ARTICLES BY
Sonny Orr
I recently listened to a good old country Christmas song, “Santa looked a lot like daddy, or daddy looked at lot like him…”, and it made me smile. Sometimes, songs just make up the truth as it is, and within that little ditty of a tune, it managed to expose ...
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I recently had the honour of being recognized as the Economic Developer Officer of the Year at the annual gala held by the Eeyou Economic Group, which is directed by my peers from the other Cree communities. As I thought about what I would say and which speech mode I ...
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As we enter a new future of dancing with and within the commodities markets, selling diamonds and gold left and right, a rare mineral here and there, what comes to mind is that we’ve come a long way from just reinvesting debentures and bonds and occasionally cashing in on mega-projects, ...
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Once, many years ago, it was quite easy to get a driver’s permit. Back in the day, the local constable advised me to go and get a money order for $40 and send it out. I complied and wondered when the driving school would start, who the instructor would be ...
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I happened to be down in our favourite place to hangout on weekends, yes, Val-d’Or. And it just so happens that over a span of three weeks and three round trips, I had stayed in several hotels in the area and on each trip, I met Hizzonner, Mayor Fernand Trahan. ...
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One of the craziest times of the year is breathing down our necks like some rabid vampire who hasn’t had a drop of blood in days. The skies overhead drip with snow-tinged blasts of air as children and adults brave the elements to go trick or treating from one spooky ...
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One of my main beefs about certain things in life is related to how complicated things can get and how simple it could be to resolve – if it were up to me. As in a life-or-death situation when you need to take some medication, does the latest TV commercial ...
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The plane readied for takeoff and I turned to the passenger next to me, a doctor who had been around the North for two decades. As the plane droned at cruise altitude, he turned to me to talk about the good old days, when the North was still a frontier, ...
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My red-faced daughter rushed into the house to tell me that geese were flying over – the cold early fall winds are already here. Wow, can it be September already? Times goes by fast when you don’t have time for life, just work. I am often told that I think ...
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I mentioned in the last issue, a movie in the making was in the works just north of 55. That was two weeks ago and the saga continues…
After a few weeks of planning and auditions, the mix matched crew of intrepid film makers decided to go to a remote location, ...
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One of the nice things about summer is the times set aside to celebrate. Given the long days and energy everyone seems to have in early summer to plan, design, discuss, pay for and carry out in grand style – like galas, weddings, holiday parties and graduations. This all takes ...
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Wow, summer is finally here. I dusted off my second-hand air conditioner and cleaned off the dead mosquitoes and flies off the grill and readied the window for the first official indication that summer is really here. To make it ecologically official, belugas arrive just in time, migrating near the ...
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One of the biggest factors of living in Eeyou Istchee is the incredible long distances we have to travel just to meet each other. Sometimes, when we arrive to new southern destinations, local people gasp with amazement when we tell them that we travelled 2000 kilometres just to eat at ...
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One of my favourite things to read are the silly old news stories you often find in grocery stores, declaring that Elvis Presley is still around. It’s hard not believe that Elvis may still be alive when you know that he still lives on in the digital or analog version ...
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Right before the federal elections, Quebec’s Liberal provincial government decided on doing more business in the north and cash in on the resources. This quickly led to a grand effort to design the north into an economic and protected area – sounds like an oxymoron? This also created the largest ...
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One of the many virtues of living in the north is the endless expanse of land and waters that make up most of northern Quebec. It is a land of beauty and bounty, but something is making life a lot harder to enjoy and to stomach. It’s called the price ...
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As I summon up all the memories that I have about elections, one thing is certain – Canadians either love to vote, hate to vote, or just don’t care about the vote for an upcoming election, it all depends on who you talk to. The people I know don’t seem ...
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The flock of geese flew by, quietly checking out the James Bay sun-cured cedar driftwood and black-spruce decoys spread out over the shallow pond, the reflections of the clouds clearly outlined in the mirror-like waters. The head goose turned back after a single call from the hunter crouched and well-hidden ...
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One of the many things that I think of, just for the sake of thinking of it, is – Is it normal to have so many catastrophes year after year? Is it just because we hear about it instantly, or is the world really going to hell in a bread ...
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One of the things in life that many people don’t understand, or want to cope with, is cleaning up. I remember in my earlier acne years discovering socks from bygone years all cuddled up with one of those numerous monster dust balls under my bed, begging to be thrown out ...
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Last month, watching the 25th anniversary of the first shuttle disaster, I thought that time had just run away from me then come back and slapped me in the face. How could that be? It seemed like just a decade ago when the entire world was shocked by images of ...
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I was listening to JBCCS early-morning radio and there was an interesting homegrown song about love, which in many ways, reflects the mood at this time of year. Holiday wise, it’s just a few days past Groundhog Day, who, incidentally, emerged on a stormy cloudy day, and the thankful forecast ...
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Years ago, I used to be intolerant of certain types of people. I always thought that whatever was strange or different should be frowned upon because it upset the delicate balance of tradition. For most times, it was just gut feelings, or so I thought. But actually it was tradition ...
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One of the most important things about our lives is the environment around us and knowing that you can’t do anything about it. Take Mother Nature for example. Recently, news of earthquakes starting up again in Chile make me wonder just how predictable Mother Nature is, from a human standpoint, ...
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The first pipes froze today, and it’s not yet Christmas. It wasn’t a fun sight, water and ice everywhere, but it was bound to happen sooner or later. Murphy’s Law works double time up here, in the far north. In many ways, winter is a fun time. Most of my ...
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“O holy night…” the songstress crooned for all to hear at the local Christmas show. Ahhh, the Christmas show… it brings back memories. This time, I’ll bring back some memories that belong to others and that should be shared.
She sang until no one could criticize, everyone knowing that it was ...
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