Journey To Alaska - 1

My journey began on Sat morning. It was a beautiful day for a drive, and as I worked my way thru NY into OH, I made good time. Mapquest had come up with just under 9 hrs, but I somehow managed to make it in about 7 1/2. Not sure how, but I was sticking pretty close to the speed limit so I'm pretty sure it was because I drove straight thru, stopping only once for gas. My mom's cousin had dinner for me when I got there, and we spent the evening chatting.

Sunday I was able to get an earlier start, and was on the road by 8:30. The day was uneventful, and pretty boring. I drove through IN, IL, and into WI. Chicago traffic was AWFUL, and slowed me down some. It would have been interesting to see the city, but I was not at all confident of my ability to get BACK on I-90 if I left it. Same thing with Toledo, though I did see Chrysler/Toyota Manufacturing as I flew by. It rained most of the afternoon. Sparta was the town I had chosen randomly to stop in for the night, and THAT part didn't go so well. The hotel had given me wrong directions, so it took almost an hour of driving before I found it. By that time the town had pretty much shut down for the night. I managed to find one restaurant that was still open though.

This morning was by far the most difficult so far. As soon as I left Wisconsin, the sleet, hail, and wind started. Throughout the morning as I drove through Minnesota, I was dealing with pea soup fog and icy roads as well. Thankfully, by South Dakota the roads cleared and it was down to just snow and wind. Oh yes, and 20 degree weather the whole day. Brrr! I stopped for dinner in Chamberlain, SD. But now it's time to get back on the road. More later.

Getting Ready for Alaska

The time has finally arrived to begin the long journey to Alaska. For those of you who are just beginning to follow my blog, I took a 2 month vacation to Alaska this summer, and while I was there decided I missed it more than I had thought. It was the first time I'd been back to Kodiak, my hometown, since our family had left almost 12 years ago. I knew as soon as I set foot on The Rock that I wanted to go back. While I was there, I was blessed with several job offers, as well as a variety of places to stay if I came back. I decided to go for it, and arrived back in NY in September excited about the possibilities. I began making plans to move, but had an unexpected delay when I found I needed another surgery on my shoulder. My ortho surgeon was able to get me in on Oct 14, in hopes that I'd be able to leave early November. A minor complication arose when he doubled my recuperation period because my shoulder is 'too loose', and therefore needs much more time without movement than normal for that surgery. Still, I continued to make plans, and at my follow-up on Nov 18 he ok'd me for the drive. I'm still in a sling most of the time, and unable to do anything with that arm, but I'm thankful I'm moving forward! Which leads me to the beginning of the trip...
Last Wed, I had some help from family and friends loading my car, and it is FULLY loaded! I then had the car serviced, and it was declared ready for the long haul. Friday, I finished up all the loose ends, particularly the most important one of watching the Youngmann girls play their parts in the Hoosick Falls School play (they did a great job!), and then crashed at my parents' house for the night.

Life's Craziness

I've come to the conclusion that insanity is normal. And I'm definitely NOT understanding what people are talking about when they say life is boring. It just isn't so!
I found and bought an '04 Ford Escape, navy blue with a silver stripe down the side. I like it, though it came with its problems. I had to get the drive shaft replaced, and now the sun roof doesn't work all the time, but for the price I paid, I think I still got a pretty good deal. Due to the lemon law, the repairs are covered 100% by the dealership, though driving 45 min to the mechanic is frustrating.
Last week I found out I have to have another surgery done on my shoulder, and a few days ago was informed that it will be this coming Thursday. A bit of change to my plans, considering I was planning on moving to Alaska in a month. Now, if all goes well, I'll still be able to go, but will be in a sling and unable to drive or do much else right up until I leave. Not sure yet how packing and everything else will go, but I'm sure it will work out.
I went down to visit some friends in New Jersey on Sunday night. It was a fun and memorable trip, complete with spending a good portion of it on the phone with the state troopers as I followed a drunk driver down the thruway, and helped get the guy arrested, missing my exit in the process, and then getting very lost. I made it back on Tuesday no problem.
Last night I went camping at our cabin in West Hoosick with my little brother and sister. Joanna spent the evening, but headed back to the house at bedtime, while Zachary and I played games, cooked marshmallows over the propane stove, and then crashed. Not quite roughing it, but still a lot of fun. :-)
Seth and Hannah got a puppy, so while Seth was back on leave, they brought little Carlos over to play a few times. He's tiny, and VERY cute!

The fall foliage was great for a couple days, though not for as long as normal, and not as brilliant as usual. Still, Zachary came with me one day to drive around and take pictures, and we got some good ones.

Back in NY

It's been a busy couple weeks. I'm back in NY now. The jet lag coming back was awful, and took several days to get used to this time zone again. At which point I began dealing with some physical stuff that took a full week to get over. The doctor's think it was just from having so much going on, not much sleep, and dehydration. My blood pressure ended up dropping extremely low a couple times, but the part that was making me nervous was that during those times, I couldn't taste anything and I was numb head to toe. Let me tell you, when you're already feeling really weird (due to the low BP) and then your senses have gone, it's a bit scary. But it's over now, and I'm doing much better.
The other thing that has kept me busy this past week has been car shopping. I HATE car salesmen with a passion! Nothing worse out there, in my opinion. I get so flustered, but it has helped to have a friend who is a car salesman himself, and also a few friends who are mechanics, so they've been able to offer advice from time to time. Still haven't found the right car yet, but hope to soon.
I was on a waiting list for a rental for the first week, so I was stranded in Hoosick Falls, which didn't help matters any. Now that I have my little rented cobalt, I'm back out there getting things done, or at least attempting to.
It's been good to see so many people since I've been back, but I already miss Alaska!

Kodiak Pictures - Fun With My Cousins!

Skip-Bo with Grace, Shalom, and Sarah; Anton Larson with the Neff family; John enjoying his sushi; out for a drive with John; the girls and I took the rowboat out to a little island on Island Lake; Aunt Katrina working in their garden; and Shalom's flower garden. 

Kodiak Pictures - Random

These are small salmonberries, and they're still 4-5 times the size of the blueberries! The next several pictures are from the top of Pillar Mtn, overlooking the town of Kodiak, the new windmills on top, and the view of the airport and Gibson Cove. I'm standing by the Buskin River at about 10pm (still light out!); and the last

picture was taken out at White Sands beach of a place where there used to be a bouy swing at the top of that hill. It gave quite the rush when you jumped on and swung out over the parking lot and back! (It's a fairly steep hill!) 

Kodiak Pictures - Bell's Flats

Here are some more Kodiak pictures. Bear with me if a few are duplicates. I don't remember which ones I put on before. The pic of the houses is our old house (white w/green trim) and our neighbors' houses on the hill; Russian River is a good place for fishing; salmonberries; and the last is a shot of the airport and Women's Bay.

Me And Keys Just Don't Get Along

Last night I was closing up at work, and accidentally left my car keys sitting on the counter. When I went back to get them, I realized that I had locked the padlock (which I had a key for), but I had also locked the door somehow without knowing it (which we are not supposed to do, and I don't have a key for). I went to ask Justin (the guy in the cabin next door) if he had any ideas. The handle turned a little, but not much, and after both of us had tried our best to push it open and checked the windows (all locked), I went to the office to get a spare key. The office was locked, so I found some other guys that work there, and one of them happened to be a security guy, so he got me into the office, but they didn't have a spare for the door, either. He tried the master key, and it didn't work, either, so I had to call my manager to come bring her key. Justin stayed with me until she got there 15 min later. By that point the word had spread about my dilemma, and my face was flaming as the security guys walked by laughing. Particularly when Linda arrived with the key, but didn't have to use it! I had pulled the door really hard, and it was jammed shut. She forced it open, I retrieved the keys, and we all left, How embarrassing!

Ah...Life! And Job Interviews!

It is now Sunday, and my ribs are still sore. The chiropractor is back, and while he IS good, he is frustrating, too. He brushed me off, saying that things happen sometimes, and it isn't the fill-in chiropractor's fault, and that I'll feel better before long. Not yet, and it's been over a week!
On another note, I had applied for a job in Kodiak, and a couple days ago received a phone call that I need to be there for the testing and interview in 2 weeks! Timing is gonna be tight, since I was supposed to work through Labor Day, drive down to Anchorage the next day, and fly back to NY on the 8th (12am on the 9th, actually). I now have to fly down to Kodiak on the 6th (and therefore not working that day), do the job stuff on the 8th, and fly back to Anchorage right afterwards to catch the flight to NY. Hoping, of course, that the notorious Kodiak fog doesn't leave me stranded on one end or the other! Because I don't have OVER 2 weeks notice, the ticket to Kodiak and back (an hour each way) costs almost twice as much as my ticket back from Anchorage ALL THE WAY BACK TO NY! Ai-i-i!!! That was a slight shock, and yes, led to a minor emotional breakdown that night. However, I believe this is God's timing, because the job interview could easily have been a couple months out (they closed the job opening quickly), which would have meant that I'd have had to make a special trip back to Kodiak from NY later. While my schedule will be a little more cramped because of it, I won't really have to adjust more than a day of the trip. Please pray that if God wants me to get this job, it will all go well. I'm excited about it.

Chiropractor

On Friday I had a chiropractor appointment, but since the regular guy was on vacation, I was treated by another gal who was filling in for him. She wasn't nearly as good as he is, and I was hurting worse by the end of treatment. She tried several times to adjust my back, but it only hurt. All weekend my ribs have hurt where she had adjusted, and I still can't turn at all without sharp pain. I didn't want to make a big deal of it, but when I went in for my massage this morning, I skipped being adjusted since the same lady was there. When I mentioned it to the massage therapist, she told me they'd already had 4 people complain that they felt way worse since she treated them. So, I'm going back to Dr. Lewis on Wed to see if he can re-adjust me back to 'normal'.

Work, Work, Work!

This week was spent working, and other than spending so much time on my feet, I didn't mind a bit. It was gorgeous weather several of the days, and while not many people were out during the week, Saturday was military appreciation day at the park, so thousands of people were walking through looking at the cabins and buying everything they could get at a discount. Nonstop busyness all day, and that made the time fly by. My favorite family of the week came by 3 different days, learned my name, and chatting each time. The kids saw me each time and came running over to say hi, and do bubbles and chalk while I talked with Phillip and Christina.
On Friday evening, 3 army guys from Hawaii came by, and since all they were doing was putting in time until their flight left, they stuck around talking, treated me to some ice cream, and tried to get me to go out for dinner after I was done with work. I debated it, but turned them down, and now I wish I hadn't! They wanted to take me to the Turtle Club, which I found out later is the classiest place to go, and also the most expensive. My friend Ann told me to NEVER again turn down an invitation there again, regardless of who is asking. It's not that big a deal to me, but I got a kick out of her response. :)
I'm off to a massage, so I'll put more on another time.

Fairbanks, And A Drive South To Paxson

Wow! I arrived in Fairbanks right in the middle of the fair, so I got a taste of the craziness that surrounds this time of year for my friends, the Houses. They are salesmen, both of Rainbow vacuums as well as very good quality cookware. Shortly after I arrived, the owner of another local business called and asked if I was still interested in working for her during my visit. She wanted me to start the next day, so after spending the rest of Wed and much of Thur at the Rainbow booth, I began working for her Fri morning. There is a place called Pioneer Park (it used to be Alaska Land) where they have a cabin and sell their products. So I am now an employee of Caribou Grill, selling prepackaged meats and honey mustard, as well as grilling up reindeer, caribou, buffalo and venison sausages and steaks for tourists in need of a good meal. All of the products are produced in Alaska, made from wild game here. I enjoy it, though on rainy days it is really slow. Back to last week, though. Between Fri and Sat, she had me running their booth at the fair for over 20 hrs. I'm working pretty much every day, setting my own hours, and have been told I can have as many hours as I'd like. She is very happy with my work, and I'll be working there until they close on Labor Day weekend. Nice to have a bit of income again. :)
On Sunday, I attended Friends Church, and had a chance to see good friends who have just moved to the area from WA. After that service, we attended the House's church, and I really enjoyed worshiping with those folks. It's a small church, but great people, from what I saw.
Monday, Jon, Marla and Chris took the day off from work and we headed out to go blueberry picking. Well, that was the idea, though half the reason was to get out of town and go for a drive. And drive we did, south to Delta Junction (we toured Rika's Roadhouse there), and on down to have dinner in Paxson (3hrs south of Fairbanks) before heading back. We saw a moose, beautiful scenery, the Alaska Pipeline, and even drove through a dust storm in Delta that rivaled the pea soup fog in Kodiak. Here are a few pics from our drive. Enjoy!
The weather has been nice, most days. We even had 2 days that hit 91 degrees, which is a record high for here! It was too hot for me, but gorgeous! Better than the rain we've had the last couple days.

Kodiak friends!

Lack of internet access has made blogging difficult. A lot has happened in the time since I last wrote. I'm in Fairbanks now, but I'll back up to where I left off.
My friends, Doug and Cheryl, had me over to their home one evening the last week I was in Kodiak, and it was wonderful to be able to spend some quality time with them. I was also thrilled that Pat (a woman who used to help teach me and my siblings when we were young) was able to join us. I have such fond memories of times spent with her, so to see her again was a blessing.

I spent many hours the last week at the police department, riding along with various officers and chatting more with all the guys who knew me when I was much, much smaller. :) The day before I left, after spending the afternoon riding along with one of the 'new' guys, when Tom got off work we headed out to Bell's Flats to spend the evening at the house I grew up in. It ended up being one of my favorite evenings so far. Tom and I headed back into town to pick up pizza and do some shopping, and then back to the Flats for dinner, hanging out with his grandkids (1 and 3 yrs old), and a slideshow of Australia pictures (he had been on vacation there). Fun times.

I spent my last day visiting my cousins, a few other friends, drove to the top of Pillar Mtn with Chris, and then stopped by to say goodbye at the PD. When I got on the ferry, Cary found me and invited me to spend the evening with him and Katie, so the next few hours flew by as we played cards and hung out chatting. The guys who had gone out to Tom's cabin with us on Monday were also on the ferry, and joined us for awhile as well.

Cary and Katie were driving up to Anchorage from Homer, so I ended up riding along with them. Unexpected, but I was glad it worked out that way, because we had more time to talk that way. We stopped in Soldotna and had lunch with a friend of Katie's, so it turned into a fun, all day ride. Matt and Tracy had also driven up that day to do some shopping, so Cary dropped me off and I went to dinner with them before heading over to Paula's house, where I was staying.

I was in Anchorage with Paula and her family for several days. We had an early princess birthday party for Kylar on Sunday, which was lots of fun, and gave me a chance to get to know some of Paula's friends there. Monday we went to Stroller Strides, which is an exercise group for moms with toddlers. It was a good workout, and several of the moms I'd met at Kylar's party were there, among others. They did the workout downtown, and afterwards we headed over to the park for Music In The Park. It turned into a bit more than expected when a little tyke had a seizure and stopped breathing for several minutes. 911 was called, someone did CPR and got him breathing again, and then the paramedics took him to the hospital because he still wasn't looking or acting ok. It was a scary time, but he ended up being ok.

I was very excited to see the Lace's the last evening I was in Anchorage. Crystal, Joey, Amy, and all of their kids met up with me for dinner at an Italian restaurant nearby. I hadn't realized how much I needed that evening out with them. Their sister (Lisa) wasn't there, so we told their kids that this Lisa (me) was taking their Aunt Lisa's place. :) I had a wonderful visit with Crystal as she drove me back to Paula's afterwards.

Wednesday morning I flew up to Fairbanks for this last stint of my vacation.

Kodiak, AK

I have gotten so far behind in this! Since I arrived in Kodiak on Monday, July 26, I've done so much and seen so much I can't begin to tell it all. I stayed the first week with the Bushells, and Chris and I did a lot of driving around downtown, Monashka Bay, and Bell's Flats. We've frequented a couple of the local coffee shops, and Fly By is my favorite at this point. There are still a few I haven't tried.
Tuesday we went by the Kodiak Police Dept (KPD), but the officers I knew weren't there. However, Sgt Maloney (Tom) called me later that evening and offered to give me a tour of the new PD the next day. In the 8 days I've been here, I've ended up spending a good portion each of 4 or 5 days there, talking with various officers who remembered me, sharing memories, hearing some of the things that have changed, and getting to know the 'new' officers (new since we left many years ago). One evening when Tom was 'finished' with work, he took me out to Bells Flats with him, and we spent some time walking through his house (it used to be ours), and talking about the way it used to be. On our way out there, he had to serve a search warrant on a vehicle, so we stopped by the jail to wait for the other officer, who was in the process of an arrest. We waited while the arrest was completed, and I had a chance to see the old PD again - empty now, except for the jail. HUGE difference! The new one is much better suited to their needs. When the other officer was finished, and we had arrived at the place the van was, I was handed some gloves and told to start looking for a gun and/or drugs. We found some interesting things in there, but not what we were looking for. After driving around showing me some more of Bells Flats, seeing the house, and chatting, Tom took me back into town. We had dinner at an old mexican restaurant - really good burritos! On Saturday Chris and I headed over to the Jones', and then she dropped me off at Bohac'. Because of the weather, Milt was still stranded in Anchorage, and didn't get back till Sunday (supposed to come in on Thursday, but that's Kodiak for you!). Beverly and I had a great visit though. Seeing James and Timothy now was neat, cause I had babysat them, and James in particular, a lot when they were very born.
On Sunday I managed to make it to 3 different churches, seeing people I knew at each. I have been so blessed by people here who have welcomed me back with open arms! I went from no transportation to 2 vehicles in two days - Bohac' offered me use of their car this week, and the next day, Tom told me to take his truck so I could get out the road system; Debbie invited me to stay with her this week; the guys at KPD have told me to just call if I need anything at all, and are all willing to be references for job applications I fill out here; Bushells have been amazing, doing all sorts of things with me and taking me all over the place; Milt gave me a heads up for a job opening at the PD that isn't even posted yet (all the officers I've seen so far are pushing me to apply, and they all think I have a really good chance, but we'll see); Beverly called with a possible place to stay until I get set up with a good job; and the list goes on and on!
I had lunch with some dear friends today, and tomorrow the Beavers are inviting anyone who knows me over for a little get together.
Yesterday, Tom picked me up and took me with him out fishing, sightseeing, and then for a bbq at his cabin across the bay for the day. A guy he knew had two relatives in town and wanted to go out, so they met us at the dock and the 5 of us spent a wonderful day out on the water. I caught a sole, and a couple of the others caught small halibut (about the same size as my sole - tiny!) which we cooked on the bbq at his cabin for lunch. We saw a couple whales, and I managed to get a good video of one pretty close to us. A bunch of good shots of some sea otters as well. The water was a little rough coming back, which slowed us down, though not as much as the flat tire on Tom's truck when we got back to Antone Larson! Even his spare was a little flat, but it got us home. All in all, a very good day.
I had mentioned a ride along to Tom, and he pushed the process along so I could get at least one before I left. The Lt found me to tell me he'd signed off on it that afternoon. I went in tonight for several hrs, riding first with Mike (the K-9 officer), and then with Bill (Sgt). I lost my voice this morning, so of course they ALL gave me a hard time about that. Only a couple minor calls, but most of the time was spent driving around talking, remembering how it was vs how it is now, and sitting in the office telling stories of pranks pulled on various officers. When the midnight crew arrived, they joined in, and I found out Cary is going to be leaving Kodiak on the same ferry I am. Small town. :) They told me I could come in Thur and/or Fri and go out again if I'd like, so I'm hoping it works out.
Another full day again tomorrow, so it's time for bed. Good night all!
P.S. Pictures will be coming - soon I hope!

Bear! And Other Kodiak Animals

I'll write more later, but for now, I had to at least mention that last night Chris Bushell and I went out looking for bears, and saw one at Salonie Creek out in Bells Flats! Got a good video, and a couple pictures. I wish it was closer, but you can still see the fish in his mouth after he splashed around chasing the salmon awhile. Fun to see! We also saw a grey fox, rabbit, and 2 deer. We almost saw another bear, but it had wandered into the bushes right before we got there, according to other bystanders. :( We'll try again another day.

Before that, I spent some time chatting with one friend in the morning, and then with my friend Beverly and her two kids after that, followed by an hour or so at KPD with another friend. One of the officers there is German, and a news crew from Germany had come over to film him for a show there called My Precinct. So we pulled it up online and watched it while we talked. When I left there, I hiked Barameter Mtn with another friend. Ian and I were maybe 1/4 way up when my cousin John caught up to us for the rest of the hike. I'll have pictures up later of that. It was a great day.