Goosed in Goose Bay

Got up at 5 this morning, grabbed a cab sitting outside the hotel.  Hoped that the Tim's at the airport would be open since I had no idea when lunch would come.

Walked up to the Provincial Air counter (St Johns airport has 4  count em folks 4 gates) and explained that I was "on the list" to go to Voisey.  Much clicking and frowning and clicking and frowning ensued.

"Are ye on de chaarter, dearie?"

Um.  I don't know.  I was told I was "on the list".

"Are ye wittinko?"

Sorry?

"Are.  Ye.  Wit.  Inco.?"

Oh, well, yeah, I'm working for dem, er, them.

"Okay, well, ye can't be heaaar.  Ye gotta go te Hangaar Fore, out de back."

Okay...can I walk it?

"Oh, no, me boyo, ye'll need te be findin a cab."

The cab ride took 10 minutes just to get around the backside of the airport on the oddest route, but I looked it up later and that was the only way.  Anyhoo.  Dash-8, maybe 20 seats, 4 guys including me, the other three are on a first name basis and are swapping stories along the lines of  "b'y, member when de ice she almost knocked de plane down troo de roof", and "I gaht foaggged in at de site dere for faive days, once, hey?" 

So I'm really excited now.

French Canadian Stewardess with a very odd accent, even for Canadian Francophone French which is quite staccato and nasal and has weird anglisms all troo it.  Waaaaaaaaay too chipper for 6 in the morning, trying to fob off hot towels and third coffees and cookies upon cookies and the patented PAL Airlines Tea Cake (tm).  She repeated all the departure, safety instructions, and landing greetings every time, in English and French, even though everyone else on the gradually filling plane has probably done this twice every two weeks for the last couple of years. 

Naturally being on a noisy prop plane I did the smart thing and sat in the seat right next to the prop support.  I spent some time musing on whether sonicating my colon would pack things up or thin things out.  Thus far it's option 1...but then again my diet and sleep pattern are utterly f'd so one can hardly consider this a well formed experiment.  Up and down at Gander.  Up and down at Deer Lake.  Up and down at Goose Bay.  AAAAaaaaand...

The flight to Voisey was put on hold due to weather at site.  (300 foot ceiling is not good on a short dirt runway, I guess).  That was at 9:00 a.m.  So I've been in the crew lounge in Goose bay all day long, trying to work with the TV blaring CSI:  Yellow and Crossing Jill Hennessy and Y&R ("by jeez, dat Victor's had some work dun, hey?").  At 5pm the admin came down to the basement and said "She's cancelled, boys.  Where's everybody to?  Come get your beds and dinner tickets."

Which is why I am spending the night in a converted air force barracks in Goose Bay.  Twin Bed, one official sliver of soap, no hangers, and everything battleship grey.

Dere's more te come later if ye wants it, hey?