Acclimatization

Recent events have inspired me recently to think about adaptability and acclimatisation.

It was just three months and five days ago that we left Sam in charge of our Guelph home to begin this adventure. Since our arrival in Whale Cove we have watched the sun rise every day (sometimes - but not often - obscured by clouds) and each day we have witnessed a noticeable increase in the hours of daylight. There will soon come a day when this will no longer be possible (well yes, possible, but not really desirable) because the sun will be rising before our 6:15 alarm clock call. And shortly after that, sunset will occur after we have retired to bed in the evening. Even now, we still have bright, late-afternoon sunlight as we sit down to dinner. Yet even though we are enjoying long summer-like days of light, today we are treated to a winter blizzard, with winds gusting to 66 km/h and a wind-chill feeling of -35 degrees, a large snow drift blocking the road in front of our house, and visibility of less than 500 metres. If today were a school day, we would likely be staying home. That all of this is occurring in April, on Easter weekend, when friends and family are enjoying warm weather and spring flowers does not seem at all strange to me. My calendar says it's Spring, but my daily experiences tell me we have several weeks of winter still to come.

You may know that last weekend Beth and I were treated to an extended stay in Rankin Inlet. The 2106 census puts the population of Rankin at just under 3000 - about half the size of Tweed, Ontario, and less than half the size of Elora. And to me, Rankin seemed busy and noisy.

When we went out to walk about and explore the town, the cars and pick-up trucks were constantly passing on the busy roads, snow mobiles were everywhere, and at one point we even heard the siren of an ambulance. We did some grocery shopping at the Northern Store - a descendent of the Hudson's Bay Company - and it felt enormous and bountiful. They had three different kinds of apples, frozen raw shrimp, hummus and bags of Ruffles potato chips, and just inside the main front door was a Tim Horton's counter! After so long in the calm and quiet hamlet of Whale Cove, Rankin seemed like a busy, bustling city with all the southern luxuries.

My wrist is set in the fibreglass cast that I will have to wear for another five weeks, and I am relearning how to complete daily tasks using mostly my right hand (it was just over a year ago that I had to do everything left-handed while my dislocated shoulder was recovering!). Try tying your shoes with just one hand! Luckily the fingers of my left hand are free to move about and help as much as they are able.