Is this really a job?!

Sometimes I have a "pinch me to make sure I'm not dreaming this" feeling at work. It happened this last week, as my OT colleague and I strolled back to the health center after lunch in the tiny arctic town we were working in.

We both love going there - it always feels like we are dropping in to see some friends (and do a bit of work.) This week we had the luxury of going through the newly printed community yearbook to study up on names, and who was related to whom. I have a terrible memory for names, so the book came in very handy.

One day just before lunch, we went to do a home visit. We walked past the arctic fox hanging on the railing, the sealskin, the ducks lying on the kitchen floor waiting to be lunch, the liver offerings on the counter, both raw and cooked.

I went up with a serious resolve to NOT spend any money. This lasted for about 24 hours, when my friend came back from the Co-op with the news that my favorite carver had been busy, and that I should at least look. Well, what are credit cards for, after all?

We caught up with the news in town, some good, some sad. The court had just been in town, so there were people saying goodbye to family members heading off to serve sentences in jail in other communities. For one friend, this meant being able to be at peace in her home for the first time in a very long time. A tough week for her, but one of respite as well.

Thursday night was Midnight Madness at the Co-op. I missed it last year, so was quite determined to make this the year to witness the screaming lucky person fly through the store for their 60-second shopping spree. Alas, I have to settle for a second-hand account, as I was fast asleep by 9:30 and didn't even hear the knock on my door at 10:00 to summon me for the big event.

The flight home was a long one; we battled strong winds on the first leg of the journey. We dropped off most of the passengers, leaving only my colleague and I for the trip to Winnipeg. After take-off, I switched seats and got comfortable with my book. That's when I noticed that I seemed to be in a rocking chair...... Oops, the seat was not bolted down on one side.

We did the photo first, then let the pilot know. (No animals, people, or boxes of Tide were strapped into that seat during any take-offs or landings, so we were perfectly safe the whole time.) The pilot had it fixed lickety split, then sat down and chatted for a while. These pilots double as baggage handlers, seat bolters, flight attendants, and fine company.

It's a great privilege to be able to work in these communities.

What a bonus to get a paycheque on top of it all.