My second official blog! Geez, I wasn’t expecting to be selected again, but here I am making a second blog for NYA. For the first time, I’m in a college dorm. I thought it was going to be more exhausting from what I heard from last year’s participants, but it turns out it isn’t at all. I found it more intriguing, a bit hard but I pushed through.

I got to experience trades, swimming on a beach, and the heat. I checked out universities, went to Nunavut Sivunitsavut, Carleton University, and Algonquin College, and went all over Ottawa. We went to Parliament Hill, Dow’s Lake, and Tunney’s Pasture, went through transit, and volunteered at Mooney’s Bay where we set up nets for volleyball. We went to a trampoline park, checked out the NYA office, and stayed up all night a few times because I didn’t have time to sleep. I came from Nunavut, so I wasn’t used to it getting dark anymore, and I enjoyed the heat more than everyone else. Everyone else complained about the heat, but not me, I missed it. I got tanned, and “I hope you trip and fall” was the most common thing I kept saying.\

Currently, I’m still making a lamp for myself from trades, and I got to use a jackhammer last week. It became one of my major interest, I want to become a Demolitionist and Restoration Worker. I didn’t think I’d love it, but it turns out I did. I also learned arc welding, pipe fitting, soldering, and crane signalling. Some were easier than I thought. I learned that the bus will never be on time in Ottawa. We also went to watch an actual soccer game and a football game, and watched the practice the day before. It turns out the Winnipeg Bombers were going to win , I hoped they did because I made a bet with one of my right-hand men, Joseph Koonoo, and guess what! I won an easy $25, lol. I also got better at time management.

I recommend the program if you’re really into trades, college lifestyle, and high standards. It isn’t for the weak, but you’ll adjust to it, the whole group will support you with everything. I missed the staff and went to the program again with a few of my alumni, which I was really happy about. We’re going to be going to Toronto again for re-orientation and meeting Canadian program participants. I actually quit weed because of this program, and I’m really proud of myself for quitting. If it wasn’t for NYA, I wouldn’t have been interested in trades, now I’m thinking of becoming a Demolitionist and Restorationist. I really hope everyone succeeds in this program! I don’t know what to say anymore, but thanks for reading!