Monday, January 25, 2010

FTL the place where they call it hell

What can I say its FTL!

That is what Prospek states in his song. I want to let you know what really happens in Fort Liard.
First of all, forget what you hear or read about it. There is more than meets the eye in FTL. I will explain some of the things that happens behind closed doors as well as what happens after the sun goes down(after 10PM in the summer). To really understand you have to see it for yourself.

There are 2 sides really in Liard. There are natives and non-natives. I am not going to talk about what happens on the non-native side of FTL...yet

There are roughly 600 people living in Fort Liard and there are an estimated 400 of them which are native. About 90% of them do drugs and/or drink Alcohol. On any given day of the week, if you go around Liard, you WILL run into someone that is intoxicated or under the influence. Even the kids are into the drinking and drug lifestyle. I know and have seen kids I knew as babies getting into drinking and drugs. Last week I found out that a 9 year old boy was getting drunk.

When people in Liard drink, they drink the whole bottle. They want to party and have a good time. A lot of the time, things get outta hand and fights break out. The girls fight as often as the guys do here.
One thing that I notice about people drinking, is that one of my close friends that drinks with becomes an asshole. He will act like hes my friend but as soon as he gets drunk, he bitches non-stop about his life and problems. Then he will take his anger out on me any way he can. If he is drinking at my house, he expects me to feed him and when I say no, he will say the same thing over and over again. And he always wants something of mine before he leaves home. I normally don't fight but if he tries that again I will seriously hurt him.

Moving on, the job situation in Liard is not the greatest. But people go work at camps on the highway to make a quick $2000 for 2 weeks of work. It is hard to get a job in town because of the BS politics with the Band and Hamlet. The current Band Manager does not like certain people in Liard just because their sons got beat up all the time when they were kids. I know because more often than not, I was the one doing it. The SAO at the Hamlet is no different. Many times people have applied for jobs,houses, etc. get turned down because they are not liked. I applied for a house and my job back as the Recreation Programmer but I was turned down because “I didn't have 10 kids.” One of my friends have applied for different jobs and been turned down despite being the most qualified for the position.

There is a lack of community support for local sports teams as well. I played soccer from 1999 to 2005 and coached from 2007 to now, and I have seen the community support numbers drop. In 2008 when The 18-under soccer won a banner, everyone in Liard came out to show their support. By the next tournament in May, the support was no longer there. This year I decided to coach soccer for one more year. I knew that my back was against the wall and I would face many challenges. When I was working at the school, I had no problem coaching soccer and when I took a break for the holidays and started practice again, The principal had changed his mind. He set up a meeting and told me not to continue coaching on school time. He also said that there is to be no fundraising from now on at the school. I had sent letters to some agencies around town requesting funding assistance and so far I have not heard a response. I know that the band manager just threw my letter into the garbage.

Sometimes I just want to quit and leave FTL and never return. But there is something that I realized..the people here NEED me. I don't think Liard will function at all without me.
I am currently at home sick and I let my team know that I won't be at soccer. Within 10 minutes I get 12 calls from people asking me if there is soccer and that they can not organize themselves without me. 3 of the ones who called said that they are not going to soccer. 5 just hung up on me after swearing at me. On Facebook chat, the rest of the youth in Liard msg me and ask about soccer. It looks like no one will go to the gym because I am not there to hold their hands.
I decideed that I am going to leave this Place by the falltime and never return.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Me against the world

It is 4:11am and I am wide awake.

I slept earlier from 11pm to 3am. Now at 4, I still can't go back to bed. I am not tired at all. I could try and go back to sleep but I think its a waste of time. I have been staying up late since 2006.

Every night I stay up and think about stuff. What ever is on my mind will be what I think about. For the first few weeks of 2006, I just thought I was homesick as I was in Inuvik NT for college. I then summed up being homesick as, "Missing home because you have nothing to do where you are currently." In Inuvik I had a few friends and I was playing soccer 3 times a week. The College even gave me the keys to open the gym for soccer.

As time passed by, I keep finding myself laying in my bed at 2am wide awake. I always have a lot on my mind. Sometimes I just let my mind wonder and many thoughts go through my mind at night. During the day, I am not tired at all. It seems as I get a full nights sleep. Sometimes in the morning I will think about what I was thinking about the night before. By noon time, I am not thinking about what was bothering me the night before, I just focus on the day. In the evening, I try to relax and not think about anything. But around 12:30 is when I realize that I am thinking again. I can't seem to stop thinking at night. There is just too much that is on my mind.

All through 2007 and 2008, while in college, I had a plan to be in bed by midnight and I even had a routine. It worked for about 1 month then I found myself laying in my bed staring at the ceiling in the dark. In the fall of 2008, I found out something that helps me go to sleep earlier:music.
I don't mean any kind of music, it has to be slow and relaxing. Since I have over 1000 songs stored on my portable hard drive, I select about 25 or so songs and create a playlist and play it on repeat and it helps me to sleep. One song I listen to a lot and helps me sleep most of the time is (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGzgMy8cQsQ)

Now that I am done school and am currently not working, I find myself staying up as late as 4am. Every time I stay up so late, I always wake up at 1PM.

I have no closing for this entry...

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Staring at the world through my rearview

The year has come to an end and what a year it has been. In this blog entry, I will reflect on each month of 2009.

January
In January of 2009, I was working on my final work placement as part of the Recreation Leaders Program. I worked in Fort Liard with the Recreation Department. In January the main project I was working on was the soccer tournament. It took 2 weeks to organize and was hoping that the new soccer nets would be here in time. The tournament went as planned and the following weekend, I left Fort Liard to Fort Smith.

Highlights:
-Soccer tournament
-Spending 8 weeks at home
-Making a great highlight video for my practicum placement.
Lowlights:
-Only played 1 game of hockey in Liard
-The cold weather
-New Years Eve first nite

February

The cold month of February was the longest and most difficult month of the final semester of college. It was very challenging to work with one of the instructors of the program. I continued training the PWK Huskies 16-under mens team for the upcoming tournaments. Not much happened this month.

Highlights
-Coaching soccer again
-Purchasing a new laptop
-Getting a $1000 cheque from the NWTRPA
-Aurora College week
Lowlights
-Breaking my laptop
-Back in college
-Cold Month

March

March was a great month for me as there were so many things happening. There was spring break,winning the soccer tournament in Fort Simpson, The Canadian Aborginal Hand games championships in Behcho Ko, working with TEP class
Highlights
-Beating Fort Liard in soccer
-Winning the Connie Loutit soccer touenament
-Spring break
-Placing 6th out of 32 teams in the Hand Games tournament
-Meeting Sherri
Lowlights
-Meeting Sherri
-Injuring my self playing the last hockey game and not playing in the mens division in the soccer tourney
- Almost failing a midterm

April

April is the last month of my college life and it went by fast. I had some family and a close friend come to my Grad. It warmed up here faster than the year before so it was nice to have the warm weather back. My one night thing with Sherri turned into a relationship.
Highlights
-Graduating from College
-Learning to play Guitar Hero
-Placing 2nd in the Grande Prairie Soccer tournament
-Upsetting Grande Praire 4-2 in the tournament
-Riley Mcleod yelling "is he naked" at Sherri's place in front of her room mates family
Lowlights
-Leaving my awesome room mate Felix
-Tyrone dropping out of college 2 weeks before grad
-The whole classroom fight
-Only having 3 out of 6 grads from my class


May

The month of May was a challenging one for me as it was my first month as a Grad Student.
I left Fort Smith on the 7th and I had planned to only be in Fort Liard for 6 weeks. I agreed to Fly to Gameti NWT for a job interview and to see the community. Unfortunately for me, I got stuck in YK for a holiday Monday. Good thing for my my Uncle and Former Grand Chief Gerald Antoine was there. He helped me get on the 6pm flight to Simpson and Shawn and his sister picked me up
Highlights
-Getting to see the community of Gameti
-Flying to Yk for a job interview and getting paid for it
-Getting Drunk and waking up with a mini Keg and $500 on my last nite in Smith
Lowlights
-Getting stuck in YK on a Holiday Monday with only $200
-Vancouver Canucks Losing to Chicago Blackhawks in the Playoffs
-Going to Simpson one too many times

June

June was a so-so month for me. Even though it was my birthday and the start of summer. All month I searched for work with the preference to stay in the NWT for the time being. With no luck I settled for working at the Hamlet of Fort Liard Recreation Department part time. June also marked my 23rd year on Earth.
Highlights
-Turning 23
-Pittsburgh winning the Stanley Cup
-Los Angeles winning the NBA title
-Guest Speaking at the Fort Liard graduation ceremony
-Dehcho Assembly in Jean Marie River
LowLights
-too much rain
-High River levels
-bugs

July

The month of July was the worst one of the year. A lot has happened in this time. I got fired for a BS reason, I was cheated on and dumped, Mentally, I was so beat that I wanted to kill myself. A chat with Michael Pealow changed that. He suggested that I get out of Fort Liard and he said that Im welcome at his place.

Highlights
-CALGARY STAMPEDE
-Going to Simpson for the Mackenzie summer games
-Partying it up in Grande Prairie
-Talking to Mike Pealow
-Winning $300 at Blackjack
Lowlights
-Getting Fired
-Cheated on
-Dumped
-No one being there for me

August

August was a great month for me as well as everyone in Liard. There was the summer gathering which was held at the Petitot River just past the BC/NWT Border. I had a lot of fun there. At the end of the month I ended up working at a place I least expected.
Highlights
-Petitot Gathering was probably the highlight of the summer...so many good memories
-Swimming across the Petitot river
-Winning $140 at a poker game
-Getting $1oo0 in the mail from the NWTRPA
-Working at the School as a teachers assistant
Lowlights
-Tearing my zipper and getting half of my tent soaked

September

In September I started my job at the school and it was challenging. I had to get used to getting up at 7:30. I also had to cut my evenings off in order to get enough sleep. I also started coaching soccer again. Both the 14-under and 18-under boys teams are the teams I am coaching.
Highlights
-Coaching soccer
-Started working again
-High Speed internet came to Liard and XBOX live with it
Lowlights
-getting up at 7:30am
-Going to bed before noon

October

I only focused on working and coaching soccer this month so there was not many things to report on for this month.
Highlights
-Coaching soccer
Lowlights
-Job only lasted til the 28th

November

The month of November went by fast and I mostly focused on coaching soccer and preparing my team for the Arctic Winter Games trials. Nothing really highlighted this month.

December

I was supposed to play in a hand games tournament in Whitehosrse but it was cancelled. I got to spend a week in Whitehorse. I got a new tattoo. At the end of the month I will be moving to Smith.
Highlights
-New tattoo
-Spent time in Whitehorse
-Guitar Hero Van Halen Xmas Gift
Lowlights
- the 3 days spend at -50
-all the BS that happened in this house at Xmas
-Moving to Smith

Thats the summary of how my year went.
Next week I will blog about my new years resolutions

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

some Q and A

This entry was taken from my facebook profile:

WHAT WAS YOUR:
1. Last beverage = Red Rain
2. Last phone call = Adrien Tremblay
3. Last text message = Tsn Alert
4. Last song you listened to = Chris Rocks stand up
5. Last time you cried =when i watched the crying game

HAVE YOU EVER:
6. Dated someone twice = no
7. Been cheated on = YES for fuck...
8. Kissed someone & regretted it = No
9. Lost someone special =Yes
10. Been depressed = No
11. Been drunk and thrown up = last time i did that was in smith

LIST THREE FAVORITE COLORS:
12.Cobalt
13.Sage
14.And Felix's eyes.

THIS YEAR (2009) HAVE YOU:
15. Made a new friend = a Lot
16. Fallen out of love = Don't know
17. Laughed until you cried = No
18. Met someone who changed you = the wise Janitor
19. Found out who your true friends were = Yes
20. Found out someone was talking about you = I sure did :(
21. Kissed anyone on your FB friend's list = hmm...ill have to check on that

GENERAL:
22. How many people on your Fb friends list do you know in real life = All of them.
24. Do you have any pets = No.
25. Do you want to change your name = Yes I do
26. What did you do for your last birthday =Fuck all
27. What time did you wake up today =7:45
28. What were you doing at midnight last night = XboxLive
29. Name something you CANNOT wait for = Polar Cup
30. Last time you saw your Mother = 5mins ago
31. What is one thing you wish you could change about your life =Stop being such an asshole
32. What are you listening to right now = Thriving Ivory-angels on the moon (radios on)
33. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom = the myspace guy?
34. What's getting on your nerves right now = My job
35. Most visited webpage =mmajunkie,Facebook,and www.hamsterdance.com
37. Nicknames = A few..........
39. Zodiac sign=Gemini
40. He or She? = What the f.....
41. Elementary = What about it?
42. High School = What about it?
43. College = What about it?
44. Hair colour = Dark Brown
45. Long or short = short
46. Height = 5' 12"
47. Do you have a crush on someone?= i think so
48: What do you like about yourself? = my awesomeness?
50. Tattoos = 4
51. Righty or lefty= Righty

FIRSTS :
52. First surgery = Getting stomach pumped at age 1..Im the reason medicine caps are childproof
53. First piercing = None.
54. First best friend = booga :).
55. First sport you joined = Track
56. First vacation = Edmonton
58. First pair of trainers = grade 7

RIGHT NOW:
59. Eating = Chips
60. Drinking = water
61. I'm about to =Play soccer at 8
62. Listening to = Same song
63. Waiting for = soccer

YOUR FUTURE :
64. Want kids? = one more wont hurt
65. Get Married? = hopefully to the right woman.
66. Career? porn star


WHICH IS BETTER :
67. Lips or eyes? = Eyes
68. Hugs or kisses= Hugs
69. shorter or taller= Shorter
70. Older or Younger = Younger
71. Romantic or spontaneous = Spontaneous
72. Nice stomach or nice arms = Nice stomach
73. Sensitive or loud = Sensitive
74. Hook-up or relationship = I'm into hook-ups apparently, love relationships though.
75. Trouble maker or hesitant = Hesitant

HAVE YOU EVER :
76. Kissed a stranger = good times
77. Drank hard liquor =the first time i tried to match shots against my bro
78. Lost glasses/contacts = all of my glasses
79. Sex on first date = do one nite stands count?
80. Broken someone's heart = Yes
81. Had your own heart broken = Yes
82. Been arrested = twice
83. Turned someone down = I turn down sex in the post season
84. Cried when someone died = Yes.
85. Fallen for a friend? = like felix? terrence?

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:
86. Yourself = all the time
87. Miracles = no
88. Love at first sight = when im drunk
89. Heaven = Yes.
90. Santa Claus = Jessies dad?
91. Kiss on the first date = ...sure?
92. Angels = Yes.

ANSWER TRUTHFULLY:
93. Had more than one bf/gf? = i had both at the same time
95. Did you sing today? = Every rose has its thorn by poison
96. Ever cheated on somebody? =my GED test
97. If you could go back in time, how far would you go, and why? = back to the summer of 08
98. If you could pick a day from last year and relive it, what would it be? = March 21 2009...I would just keep to myself
99. Are you afraid of falling in love? = Nope, I'd do it again, every new partner is different with love.
100. Posting this as 100 truths? =im cold :(

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Top 10

I don't have anything worthwhile to write about at the moment so I am going to post my top 10's:

TOP 10 Songs:
10.Clipse ft. Re up Gang-Whats up
9.Busta Rhymes ft. Ron Browz-Arab money
8.State of Shock-Money Honey
7.Coldplay-Yellow
6.Prospek ft. Aztec-Whats your number?
5.Linkin Park-Shadow of the day
4.Metallica-One
3.Puddle of Mudd-Psycho
2.DJ Lee-Fight Hard
1.Linkin Park-In the end

TOP 10 MOVIES:
10. 300
9. Sin City
8. Casino Royale
7. District 13
6. Bullet
5. Tropic Thunder
4. Taken
3. Punisher:warzone
2.Pulp Fiction
1.Gladiator

TOP 10 Sports teams
10. Edmonton Oilers
9. Detroit Tigers
8. Netherlands national soccer team
7. New York Rangers
6. Brazil National soccer team
5. PWK Huskies
4. Newbreed Soccer
3. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Indianapolis Colts
1. Vancouver Canucks

TOP 10 MMA Fighters
10. Frank Shamrock
9. Josh Koscheck
8. Brock Lesnar
7. Bobby Lashley
6. Kimbo Slice
5. Jon Jones
4. Cung Le
3. Mirko Cro Cop
2. Fedor Emelianenko
1. Georges St Pierre.

TOP 10 Citys I want to visit
10. Montreal
9. Ibiza
8. Las Vegas
7. Reykjavik Iceland
6. Moscow Russia
5. Buenos Aires
4. Stockholm Sweden
3. Nassau Bahamas
2. St Pierre and Miquelon
1. Amsterdam

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Whitehorse

I am writing this on my last night in Whitehorse. I came here to compete in a Hand Games tournament. I left Fort Liard on Friday November 27 and left Fort Nelson the next day. The bus left at 3:00PM and arrived in Whitehorse at 3:00AM. During the long bus ride, I knew I had to keep myself occupied and not worry about the cold bus. I purchased 2 Mixed Martial Arts magazines to read, it didn't help that much because I was done 15 minutes past the Liard highway. Lucky for me I had my mp3 player for the music keeps me calm. There were not many people traveling on this bus other than myself, there were maybe 3 others. I really wished Ernie came along. Not that I was lonely, it would have been great to have someone to talk to and someone to hang out with. Ernie was all for coming to Whitehorse, he just never got paid from his job in New Brunswick. I was the lucky traveler to get the seat in the back of the bus. I used my winter jacket as a blanket. I slept somehow up to Toad River. While I was getting off the bus, the driver asked me if I was comfortable. I told him that I never sleep on bus rides but I fell asleep quickly on this one. During a 30 minute break where I had a club house sandwich for dinner, I decided to check if they had any internet service. I managed to update my facebook status as well as check the scores for NHL. At 6:30, we left Toad River and continued onward. I just relaxed and listened to my music. I wanted to watch a movie with my laptop but I decided to wait for a while longer. After what seemed like an eternity, we arrived in Watson Lake. Now I have only been this way one time and I did not recognize it. I turned my cellphone on to see if there was any chance I would get a signal. As I was updating my facebook status, I saw a sign with Watson Lake on it. I thought it was at least another 3 hours but my friend Michael commented that it was 5 hours. "for f*&$%" was the thought in my head. I couldn't sleep due to the fact that I drank an AMPd energy drink. I decided to finally watch a movie. I grabbed my laptop and plugged my external hard drive and watched 4 episodes of South Park. After I looked at the time I realized that only an hour and a half has passed. I just sat there and looked out the window while listening to music. Finally after what seemed like an eternity, I arrived in Whitehorse. I phoned Mike and he picked me up as I was staying at his place for the week. During the first few days, I was bored and I at least got to work out at the Canada Games Center..I mean the Subway Canada Games Center. During my time here in Whitehorse I learned a few things: you can make popcorn with a paper bag, some people store batteries in their fridge, Montreal alouettes CAN and will make you think you can beat them, Whitehorse weather is a cold -5. Good things that came out of this trip: I got a tattoo, got my jerseys customized, scored some goalie gloves for my goalie,got outta Liard for a while. Things I dodn't get done: Play handgames, have a shot of Rum with Fawn, go to the hot springs, and buy some winter hikers.
Now tomorrow at 2PM, I will be on my way back to Fort Nelson and hopefully I will be back in FTL Sunday. I did not do everything I wanted to do but there is ALWAYS NEXT TIME. Next time I will be writing another one of these blogs.

Welcome!!!

Hey all,

Welcome to the first blog that I am doing.
This is just an introductory one I will post one tomorrow