2009

Happy New Year! It's been a while, so here's a recap of 2009, in case someone is still following. :)

Early 2009 started off slow, with more intensive job searching on my part. Started to get a bit worried, so I even applied to oil and gas/consulting companies! But things started to get weird around February. Went to Ottawa for a 3 day job interview/exam process with Natural Resources Canada in mid-February, when I met up with some friends living in the area (and also doing the same job interview process with me). Didn't get that job, but then I wasn't really sure if policy analysis is the type of thing I want to be doing FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE anyway, so that was probably a good thing. In March, I heard back from another government job I applied for, this time it was for a biologist type position with Fisheries and Oceans. It was a rather rushed process, they called me to write an exam a few days before, then called to schedule an interview in Burlington rather last minute. Then the weirdest rejection in the mail a couple of weeks later: they congratulated me for meeting the requirements, etc. etc., then said I was put on a short list for future openings, but nowhere did it say that I didn't get the job! LOL! Anyway, later in March I also got another weird offer from a pipeline company, lots of money to do field work/monitoring, but very little support in terms of training and they wanted to send me out ASAP! Since I was waiting to hear back from a few other jobs, I turned them down. Around this time I was in a job interview process for a research fellowship at the Zoo, as well as one summer field job, and a potential job with Parks back in Halifax. In the span of one week in early April, I got 3 different job offers! After much consideration, I decided to take on the fellowship at the Zoo, so I can get experience working back here in the prairies and also I won't have to move again!

Started that job in mid-April doing field work. Early spring and late summer was doing surveys on northern leopard frogs in southern Alberta. Incredibly frustrating and tiring work, but lots of adventures, and my co-workers were great fun. A lot of driving and walking involved, and map reading, but I also got a pretty good tour of southeast Alberta. In between, and in September, was doing live-trapping of prairie dogs at Grasslands National Park. A bit repetitive work, lots of carrying heavy stuff, but we got to play with cute prairie dogs and living with the field crew was a blast! Val Marie was great, a bit of a different feel than Southwest Nova (here we get the Rodeo instead of the exhibitions), but still a good community feeling with lots of park staff and researchers. In early October, I got to participate in the black-footed ferret release (first re-introduction of this extirpated carnivore in Canada!) and I got to carry a ferret for a few minutes! Then it's back to the city to do data analysis in the office, this time looking at oil and gas effects on swift foxes. I did get a break in November, when we went back to Grasslands for a week to monitor those ferrets we released. This time, we went out at night, hiked a few km carrying heavy packs with spotlights and batteries etc., then walked around for the whole night looking for ferret eyeshine! The first day was terrible, everyone wanted to quit! But we made some changes on how we do things for the second day, and it got loads better after that! The final night we didn't end up going out since it was too windy (ferrets likely won't be out and about), so the whole crew sat around the pub for wing night and drinks...until 3am! Then a bunch of us kept going (at another location) until about 5am, which was when I crashed, only to get up 4 hours later to drive back to the city!

Now, by the end of 2009, I finished (or mostly finished) the report on swift foxes, wrote another exam for a job, this time with Environment Canada, and am trying to start a new project at the Zoo so I can keep my job (otherwise, my contract is up in mid-Feb). For now, there's my cousin's wedding to go to in the Philippines (yay for 3 weeks of tropical weather!), and I'm really hoping I have a chance with the Env Canada job since it's for a job doing species at risk research and policy stuff -- right up my alley! I'll probably do more intensive job searching in February, finally finish that Blanding's paper, and if I still don't have a job, maybe do a bit of adventuring?? I've promised Australia to some people, and another friend is going on a round the world trip (pretty much) and wants me to join her if I have a chance. Maybe look more seriously into a PhD? Ack, more school, I know! Anyway, stay tuned for new developments, I guess!

Have a great 2010, and take care!