. This is not ideal but it is practical and for a company that makes claims of being the (un)official parka of movie sets and about being THE parka for the high Arctic, AND CHARGES PRICES THAT ECHO THAT SENTIMENT one would assume that the parka design would be practical. I've included pictures so that you can see the position of the ties. I have not included the FROSTBITE photos that I got due to lack of functioning hood. Luckily, the frostbite wasn't severe and the tissue didn't die. Frostbite isn't the point, though. Making a quality product is the point.

I've had my eye on PBI Camp hoodie and I've even gone so far as to price it out through your approved retailers but I am hesitant because I don't want to buy another product that I'm going to have to fix in order for it to be practical.

I really hope you take my suggestions/alterations to heart because this is not just a fashion fix, it's for safety in the harsh climate here in the high Arctic.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Thompson

01/09/2013

Hello,
I wrote a letter a week ago regarding the Mystique Parka and I have yet to receive a reply. Please confirm that you got my email and give me an estimate as to when my email concerns will be answered.
Thank you,

Jennifer Thompson

01/10/2013

Hello Jennifer,

Thank you for contacting Canada goose. Can you please advise what was written in your previous email so that I can help you?
Kind regards,

01/11/2013

Hello,

Paraphrased (and lacking illustrative photos) my letter read:

About a year ago I made my first Canada Goose purchase, I purchased a Canada Goose Mystique Parka and I thought that it was the greatest purchase that I've ever made... until I moved to Gjoa Haven, Nunavut. The parka is warm and wonderful but with one serious flaw: The hood. The hood comes with a wire in the ruff that allows you to control how closely the hood sits around your face but in the harsh Arctic Climate the wire in my Canada Goose Arctic Program coat doesn't stand a chance against even a mild southern wind never mind the strong -55 northern wind that gusts up to 70km/hr. The first time I got frost bite on my face was when I was walking home from the school where I teach, I was walking into a north wind and my hood wouldn't stay up no matter how much I manipulated the wire in the ruff and since there is nothing to tie or fasten the hood under my chin, and even with a hat, scarf and goggles, I was powerless to stop the wind from blasting my nose and cheeks.

Frost bite is dangerous and not something that I cared to repeat so I did some serious brainstorming. With a skate lace, a leather needle, and some sinew, I cut the lace in half and fastened the pieces to my hood so that I can tie the hood under my chin and now keep my hood from blowing back off my face.

It is effective - and I think ingenious - but based on the cost of the coat, the premise of Canada Goose Arctic Program, and the quality of the rest of the coat, I cannot believe that Canada Goose didn't think to make this simple alteration themselves.
That is where I am confused. I paid $800 for an Arctic Program coat that I had to Frankenstein an ice skate lace into hood ties in order to not get frostbite.
It was like there was a serious disconnect between the design of the body of the coat and the design of the hood. Now, normally I would make my crafty alteration, give myself a thumbs up, and go on my merry way. But for the retail price of the coat... I feel like those crafty alterations should have been unnecessary. The Inuit staff couldn't believe that I bought a parka without a way to fasten the hood; the impracticality of it blew their minds. They laughed and said that I should have given them the $800 I spent on the coat because for $400 they could make me a way better parka WITH hood ties and that I could take the extra $400 and by BINGO tickets since it would probably be more worthwhile. The coat is beautiful, don't get me wrong, but this isn't a fashion coat... or at least I didn't think it was. Even on the "mean" winter streets of Toronto my fashionable Mystique parka hood would blow off without my homemade ties.

In the high Arctic, one needs practicality. My frost bite is almost healed now and my parka is back to being the best purchase I have ever made...and altered. I am writing to your company because you are world famous for making incredible Arctic clothing and I want you to continue. I am writing to make a practical suggestion: add a hood pull/snap/zipper/string to the Mystique Parka. Don't make it because it will be fashionable, make it because it is practical and will provide the wearer with greater protection. This email would have been far more serious in nature had my walk home been even five minutes longer because that, I'm told, would have been how much longer my skin needed to freeze and cause scarring. I've, thankfully, only had pain, peeling, and bright red skin.

My previous email also included several photos of how I made the alterations to better demonstrate how easily you can improve this parka. I didn't include them here because the attachments probably prevented you from getting my email but I can easily resend them in our next correspondence.

This isn't a typical letter of complaint where I threaten to never buy any of your products again and to salt my friends against your brand. I live in the high Arctic: Canada Goose is THE uniform. In fact, while I was looking over the Canada Goose website for the contact information, I stumbled upon your Polar Bears International camp hoodie and thought it would be fantastic for spring here in Gjoa Haven. I hesitated though because I don't want to buy it, love it, and then be forced to make a practical homemade alteration to improve the performance of the product like I had to with the Mystique Parka.

Jennifer Thompson

01/14/2013

Hello Jennifer,

Thank you for contacting Canada goose. Can you please advise the size and color of your mystique parka?Regards,

01/14/2013

Medium. Black.

01/28/2013

Hello,

Can you please send in the length in inches of the removable hood zipper. As well as your address and phone number.

Regards,

28/01/2013
Hello,

The length of the removable hood zipper is 15 inches.

My address is  Gjoa Haven, Nunavut X0B1J0 and my phone number is 867-360-xxxx.

Regards,

Jennifer Thompson

02/11/2013
Hello Lauren,It has been a few weeks since our last communication and I was wondering what progress (if any) has been made?Regards,Jennifer Thompson

08/03/2013.... notice I mailed it to both Lauren AND the general email just to make sure SOMEONE was reading my emails...

To: info@canada-goose.com, lshapiro@canada-goose.com

Hello,

Around Christmas I wrote a letter to Canada Goose regarding an issue I was having with my Mystique Parka (basically I had to sew ice skate laces onto the hood so that I can tie it under my chin to stop it from blowing off making it appropriate for the harsh Arctic climate here in Gjoa Haven, Nunavut) and I was put into contact with Ms. L. Shapiro.  However, our last communication was January 28th where I was asked for my mailing address and telephone number as well as the length of the zipper on my hood in inches.  I tried to follow up with this email requesting more information as to what would be mailed to me and what the zipper length was for but have not received any further communication.  It's been over a month and a half.  Please follow up with me regarding this matter.

Thanks,

Jennifer Thompson

03/08/2013
Hey Jennifer,
Thanks for following up. We made a custom hood for you that has drawstrings built into it. It is in transit, the following is the tracking number.
Canada Post 4600827867217868
Kind regards,

And this is what I got in the mail today...

It's a fur hood ruff with the same gauge wire as my other one... 

That is 2 inches too long for my hood...

and it doesn't have any ties....

Which begs the question: what the hell?

I'm sitting here right now straight up bumfuzzled.

Honestly.

I don't understand.

Keep you posted.  

complaint letter(s) update :)

It has been a fair bit of time since my myriad of complaint letters were sent off into the ether with an enraged shove and I figured it time for an update.

This little gem that I sent off to Air Canada got me 20% off my next flight and refunded food, clothing, and luggage credits:

AC8157 Yellowknife to Calgary. We had an unscheduled stop and deplaned and changed planes in Edmonton – based on the reaction of the pilot and our flight staff, this was not planned. Our plane was sent to Winnipeg and we were given a plane that went mechanical. In Edmonton we were delayed several hours without any explanation or meal compensation – there was an option on the Air Canada website where I paid $7 for a meal option on each section of my flight. There was nothing offered on this flight in the form of meal/snack other than a free bag of pretzels. Why is this option offered and encouraged but not honoured? Our plane worked perfectly and yet it was taken away from us and sent to Winnipeg, why?

Edmonton to Calgary – I spoke to the customer service desk in Edmonton regarding being worried about making my connecting flight. The agent would not give me any information about the cause or expected duration of the delay. She would also not guarantee that I would have a seat on a future flight should I miss my flight. I spent the entire flight delay trying to purchase a ticket on my smart phone to insure that I could be home for Christmas – this was not possible because of the quality of the wireless at the airport. Arrived in Calgary at 7:15pm but could not physically get to the gate of my connecting flight leaving at 7:30pm despite running to the gate. I was given a hotel room at The Radisson and $20 voucher for the airport. Unlike some other passengers I was not given a food voucher for the hotel, so my dinner (which I should have got on the plane because I signed up for the onboard meal option but neither flight offered a meal or snack) was out of pocket. I was given a spot on the 7am flight. 

AC134 or AC107 Calgary to Toronto – The flight left late and we were told that the number of passengers was restricted because we were overloaded with cargo. While sitting on the tarmac, our plane was notified that we would be also stopping in Regina, making our flight Calgary-Regina-Toronto-Ottawa. When we landed in Regina the 20 minute stop turned into an hour and we were forced to deplane. There was no meal on the plane and we were not compensated with meal vouchers. I was told that because of the duration of the flight my meal icon on my ticket would not be honoured. 

Arrival in Toronto – When I arrived in Toronto, my bags were nowhere to be found. That was also the case for everyone else who got off our flight. The only exception was someone who got on the plane in Regina and sat across the aisle from me in row 11. He loaded up a cart and took all of his bags to a box van waiting outside the double doors beside baggage carousel 1. When I spoke to baggage, at first they didn’t even know we stopped in Regina. Upon further exploration by a very nice man, it was determined that the only bags taken off our flight in Toronto were the 6 or 7 priority bags that I watched loaded onto the box van. It took 20 hours for my bags to be returned to me - for which I was not compensated - and although there was no external damage to my baggage upon closer inspection an Inuit carving that I brought down from Gjoa Haven , Nunavut with me as a gift was broken into several pieces despite being wrapped and packed appropriately in its own box within a Rubbermaid tub. This tells me that my baggage was not handled appropriately despite the fragile stickers placed visibly on the tub.

I understand that Christmas is a busy time of year with a large volume of passengers flying on your planes. I also understand that mechanical issues arise and cause delay. My experience flying with Air Canada this holiday season cannot be played off by the volume of passengers or merely mechanical issues. Our plane was targeted to receive the short end of the stick. We were made the plane that would get all the delays so that everything else would run smoothly. I understand that, it's sound business practice to upset a few people to benefit many. It is my understanding that only a fraction of the people upset will actually file a complaint and from those people most will accept the initial apologetic response given by customer service. I am not one of those people. I want compensation for all the meals I had to purchase out of pocket because your meal program wasn't honoured. I want all of my money refunded from that online meal option I put on all of my tickets. I want the meal purchase option removed from the flights offered to Yellowknife because they are offered under false pretenses. (Furthermore, I flew back to Yellowknife AC8138 on December 31st on Air Canada and although the flights were on time, the meals that I prepaid for were not honoured. Now, this may not have been a serious issue for me but what would have happened if I was diabetic or hypoglycemic?) I also want an explanation as to why our plane was sent to Winnipeg and why we were given a broken plane. Where did my luggage actually go and why? I want compensation for the outfit I had to buy to go to the Christmas party the night I arrived in Toronto with no luggage. And finally, I want at least ONE good reason I should give you my business again. 

In the past, I have booked with you because Air Canada has provided fair ticket prices and convenient flight times and I’m sure your company will continue to provide fair ticket prices and convenient flight times, however, I will be exploring my options the next time I book a flight because I would rather pay higher ticket prices than have an experience similar to the one I just had. 

I am attaching a copy of my flight itinerary so that you can see that I am not exaggerating about the delays, mistreatment, lack of food, and lost luggage.

My goal with this letter was to receive a credit of about $500. Mission complete.


And the rant/love letter that I sent to Canada Goose (it can only be described as such because I took the position of "I love your product but in order to make it perfect you must make these few changes...") as detailed in a previous post garnered me a custom made parka hood for my Mystique parka with proper hood ties. The package is currently in Edmonton and when I get it in my hands I will post pictures. Now, I'm going strictly by the short letter of response to my email, I'm not sure if there will be anything else in the box. My goal in writing this letter of love/complaint was slightly more ambitious. In a perfect world, I wanted Canada Goose to give me credit and royalties in the new parka design as well as a free or significantly reduced Polar Bears International Camp Hoodie (I implied that it would be my next purchase regardless of the outcome of the letter but that I worried that I would have to make some sort of alteration to make the hoodie appropriate for the Arctic - sneaky, I know).  I was also kind of hoping to become one of Canada Goose's "Goose People" one of the beautifully accomplished Canada Goose wearing people that are featured on the CG website.


Finger's are crossed for my Canada Goose pandora package.  

Regardless of the contents of the box, though, I'm ahead.  So the next time you're stewing about terrible customer service or a faulty product, don't just natter at your friends and family or try to salt your facebook friends against the company.  WRITE A LETTER.  It will take ten minutes of your valuable rant time to scratch/type out your beef and another ten minutes to make it classy (name calling doesn't win friends).  Those 20 minutes will immediately make you feel better and will probably result in something free.  What's not to love about free?  Remember to lead in with how long you've been a happy customer and hit them low with how disappointed you were with your last experience... provide detailed proof (names, dates, and times) and make sure to keep the baseless accusations to a minimal.  Mr. Massey at Sherwood High School had a point when he said as soon as you call names in a debate you lose your argument.  Don't be the frustrated, helpless child calling the bully a stupid head.  You're better than that.

I'm not always successful, however.  My last letter, a quick rant to Body Shop about not qualifying for free shipping due to my postal code resulted on a head pat and a link to the fine print.  

Meh, it happens.

Happy Ranting! 

Fred Russel

The question always arises: what do you get for a child under one?

Books? No.

Clothing? Meh.

Diapers? Too easy.

Toys? Boring.

Guinea Pig? Hells yes!

Well, at least that was the answer early last week in Gjoa Haven.  

Helpful tip: kids under one don't really need guinea pigs as pets.

Needless to say, the grade 8 classroom at Qiqirtaq High School now has a new pet.  Meet Fred Russel!

Why would a bunch of 13 year olds name the class pet Fred Russel when no one in the community has either names? you ask.  Funny story.

The name Fred Russel came about when Kelli let her class vote.  The top three names were: Fred, Russel, and skunk... and when the class was asked to narrow down the field to two names the class dead locked: 7 for Fred and 7 for Russel.  Now Kelli being the creative and brilliant individual that she is gave the class another option: Why can't our pet have both names?  And Fred Russel was born!   

The best part about the guinea pig's name is the pronunciation.  The name is not said as two separate names it is run together by the children into one name: Fredrussel.  

I've never had a guinea pig before the smallest pet in my world having been Buddy the dog so helping with this little thing has been interesting.  But as far as small animals go Fredrussel is AWESOME!  Relaxed, enjoys being petted and held, makes all sorts of hilarious noises and looks like a powder puff.

And the best part - the part that makes my heart sing - is that we're pretty sure Fred Russel is a girl.  

Fred Russel: lady guinea pig.

yeah, buddy!