 | E-mail this story |  | Write letter to editor |  | Order a classified ad |
| E-mail this story | | Write letter to editor | | Order a classified ad |
Kathleen Lippa
Northern News Services
News/North: I've been thinking about doing a feature story on the mistakes visitors make that really annoy locals or true Northerners, and how those mistakes can be avoided. You have a story for me I think...
Charlie Lyall: This woman was married to a government person and she came to Taloyoak, and she was telling everybody she was seeking government funding to do a video to teach Inuit how to flush toilets.
N/N: No! She was joking, right?
CL: I wish she was. But it was serious. She didn't last very long (laughter). There is weird stuff like that. I don't mind when people ask questions about different things, but when people start telling you, 'this is the way you should run your business,' or 'that's the way you should be doing this,' I mean, we (Inuit) live here. We're doing OK. Stay out of my face. (Laughter).
Nobody should be able to come in and tell us how to do things. People come in and tell us 'this is how you should fish. This is how you should hunt seals.' We've been doing it all our lives. Why do we need some Southern expert to tell us? We know the conditions, we know the people, we know what's going on.
I suppose a long time ago people here expected to be told 'this is when you can go to the bathroom.' Priests were notorious for that kind of stuff. People thought we were primitive. But how can you be primitive if you can survive in these conditions? One of the reasons why people like (Sir John) Franklin didn't survive is because he thought wearing seal skin clothing and caribou skin clothing was primitive.
So he was going to wear his leather boots and his fancy uniform. Well, of course that's not going to work! It's cold here. People who come up here and don't adapt, well, you might as well stay home.
N/N: Have you always been an opinionated person? Outspoken, proud?
CL: Am I opinionated? If I see something that's not right, I'll say something about it. If I see somebody mistreating other people I'll say something. I don't think that's opinionated. That's the truth. I speak the truth. I don't use fancy language. But why shouldn't I call a spade a spade?
N/N: Give me some background on yourself. How many were in your family?
CL: I had six brothers and six sisters. Two died when they very young, they were babies. I had an older sister die.
The sad thing is the only time we've ever been together as a family is when we buried dad, and then when we buried mom. I went to school in Inuvik. It was run by the Anglican Church. That wasn't such a bad experience. I have friends who have gone through really bad sexual abuse and stuff. I've got friends that I didn't know had been sexually abused until recently. But in my case, the only thing Mr. Holman (the man who ran the school in Inuvik) was interested in was making good leaders.
N/N: So you had a good experience.
CL: Yeah. I can honestly say I would send my kids there. It taught a lot of independence.
N/N: You're pretty young. You're a lot younger than you sound on the phone (laughter).
CL: I don't know how a person can sound old on the phone, but ...
N/N: When I talk to you on the phone you sound much older.
CL: How old do you think I am?
N/N: I think you're probably in your 30s.
CL: I'm 51.
N/N: No you're not!
CL: Yeah. I turned 51 last month. I was stationed here in 1975 with the RCMP. What can I say? I live a good life.
N/N: Do you live a good life? You live a healthy life, you mean.
CL: Yeah. I do now. I haven't drank in 15 years. I quit smoking and drinking the same day. If I can do it, anybody can do it. There wasn't a bottle of whiskey that was safe around me.
N/N: Really?
CL: It had to be opened. Oh yeah.
N/N: I wasn't just saying that age thing to flatter you. I really did think you looked young. I guess living clean makes a difference. So you haven't touched a drink ...
CL: Well, I can't say that. But it's been 15 years since I was a drunk.
N/N: You wouldn't call yourself a drunk, would you? Is that an exaggeration?
CL: Oh no. Before I got involved with Gina (his wife) and before the kids were born I had absolutely nothing against booze.
N/N: So your wife made that much of a difference in your life?
CL: Oh yeah. And then the kids were born and you've got to set an example for your kids.
N/N: How old are your kids?
CL: They will be 16 in November. I have twins, a boy and a girl. I've got a family now. I don't need sex anymore (laughter).
N/N: Do your kids look the same?
CL: No. Chuck is over six feet.
N/N: Wow! And how did you meet your wife (Gina Pizzo-Lyall)?
CL: She was teaching in Taloyoak. She is from Ontario.
N/N: She has an Italian name.
CL: Her father was Italian. Her mother was English. But we won't hold that against her (laughter).
N/N: What are some of the issues people should be paying more attention to from the Kitikmeot region?
CL: You know what would be perfect for our area? To have somebody from the media, other than CBC, in our region.
N/N: You feel really strong about that?
CL: Yeah. But I would never get into the newspaper business myself. If I did, it would be something like Frank Magazine. That could be a lot of fun.
N/N: You like Frank Magazine (a Canadian satirical magazine that pokes fun at the media and politicians)?
CL: Yeah. It tells the truth, doesn't it?
N/N: Well, it gets the stories out that nobody else can tell because the reporters are all anonymous. You don't know who is doing it.
CL: All you've got to do is check around.
N/N: Anybody from Nunavut?
CL: You never know.
N/N: So you're a Frank fan.
CL: I used to be, but they quit covering the North. But can you imagine The Nunavut Inquirer? It has a bit of a ring to it, doesn't it? (Laughter)
N/N: Oh no!
CL: If a guy had money, that would be a lot of fun to do.
You wouldn't have too many friends, but that's the problem with being honest, isn't it
