Day Two and looking a little bit brighter

So today was a little bit better. The Inuit people are quite adorable, and definitely not as stoic as the stereotype would have you believe. They smile and giggle a lot, which is always nice to see in a hospital.

Today I learned a few words in Inuktitut.... Ullaakut (good morning), and Nakurmik (thank you). And after a lot of repeating questions all day, I finally learned that the Inuit often say yes nonverbally by raising their eyebrows. That tidbit of information would have saved me a lot of time!!

Anyway, thank you all for your kind words of support. Your sweet comments really lifted my spirits. Oh and thanks for the canned recipe suggestions.... those will certainly come in handy : )

oxo

Northern Culture Shock

So I made it to Kuujjuaq, and I think I'm feeling a bit culture shocked. It doesn't feel like Canada at all here. It's cold and drab, and feels like late November. We went grocery shopping and everything was wilted or already expired (anyone have any great recipes that can be made out of canned food?!). 

I feel homesick already!  Day one is always hard, I guess. I'm sure it will get better.

Deep breath.... 24 more days to go!

Yikes, I'm heading up North.... Way up North!

Early tomorrow morning I will be boarding a plane, and heading way up north to a Native village called Kuujjuac. My husband & I will be spending a month up there working in the local hospital/clinic. 

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before but the hubs & I are both in our last year of residency in Family Medicine. Anyway, this month should be a great experience, but I'm not sure how the blogging will go up there. I've been told there is internet, but that's it's not so reliable.

So I'll do my best to keep this wee little blog up & rolling. I hope you'll excuse any slowdowns ; )

Despite the harsh weather conditions up there, I'm actually really looking forward to this great northern adventure, and I hope you tag along too.....hopefully I'll  be able to catch a few pictures of the Northern Lights to share with you. 

Since I presume most people have never heard of Kuujjuaq before,  here's a map:

So that's where I'll be for the next 30 days. Wish me luck!

oxo

Vanessa.

Yesterday I saw the most incredible rainbow

this is what it looked like through the car window... you could see the entire thing end to end... it was magnificent!

Mad Men Style (Season 4)

There's no hiding my love for Mad Men, and season 4 has me even more hooked. I just love seeing the 1960's fashion... it's admittedly my favourite part of the show!

 Season 4 takes place in 1965 and it's so much fun to see how the styles have changed since the start of the show. The clothes have become a lot edgier.

The pictures below are from Season 1 (1960). 

See the difference?

Can a Record Player get any cooler than this?

Seriously, how awesome is this homemade LEGO turntable?!

(via Apartment Therapy)

Water Meditation to Calm the Mind

"Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths."

~ Etty Hillesum

Have you ever taken the time to watch waves dance in the sunset? 

It's meditative, and completely mesmerizing. 

I took these pictures on my recent canoe trip, and just looking at them now brings me back to that ethereal, dreamlike state.

Loving the Feeling of Fall

I can finally say that I'm excited for fall. The colours, the cool mornings, the layers, the textures... and this Fall 2010 collection from Sandwich embodies my sentiments exactly.

Weekend Moments: Natalie & Sean's Wedding

As many of you know, my lovely sister-in-law got married this weekend in Toronto. The wedding was absolutely spectacular, and she looked ravishing! 

I couldn't resist showing you a few pictures I snapped in between bridesmaid duties..... 

The reception flowers were particularly beautiful. 

Aren't these centerpieces incredible?!

The reception was held at the Royal Ontario Museum. Isn't a museum such a cool venue idea?!  We dined and danced around dinosaur bones and Buddha statues. It was amazing!

Congratulations, Sean & Natalie, I love you!

Happy Weekend! It's my sister's wedding!

I'm currently in Toronto at my in-laws place, and this household is in full-on wedding mode! My sis-in-law is getting married tomorrow and this wedding is going to be incredible! 

Below is a sneak peak at all the roses for the centerpieces.

This morning all the bridesmaids got to drink mimosas while having our manicures & pedicures done... very much needed after my 4 days of camping!

So I'll be celebrating all weekend. I hope you have a marvellous time as well, wherever you are. In case you get bored, here are some links ; ) 

• I'm currently coveting this ethical jewelry collection
• and these pantone mugs
• How cool are these underground homes?
• Have you been to Supermarket? It's sort of like Etsy, and filled with design goodies!
• And now a song.. have you heard the beautiful Sharon van Etten? Have a listen:

oxo
Vanessa

Canadian Outback Adventure

Here are some pictures from our canoe-camping trip last weekend. I've done plenty of car camping in my life, but I had never done anything like this before. We had to bring everything we needed to survive for 4 days in our backpacks. Water is too heavy to carry, so we had to boil lake water to drink. At night, we had to hang our food from trees to deter the bears. It was an incredible experience to say the least! Being out in the pristine wilderness is humbling and nourishing on a soul level. I honestly miss it already (although I'm happy to no longer have to wash my hair in cold lake water!).

What about you... are you an "outdoorsy" person, or does this kind of thing sound like torture to you?!

Kitchens that Inspire you to Cook

Have you ever cooked in someone else's kitchen? You can usually tell in the first few minutes whether or not they cook a lot. It's all in the accessibility of kitchen tools, herbs, spices & oils. My apartment kitchen is very small, but highly functional. When we finally do buy a house one day, I think I'll stick with this open-pantry concept that always inspires me to cook up something delicious.

(via Apartment Therapy)