Dinner with Leroy Oenga Jr. and family, part 1 of 7: When you hear the traditional Iñupiat drum, you hear the sound of the bowhead whale

On Thursday, those who read my blog met Leroy Oenga Jr. and learned how his mother refused to pull the plug on him when the doctors told her it was time, but prayed and sang hymns for him instead. Leroy invited me over for dinner with his family this afternoon. He had heard his mother, Caroline Cannon, call me, "my brother," so now he calls me "uncle" and I call him "nephew," and her, "sister." Leroy is a Dallas Cowboys fan and was catching up on the day's football scores when I arrived.

Very shortly, he pulled out a new drum Joe Sage had made for him. The skin cover came from the liver membrane of a bowhead whale landed this fall by Edward Itta and crew. When you hear Iñupiat people singing and dancing to the beat of traditional drums made in this way you literally hear the sound of the bowhead whale. 

Tuttu soup at Pat and Beverly's

Pat and Beverly Hugo invited me over for dinner tonight – tuttu soup - tuttu being caribou, of course. Pat is originally from Anaktuvuk Pass and this caribou came from there. Their grandson Mike could hardly wait for the blessing to conclude but he did and then helped himself - as did we all. Audrey is visiting from Anaktuvuk. I recognized her right away, because she danced so beautifully at Kivgiq. It was an excellent meal – the likes of which you will not find in a restaurant. Fresh homemade biscuits too.

In the fall of 2012, I had gone out to do some coverage during the Barrow fall whale hunt and traveled on the Savik boat. Pat was part of the crew and made a number of appearances on the blog series I posted - all shot with my "real" cameras. Here is a link to one picture of Pat from that series, taken as Savik crew helped tow a whale to Barrow. This year, he went out again but unfortunately broke his back. He is recovering well but still has a ways to go.

Text added at 10:42 PM. The Squarespace nightmare continues - day 56 and counting.

Cutting whale for the Thanksgiving feast

This is maktak from the whale Larry Aiken lost his cell phone for when he threw the harpoon into it. Larry is here in the Iñupiat Heritage Center too, along with his captain George Adams, Wayne Toovak and other crewmembers cutting bowhead for the Thanksgiving feast.

I was going to use a picture of Larry cutting with these men as as a carry-over from breakfast, but I think I need to be sure the whaler women also get credit they so greatly deserve. On the right is Diana Martin, Iñupiat Heritage Center Museum Curator. She is an expert on the weapons, tools, clothing and other implements from her culture reaching back into time immemorial. As curator, she watches over and cares for the Heritage Center's growing collection of artifacts. Today, she has also been watching over her daughter Katherine who she has been teaching the Iñupiat ways of food preparation. She has also taught her how to prepare the backstrap from caribou into the superstrong, waterproof thread used to sew ugruk seal skins into the boat cover for the umiak used in the spring hunt.

Text added at 5:40 PM. The Squarespace nightmare continues - day 56 and counting.

Breakfast at Sam and Lee's, part 1: A harpooner, his phone and a whale

As I have done every day since I arrived here Monday evening, I got out of bed this morning and then walked straight to Sam and Lee's for breakfast. The school district has provided me use of a vehicle while I am here, but I like to walk and it is only a few blocks away. In the past, I would split my breakfast visits up – some to Sam and Lee's, others to Pepe's, but of course with Pepe's burned to the ground, I can't go there anymore. I stepped in to find one other patron having breakfast – Larry Aiken.

Here, Larry gestures to where he had placed his phone as he hunted bowhead this fall with the George Adams crew. Larry was harpooner and when the whale came, he harpooned it. Immediately afterward, he saw something small and red in the water. It was his phone. It sunk and now lies somewhere on the bottom of the Chukchi, near Cooper Island. Another crew member used his own phone to shoot a video of Larry throwing the harpoon. Even as we ate, Larry made a call to see if he could get a copy of the video to upload into his new phone.

Text added at 10:26 AM. The Squarespace nightmare continues - day 56 and counting.

Instead of a coffee break I get treated to a tuttu quaq break

I had been sitting at a desk in the Iñupiat Heritage Center reading oral histories for two hours straight, enjoying every word but I noticed I needed a break. My neck and shoulders were getting sore. I thought maybe I could go buy me a coffee somewhere, maybe with some prepackaged chocolate chip cookies. Then Fredrika Leavitt came into the kitchen area just on the other side of he divider from the desk I am working at. She pulled a caribou leg out of the freezer and started to cut with her ulu. She asked if I wanted some tuttu quaq (frozen caribou). I did. So she cut some off for me, gave me some ugruk seal oil to dip it in, showed me where the tea was and also the pilot crash crackers and a bottle of grape jelly and peanut butters. I had a good snack. No coffee, but I just made my second cup of tea. Now I will resume my reading until they close for the day and I must leave. 

Text added at 5:59 PM. The Squarespace nightmare continues - day 55 and counting.