Desperate and Durty

Our conference is at the midway point. We had several speakers today and learned of some practical uses. John Mighton was the keynote speaker this morning. He is the founder and creator of JUMP Math, a charity that is hopeful of drastically changing our society with a focus on establishing a simpler math program. He is a writer, who has a play currently showcasing in Stratford. He was also an actor in Good Will Hunting.

Last night we took our rental car and toured Sioux Lookout. Took about 10 minutes to drive almost every stretch of road.

Today's lunch, which was at the restaurant with the sketchy sign, was actually pretty good. Rumour has it, it was pretty decent yesterday. Found out that the full name of the restaurant is Desperate Dick and Durty Nellies. Apparently, as the story goes, Dick was a pilot looking for Nellie when he crashed (hopefully pictures to follow).

Tomorrow is our last full day in Sioux Lookout. We are on the first flight to Deer Lake on Friday morning at roughly 9:00 am (no sleeping in this time). After our last session we will be heading to Johnny's Market to pick up several hundred dollars worth food, mostly meat, fruit, and veggies.

Back to reality

Well here we are, back at the grind. Consider this season two in our reality show. Our goal this year is to be more consistent in our posts and add more pictures of our life. On that note, there are no pictures from today.

Our day got off on the wrong foot. We were supposed to be at Claire’s parents for 6 am, but the phone rang and woke us up 6:15. We sprung from our bed and in 18 minutes were able to pack/feed Edgar/load the vehicle/ and shower. Pretty good considering I had nicknamed Claire ‘Sloth’ for her actions in the morning. She did a great job. We left Vineland a few minutes before 7:00 am for our 8:55 am flight out of Toronto. A quick prayer for open roads and we were off. Luckily the roads were clear and we made it to Pearson for 8:00 am. As we were walking to our gate, they had just started to board. Perfect timing if you ask me, Thanks Dad Hotson.

We arrived in Thunder Bay at 10:40 and quickly headed over to our next airline to check in for our 11:30 flight. After doing so, I went upstairs to the Tim Hortons for something to eat. While in line the intercom came on with the following message, “Last boarding call for passenger Gregory Martin.” My immediate reaction was to jump the railing and land on the first floor, but figured this happened on a consistent basis.

We arrived in Sioux Lookout at 11:45. The girls grabbed the bags off the conveyor belt as I went to the car rental booth. I found out that this booth was strictly a pick-up/drop-off location. So off I went to the pay phone and made my reservation with the parent company. I was told it would be ready in 15 minutes. Good. 20 minutes I went back to the booth to find that no contract had been faxed over. Great. So I phoned the Dryden office and was met with the answering machine. Another 20 minutes went by before I returned and found that no contract was sent. Perfect. So I phoned the Dryden office and was met with the answering machine. Another 20 minutes went by before I returned and again found no contract had been sent. Excellent. This time when I phoned I finally got through to someone. I guess he had been out for lunch since 11:30. Super. A contract for a 2012 white Ford Fusion was faxed within 5 minutes. The problem was that there weren’t any white Fusions. Ideal. 20 minutes later, and another phone call to the Dryden office (lucky he wasn’t on break) and a 2012 silver Ford Fusion was mine. The best part was that while going over the final contract, he highlighted that I was to be the only driver and there was to be no smoking or pets. Frustrated, hungry, and dying to get out of the airport, I remarked with an ‘of course’ and ran off with the key.

We quickly dropped off the dogs and luggage and headed to the closest restaurant. Well not exactly, as the nearest eatery had a sign in the window that read, “The original home of warm beer and poor food.” We quickly peeled out of the parking lot and headed down the street. Later in the night we went to the hotel our conference is mainly being held and found out that the same establishment would be catering our lunches for the week. Wow.

During the day we ran into two teachers from Deer Lake and found out that they have hired a principal for the upcoming year. He is a native from the next reserve over. His reputation is not outstanding, but we are looking forward to working with him this year.

As for Edgar, he had a great day. He was great in the airports and was even better on the airplanes. He has performed exceeding well in the hotel room as he has routinely gone to his crate on his own to sleep or rest.