Stars and no heat in the north...

Well, today I lost my puppy...the one I was all set to adopt. Ah, Oliver...my little white husky. Apparently this is the one dog that actually has a home up here. Boo. It's still just me and my teeny black dogs.

I wonder how many more initiation-type things I'll go through this year. Today, this is the challenge: my heater is busted. Yup. -26 with the windchill, and I have no heat. Fortunately there's some residual heat - lighting up a candle while closed in the bathroom works - but it's still not the most comfortable thing. Surprise!

It was completely dark when I left school today. You know that whole series of paintings Van Gogh is famous for...all the starry nights. Check this out.

Now, although the second picture is horrible because, well, my camera isn't the best the colours are the same. Amazing. The stars out tonight (not visible in this pic) are so clear and awe inspiring. I remember saying 'awesome' back in my junior high years - that, along with 'radical' - but this is one of the only occasions where the word is actually warrented.

My brother, out on the west coast, posted a few pictures this week with, of course, trees and trees and trees. Living on the Queen Charlotte Islands, what else can you expect? It's been awhile. Then I look at pics my parents post - my parents in Nova Scotia. What an amazing country. It's so different from one end to the next. I've seen the cities, travelled the prairies (a bit), and reached the Arctic Circle (well, within a few miles). How cool is that?

I'm slowly learning to work with the darkness up here; it's not as off-putting as it once was. I think it's a trade-off...you get amazing night skies. And the cold? Not a problem yet. -35 is the coldest it's gotten so far (I know it'll get colder), but with my Goose and Baffins, I truly feel toasty warm thoughout all the walking I still have to do. In fact, I have to walk slowly to make sure I don't sweat too much. Amazing. Can't wait to go ice fishing.

OK, time to head to bed. Bunches of blankets, my two dogs to work as heaters, and a call to the housing association in the morning should do the trick.

Hope my fingertips still move to clink across the keyboard tomorrow!