October 2002 Postcard

Well these postcards are getting fewer and farther between. It is not because there is nothing to write about. Actually I have been quite busy. First I must comment on how good the weather has been, even though November is here it remains mild. There were a few days of frost but nothing that serious, there was even a little snow but it did not last long.

The month started off with a song. I was informed by the students on 3^rd that they had written a song about me. The song is called “Kent Nálgast” which means Kent nears or gets closer. As part of the unveiling I had to make an appearance while they were playing it. That went over great and the song didn’t sound too bad either. The things I have to do around here!!

Oct. 5^th, Saturday was another busy day. First I volunteered to canvas an area in Reykjavik for the Red Cross. I chose my old stomping grounds by Lokastig. They were collecting money for Aid for Africa. A lot of money was raised and I was proud to have been a part of it. In the afternoon I got Tricia Mackay to accompany me to a display and lecture at the seamen’s museum in Hafnarfjörður. They were hosting recent immigrants to Iceland and I thought it might be interesting. They spoke of the school system, architecture, food and a tour of the museum. Food was the best especially since there were samples afterwards, but the other was also worthwhile. It was good that Canadians showed up, as we were all Canadian except for 1 German lady. It would have been nicer to see a better turn out but hey; there was more food for me. To round out the day I attended a photography show opening with Villy, downtown. Needless to say I had a quiet evening later.

Oct. 10^th, I went to a lecture at the University of Iceland Library given by Holmfriður Tómasdóttir. It was about her work last summer documenting letters written by and to the Western Icelanders. It was interesting and was glad that I went.

Oct 11^th was the start of another busy weekend. First, right after work I met with the volunteer coordinator with the Red Cross and offered to volunteer wherever I was needed most. Then I went to work at Hotel Atlantis, I was being kind hearted. It was a busy night as the hotel was full of Scottish soccer fans partying away. The next morning I had to sleep some and it was shortly afternoon that I was awoken to a great noise as the Scottish fans were making their way to the stadium. It was time anyway to get up and make my way to the Cultural Centre as the Canadian Club was celebrating Thanksgiving. It was a great supper and get together but unfortunately I was still a little tired from the night before. I went home and went to bed early. Villy phoned me a little after midnight and then apoligized for waking me. I could not get back to sleep and thought maybe I should go downtown and take a few photos. I headed downtown at 1am and the city was celebrating. I am not one to miss a party; neither is Villy so it didn’t take long before I ran into him. I had a blast and partied with the Scots until 6am. I got some pretty good photos as well; some of them are on my web site. Sunday was a rest day, finally.

October 15^th with the days getting shorter and the night’s cooler; the northern lights made a grand entry. October 18^th, Friday was a holiday “Vetra frí” winter free so I did some more exploring. I packed up the Blazer, dragged a couple friends with and headed over Kjöllur, the highlands. Our destination was Hofsos. The road was rough but the weather cooperated and it was nice and bright. It was kind of cold when we were out of the Blazer but it was worth the trip. It began snowing a little but there was no accumulation of snow. When we got to Hofsos I noticed there were cars at the museum so I suggested we head there. What a good idea as they were serving brennivin "Black Death" and shark. As if I don’t see enough teachers at MH don’t we land in a teacher’s conference and party in Hofsos. We even ended up at the Principles house afterwards and rocked until 5am. Needless to say I was kind of slow at getting up the next morning. The weather wasn’t the greatest so it did not mean that I missed any exploring chances. Once I got up I headed for Akureyri leaving my 2 travel companions in Hofsos, their choice. Arriving in town I stopped to visit an old friend and former tenant of mine, one Birgir Guðmundsson. He studied political science at the U of Manitoba quite a while ago. I had a nice visit with him and his wife before I headed to other friends Olli and Bryndis where I spent the night. After a fantastic supper I headed to a fundraising social for the Akureyri Men’s Choir. It was called “Hæ Hoppsasí” and was an Irish Seaman’s musical, great to sing and clap along with even though it was all in Icelandic. They even handed out hard fish as a snack like we would hand out potato chips. Still a little tired from the night before I only managed 1 beer and did not feel like venturing downtown either. I had a little hard time finding Shawn, another passenger the next morning. He had been out with his cousin the night before and was missing in action. I shopped a little and walked around until he called me and then we took off for Hofsos again. The road was very icy and there were some accidents on the way. We didn’t stay long in Hofsos; the girls were waiting for us. The trip back to Reykjavik went well, the icy roads didn’t last long and we arrived safely in Reykjavik.

Work in general has been going well, I am working some overtime, as I am responsible for some 60 laptop computers now on top of my regular stuff. I even had to write a note to the teachers to try to get them to look after the computers better so now they are afraid of me, somewhat. I am known as “The Grumpy Canadian”

Unfortunately crime is on the increase, someone even snuck into an office while she was in the washroom and took her purse and mobile phone. We have been fortunate with laptops not going missing even though we lost a couple DVD players and a couple VCRs.

Finally a quiet weekend, I helped with some work on my new apartment on Sat. 26^th and explores downtown Sunday. I even attended Sunday Mass, in a rather unique setting. Kolaport the Reykjavik Flea market was home to Sunday afternoon mass and even the Bishop of Iceland contributed to the service. The City of Reykjavik spent the same Sunday putting up Christmas lights downtown; I guess it is the season.

The month ended on a down note as far as my poor Blazer, the signal lights don’t work and I am a little worried about taking it to a mechanic because it could be difficult to find the problem. I just drive a little more carefully until they are fixed.

Well that is about all for October, they don’t celebrate Halloween here so Oct 31^st was just another day but everyday can be interesting in Iceland.