Upon reading my first posting for February to see what I had missed in explaining, I realized I didn't have much to add. Thus, here's the "rest of the story"....
I have developed a bum knee. I have not fallen or anything like that....that I know of. I think it's getting up and down from the low chairs in ECE...the strain on my old bones. And yes, Warren....I recognize that my weight might have something to do with it! Warren picks on me....he has since the minute I arrived back on August 3. He needs to respect his elders....Warren! You know what he recently told me? He said he told my housemate, Lani, that if we are walking home together and there's a polar bear, she's to push me down and run because there will be more for the bear to chew on with me.....and she'll escape. Careful, Warren.....I do know how to get back at people!
Speaking of Warren reminds me of his dear wife (and Better Half), Bessi. Bessi is our bilingual teacher and visits the ECE weekly with interesting lessons and her wonderful drawings. Bessi is a wealth of information. Anyway, last week, Bessi posted a picture of one of her sled dogs who had gotten some foxtail lodged in her mouth from the straw bedding. It's bad stuff....Google it (like Warren old me to do). The poor dog's mouth was swollen big time. Bessi had to do all the medical stuff for the dog and I'm happy to say that she's getting better.
Back to the knee....which is getting better but it's not totally up to par. What I noticed this past week when the weather was slightly warmer (in the low 20s), the snow was softer....making walking a pain in the...well, in the knee. When the weather got colder again, the snow hardened right up making my walking much easier. So what's a person to do? Freezing cold weather....or soft snow.....hmmmm! I'm told that the heavy storms could still come in because this is the time of year for them. I'm also told that it will soon start getting mushy and then slushy and then downright yucky to walk around here. There will still be snow on the ground and the lagoon and sea will still have ice when I leave in May. I'm a little bummed about having to leave because I'm told that hunting for oogruk (large bearded seal) and walrus will happen during that time and I'd sure like to see that.
As a final note to my knee....my sister, Shirley, asked if she should send up an ice pack. I told her I already had one....yes, we do have "normal" things up here....and even if I didn't have the ice pack, I think I'd be able to find some ice up here!!!
Water pump story....! Most houses here in the village have a huge water tank in which water is stored for use in the house. Ours is 165 gallons and we share it amongst three people. Lani and I live in one part of the housing unit and Bob, another teacher, lives right next to us in an attached unit. The tank is in our bathroom. I've been noticing that the carpet was getting rather....wet....for a few days and made mention of it to John, one of the custodians. Yup, it was leaking....it was an old pump and needed to be replaced. John tried to put a pump together while we waited for the new one. Keep in mind that another teacher housing unit just got a new pump...after a three-month wait. Ugh! The pump John put together also leaks....no reflection on John's work....it's just the way it is. Bob came to the rescue by purchasing a remote control unit to attach to the power outlet. When we don't need water, we turn off the pump and the leaking stops! Simple! When we need the water, we all have a switch to flip to turn on the pump. Yeah! It saves Bob from having to come back and forth into our house to flip on the switch in our bathroom when he needs water. Thank you, Bob....and thank you, John....and thank you, Mickey for hauling our last load of water from the washeteria because the pump at school was on the blink, too...or some such story. Pumping from the washeteria is a matter of....getting one of two school snow machines and hooking up the school sled that has the large plastic tank strapped to it...and driving down to the washeteria and pulling up to the outside tank, plunking in quarters (took $2.00 worth) and filling the tank through a hose. Then Mickey drove the very heavy load to our housing unit, opened my bedroom window with a little help from a crowbar because it was frozen, pulled a 50 foot hose through the window and bedroom and hallway into the bathroom and up into the tank, hooked up the pump and let it do it's thing. I will never ever again take having running water and flush toilets for granted! Oh, and then to drink it....we have to distill and filter it. I still don't shower here at the house....it would use up too much water too quickly. It's easier to walk down to the school to shower.
One more quick note on the water....we're having a LOT of bottled water shipped in for the few days of tournament. Water is an issue here in Shishmaref and having that many more people using it could create some...shortages.
Battle of the Books competition....is something common throughout Alaska. I had personally never heard of it before arriving here but a teacher friend back in Michigan (Alice) told me that it was held in Gaylord last year. Anyway, I signed up to be the coach for the fifth and sixth graders. I was a bit clueless as to how it all works so it's been a few months of "winging it" and trying to find time for practices. That's not easy around here because there are lots of after school activities vying for time. Long story short, I finally narrowed my group down to three members and an alternative and we began having evening practices covering 15 assigned books to read. Then wouldn't you know it? The competition day was announced....February 8....right during my trip to Texas. Good grief! What more could have happened to cause me issues with this? Well, I made arrangements with Kate (kindergarten teacher) to be with the group during the VTC (video teleconference) competition. I am so proud of this group of kids because with all the interruptions and difficulties we've had....THEY came in second in the District. Good for you, kids....great work! A "shout out" to Susie (fifth grade teacher), too, for all her help along the way. We couldn't have done it without your help.
Well...I see by the clock that the gates have opened down at the gym for the last basketball game. Do I go to the game or do I help out in concessions? I helped out last night for a little while and now my clothes smell like popcorn and I ruined a good shirt with popcorn oil! Plus, I don't know how much help I really was....! I'm looking at my little indoor thermometer here beside me and it's registering a -2.8 degrees out in the qunituq...cunituck...however it's spelled....our little entranceway room....which means it's REALLY cold outside. Maybe I should haul out my brand new jacket and wear that down to school. No one will recognize me! They've come to know me with the turquoise-colored lightweight jacket that people kid me about when I start to layer up. Believe me, I do wear more than just that lightweight jacket!!
Oh...almost forgot....I was invited to two more Eskimo birthday parties in a week's time....LOTS of people, LOTS of desserts. I have another one to attend this Sunday. So much for losing any weight up here....but then the added insulation is good, too!
Here's something I had put on my Facebook page but it should be noted in here, too. Bessi teaches the kids what Inupiaq words to use for various things. Each time she teaches a word, I really do try to say the words but it's impossible sometimes. Bessi explained that part of it is the genetic make-up of the jawline of Eskimos and how the tongue forms in the mouth. By nature, these folks can form words and sounds that Caucasians cannot. Bessi shares some really interesting information. I am learning a lot from her...and I take a little ribbing, too, now and then. She and Warren make quite a pair! You should have heard our conversations about pets and fishing! Believe me, the people in Shishmaref and the folks back home in East Jordan view pets and fishing differently....especially ice fishing! The folks up here "tough it out" when it comes to ice fishing....no little heated ice shanty for them. Also, fishing for smelt and "smelt dipping" are different, too.
Hunting....! One of my co-workers recently bagged three caribou in an afternoon hunt. He was pretty excited and I was happy for him. What I think is pretty neat is that he makes a point of sharing his bounty with Elders and relatives. I also learned that yes, in fact, outsiders CAN hunt for musk ox up here. I thought only the locals were allowed to take animals for subsistence living. But there are some hunters who have traveled here on a regular basis to hunt with permits for musk ox. Some of the local folks serve as guides for them.
And finally in this post....a mention of "Grandpa Alex", one of the oldest Elders of the village who passed away recently. His funeral was held on Thursday. I did not know Grandpa Alex but all of the village did and his wisdom was invaluable. It's sad to know that another Elder has passed. If you saw the picture of the pond ice that I posted on here earlier, it was taken in front of Grandpa Alex's house. I didn't even know at the time that he lived there. Rest in Peace, Grandpa Alex. If you meet my parents and grandparents up there in Heaven, please tell them what Shishmaref is like and what their daughter and granddaughter is experiencing in your special spot on Earth.
Saturday, February 25, 2012
As Promised....
I'm baaaack! I will take a few moments to fill in the details of February in Shishmaref....as promised! Shoot....now I have to go back to that posting to see what I said I needed to write about! Well, wait....since I claim to have an uncanny memory....let's see what I can remember.
In early February, I was scheduled to fly off to San Antonio, Texas for a reading conference ("Success For All"). Remember my post entitled "Hurry Up and Wait or...Hurry Up!"? Here's what happened at the start of that trip (there's always a story with me)....
We were scheduled to fly out on Friday, February 3. Our SFA facilitator from Shishmaref was attending, too, which was so fortunate for me as you will see. The way travel is planned up here means some wait time between flights until you can get down to the Lower 48 where it's a little more flexible. We were to fly from SHH (airport code for Shishmaref...and often used in communications) to OME (Nome) to ANC (Anchorage)....with some wait time in between where when you live in the bush....you try to figure out if you can get to Walmart to place a "bush order" for grocery items and such that can be sent back to the village.
So....Thursday rolls around and my students had gone home. I was jotting down last minute classroom plans for the following week for the sub. I just happened to check my school email around 3:00 and my eyes popped out. Oh, gosh....I was even sitting in Colleen's high school classroom when I did this and I jumped up and blurted out, "Oh, no! We're being told to get out tonight!" I ran down and barged into Denise's room (SFA facilitator) and said, "Denise, did you see the email? They want us out tonight! A storm is coming in!" Well, Denise had NOT gotten the email because...as we discovered a bit later....her name was spelled incorrectly on the email addresses. Upon further verification, we found out that the District Office folks were telling anyone in the bush to get out that night if possible because bad weather was moving in and if we didn't get out, we might not get out at all for the conference.
See...."hurry up and wait....or HURRY UP!" I'm not kidding and you would think I would have been ready knowing that already. Nope! I was not yet packed because I thought I had Thursday night after work to leisurely figure out how I was going to pack and leave room in my suitcase for my heavy winter clothing that I would be peeling off layer by layer as I made my way down through the Lower 48. Fortunately, I had left my major sub plans so I was able to scrambled out of the ECE building and zip home to pack in order to catch the last flight out of Dodge...well, SHH....at 6:00 p.m. Whew! We made it to the airstrip with room on the plane for us. On the way, we landed in Brevig Mission to pick up more passengers...a couple of them being more bush educators flying to Texas with us. We landed in OME and now here's where I am soooo glad I was with Denise. Besides the fact that I'm still getting used to understanding how all this airport stuff works...especially with carrying laptops and heavy winter boots and being a member of Club 49 (AK residents...two free bags)....Denise says, as we land, we're going on to ANC tonight if we can get on the plane. Ok, Denise...whatever you say....I'm with you all the way, Lady! Upon arriving in OME via ERA, we drag our suitcases over to the Alaska Air terminal through the already drifted parking lots. Yup, for sure....weather was making its way into the region. Here's where I must tell you that two of the other educators on the first leg of the trip had decided to wait in Nome instead for our originally scheduled flight going out the next morning. We parted ways as they headed off to a hotel in Nome to spend the night. I won't keep you in suspense....they didn't make it out the next morning. They weren't able to get to the conference until Monday afternoon. There was one other educator who never even made it out of her village at all. The weather up here moves in fast and furiously.
Ok....so now we're over at Alaska Air and there we meet up with even more of our BSSD folks also heading out to warmer weather...and the conference. We all checked in and sat down to wait. Waiting in an airport in Alaska is an experience in itself. I love to "people watch" and up here, it's so much fun! I'm sure we all were quite a sight, too. When you are with a group of folks you know, the conversation can get loud and crazy....and it did at times. But in OME, we were entertained by a gentleman playing a small stringed musical instrument. Not sure I'd call it a ukulele but it might have been. It wasn't but a few minutes later and in walked an interesting looking man who also pulled out a musical instrument much like the first guy and they started playing "island tunes". The t-shirt logos proved it! How nice to have entertainment....because it was announced that our plane was delayed in Kotzebue because of mechanical problems. Alas! We were eventually able to get out....as we all trudged across a windswept and snowy tarmac out to board the delayed (but, hopefully safe) plane.
We arrived well after midnight in ANC
The next morning, we had time to just ease back before our next flight was to leave. We were booked on "red-eye flights" from ANC to Chicago (can't remember the airport code....and don't even ask me why we had to fly to Chicago to get to Texas but I didn't book the flights) and then onto San Antonio the next morning. Keep in mind the time zone changes, too. I took advantage of the time we had and booked it down the street to the Army/Navy store I had visited when I first arrived in Anchorage back during the first few days of August. I have had this dilemma with my winter jacket up here. When I first arrived in AK and started shopping for the crucial jacket...I didn't have much luck. It was too early for anyone to stock the really heavy clothing needed to survive in frigid temperatures. Once I reached the village, I had folks giving me all sorts of advice and I ordered my "first" jacket. When it arrived, I knew right away that it wouldn't work. The sleeves hung to my knees....too big! I gave it away to a friend. The next jacket I ordered was...ok...but maybe a little too snug for my Reese's enhanced abdomen. It's still in a box in my bedroom. This time...I marched into the store and said, "I need a good winter jacket that will keep me warm and I live just below the Arctic Circle where I just left temps of -40 with a windchill of -60." A clerk led me back to the rack that I recognized from my August trip, pulled off a jacket and handed it to me. I tried it on, looked in the mirror and said, "Sold...can it be mailed up to Shishmaref because I'm headed to Texas right now and won't need it there!" Can you believe that? The first and only jacket I tried on....right then and there! Ha...rereading my jacket story sounds like the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears"....but they didn't have jackets in that story, did they? Lucky them.
Before leaving Anchorage, I did have some time to do some "tourist shopping" and I also bought another raven print for my daughter. I also purchased an ulu...an Alaskan knife which I've wanted from the minute I read about them way back when...and had that sent back to SHH. Now it's on my shelf in my bedroom...above the box with the second jacket!
Later that evening, we head to the airport where we met up with even more BSSD folks headed out to Texas. It was getting to be quite a rowdy bunch! We definitely were having a good time....or maybe by then we were just getting so tired that we thought we were having a good time. We took off around 11:00 p.m. and headed to Chicago....and around 8:30 a.m. or so we were on another plane headed to San Antonio.
Now the excitement mounts for me....because as tired as I was....I knew I was within an hour or so of seeing my kids. My son, Dan, is currently in Austin adding to his own adventures. My daughter, Jessica, flew to Austin (we were in the air and landing at just about the same time....different airlines) and met up with Dan and the two of them came to San Antonio to stay with me. I would have been ok with not seeing them until I arrived home in May but once this opportunity came up....I was so glad and very excited. As it turned out, Dan has decided to walk the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine this summer. He'll leave in April before I get back from SHH and get back to Michigan in October after I have already gone back to SHH. Thus, had we not seen each other in Texas, I would not see him again until the summer of 2013.
One thing I started noticing rather quickly while in Texas was a dizziness that wouldn't stop. I am sure it was a combination of the flights and being tired and excited. I'd get off the elevator in the hotel (my room was on the 34th floor with an awesome view) and my body felt like it was still moving....yuck! It continued like that for most of the stay. Now I do have to tell you....I was about a week from taking my last of 40 penicillin pills for strep....so maybe I wasn't totally up to par yet. THEN...I developed a crazy cough while in Texas and ended up at a walk-in clinic where I was told I had a respiratory infection (easy way of saying they didn't really know what was wrong but here's some more pills...now go away). The coughing drove me nuts as it probably did all the people I had to be around at the conference and on the plane and the people in the room right next to ours. My kids were either oblivious or nice about not complaining! I never popped so many cough drops in all my life.
The conference itself....interesting....! Ok...enough said about that.
The kids and I visited the Alamo and walked the Riverwalk. We ate out....and ate out some more....and some more. We found a Red Lobster where I had to explicitly ask for UNSWEETENED iced tea...and still had to send it back. I might have been in the South but you can't make me drink sweet tea! While in Walgreen's picking up my latest prescription, I had to buy Valentine's cards for folks back home because their orders hadn't arrived. As a last minute thought, I bought four extra boxes just in case someone else needed them back in SHH. I sure wish I had had more room in my suitcase because as it turned out, people would have wanted them back "home". You have to think of those things when you're out and about, you know!
One other "fun" thing about being in Texas was the weather. It was about 40 degrees when we were there and people were complaining about it being so cold. We Alaskan folks laughed....as we walked outside in lightweight jackets and hoodies and sneakers and called it good. When you go from -40 to 40....you call it a heat wave and love every minute of it.
The conference ended on Wednesday, February 8. I said my farewells to my kids and we parted company. The BSSD group gathered once again to make our trek back to the frozen North. We arrived in ANC and checked into our hotel (Dimond Hotel...another nice spot) well after 3:00 a.m. BUT....did I go to bed for the badly needed sleep before having to leave for the airport around 7:00 a.m.? Of course not...not when you are within walking distance of Walmart and being able to make a bush order....which I did....with my head still spinning dizzily. I did not crawl into bed until 5:15 a.m. and had to be up at 7:00 as I mentioned. We did make it back to Shishmaref although there was some concern about the weather and the trip was pretty bumpy at times. I met up with some other SHH folks at the airport so I wasn't alone. Reminds me of when I first flew in on Aug. 3 and met one of my students. This trip, I sat behind another one of my students. I'm getting the hang of this bush flying and living bit!
This is it for now....even though that was just the beginning of my February adventures. There's a basketball game starting at the school in a little over an hour. St. Michael's...and it's the last regular game before the hoopla begins next week. The Conference Tournament is now taking place in Shishmaref which means a whole lot of teams are coming in starting on Wednesday. Teams will stay in each of the rooms in the school and the even will last through Saturday. It's a HUGE deal for Shishmaref with all hands needed on deck. Oh, I can explain one more of my posts from the "promised list" in this paragraph....the plane "mishap" out on the runway. The reason the tournament was moved to Shishmaref is because the District plane snapped off a tire upon landing (our high school girls' basketball team was on it and the Gambell boys' basketball team was out there waiting to board it) and did a couple of 360s on the runway before coming to a halt. The propeller was damaged. Everyone was ok....thank goodness. The boys had to spend another night at the school until a different plane could come in for them the next day. Anyway, it's a domino effect and the loss of the District plane caused the tournament location to be changed. It's a boost for Shishmaref but it will definitely be a crazy week here. Our ECE lunches, for example, will be delivered as sack lunches to our building for two days since our cafeteria is also our gym and games will be held during the day.
Thanks for following my blog. It's fun to write. I will add more on the other adventures of February a little bit later.
In early February, I was scheduled to fly off to San Antonio, Texas for a reading conference ("Success For All"). Remember my post entitled "Hurry Up and Wait or...Hurry Up!"? Here's what happened at the start of that trip (there's always a story with me)....
We were scheduled to fly out on Friday, February 3. Our SFA facilitator from Shishmaref was attending, too, which was so fortunate for me as you will see. The way travel is planned up here means some wait time between flights until you can get down to the Lower 48 where it's a little more flexible. We were to fly from SHH (airport code for Shishmaref...and often used in communications) to OME (Nome) to ANC (Anchorage)....with some wait time in between where when you live in the bush....you try to figure out if you can get to Walmart to place a "bush order" for grocery items and such that can be sent back to the village.
So....Thursday rolls around and my students had gone home. I was jotting down last minute classroom plans for the following week for the sub. I just happened to check my school email around 3:00 and my eyes popped out. Oh, gosh....I was even sitting in Colleen's high school classroom when I did this and I jumped up and blurted out, "Oh, no! We're being told to get out tonight!" I ran down and barged into Denise's room (SFA facilitator) and said, "Denise, did you see the email? They want us out tonight! A storm is coming in!" Well, Denise had NOT gotten the email because...as we discovered a bit later....her name was spelled incorrectly on the email addresses. Upon further verification, we found out that the District Office folks were telling anyone in the bush to get out that night if possible because bad weather was moving in and if we didn't get out, we might not get out at all for the conference.
See...."hurry up and wait....or HURRY UP!" I'm not kidding and you would think I would have been ready knowing that already. Nope! I was not yet packed because I thought I had Thursday night after work to leisurely figure out how I was going to pack and leave room in my suitcase for my heavy winter clothing that I would be peeling off layer by layer as I made my way down through the Lower 48. Fortunately, I had left my major sub plans so I was able to scrambled out of the ECE building and zip home to pack in order to catch the last flight out of Dodge...well, SHH....at 6:00 p.m. Whew! We made it to the airstrip with room on the plane for us. On the way, we landed in Brevig Mission to pick up more passengers...a couple of them being more bush educators flying to Texas with us. We landed in OME and now here's where I am soooo glad I was with Denise. Besides the fact that I'm still getting used to understanding how all this airport stuff works...especially with carrying laptops and heavy winter boots and being a member of Club 49 (AK residents...two free bags)....Denise says, as we land, we're going on to ANC tonight if we can get on the plane. Ok, Denise...whatever you say....I'm with you all the way, Lady! Upon arriving in OME via ERA, we drag our suitcases over to the Alaska Air terminal through the already drifted parking lots. Yup, for sure....weather was making its way into the region. Here's where I must tell you that two of the other educators on the first leg of the trip had decided to wait in Nome instead for our originally scheduled flight going out the next morning. We parted ways as they headed off to a hotel in Nome to spend the night. I won't keep you in suspense....they didn't make it out the next morning. They weren't able to get to the conference until Monday afternoon. There was one other educator who never even made it out of her village at all. The weather up here moves in fast and furiously.
Ok....so now we're over at Alaska Air and there we meet up with even more of our BSSD folks also heading out to warmer weather...and the conference. We all checked in and sat down to wait. Waiting in an airport in Alaska is an experience in itself. I love to "people watch" and up here, it's so much fun! I'm sure we all were quite a sight, too. When you are with a group of folks you know, the conversation can get loud and crazy....and it did at times. But in OME, we were entertained by a gentleman playing a small stringed musical instrument. Not sure I'd call it a ukulele but it might have been. It wasn't but a few minutes later and in walked an interesting looking man who also pulled out a musical instrument much like the first guy and they started playing "island tunes". The t-shirt logos proved it! How nice to have entertainment....because it was announced that our plane was delayed in Kotzebue because of mechanical problems. Alas! We were eventually able to get out....as we all trudged across a windswept and snowy tarmac out to board the delayed (but, hopefully safe) plane.
We arrived well after midnight in ANC
The next morning, we had time to just ease back before our next flight was to leave. We were booked on "red-eye flights" from ANC to Chicago (can't remember the airport code....and don't even ask me why we had to fly to Chicago to get to Texas but I didn't book the flights) and then onto San Antonio the next morning. Keep in mind the time zone changes, too. I took advantage of the time we had and booked it down the street to the Army/Navy store I had visited when I first arrived in Anchorage back during the first few days of August. I have had this dilemma with my winter jacket up here. When I first arrived in AK and started shopping for the crucial jacket...I didn't have much luck. It was too early for anyone to stock the really heavy clothing needed to survive in frigid temperatures. Once I reached the village, I had folks giving me all sorts of advice and I ordered my "first" jacket. When it arrived, I knew right away that it wouldn't work. The sleeves hung to my knees....too big! I gave it away to a friend. The next jacket I ordered was...ok...but maybe a little too snug for my Reese's enhanced abdomen. It's still in a box in my bedroom. This time...I marched into the store and said, "I need a good winter jacket that will keep me warm and I live just below the Arctic Circle where I just left temps of -40 with a windchill of -60." A clerk led me back to the rack that I recognized from my August trip, pulled off a jacket and handed it to me. I tried it on, looked in the mirror and said, "Sold...can it be mailed up to Shishmaref because I'm headed to Texas right now and won't need it there!" Can you believe that? The first and only jacket I tried on....right then and there! Ha...rereading my jacket story sounds like the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears"....but they didn't have jackets in that story, did they? Lucky them.
Before leaving Anchorage, I did have some time to do some "tourist shopping" and I also bought another raven print for my daughter. I also purchased an ulu...an Alaskan knife which I've wanted from the minute I read about them way back when...and had that sent back to SHH. Now it's on my shelf in my bedroom...above the box with the second jacket!
Later that evening, we head to the airport where we met up with even more BSSD folks headed out to Texas. It was getting to be quite a rowdy bunch! We definitely were having a good time....or maybe by then we were just getting so tired that we thought we were having a good time. We took off around 11:00 p.m. and headed to Chicago....and around 8:30 a.m. or so we were on another plane headed to San Antonio.
Now the excitement mounts for me....because as tired as I was....I knew I was within an hour or so of seeing my kids. My son, Dan, is currently in Austin adding to his own adventures. My daughter, Jessica, flew to Austin (we were in the air and landing at just about the same time....different airlines) and met up with Dan and the two of them came to San Antonio to stay with me. I would have been ok with not seeing them until I arrived home in May but once this opportunity came up....I was so glad and very excited. As it turned out, Dan has decided to walk the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine this summer. He'll leave in April before I get back from SHH and get back to Michigan in October after I have already gone back to SHH. Thus, had we not seen each other in Texas, I would not see him again until the summer of 2013.
One thing I started noticing rather quickly while in Texas was a dizziness that wouldn't stop. I am sure it was a combination of the flights and being tired and excited. I'd get off the elevator in the hotel (my room was on the 34th floor with an awesome view) and my body felt like it was still moving....yuck! It continued like that for most of the stay. Now I do have to tell you....I was about a week from taking my last of 40 penicillin pills for strep....so maybe I wasn't totally up to par yet. THEN...I developed a crazy cough while in Texas and ended up at a walk-in clinic where I was told I had a respiratory infection (easy way of saying they didn't really know what was wrong but here's some more pills...now go away). The coughing drove me nuts as it probably did all the people I had to be around at the conference and on the plane and the people in the room right next to ours. My kids were either oblivious or nice about not complaining! I never popped so many cough drops in all my life.
The conference itself....interesting....! Ok...enough said about that.
The kids and I visited the Alamo and walked the Riverwalk. We ate out....and ate out some more....and some more. We found a Red Lobster where I had to explicitly ask for UNSWEETENED iced tea...and still had to send it back. I might have been in the South but you can't make me drink sweet tea! While in Walgreen's picking up my latest prescription, I had to buy Valentine's cards for folks back home because their orders hadn't arrived. As a last minute thought, I bought four extra boxes just in case someone else needed them back in SHH. I sure wish I had had more room in my suitcase because as it turned out, people would have wanted them back "home". You have to think of those things when you're out and about, you know!
One other "fun" thing about being in Texas was the weather. It was about 40 degrees when we were there and people were complaining about it being so cold. We Alaskan folks laughed....as we walked outside in lightweight jackets and hoodies and sneakers and called it good. When you go from -40 to 40....you call it a heat wave and love every minute of it.
The conference ended on Wednesday, February 8. I said my farewells to my kids and we parted company. The BSSD group gathered once again to make our trek back to the frozen North. We arrived in ANC and checked into our hotel (Dimond Hotel...another nice spot) well after 3:00 a.m. BUT....did I go to bed for the badly needed sleep before having to leave for the airport around 7:00 a.m.? Of course not...not when you are within walking distance of Walmart and being able to make a bush order....which I did....with my head still spinning dizzily. I did not crawl into bed until 5:15 a.m. and had to be up at 7:00 as I mentioned. We did make it back to Shishmaref although there was some concern about the weather and the trip was pretty bumpy at times. I met up with some other SHH folks at the airport so I wasn't alone. Reminds me of when I first flew in on Aug. 3 and met one of my students. This trip, I sat behind another one of my students. I'm getting the hang of this bush flying and living bit!
This is it for now....even though that was just the beginning of my February adventures. There's a basketball game starting at the school in a little over an hour. St. Michael's...and it's the last regular game before the hoopla begins next week. The Conference Tournament is now taking place in Shishmaref which means a whole lot of teams are coming in starting on Wednesday. Teams will stay in each of the rooms in the school and the even will last through Saturday. It's a HUGE deal for Shishmaref with all hands needed on deck. Oh, I can explain one more of my posts from the "promised list" in this paragraph....the plane "mishap" out on the runway. The reason the tournament was moved to Shishmaref is because the District plane snapped off a tire upon landing (our high school girls' basketball team was on it and the Gambell boys' basketball team was out there waiting to board it) and did a couple of 360s on the runway before coming to a halt. The propeller was damaged. Everyone was ok....thank goodness. The boys had to spend another night at the school until a different plane could come in for them the next day. Anyway, it's a domino effect and the loss of the District plane caused the tournament location to be changed. It's a boost for Shishmaref but it will definitely be a crazy week here. Our ECE lunches, for example, will be delivered as sack lunches to our building for two days since our cafeteria is also our gym and games will be held during the day.
Thanks for following my blog. It's fun to write. I will add more on the other adventures of February a little bit later.
Sad Tonight!
Oh, don't pull out the Kleenex and don't send letters trying to cheer me up....it's not THAT kind of sad! Here's what happened....oh, and yes, I will get back to my earlier post to fill you in on the details....but not yet....still too much going on for me to take the time to do that. I mean, hey....it's almost 12:30 a.m. right now so it's not like I'm getting to bed early at night.
I was walking home from school tonight....around 11:30 or so. There was a basketball game tonight and although I didn't watch the game, I did help for a little bit in concessions....enough to smell like popcorn for the rest of the night and to ruin a good shirt with popcorn oil. By the way, the guys won the game by 2 points and the next game is tomorrow at 2:30. We're playing St. Michael's....which brings back the not-so-pleasant memory of the staff being deposited in -40 degree weather at the airstrip and waiting for 45 minutes for a plane that never arrived...that's waiting OUTSIDE, folks. Anyway, we won the game tonight. The girls won their game, too....but I can't remember just now where they played....some other village. Was it Koyuk? I'll have to check and get back with you.
Ok...I'm on my way home and watching for bears and hoping that John and Kate took me seriously when I said that if they hear screaming, they are to come and rescue me! But, alas! It was not bears that I saw but rather....incredible Northern Lights! I deposited my bag at home (I'm the original "bag lady" up here...and that warrants yet another story....for later on) and headed back out to view them. I bravely walked down the snowplowed trail towards the seawall where if there will be any bears...they'll probably be down there. But the thing is, in order to adequately view the awesome array of shimmering lights, you have to get away from artificial lighting. So, towards the seawall I went...and there they were in all their glory....absolutely breathtaking. I'll leave it at that because words cannot really describe what I was seeing tonight. But you know what made it sad? It was so wicked cold out that I couldn't stay out there too long! It's like -29 degrees with a windchill of -48....brrrrrrr!!!!
Now, as I stood there, I had yet again to remind myself that I was in Alaska....and I was gazing out towards the frozen sea looking towards....Russia....about 160 miles or so away. Reality check! Then I looked around the sky and saw Orion and the thin sliver of the golden moon hugging the horizon and it reminded me of standing out on my deck back in East Jordan, Michigan last summer and looking up in the sky at the very same things. I remember thinking, "When I see this in Alaska, will I remember standing here on my deck and wondering what it will look like once I get there?" Yup....I remembered it all. My sister, Shirley, will vouch for my uncanny ability to remember things. However, my cousin, Pat, will tell you I forget a lot of things!
Nevertheless, I started to get sad....because I have realized my dream....I'm here in Alaska....and I'm overwhelmed at times.....and I know it can't be forever....nor would I want it to be....because there are so many things I still want to do and I know I cannot possibly do and see everything I want to in my lifetime. Then I started thinking about my deceased parents and not being able to share with them my adventures.....and about my Uncle Bob who always wanted to get to Alaska but most likely will not (he's in his 90s now). I also thought about my kids, Dan and Jessica, and how we like doing and seeing even the simplest of things together....like viewing the night sky....and they will not get to see this. They will not be able to come up here during the winter months and that's when you will see the Northern Lights because....of the "midnight sun" which will be awake in the sky by the time they arrive here for a visit.
It's been a rapid back and forth jumble of thoughts tonight....happy/sad....happy/sad. I'm still one very incredibly lucky person to be experiencing all this! And to boot....I had potato chips, Coke, and a Heath bar (no Reese's this time) earlier tonight....all the comforts and junk food known to mankind....here in bush Alaska....couldn't ask for anything more...except more time to write it all down!
I was walking home from school tonight....around 11:30 or so. There was a basketball game tonight and although I didn't watch the game, I did help for a little bit in concessions....enough to smell like popcorn for the rest of the night and to ruin a good shirt with popcorn oil. By the way, the guys won the game by 2 points and the next game is tomorrow at 2:30. We're playing St. Michael's....which brings back the not-so-pleasant memory of the staff being deposited in -40 degree weather at the airstrip and waiting for 45 minutes for a plane that never arrived...that's waiting OUTSIDE, folks. Anyway, we won the game tonight. The girls won their game, too....but I can't remember just now where they played....some other village. Was it Koyuk? I'll have to check and get back with you.
Ok...I'm on my way home and watching for bears and hoping that John and Kate took me seriously when I said that if they hear screaming, they are to come and rescue me! But, alas! It was not bears that I saw but rather....incredible Northern Lights! I deposited my bag at home (I'm the original "bag lady" up here...and that warrants yet another story....for later on) and headed back out to view them. I bravely walked down the snowplowed trail towards the seawall where if there will be any bears...they'll probably be down there. But the thing is, in order to adequately view the awesome array of shimmering lights, you have to get away from artificial lighting. So, towards the seawall I went...and there they were in all their glory....absolutely breathtaking. I'll leave it at that because words cannot really describe what I was seeing tonight. But you know what made it sad? It was so wicked cold out that I couldn't stay out there too long! It's like -29 degrees with a windchill of -48....brrrrrrr!!!!
Now, as I stood there, I had yet again to remind myself that I was in Alaska....and I was gazing out towards the frozen sea looking towards....Russia....about 160 miles or so away. Reality check! Then I looked around the sky and saw Orion and the thin sliver of the golden moon hugging the horizon and it reminded me of standing out on my deck back in East Jordan, Michigan last summer and looking up in the sky at the very same things. I remember thinking, "When I see this in Alaska, will I remember standing here on my deck and wondering what it will look like once I get there?" Yup....I remembered it all. My sister, Shirley, will vouch for my uncanny ability to remember things. However, my cousin, Pat, will tell you I forget a lot of things!
Nevertheless, I started to get sad....because I have realized my dream....I'm here in Alaska....and I'm overwhelmed at times.....and I know it can't be forever....nor would I want it to be....because there are so many things I still want to do and I know I cannot possibly do and see everything I want to in my lifetime. Then I started thinking about my deceased parents and not being able to share with them my adventures.....and about my Uncle Bob who always wanted to get to Alaska but most likely will not (he's in his 90s now). I also thought about my kids, Dan and Jessica, and how we like doing and seeing even the simplest of things together....like viewing the night sky....and they will not get to see this. They will not be able to come up here during the winter months and that's when you will see the Northern Lights because....of the "midnight sun" which will be awake in the sky by the time they arrive here for a visit.
It's been a rapid back and forth jumble of thoughts tonight....happy/sad....happy/sad. I'm still one very incredibly lucky person to be experiencing all this! And to boot....I had potato chips, Coke, and a Heath bar (no Reese's this time) earlier tonight....all the comforts and junk food known to mankind....here in bush Alaska....couldn't ask for anything more...except more time to write it all down!
Sunday, February 19, 2012
A Month Later.....
Oh, geez! How did another month get by me without an updated posting? A lot happened this past month and right now it's two a.m. and I really didn't get on here to write a big post. It's going to have to wait....so sorry! Be watching for my posting about going to San Antonio, Texas and the rush to get out of Shishmaref or we weren't going to make it because of an incoming storm....seeing my kids in Texas.....getting sick (strep)....getting sick again (respiratory infection).....developing a bum knee.....freezing cold weather vs. soft snow.....the upcoming Regional Tournament here in Shishmaref....our water pump deciding it was time to quit....my Battle of the Books team coming in second in the District.....the plane mishap out on the runway (Don't let my sister, Connie, see this!). Nevertheless, I wanted to post the following news....
I have signed a contract and sent it off to the Bering Strait School District office in Unalakleet. I will return to Shishmaref in August for another school year. Being here is everything I had hoped it to be. I have so much more to see, do, hear, and learn. I'm coming back!
But for now....I'm going to bed....with an ice pack on my knee. That sounds like a familiar song...."I come from Alabama with a banjo on my knee...." Ok, ok....I'm leaving....I'm tired....good night!
I have signed a contract and sent it off to the Bering Strait School District office in Unalakleet. I will return to Shishmaref in August for another school year. Being here is everything I had hoped it to be. I have so much more to see, do, hear, and learn. I'm coming back!
But for now....I'm going to bed....with an ice pack on my knee. That sounds like a familiar song...."I come from Alabama with a banjo on my knee...." Ok, ok....I'm leaving....I'm tired....good night!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)