Banff turns white

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So it’s been quite a while since our last blog! Sorry for the delay to all our frequent readers, been busy earning the Canadian dollar! Even though im sure we could earn more on the dole in Oz than what minimum wage is here!!
We left off last time with Halloween coming up; it really did live up to the hype! Everyone in town in all the pubs and clubs on the streets fully dressed up! The effort some people go to is quite impressive.

The next day I started a job at the Caribou Lodge in Banff, doing construction (labouring to Aussies). Did my four weeks there working on the third and fourth floor renovations, earning by Banff standards a fantastic $11 an hour! After my first pay slip and seeing how much is lost to tax, taking my hourly rate down to about $9.40 an hour, I definitely slowed up and let my output match my pay rate!

While I was hanging shower rods, fixing shower caddies, hanging coat racks etc., the g banger found work as a Hotel Baby sitter. Sitting children while their parents go out on holidays, some nights quite good tips are involved!
This blog wouldn’t be complete without discussing the temperature, two weeks ago; Calgary (state capital 2hrs drive away) recorded the second coldest temperature on the planet that day, beaten by some town in Alaska. We had a consistent week of minus 30 temperatures, overnight Banff turned white, walking to work in ankle deep snow as your snot freezes and your eye lashes freeze together. There were straight away lots of stories of people already experiencing frostbite on their noses and cheeks. I’m talking daily MAXIMUM temperatures lucky to get above -30 degrees Celsius, brings a whole new meaning to cold. But saying that, it wasn’t unbearable, we just prepared for it before heading out.

We both have had a few days on the skis or snowboard, Gretchen having a couple more than me, hitching a ride to the surrounding mountains while I went to work for my 9 quid an hour. Ha
One interesting experience was sharing a chair lift with 2 brother from Texas, one reaches into his jacket and pulls out a flask and offers me a ‘little taste of home’ the sweet taste of Bundy Rum hits the taste buds, turned out he spent a semester at the university of QLD, kind of surreal to be in minus 20 on ski lift in Canada and sip Bundy.

We made use of some local knowledge provided by Bayden, a lad for the g bangers home town Swan Hill who spent last winter here, by sneaking into some of the local Hotels finest indoor and outdoor hot tubs to ease some aching muscles!
Gretchen has started her new job at the Mt Norquay Ski School doing the administration and bookings, on Monday I started my snowboard instructor course at Mt Norquay, but not before, on Sunday night hitting the local pubs and enjoying or suffering through a ‘trash can’ a potent mix of several different shots, blue caracao and a can of red bull. Good times and sore heads Monday. Sam not turning up to his first day of work feeling or looking the best might I add, it took him a full 24hours to recover from the beloved 'trash can'.

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Comments

[Sue Gillick]

Merry Christmas Gretchen
Merry Christmas Gretchen and Sammy sounds like you two are having a blast.I have enjoyed following your blogs,Gretchen i have been going to Melinda's and find her lovely but i still miss our little wax sessions.My little ruby is 9mths old now and is keeping me on my toes crawling,standing with the aid of anything she can grab onto and has 2 bottom teeth that are sharp as razors.Well i hope you both have a wonderful christmas and we don't need to hope it's white for you that's for dame sure. Well stay warm and keep smiling those happy smiles Love Sue and Family