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Tuesday May 26 2015 5 COLUMNS 15 Years Ago... Gates Foundation gives libraries cash Along with other libraries in the NWT the Mary Kae- ser Library in Fort Smith is about to share in the riches of Bill Gates. The Microsoft billionaires charitable arm - the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - is giving a 323000 grant to public libraries in the Northwest Territories. In addition Microsoft Canada will donate 92000 worth of software. Issue May 24 2000 20 Years Ago... Three college boards hold joint meeting The Aurora College Board of Governors will host the Nunavut Arctic College Board and members from the Yukon College Board this weekend in Fort Smith along with the NWT Minister of Education Richard Nerysoo and department of Education senior staff. The public is welcome to observe the proceedings. Issue May 24 1995 30 Years Ago... Chiefs say claims need more funding Indian and Northern Affairs Minister David Crom- bie faced a Dene leadership meeting in Fort Simpson shortly after the ceremonies ofcially opening the Nor- man Wells pipeline were complete ceremonies the Dene chiefs angrily boycotted. Insufcient land claims fund- ing was one major issue raised at the meeting. Issue May 23 1985 ARCHIVES Northern Journal 2015 Join us online Like Northern Journal on Facebook and get the weekly news delivered to your feed FACEBOOK FEEDBACK A river in a virtually unchecked corner of the North- west Territories has been losing 95 per cent of its water to Saskatchewan and Alberta for over 50 years with little to no monitoring of the downstream impacts. Saskatchewan dam diverting 95 per cent of NWT river towards oilsands Carol Collins That is why our water is so low in Fort Resolution and getting lower ever year. The government needs to look into this development I dont think we have a Trans-boundary Water Agreement with Saskatchewan Fort Smith voices distrust around fracking in NWT Wade Paquette There is no way of reversing what damage the big oil cor- porations do to our land once they have nished and have left behind all the spoils leaching from their benets We as a nation and the common people need to stand up together to unite against those whom wish only to rape us of our rights and strip us of the very essentials from which allow us to keep healthy and strong. CLEAN WATER By DAWN KOSTELNIK My mother has my brother Kurts beginners report card. It still makes us laugh to see this crazy grading system. After growing up on the Mackenzie River I am not sure that my baby brother didnt have almost the same challenge of reading and writing like a white man as the other kids did. I cant remember if he passed this level or not. I know that he hated school with a passion andwouldrunawayandhide he was only ve at the time. Teams for dodge ball are picked to my surprise I am included in the draft. I swear that ball was travel- ling towards Philips head at 100mph In traditional Inuk style this is a game of strength andor endurance. I am fast I determine it is better to dodge this death missile than try to catch it. Elizabeth an older girl leans into the ball and lets it slam into her chest her arms instinctively clutch the ball. Ah-h-hcomesunbiddenfrom the mouths of her opposition. They all crowd in fear in the corners awaiting repercus- sion. She will redirect the ball toward us now. I appreciate that she is not picking on me. She has her eye on one of the older boys and he watches her warily. Slam The ball crashes into his chest and now he is heading back for Elizabeth a friendly little game of who can take off whose head. A bell rings and we head back to class. I think my head has been saved by the bell thank you thank you. Class is over for the day. Outside everyone waits to see the new kids. I am shy unused to being in such a crowd of curious and friendly kids.Crowdswerenevergood where I came from. It turns out that I am a sea kid. The town kids live up above the school there are very few of us that live down by the sea. Tornpiecesofcardboardlit- ter the schoolyard. Town kids slidedownthehilltoschoolon thesetatterstheyleavethem as they have to climb the hill home. My new friend Grace Elgok grabs a brown paper remnant and motions for me to do the same. Basic form of recyclingwhenyoudonthave much you nd multiple uses for what you do have. We step over the bank to- gether place the bit of card- board under our butts and slide down toward the frozen ocean and our homes. P.S.Amosthappysurprise Mrs. Grace Priest whom I rst met in Fort Norman as a missionary had moved to Coppermine to shepherd the Eskimos. She has been very good to me. I do appreciate herwecrosspathsonceagain. www.thewhitegirl.ca White Girl From Indians to Eskimos By LONE SORENSEN Its becoming increasingly important to learn how to rely on our local resources like our food gardens and to continue to hone our skill. It is said that you reap what you sow. If we are giving the com- mitment and time to grow- ing our own food we may as well make sure we get an abundant harvest and reap some food that not only will nourish our bodies but also our souls. Paying lots of at- tentiontothetimeinbetween the sowing and reaping is where the real good stuff is - its not only the destination but the journey that counts and at this time we are on the journey of continued care of our wonderful gardens. It is an investment of time that will be worthwhile. As spring takes us into an- otherforecasteddrysummer the garden needs to be main- tainedwithfrequentwatering weeding thinning of certain plantshillingofpotatoesand overallheart-feltcare.Perhaps some of the plants need some extra attention like a boost of organic liquid fertilizer or the sugar snap peas needing a netted upright fence. In my last column I talked abouttheimportanceofwater- ing in our dry climate. Sum- mersarewarmerandmoredry that they have been in the 27 years that I have grown food in Yellowknife. Likely your garden needs more water than you think especially if you grow vegetables and herbs in pots small spaces or mounded or raised beds. Watering In Yellowknife and sur- rounding area watering every 2 to 3 days is essential Gardening with Lone Caring for your Northern garden where the soil is quite peaty. Clay soils will keep the mois- ture longer. When water- ing you can check if you are doing a good job by using the best moisture-meter that is always available - your n- ger Simply test the mois- ture by sticking your nger in the soil being careful to not disturb the roots of the plants to nd out how deep the moisture is. Make sure that the moisture you are adding from the top reaches down to meet the moisture further down. There should not be a dry layer between these two. Later on in the summer as the plants grow and cover the ground the moisture stays longer and less watering may be needed. Weeding Many gardeners tend to ignore the weeds growing in their gardens. Some of course do not realize how quickly their potential abun- dant harvest can be lessened by weeds. Some gardeners may think if they ignore it the weeds will go away. Like everything else in life what you resist persists By simply getting famil- iar with each weed and in- cluding the weeding work as part of the joyful garden work removing them with respect and skill will give the food plants a much bet- ter chance to grow strong and big. As you remove the weeds the plants that you want to grow bigger now have more nutrients light and space. In the Yellowknife area the most common weeds are chickweed quack grass horsetail dandelion re- weed lambs quarters and several others. Chickweedandquackgrass cannot be pulled rather chickweed has to be lifted or cut from under the roots to get out the whole root sys- tem. Quack grass has to be dug out with a fork as does horsetail. Lone Sorensen is the founder of Northern Roots and has lived and grown food in Yellowknife for 27 years. Patricia Sepp Time the Territorial Gov- ernment step up and have a say about our water