NAC Broadband Workshops

The National Arts Centre (NAC) in Ottawa was officially opened on June 2, 1969.  The arts facility was designed by Fred Lebensold, one of North America's foremost theatre architects at the time.  The NAC was created to be the centre of Canada's arts scene and in my view, that is quite true.  I have had much contact with the arts centre throughout my life: attending operas, ballets, youth centered concerts, backstage tours, private banquets, and of course, eating at the NAC's high class Le Café restaurant.

            

Since its inception, the NAC has created and maintained various educational programs across Canada to stimulate interest in the arts (music, drama, & art) by having its professional orchestral musicians work with students of all ages.  One of these initiatives is the Music Alive Program (MAP), centered in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and the territory of Nunavut.  The program was started in 2005 and later expanded to Nunavut in 2010.  The program's teaching methods are slightly tweaked in each of the provinces & territory but the overall goals are the same.  In Nunavut, the main goals of MAP are: music education for children & youth; music making in the community; building capacity among educators & musicians; preserving & celebrating local culture; and showcasing northern artists.

            

During my discussions with Geneviève Cimon (NAC Director of Music Education & Community Engagement) and Natasha Harwood (NAC MAP Administrator) back in mid-March, we decided that following the composition workshop, we would hold three broadband workshops for trumpets, clarinets, and fiddles on the week of April 23rd.  I tried to get sessions for flutes, saxes, and percussion but the NAC musicians wouldn't be available during that time.  The fiddle workshop was organized for Darlene Nuqingaq's Iqaluit Fiddle Club which includes young children from the Aqsarniit & Nakasuk middle schools. 

            

The trumpet session on April 23 would be led by the NAC Orchestra's (NACO) principal trumpeter Karen Donnelly, who visited Inuksuk High School in January of this year.  This latest workshop would give her the opportunity to check on the progress of the two female students she taught before. (The Ottawa Citizen published an article about the upcoming sessions on April 19).  The clarinet session on April 24 would be led by NACO's principal clarinetist Kimball Sykes.  The fiddle session would also take place on the 24th, and would be led by MAP fiddle musician Greg Brown.

            

The main & exciting feature of these workshops is they would be conducted via video conferencing over the Internet.  It's like Skype but with a direct connection.  To establish this connection requires several pieces of expensive equipment (camera, microphone, smartboard), the Internet, and a lot of wires.  The NAC sent Martin Jones (Technical Director of the NAC's Hexagon Studio) to Iqaluit to make the necessary preparations. 

            

On Monday, April 23, my two senior trumpeters, Rachel & Newkinga, had the music room all to themselves for the hour-long session with Karen Donnelly after school.  Also in attendance were myself, Martin, Malcolm (technical adviser with Arctic College) and a reporter with CBC Radio North.  With the connection established, introductions were made and the session began.  Karen focused on breathing, articulation, and performance techniques.  Specific examples that were used were scales and the anthem 'God Save the Queen'.  There was a slight one to two second delay in the transmission but it didn't pose a significant problem.      

            

When the session was over, Martin & I spoke with Maurizio Ortolani (Producer, NAC New Media) who was present with Karen about the effectiveness of the connection.  We concluded that overall it was fine but the transmission delay and sound quality needed to be slightly improved for the following workshops.  Thereafter, Newkinga and I were separately interviewed by the radio reporter about the experience.  The recordings were broadcasted the following morning on CBC Radio 1230AM and several staff members commented on how well we spoke.  (I'm still trying to locate the recordings on the CBC Radio website).

            

The clarinet workshop took place during lunchtime on April 24.  Three of my students were present: Anika, Windy, & Karlee.  I believe this was their first time taking part in a video conference of this kind.  Kimball focused on breathing, posture, and fingering techniques because my clarinetists' abilities are beginner to intermediate.  Unfortunately, the first half of the session was hampered by a 2-4 second delay in the transmission, forcing Martin to make a reconnection.  Besides that, the session went well and everyone present learned how to better play the clarinet.

            

I wasn't present for the fiddle session after school because I had to prepare classes for the rest of the week. According to Darlene, it was an eye opening experience for the kids.

            

Overall, the NAC broadband workshops were a success.  The students involved got to connect with professional musicians who taught them how to play their chosen instruments better.  These workshops also showed them that it is possible to pursue music after high school and as a career.  The equipment would be stored in the music room for future broadband connections.  I am very glad that I was able to plan and stage these workshops with the NAC.           

            

The rest of the week was pretty much the same old routine.  I began teaching my Grade 9 guitar classes simple chords (several notes played at the same time) such as, the C, G, G7, D, & D7 chords.  The hardest part for the students is alternating between the chords while playing in time. 

            

For Grade 11 English, we finished the Oral Literature Unit.  Oral literature refers to spoken word  where written literature is read out loud and performed.  This means that the text, a.k.a. script, is mostly written entirely in dialogue.  Stage directions, actions and body movements are written in bracketed italics.  I chose to stay away from Shakespeare and look at one act plays.  One act plays are basically the short stories of drama, lasting up to an hour.  The two classic one act plays we looked at were Sorry,Wrong Number and The Jest of Hahalaba. Their final assignment for next week is to write & submit a 1-4 minute one act play.

            

For Grade 10 music, we looked at more basic theory, such as, accidentals, tones & semitones, and major scales.  Following that we practiced 'O Canada', 'Eye of the Tiger', and the 'Mission: Impossible Theme'. 

            

And lastly, the ruin of the Creekside Village house that burned down in February has been fully cleared.  All that is left is an empty brown lot.  In time, a new row of houses will be built.

       

NAC Composition Workshop

The week of April 16th started with much anticipation.  For the next three days, my seniors & three junior music students would be participating in a composition workshop sponsored by the National Arts Centre of Ottawa.  The task was to compose a 2.5 minute orchestral piece that incorporates Inuit music and revolves around the theme of winter.  This piece would be combined with another 2.5 minute piece composed by Ottawa high school students to make a 5 minute instrumental work.  The composition would then be performed by the NAC Orchestra during their northern tour in the fall of 2012.

The workshop would be led by Tim Brady, a well known Canadian composer, guitarist, and record producer, and Nancy Mike, a local Inuit throat singer who has performed in many North American venues.

The workshops took place in the music room during the third period of the school day.  That is the period when I teach my senior musicians.  I made sure my three juniors were excused from their other classes.  Having the workshops during this period would prove to be the best option because lunch splits the period in two.  These young minds would need a break to wrap their heads around the concepts of writing music.  I originally thought of having the workshops during the last period of the day, but realized that I needed those periods to teach my juniors more music theory.

Tim & Nancy arrived before the start of the third block to set up and practice.  Tim had brought his own guitar and pedals.  I felt a little nervous but also privileged meeting Tim, a man who has made a successful career composing & performing music.  I have written my own music (jazz, piano, & electro lounge) but they have yet to see a public release.  I, the amateur, would be working with a professional.

When all the participating students assembled in the music room, formal introductions were made by Tim & Nancy.  After that, the two visiting professionals led the students through a 3 day journey of demonstrations, improvisations, and writing techniques.  I would hover in the background, taking photographs and making mental notes on how to compose. 

Composing music can be many things: easy, hard, fun, a pain, exciting, eye-opening, all of the above, etc.  It's a skill that requires focus & determination but also tolerates creativity and originality.  Before tackling the task of composing orchestral music, Tim & Nancy first started with the basics.  Composing is like writing an essay.  There is a main theme, supporting ideas, and a structure to the piece (beginning, middle, and end).  These ideas can be divided into the 4 main elements of music: melody, harmony, rhythm, and dynamics. 

            

The melody is the main idea, the part that audiences will remember and hum to later.  There are many ways to write a melody but for this workshop, Tim stuck to teaching my students the Arc Approach (think of a rainbow).  Harmony backs up the melody by adding colour and tone, in the form of chords and/or bass lines.  Sometimes, bass lines can be melodies on their own.  Rhythm is the speed & pulse of the composition and dynamics deals with volume (loudness & softness).    

            

Even with all this knowledge, one can still suffer from writer's block.  A way around this is to just 'jam' with a partner and improvise.  Improvising means to just play what comes to mind, either as a solo or a duet.  From these jamming sessions, a melody or harmony progression may pop out.  With his electric guitar in hand, Tim improvised with my students, playing everything from rock rhythms to extreme experimental.  The point was to show students that there are no limits.  On a grander scale, Tim held improvisation sessions with the entire class by having them repeatedly play three notes at different intervals to show how a group could stretch three notes into a tune.

            

Nancy joined in the improvising with her well trained throat singing voice.  She also explained how throat singing is done.  Usually, throat singers perform in pairs.  From my observations, throat singing is a challenging skill to master.  It's very rhythmic.  There isn't an established system of notation for throat singing so singers are left to create their own or learn the tunes aurally.  For Nancy, she created her own system of notation involving lines & dots.

            

For my students, and most aspiring music writers, the hardest part is to keep the music going.  After writing the main melody, where do you go?  There are many things you can do with a melody: stretch it out, make it shorter, invert it, play it backwards, and pass it around to other instruments in the orchestra.  The same can be done with harmonies, rhythms, and dynamics.  Thankfully, the students did not have to write a completed orchestral piece.  All that was required of them was to submit musical sketches of any kind with as many details as possible.  It would be Tim's job to go through all the pieces and arrange them into an orchestral piece.

            

To celebrate the conclusion of the 3-day workshop, I organized a pizza lunch on the last day.  Can't go wrong with pizza & pop.  While the students devoured the pizzas, I spoke with Tim & Nancy about our favourite musical genres and composers.  I also asked Tim about how does one go about making a successful career in the music industry.  With the conclusion of the workshop, my students would have an extra week to complete their musical sketches.

            

Overall, I think the composition workshop was a success.  The students got to work with two professional musicians and were exposed to the wonderful world of composing.  My students are quite lucky to participate in such an endeavour.  Down south, high schools would have to compete for the opportunity because there are so many of them.  Up here, Inuksuk is really the main high school in the north.    

The only other thing to report for the week was all-day parent-teacher interviews on Friday, April 20.  Students got the day off while the teachers had the pleasure of speaking to visiting parents about the midterm marks of their parents.  Unlike the parent-teacher interviews back in January where I didn't meet any parents (because I was the new teacher in town), I met quite a few this time.  I would have to estimate around 10 parents.  All the discussions I had were productive and positive.  

            

Toonik Tyme 2012

In 1964, Iqaluit's community leaders came together to discuss ways of attracting tourism to the north and 'put the town on the map.'  (Back then, Iqaluit was known as Frobisher Bay).  They wanted an event that showcased Inuit culture, traditions, and how to have fun in the far north.  It was decided that a yearly spring festival to celebrate the end of winter would be held.  The first Toonik Tyme Festival was held in May 1965 and has been going strong ever since.  The festival is named after the Tuniit people, one of the ancestors of today's Inuit, who lived in Greenland and in the eastern Canadian Arctic several millennia ago.  Inuit history describes these people as superb hunters, who killed their game up close with spears and lances.  They have also been described as having near superhuman abilities. 

The four day festival (April 12-16 this year) is packed with many activities for adults, children, and tourists.  It's like a compacted version of Ottawa's Winterlude except at the end of winter.  Even though it's the end of winter on the calendar, there's still plenty of snow & ice to see.  Some of it melts (mostly on the roads) but the majority won't disappear until the end of June.  On the plus side, the skies are clear and the sun is shining brightly.   

Even though the festival was happening during the Easter Break, it would still be a challenge for me to attend most of the events because I had to prepare classes for the following week.  Family outdoor soccer, adult ice golf, Elders Bingo, and an adult scavenger hunt were just some of the activities that took place on the first two days of the festival.  

            

            

The first event I attended was the large craft sale at the town's curling club on Saturday.  The ice had been removed and replaced with rows of tables displaying crafts, art, clothes, animal skins, food, books, cards, and jewelry.  Admission was just $2.  There were some interesting items on display like the animal skins and carvings but those items are the most expensive (in the hundreds & thousands of dollars) and I didn't bring that much money with me.

After visiting the craft sale, I headed over to Arctic Ventures to do some grocery shopping.  On the way, I spotted a large crowd that had gathered in the parking lot of Nakasuk middle school.  From a distance it looked like everybody was just standing around talking but from the program booklet, I learned that the gathering was for the tea & bannock contest.  Bannock is a type of quick bread that can be found throughout North American Native cuisine.  Inuit bannock looks like large onion rings and is really tasty.

            

     

In the late afternoon, I walked over to the RCMP station to photograph the ice sculptures that were put on display.  I was expecting to see life size sculptures as were the norm at Ottawa's Winterlude festival, but instead I was treated to small but detailed sculptures of a raven, inukshuk, Inuit child, and a seal.  Still worth it.  From there, I proceeded to the courthouse to photograph the igloos that were built behind the building.  Building an igloo (hut made out of ice) is a lot more complicated than it looks.  

            

The main event on Sunday was the snowmobile drag races that took place in the centre of the bay.  Despite the bright shining sun, the ice in the bay was still thick enough for vehicles and snowmobiles.  The races began after lunch and from the high school, I could see a long line of vehicles slowly making their to the centre of the bay.  A huge crowd formed around a long strip of cleared ice.  With my lessons prepped and ready for the upcoming week, I left the high school and walked over to the races.  This would be my first time stepping onto the frozen bay.  The trek took me about 25 minutes.  As I walked under the bright sun and clear blue sky, skidoos zoomed by me at fast speeds.  By the time I reached the centre of the bay, I could see all of Iqaluit behind me.

            

The crowd of spectators was mostly centered around the starting line but there were some positioned along the length of the drag strip too.  Around the starting line, one could look & photograph the various racing snowmobiles and drink free tea & hot chocolate from a nearby table.  The only unfortunate thing I noticed was there were no outhouses.  I was glad I had gone to the washroom before.  For the first few races, I watched from behind the starting line, photographing & filming the male racers roaring down the drag strip of flat ice.  I never realized snowmobiles could be so loud and move so fast.  I should have brought earplugs.  At the finish line, there are two flag carriers, tasked with raising their flag if the racer in their lane crosses the finish line first.  When it was time for the female competitors to race, I took a position at the finish line to film them from an approaching perspective.  The snowmobiles still sounded loud from the other end of the track and surprisingly, I was able to keep my digital camera on the racers as they zoomed by me. 

            

By the time I made it back to my apartment, my legs were aching from all the walking.  I'm not sure how many calories I burned but it must have been a lot.  From what I observed and experienced, Toonik Tyme was a lot of fun.  I was able to get outside and experience some Inuit culture.  If I didn't have so much work, I would have been able to attend many more events like the snowmobile uphill climb, traditional dog sled races, and the seal skinning contest.  Well, there's always next year.

            

As for the week as a whole, it was quite nice to have the time off because teaching can be tiring.  Working all the time can be a bad thing.  At the beginning of the week on April 8th, I played the organ again at the Anglican Parish Hall for the Easter Mass.  To my surprise, I had a fiddle accompanist, Darlene, who played the melody lines and descants.  The resulting performance was lively.  As usual, I tagged along with several members of the parish who headed over to the Hotel Arctic for morning brunch.  This time I ordered the Arctic char burger.  What was also exciting was that the lady sitting across from me was Edna Elias, the 4th and current serving Commissioner of Nunavut.  A commissioner is similar to a provincial Lieutenant Governor.  Maybe next time, I'll have brunch with the premier?

            

Edna Elias was appointed to the commissioner's position in May 2010.  In May of this year, she and five of her female friends are planning to raise $70,000 for the Alberta Cancer Foundation to support breast cancer research.  To achieve this, they will walk across Coronation Gulf from Umingmaktok to Cambridge Bay which is approximately 250 km (160 mi).  Their plan is to walk 40-48km a day, hoping to reach Cambridge Bay in 5 - 6 days.  I would like to wish them all the best!

          

Thursday's Blizzard

As I briefly mentioned in my previous post, there was a surge in extreme weather rolling through Iqaluit on Thursday, April 5th, consisting of heavy snowfall and strong winds. After doing some research, the temperature that day was between -19 & -8.5 degrees Celsius. As for snow, around 19 centimetres fell from the sky, and the winds were between 35 & 77km/h. The storm did not reach its climax until mid-afternoon.

On the morning of the 5th, I woke up at 6am, got dressed, and made myself breakfast. It was the last day of school before the Easter Break. As I opened my blinds, I was surprised to see falling snow being blown by heavy wind. I had been told by teachers on Wednesday that a storm was expected the next day but I didn't think it would start in the early morning. The wind-swept snow made me wonder how bad it was for the people living on the plateau? Just before 7am, I received a phone call from a teacher, informing me that morning classes were cancelled because the buses would not be running.

With the morning now free, I used the time to clean up my apartment, check my email, visit the post office, and buy some office supplies for personal use. As the day neared lunchtime, it became apparent that the winds were intensifying. When I got back from the office store, there were 2 messages waiting for me. The first was from the same teacher, calling back to say that afternoon classes were also cancelled. Easter Break had begun a day early. The second was from First Air Cargo, notifying me that my wine order from Rankin Inlet had arrived and was ready for pickup.

There is a liquor warehouse in Iqaluit but it only delivers to businesses who are licensed to sell alcohol. Everyone else is required to submit an alcohol purchase order (phone, fax, mail) to the Rankin Inlet Liquor Warehouse. And I do mean everyone in Nunavut, provided that alcohol is allowed in their community. Obtaining the inventory list & order form was a bit of a challenge. Since I couldn't find them on the Internet, I got photocopies from the teachers at school. There was a break in the snowfall as I walked to First Air Cargo but the wind was still blowing strongly, forcing me to wear a facemask and ski goggles. It was easier to walk back to my apartment with the wine box in my hands because I was walking with the wind. It felt as if an individual had their hands on my back and pushing me forward.

Since the beginning of the week, teachers were made aware that midterm marks needed to be in by Thursday, but because of the weather, it was assumed that everyone would get a day extension. But being the dedicated teacher that I am, I chose to go to the high school and input all my midterm marks in the school's registry.

By this time, it was the mid-afternoon, and the blizzard had reached its peak. The sky was covered by grey/white clouds and snow was blowing in all directions. I actually had to put on my snow pants for the first time. I slowly trudged through the snow towards the high school. About a quarter of the way, a thought popped into my head: why not film this weather spectacle for the people down south. You can view the video here. After viewing the footage, you have to admit that it sure was windy that day.

While working in the quiet confines of my music room, Terry, the principal, made an announcement over the PA system, informing everyone that the roads were being closed due to low visibility. Because of this, he added that anyone who came to school by car should leave immediately before they became stranded at the school. This announcement didn't affect me because I had come on foot but it did make me think. All the roads closed meant the town had effectively shutdown. No taxis would be on the roads and the airport was no longer letting flights arrive & depart. That also meant that banks and most stores would be closed because their workers needed to get home.

After inputting all my midterm marks and jamming on the piano for an extra hour, I decided to see if Arctic Ventures was still open. I needed to buy some groceries for the weekend. The winds were still going strong as I walked past The Brown (the only high rise in town) and the remnants of the Creekside Village houses that burned down back in late February. Through my ski goggles I could see several vehicles driving on the roads: either the roads had been reopened or people were driving at their own risk. As I neared the store, I could hear loud classical music being played outside the main entrance (a psychological tactic used to combat loitering), a good sign that the store was still open. Before entering the store, I walked past an older Inuit man who wasn't as heavily dressed as I was. As we passed each other, he remarked, "It's better to walk against the wind!", most likely referring to the many layers of winter clothing I was wearing. Once I bought all the groceries on my list I headed home and relaxed.

The blizzard would come to an end in the evening, leaving behind a lot of snow for people to shovel. For the people living on the plateau, it appeared that more than 19 centimetres of snow had fallen. The following days would be the complete opposite of Thursday: clear skies, sunny, and warmer temperatures. The snow would melt in several places, revealing patches of the rocky terrain it had covered for so many months.

With the Easter Break in full swing, I have plenty of time to do many things. Of course, a part of that will be devoted to rest and relaxation, but I will also have to work on preparing lessons for next week. A break for us first time teachers just means we have more time to prepare. Since I will be staying in town for the break, I will be able to experience more Inuit culture. The next big event is the Toonik Tyme Festival, scheduled to take place between April 12 & 16. The festival is devoted to officially welcoming the spring season with games, music, competitions, and feasting on traditional Inuit foods. Looking forward to it!

Another Two Weeks In One

I didn't realize how busy I would be for the last two weeks until things got going. March 26 - 30 was midterm week meaning all exams were to be written on Thursday & Friday. That only gave teachers three days to finish their units and have a review class. Only my Grade 11 English & Grade 10 Music students would be writing exams at the end of the week. I split the Grade 10 midterm into two parts: a performance test & theory test. As for my senior musicians, their midterm was just a performance test - playing scales, pieces, & clapping rhythms. I would conduct all the performance tests throughout the week. The Grade 9s were off the hook because they were not required to write midterm exams.

Speaking of my Grade 9s, I decided to introduce them to chords which are groups of notes played at the same time. I figured all 4 guitar classes had earned it because they had been learning just single notes on the first 4 strings. I kept it simple and taught them the C Major & G7 chords. When playing chords, one must remember to keep their left hand fingers curved, otherwise they may touch the strings that are supposed to be played openly.

Since my Grade 11s were scheduled to write their exams on Thursday (not Friday, as was the original plan), we had to quickly finish reading Of Mice & Men, and study the themes, morals, and literary devices. I'm glad I live in a time where there exists PowerPoint. Much to the delight of students, there was time to watch the 1992 film adaptation, starring John Malkovich & Gary Sinise. The film was pretty good despite having several plot differences from the novella.

For my senior musicians, the week was mostly devoted to letting them practice for their midterms and testing them on Wednesday & Friday. As an added bonus, I handed them a new piece, I'm A Believer by Neil Diamond. My students were more familiar with the Smash Mouth cover version that was recorded for the children's movie Shrek.

Overall, midterms turned out quite well. There were only a few students who didn't show up to write the English midterm but I was told that that was to be expected. Several other classes had no-shows. All of my students wrote their exams in classrooms rather than the gym because I was told that the gym was cooler in temperature and this affects the students' focus.

The only thing to report on the weekend was that I taught my air cadet drummers the parts of the snare drum and how to properly maintain the instrument. I spent half of Sunday walking around town because it was a beautiful sunny day. The other half was devoted to prepping for the following week.

The first week of April was short because there was to be no school on Good Friday (personally, every Friday is a Good Friday). Despite the 4 day week, I had twice the amount of work. There was the usual planning & teaching lessons during the day, but on top of that, I had to correct midterms and record the marks into the school's registry. There's a lot of work that teachers do behind the scenes that people may not be aware of.

While I scrambled to find time for correcting midterms, I continued as if it were a regular school week. I wasn't able to teach all of my guitar classes because several of them had been booked to participate in field trips out on the land where they learned how to ice fish and build igloos. As for the Grade 9s I did have, we reviewed the two chords and all the 11 notes I had taught them up until now. I also gave them time to work on their duet assignment. I originally wanted to test them this week but the land trips forced me to postpone them after the Easter Break.

Unlike the south, Nunavut students do not have a March Break. Instead, there's the Easter Break; whenever Easter happens, students & teachers get the following week off. This year, it's the second week of April. Many teachers & students had plans to go down south to see family, friends, and to escape the cold weather. Because of this, there was a surprising drop in attendance for the week. I too had plans to visit my family & friends down south but instead, I chose to stay in town.

For Grade 11 English, we looked at writing better paragraphs, particularly narrative, descriptive, persuasive, and explanatory. If there had been more time, we would have looked at this before the midterm exam. Their midterm essays were okay but my students needed help with structuring and maintaining consistency.

As for my junior & senior musicians, I informed them about a series of upcoming workshops after the break. For the last several weeks, I had been in contact with the National Arts Centre (NAC) in Ottawa, who organize music workshops with schools across Canada. The goal is to raise a student's level of musical interest by connecting them with a professional musician from the NAC Orchestra. These workshops can be done in person or through the Internet using video chat. In our case, the workshops would be done through video chat. From our discussions, we agreed on two broadband workshops for my clarinet & trumpet students for the last week of April. I tried for flute, saxes, and percussion, but those members wouldn't be available during that time.

As an added bonus, the NAC wanted my students to participate on another project. The orchestra is planning a northern tour in October 2012 and they would like to perform a winter themed piece written by Nunavut students that incorporates Inuit music (ie. throat singing, drum dancing, etc). I happily agreed, reassuring the NAC that my students were up to the task. To assist the students in this project, they would be working with Tim Brady (in person), a well known Canadian composer, electric guitarist, and concert & record producer. He is internationally recognized as one of the world's leading experimental guitarists, and has gained a strong reputation as one of Canada's leading composers of chamber, orchestral, and theatre music. The composition sessions are to take place during the third week of April.

The weather was acting up again, with warmer temperatures but stronger winds. It started on Wednesday afternoon with wind blowing snow through Iqaluit under a clear, bright sunny sky. It got progressively worse on Thursday, forcing classes to be cancelled for the entire day. Looks like everyone got an extra day off for the Easter Break.

On the plus side, I was glad to receive my order of musical ties on Tuesday, bringing my collection to six. Buying musical ties is surprisingly difficult anywhere you are because they are not available in the main suit stores like Moore's. They are either sold in select music stores (if you're lucky to find any) or on the Internet. The four ties I received in the mail were ordered from the American website Music In Motion.

Another plus was that my IKEA table had safely arrived and was waiting to be picked up at First Air Cargo. I had been wanting to fill an empty corner of my apartment with an office desk because for the past month, I had been using the round dinner table as my work space. Rather than spend $525 locally, I convinced my parents to buy me an IKEA table I researched on the company's website and ship it to me via First Air. I was also thankful that a teacher volunteered to provide vehicle transport, otherwise I would have had to pay the local moving company $125.