Dear Santa,

Please forgive the self-indulgence of a rather lengthy wish list from us Yellowknifers.

We trust that your mask-wearing elves are toiling away after being double-vaxxed and perhaps even boosted. It sort of makes us feel guilty to pile on with so many requests under pandemic circumstances for another year, but here we are.

LetSA国际影视传媒檚 start with the Legislative Assembly. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 been a bit of a mess over there, Santa. A good chunk of the year was spent dealing with dysfunction in the clerkSA国际影视传媒檚 office. Then we had an MLA who failed to abide by Covid-19 protocols and he followed that by attempting to intimidate his colleagues. Now heSA国际影视传媒檚 not an MLA anymore.

So weSA国际影视传媒檙e wishing for more time spent constructively. There are some genuinely good and well-meaning politicians in that lot, Mr. Claus. We would love for them to be able to concentrate on making the territory a better place while surrounded by less drama. We think theySA国际影视传媒檇 like that too.

In case you figured weSA国际影视传媒檇 be done with the dysfunction, well, not quite. ThereSA国际影视传媒檚 a predicament at the Yellowknife Fire Division. You see, the fire chief seemingly disappeared rather abruptly in October. Details are hard to come by, Santa. But a source told Yellowknifer that the lack of leadership is really taking a toll.

SA国际影视传媒淚tSA国际影视传媒檚 chaos right nowSA国际影视传媒� itSA国际影视传媒檚 the worst itSA国际影视传媒檚 ever been.SA国际影视传媒�

ThatSA国际影视传媒檚 what we learned. As a jolly old soul, you probably donSA国际影视传媒檛 like hearing of such things. Neither do we. So weSA国际影视传媒檙e wishing for a special individual who can step in and rally those heroes in fire gear, and please expedite that one, Santa.

YouSA国际影视传媒檙e not going to believe this, but we have another workplace that requires a Christmas miracle. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 Stanton Territorial Hospital. The nurses and doctors there have been run ragged. The territorial government is trying to smooth things over with some extra cash for things like childcare but the staff want hazard pay for dealing with all of this Covid risk. The health minister is being a Grinch on that one. Once again, we just want peace and some reinforcements for our medical lifesavers, Santa. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 particularly important for the obstetrics unit SA国际影视传媒� those are the one who deliver babies. While some people who believe in you also profess that storks distribute babies, weSA国际影视传媒檙e assured that these trained health professionals bring little boys and girls into the world. ThereSA国际影视传媒檚 a desperate shortage of those critical workers in our city.

Since weSA国际影视传媒檙e on the health theme, a serious uptick in the Covid-19 vaccination rate and free rapid tests sent to every household in Yellowknife would be tremendous. Even better, if you could just wipe out this virus and all its variants altogether, that would be truly amazing. But that probably exceeds even your magic, Santa.

Not sure if you got word, but weSA国际影视传媒檙e going to get a new $68-million aquatic centre. ThatSA国际影视传媒檚 a huge gift in itself. Construction is supposed to start in 2022, so if you could keep an eye on things and ensure that there arenSA国际影视传媒檛 big cost overruns, that would be such a relief. What do you do with the rest of your year anyway?

To sum up, weSA国际影视传媒檙e looking for plenty of uptake on vaccine boosters and some urgent morale boosters.

WeSA国际影视传媒檒l be sure to leave some fresh ptarmigan, whitefish and a little Kicksled cream ale out for you, Santa. Safe travels!