The Ugly Truth

Speaking with friends and family about this blog, I've received a few comments about the fact that I make everything seem so nice Up Here. My blogging life looks too good. Well, it is nice in The North and we are quite happy with our lifestyle, but it would be misleading to say that we live in a completely idyllic setting. In fact, it would be an outright lie. A whopper, even. Of course there are many things that are down-right troubling about our Northern Community. I've subtly alluded to a few in previous posts; mainly drunkenness and littering, but I'm going to take this opportunity to elaborate a bit more. 

Warning: don't read this post if you like to picture The North as a Wilderness Wonderland of Love, or if you try to ignore the ugly side of life in general.

There are many reasons why Northern Canada is not well-populated, and the first is the most obvious: it gets really cold Up Here!

We've already had several days at -15 degrees Celcius and below; in fact, I doubt that the temperature will go above zero again until March, maybe even April. If you count them, that's over five months of winter, and there are many more weeks that may not be freezing, but still require a warm jacket and a home-knitted scarf. I've started tying my hair back when I take the puppies for a walk because the condensation from my breath is coating the strands with frost. Bundling up takes ever more time and layers. Even the dogs, although they still get excited over walks, don't spend nearly as much time in the backyard as they did in the summer/fall; they are always more than happy to return to the warmth of the house as soon as their outdoor business is finished with.

On the subject of dogs, this one will probably break your heart. Many people have dogs up here but few keep them inside, fenced or tied up. As a result, the canine population is ever rising and few are looked after properly. Dogs get hit by vehicles, fight over scraps, are mistreated by kids in some pretty brutal ways, can become aggressive, and in the winter some freeze to death. I came across the little guy above shivering on someone's front porch, a common sight right about now. He's a bit bigger than some of the puppies I've seen around lately, and he seems to be mostly Husky (he has the most gorgeous light blue eyes), so he has a good chance of surviving the winter. Others won't be so lucky. The other day I was talking to two little girls and asked if they had a dog. The answer: "We had a puppy, but it froze." They didn't seem fazed by it, and I suppose it's a fact of life Up North. Still, it doesn't stop me from wanting to adopt every little fur-ball I see.

Another reality in our community is the abuse of homes. Boarded windows are a common sight on many homes because of frequent vandalism and carelessness. As there are few jobs in a remote northern town, many of the residents are on social assistance and quite a few live in social housing. Since both family and government budgets are tight, and windows are not cheap, things don't get always get fixed as they should.

Speaking of things not getting done properly, this trailer burned down a few months ago, and I doubt anything will be done about it for quite some time. Arson is suspected as the reason for the blaze, which touches on another issue facing The North: restless youth. Lack of jobs and activities for teenagers means that they have lots of time to get in trouble, and this is perhaps the biggest challenge in our particular community. The results of this dilema are commonly broken windows, slashed tires, graffiti and gang activity. Add drugs and alcohol to the mix, and and we've got some very serious problems.

One of the things that bothers me most about living in The North is the lack of respect for the environment. I've mentioned graffiti on the Canadian Shield and garbage in the woods. Of course these are realities in all areas where humans reside. Up here, though, littering seems to have been elevated to a higher level. The above photo is taken from the beach where we take the dogs most days. The photo below is taken in the same spot, 180 degrees later. Not a pretty sight. I don't feel the need to explain the scene; I think that it speaks for itself.

There you have it. Of course, I don't mean to imply that all of the inhabitants of The North are involved in these things. As in any place, there are people who do not respect their surroundings, and people who do. It would appear, however, that in more isolated areas the issues that I've mentioned today seem more prevalent. We can blame history, the government, First Nations, society or whomever else seems convenient, but the reality remains the same. And it's one that simply cannot be ignored because it is not going to go away on its own.