*cricket sounds

It's very bizarre. Every now and then I'll get off the phone, and look around, and I'm the only one in the office.

It's like everyone's out having a party and forgot me!

Ok they are all back now, well most of them anyways, and they don't LOOK like they've recently been to a party. No streamers dangling from pockets or trailing from shoes. No hats, no face-paint. No cake-crumbs in the corner of their mouths. Looks like I didn't miss out on much. Wherever they all were.

It's only my second day here... (third if you count Tuesday, when I got the grand tour, and then headed to my new apartment for the rest of the day) but people here are really nice. Very friendly. Yesterday, one of my co-workers offered to take me grocery shopping after work (we're going today because I GOT PAID woot!) and then drove me home at the end of the day (a 4-minute drive, but a 20-minute walk). It was so nice.

I am definitely the youngest person in my office. But I don't think most people know how young I really am. The co-worker who is taking me grocery shopping was shocked when I told him I was just 22... and proceeded to remark that I'm "just a baby!" (everyone says that these days!!!) I guess it is kind of adventurous of me to have done this. And a bit rare to be staff at my age. Shrug!

On the way to work today, I went cross-eyed trying to get a decent look at what I thought was a whitehead on my lip... and then I went to tentatively poke at it and realized it was a piece of snow. It wasn't REALLY snowing this morning, but there were a couple lone flakes. I've yet to master the dressing for my walk to work. By the time I get all my gear on (which really isn't that much, just my "southern" winter jacket, over multiple shirts) I'm standing in my hallway overheated from the effort of putting on my hikers (in writing this I've now devised a new plan of putting on my boots first. God I'm smart). Then I get outside, and love the coolness of the air. Then I get about ten minutes into my walk, put up the hood, stick the hands in the pockets, but my body is way to warm. Sigh. I'm sure I'll get the hang of it eventually. Also, Iqaluit is quite hilly, and apparently Rankin is very flat. So I won't have to do as much hiking on the way to work thus minimizing the breaking a sweat.

Ah the intricacies of dressing for the North.