So today was the big day...not so much for starting work as it was the first really, truly, honestly freezing day since we've moved to Iqaluit. I was beginning to wonder if people were just exaggerating how cold it was suppose to be in Nunavut, although checking with Environment Canada's weather site shows that up until this past weekend, we have been experiencing near historic warm temperatures.
Since early October, the temperature has varied between 0 and -10. There was a couple of days in late November when it rained, albeit briefly. When Cathy was in Rankin Inlet last winter, she had her first five day blizzard in early October. She was getting temperatures, with wind chill, below -60 by early November. And she walked to work in that. Small wonder we shipped up the car and put in a remote starter.
So when we moved to Iqaluit I was expecting to freeze my ass off by mid-October. Didn't happen. I was wearing the same coat I wore in Newfoundland last winter up until Saturday. I could still see open water when I looked out into the harbour. Where was the bitter cold, the massive drifts of snow and the ice?
Ask and ye shall receive. The temperatue today was -25 with winds gusting to 80 km/h, which meant, with wind chill, the temperature was lurking around -45.
It will get colder that this very soon. But after two months of relatively balmy -5 or so temperatures, it is a bit of a shock to the system. That's why we had to break out the BFWCs today - Big Fucking Winter Coats.
Cathy laments that her BFWC cost more than her wedding dress and is ugly. This is true. However, as I have pointed out, while her wedding dress was lovely and had many redemptive qualities, it wasn't going to keep her warm at -50. Perhaps at some point I'll get a picture of the two of us in our BFWCs. We have the same jacket. It's kind of weird, really.
So that's it. Barring another mild spell, it's BFWCs until April. There are other things that come with bitter cold in Iqaluit. I'll write more about that later....
last 5 on iPod
1. Because the night - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Live: 1975-85)
2. Choctaw Hayride - Alison Krauss and Union Station (Live)
3. Innocent when you dream - Tom Waits (Beautiful Malodies)
4. She's like the swallow - Anita Best and Pamela Morgan (The Colour of Amber)
5. Guardalupe - The Chieftains (Santiago)
3 comments:
Wow you are lucky we'd be quite deep in snow and -35 on a daily basis. Coats are good but what about your feet, my feet were never warm until summer.And frostbite, ah the memories. I've traded that in for sand. No sandstorms yet though. But boy it was hot today I just got back from rushing over to the mall to have a latte to drink while working in my office all afternoon
hey Craig...
in googling info re: rent rates in iqaluit, your blog came up!
and it's great! a real help! interesting, funny, and articulate...
i am in halifax looking at opportunities in iqaluit but needing a reality cheque about living costs for a single...would you give a girl some guidance?
would appreciate any direction you might offer in light of your experiences!
you can reach me jticknor@dal.ca
thanks so much
jann ticknor
Ah Craig, in light of your rant about cold, maybe I shouldn't tell you about my trip to Abu Dhabi for New Year's......with an evening or two in London on the way.
Or maybe I will because, hey, I'm mean.
Congratulations on employment, BTW. And I miss our bitch sessions!
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