Spring Laughter

Spring is a cruel, fickle little lady who is having a very good laugh at my expense.  All the sunshine and warm temperatures (it was above freezing) had me certain she was well on her way to Nanwalek, but now I know she had been conspiring with Jack Frost and Old Man Winter to tease and torment me.  The sky began pouring snow down on us Saturday morning and has only paused to catch a quick nap a few times.  We had to wait until one of these naps Monday morning to fly back into the village.  Apparently it was a very good nap as only a single plane made it in yesterday and I'm feeling pretty certain today qualified for the title "white-out".  Our boys basketball team was supposed to fly out this morning for regionals but that didn't quite work out for them and it doesn't look like it will let up any time soon.  The forecast is showing snow for the next 9 days so I'm thinking winter isn't relinquishing its hold on our area any time soon. 

Road signs - we just make it up as
we go on days like this

Check out the mailboxes

The highway!

We had to wait for this little moose to quit
investigating the truck so we could go

If you look close, you'll see cars under
the piles of snow

Moose Catchers

Living in Alaska has obviously affected many aspects in our lives.  Getting ourselves or anything else in or out of the village requires an airplane or boat and is always dependent on the weather.  I still live in the middle of no where, but am now in a town setting and have to get used to having kids playing outside my windows and neighbors next door.  One thing I didn't expect to be affected, however, was driving.  We clearly don't have a lot of opportunities to drive living where we do.  The village is only about 1 mile square so there's not a lot of need for driving in the ranger and we only fly out about once a month so we don't drive the truck very much either.  My already short attention span combined with my decreased time dealing with traffic have resulted in a very serious impatience in the driver's seat.  I find myself having to do things like stop when signs tell me to when no traffic is coming - how unnecessary!  If there are cars coming, I must wait for the never ending procession to get past before I can get on my way - how time consuming! 

These inconveniences are not the only change living in Alaska has made, however.  Given their temperaments when harassed, they must be approached with caution when investigating the back of your pickup hoping to find some tasty goodies - as happened yesterday morning.  Given their size, moose are a serious danger on Alaska's highways (unless you drive a Volkswagon bug, in which case you can drive under them - no joke, it's happened).  As a species, they love God's creation and want to experience it to the fullest.  That's what I assume, anyway, seeing how slowly they take to amble across the highway.  One would think their height would make them easier to see on the highway, but the opposite is true when they are close.  Their skinny little chicken legs are the only thing low enough to contrast against the highway, while their bodies are too high and blend into the background of the forest.  Thus we find ourselves referring to vehicles in front of us on the highway as "moose catchers".  Should a moose decide to explore the world across the highway, we have a built in buffer separating us while they meander across the highway.

More Spring Fever

Spring is still ever present in my thoughts.  So much so, I decided I needed to put it to a tune so I could hum along with the idea through my day.  Maybe a little music will inspire the soul and spring will hurry on her way.  As many already know, I missed my calling as the next Wierd Al, and "Dream Weaver" seemed very inspirational - and rhymed perfectly with "Spring Fever".

Ooh, Spring Fever
I feel like I'm stuck in unending night
Ooh, Spring Fever
I can't wait to see some daylight
I've seen enough of starry skies
Oh, sun please come my way
Cross the oceans that separate
And turn my night into day

Spring Fever

Given we got at least 4 inches of snow this weekend, I know I'm a bit early, but I have spring fever!  The days are getting longer - our visible daylight is only half an hour less than back home - and I'm ready for spring to arrive.  In my efforts to hurry this resistant season I have tulips sprouting in my kitchen window, but they insist on taking their time.  Bulbs are also planted outside, but I'm not sure if they are still cozy in their winter slumber or attempting to break through frozen ground and something around 3 feet of packed snow.  I keep watching the sun lazily inch further and further north with each sunset, anxiously waiting as it painstakingly works its way down the ever obtrusive ridge to reach the ocean.  I know it won't add any time to our daylight hours, but it will bring some sweet comfort.  I've never known an Alaska spring and have no idea what to expect.  Will it fill the air with butterflies and the sound of birds?  Will it replace the blanket of snow stifling the landscape with a fresh sheet of blooms?  I'm not sure exactly what tidbits of happiness Spring will sprinkle upon us as she crosses the landscape, but I'm standing outside with my hands open waiting to catch some treasures. 



A few days ago                                                   



Someone cleared the road out of our
house so we won't get stuck any more!

Mike spreading gravel
on our path to the school

Bush Pilots

I'm not going to pretend that we don't have our favorites when it comes to the pilots.  They have a variety of flight styles to suit every taste, from the super cautious for those unadventurous souls such as myself to those who were born to be pilots and will do zero gravity upon request if the weather is good.  When it really comes down to it, though, we're pretty happy when we see any one of the pilots step out of the plane.  They are the ones who make life in the bush possible.  Large barges come in a few times throughout the year to bring in the really large stuff like propane, 4 wheelers, and furniture, but I've heard of stoves and building supplies making their way over here on a plane when it will take too long or cost too much by boat.  Obviously they are limited by weather and day light, which gets frustrating when you need groceries or are desperate to get out of the village, but they do much more than transport people and goods.

If we have a prescription to fill, the pilots are actually the ones to go to the pharmacy and pick up the medication.  They also make bank runs for individuals in the village which allows people to get deposits and payments to the bank a little faster than through a mail service that only runs three times a week.  They also deliver a lot of little things between the villages.  Port Graham and Nanwalek are just around the corner from each other, but are separated by a mountain ridge, so sometimes it's much easier to hand an envelope or box of groceries to the pilot than hike over the mountains to get things to the other village.  They do all of this at a very real personal risk.  They are very careful and attentive to conditions in and between the villages, but the reality is they are always a mechanical failure or sudden gust of wind from the wrong direction at the wrong time away from physical harm.  Knowing that I start each and every flight with a small (okay, sometimes lengthy) conversation with Jesus, I realize it takes a special person to do their job daily and am thankful they are willing to enable people like us to survive in all the hard to find places that make up this state.

Isolation Can Be a Pain in the Neck

Thursday I found myself in another unusual predicament.  My neck got a nasty and painful kink that made movement next to impossible.  After a few tears and much difficulty I was able to get myself together enough to get to school and get lesson plans together so that I could take the day off and fly to Homer as there are no resident chiropractors in the village.  I was able to find a chiropractor who had room and flexibility in his schedule to fit me in as long as I made it over by 1:30, but come daylight I realized getting a flight would not be so easy.  Thursday morning greeted us with a low ceiling, showers of snow, and winds gusting up to 35 miles an hour.  I spent most of the morning annoying the airports with constant calling.  We usually fly Smokey Bay Air to show our appreciation for secure parking for the truck, but I called both airports several times to no avail. 

While the weather was full of difficulties, Thursday was also full of very kind people.  Since Smokey Bay still wasn't flying,  they called Homer Air to share my sad story and their pilot was willing to come get me.  Considering Homer Air is their competitor, I'm going to say that shows how much they care about their customers (they really do a lot for the village, but I'll save that for another day).  The pilot (who's probably the best who flies into the village from what everyone has said) was also kind enough to chat the entire flight to distract me from a very bumpy flight and I learned they really can fly around the big bumps - pretty cool stuff.  The pilot also arranged for the owner of the airport to drive me to and from the chiropractor so I wouldn't have to worry about cleaning snow off of the truck or trying to drive with nearly no mobility in my neck.  I thought that was incredibly nice considering I've only flown with them twice since we've moved here.  The chiropractor was also very kind and stayed 2 hours past their normal closing time on Thursdays so that I could get there and get treated.  He also didn't make fun of me when he heard my answer to "What were you doing when the injury occurred?"  A reply of "Laying my head down on the pillow" felt ridiculous enough as it was.

100 Days

Yesterday marked the 100th day of school.  To be honest, I never would have known were it not for a caped mystery man named "Hundred Man" running around the school.  Jim, our first and second grade teacher, celebrates the 100th day of each school year with a fantastic costume and fun filled learning activities for his classes.  He does not fit into the sterotype for elemenary teachers in any way.  He is a serious biker guy who stands 6 foot 7 inches with hair to his waist.  He is also probably one of the best teachers I will ever know.  Someone once described watching his classroom as "magic" and I think it's a pretty appropriate term.  He turns everthing, including daily attendance, into an exciting learning activity and draws the kids into hiw web of learning and good behavior.  It's pretty awesome to watch.  Pictures of "Hundred Man" will be coming soon.

"We Don't Get Much Snow . . . "

We remember well hearing these words this summer.  I know "much" is a relative term, but there should still exist a universal understanding that it means quite a bit.  I'm not sure what exactly qualifies for "quite a bit" but I would imagine close to 3 feet in a week should.  We already had a very good layer of snow on the ground before this last week so it just keeps packing in thicker and we now have snowdrifts taller than the chain link fences they are up against.  I noticed yesterday as I was trekking through that the snow was starting to get a blue tinge in the footprints I guess from getting packed so tightly.  It's a bit of a pain to wade through, but it is really pretty to look at.

Pretty or not, it's making life incredibly complicated.  I tried to order groceries this week so I faxed my order on Wednesday and called to make sure they received my fax on Thursday as usual.  They did receive my fax but quickly told me "We're not making your order." because the planes weren't flying.  The lady who was scheduled to work on Friday might put it together for me.  No planes flew Friday either and the weather forecast looked like Saturday would be the only real window of opportunity for the next week.  At this poing, getting groceries was becoming a bit critical.  The grocery store gets all of its groceries via plane as well and, given the few flights we've had the last two weeks, they're pretty much out of everything too so there is no back up.  I called the airport and they suggested I keep my order small as they already had a lot of people and freight scheduled for Saturday so I canceled my order and made a smaller one.  They were very nice to make my order up and held it until Saturday so as not to add to the airport's storage which was quickly reaching maximum capacity.  Fortunately, my groceries did make it in late yesterday afternoon as no planes have flown today and it's not looking promising for the next several days.  Hopefully we'll be able to make a full order in a week or two.  I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Forecast: Wendy from the West

Today marks a new beginning that may forever change some individuals' futures.  Nervousness and excitement have been having a little party in my emotions today, and it's not even my story.  When Mike and I moved to Alaska, I forced my father to create a facebook account so that we could keep in touch.  Actually, knowing he'd have no idea how to do it, I made his facebook account (and e-mail so he could have a facebook), told him his user name and password, created shortcuts on his desktop so that he could get there easily, and then logged him into them both and set them to keep him logged in so he'd never have to mess with it.  It took him about a month to discover the photo albums and begin his campaign to make me regret creating his facebook by posting and tagging me in every embarrassing and terrible childhood photo he could find.

Shortly after beginning this campaign, I guess he started playing with facebook to see what other activities he could use to torment me and discovered he could search for and find other people with facebook accounts.  My Daddi used this feature to look for and find a friend he knew in San Diego just after getting out of the Navy a little over 40 years ago.  He and Wendy have since talked every day and their facebooks read like two love-struck teenagers.  Today it is "Wendy from the West" because she flew from Salt Lake City and will be spending the next few months with my dad.  I'm hoping for Miss Wendy's sake the turtles are out and about this spring and the whippoorwills are filling the night air before she heads back in May.  As for my Daddi, I havn't spoken with him yet but I can still see the grin on his face, the sparkle in his eye, and already know the song in his heart:  "I'm on top of the world, looking down on creation, and the only explanation I can find, is the love that I've found, ever since you've been around, you're love put me on the top of the world."