My Last Week

- (Above)A picture of some of my many "snack" visitors. (Below) The innocence of a child.

I wish that I had something witty or exciting to say, but I just don't. I am starting my final week here in the village, and I must admit that I feel a twinge of sadness. This experience has definitely been life altering. What else could you call something that put you slap in the middle of one of the poorest areas you have ever seen. A place where the great majority of people live well below the poverty line. A place where they live, in truth, like a third-world country in many ways. I can not think of many other places in so-called civilized countries where people live without running water and basic sanitation.

But, that being said, these are some of the most amazing people I have ever met. Imagine having to bring in water for dishes, wash dishes, and then use that same water to mop the floor. After that, you have to make dinner for your nine or ten siblings, make sure all the babies are fed and clean, and wash clothes BY HAND. You also have to get up and take care of the "babies"--half of which aren't even your biological siblings--in the middle of the night. (Don't ask me where the mother is, I honestly don't know.) On top of that, you have your schoolwork. At yet somehow, you manage to keep a positive attitude almost all the time. And the person I am talking about is
a teenager. She should be worried about what boy might like her or how she should wear her hair NOT what to do when her sibling is crying in the middle of the night and won't stop.

There are kids here who are almost starving, and yet they play and laugh just like other little kids everywhere else in the world. Now, that's not to say that these people don't have ANY money, it's just many of the "adults" don't have any sort of idea of management. I was in the store the other day, and it was the first of the month, when the new food stamps come out. This couple in front of me, that I KNOW has at least three small children bought two boxes of hot pockets, three boxes of ice cream bars, and potato chips. How is that a way to feed your children? It is no wonder that these kids come to my house looking for food. You can see the relief on their faces when I tell them that they can "have snack." Usually snack means a pack of crackers, a granola bar, or trail mix. (At this point I want to stop and thank everyone who has sent "snacks" to me or helped me buy food for our Sunday School class lunches in the last two years. You have really helped me help these kids. I appreciate you, and know that God will bless you for it.)
Of course all the parents aren't like this. There are several parents who take wonderful care of their children, but those are the lucky ones. I wish I could tell you how many times kids have come over "to visit" in the middle of winter with NO SOCKS on. They take their shoes off when they come in, and I am incredulous that a parent would allow their six or seven year old to leave the house in the middle of an Alaskan winter with no socks on.

I will miss seeing the atmosphere of the village. You have kids riding their bikes, playing with sleds, and just running around. When you walk to the post office or to the store, every single person either speaks to you or, if they are far away, waves or calls out. It is like living a neighborhood from Leave It to Beaver. That's not to say that it is all "beer and skittles" ( a M*A*S*H quote). Some of these kids are abused badly. You can see a difference in the faces of the kids in the lower elementary grades and the upper elementary grades. You can almost walk down the hall and tell which ones are abused. It is like the sparkle of childhood has gone out of their eyes. I wish that I could take all those wonderful little kiddos away from here, but I know that isn't possible. I can only hope that I, along with a select few others, have made enough difference in the lives of these kids to break the cycle of abuse that exists here.

I am going into this last week with a mixture of feelings. I have a definite gladness in my heart to return to the arms of my family, my church, and my friends. But, I also have a definite sadness there to know that I am leaving behind such a wonderful place that has changed me "for good."

Debbie

SPRING!!!! Finally

Well, the lovely spring has finally made its way to the tundra. I actually walked to school today with no hat, no gloves, and no scarf. That, to me, is a sure sign that spring has arrived. The only problem is that we have eight months worth of snow that has to go somewhere. That means lakes where there is dry ground in the summer. The snow melt here is tricky. The snow melts in some places and the water starts to flow. That means that the rest of the snow melts from the BOTTOM UP. I know that sounds crazy, but that's what happens. You may think that the patch ahead of you is solid snow, but it is very likely that it is only fooling you. It is probably only five or six inches of snow on top on a river or lake of water. This can be very hazardous. I am posting some pictures that I took today after going to the post office. You are going to think that I have taken pictures of the ocean. They aren't. They are pictures of the melt off.
Can't wait to see you guys in less than two weeks.

Debbie

Last of the KIPNUK pictures

Here are the last of the Kipnuk pictures. Don't forget that girls from two other villages are using your dresses.

And still more prom pictures.

More Prom Pictures

Prom Pictures

Here are my wonderful girls wearing the wonderful dresses and makeup that you so generously sent.

PROM

If I never see another piece or iridescent glitter, it will be too soon. We finally had the prom last night. YEAH. Twenty-four girls got dresses, but three got in trouble this week and weren't allowed to attend. That's the way the disco ball bounces.
The excitement started on Wednesday when some of us stayed after school to help decorate the gym. I spent about three hours stapling stuff on the walls so I woke up with a sore arm. Decorations continued on Thursday--without me.
The prom was lovely. All the girls looked SO beautiful. There was cupcakes, punch, some fruit, and a special trail mix....they had ordered m&m's with the school's name on them. Pretty cool.
None of the kids danced much...thing of your 7th & 8th grade dances...but they all seemed to have a blast. I am posting some pictures in a separate entry. If you don't see the dress you sent, don't worry. Two more villages are using the dresses you sent for their proms. I will post those as soon as they are available to me.
I would like to take a moment to thank all of you who helped me in my endeavor to get dresses for these girls. You could tell that they really felt special and beautiful. I can not thank you enough for helping me give such a wonderful opportunity to such great girls.
Two more weeks and two days.
Debbie

Culture Week and A Good Laugh for You

Well, it seems that my time is drawing to a close. I have 19 days left here in Alaska. We have finally started to thaw out which means LOTS of little ponds everywhere. I was walking back from the post office on Monday. One second I was fine, the next second I was up to my back pocket in water. I was in a conundrum; I couldn't go back so the only choice was forward. I picked up my other foot and stepped down. It sank up to my knee. Apparently there was water under the snow that I had been standing on just a few seconds before. So, here I am; one leg up to the knee in water and the other one up to the thigh. Oh, did I mention that I was carrying a care package from my mom and groceries from the little store by the post office???? Not sure how to proceed next and not seeing anyone close by, I floundered on. I threw my package and bag forward and crawled out of the position I was in. I was taught that you won't break through as easily if you crawl on your belly because your weight is distributed better. Well, guess what, it worked. I wiggled my way out of the hole in the slush (and the very deep water) and managed to stand up on some solid ground. I walked the rest of the way home soaking wet with water and feeling it sloshing inside my boots. Of all the days for no one to stop and offer me a ride. By the way, it was about 35 degrees.

On to Culture Week. Each year, the school holds a Culture Week where the kids learn traditional Native skills and crafts. Each teacher is assigned one to two community resource people to help them with activities. A good thing because otherwise I would be teaching them to make grits. lol. Well, my group this year made a traditional piece of Yup'ik clothing called a qaspeq. It's basically an overshirt with a hood (for keeping away mosquitoes) and a pocket (for putting berries or eggs). Luckily, this year I had two amazing community people. They were Lillian Slim and Elizabeth Smith (also know as Willy). My girls were given material, shown how to rip it into the pieces for the top--no scissors and patterns here. Then they sewed the pieces and finished with ric rac. They also worked making beaded bracelets. We had a lot of fun, and I learned a lot about making the qaspeqs AND about how to use a sewing machine. By the third day, I was an expert on both. (I hope you can hear the sarcasm in that). We made qaspeqs for the girls, for one girl's baby, and another girl's niece. It gave me an opportunity to spend some one-on-one time with the girls in my last three weeks here in the village. I really enjoyed it.
While we were taking our breaks, I broke out the box of Mary Kay samples and products that the lovely Theia Chaffin, and the wonderful Wendy Bailey sent for us to use for prom. The girls LOVED it. At the end of our time, I took a group picture. It was windy and cold, but they all came out on the steps to pose with their brand new qaspeqs. Hope you enjoy the photos.
See you in three weeks.
Debbie

Check out my PARKA

Agnes Attie, one of the great ladies here in the village made my Parka. The fur on the hood is cinammon fox that I picked up in Anchorage when I went in for my lovely root canal in February. It's okay to be jealous!

Diagnosis-----Alaska Crud

Well, I made it in to Bethel to see a DR!!!!!! I flew out on Thursday morning, as per my local clinic's instructions. I went up to the school to make sure that I had done all the needed paperwork for me to be out for the rest of the week if necessary. If you're keeping score, that's FIVE consecutive days. Then, I came back home to wait on the call for the plane. I don't know that I have explained how the plane situation works here so I should probably do that briefly.
There are three "airlines" that serve the village, and they each have two or three flights to Bethel a day. You call the village agent for the airline of your choice and tell them when you would like to go. They write your name down--I guess it's in an appointment book of sorts--and they call you when your plane is about ten minutes out so that you can walk out to the air strip. Now, they have to call you because the flights coming in are sometimes erratic. You can't just go out and stand around and wait on your plane at the appropriate time because it might be thirty minutes to an hour later (or more) and there is absolutely NO shelter out by the strip.
Well, the village agent called and told me that I would be going out with George when he left and to be out there at 8:50. George lives in the village but flies for Hageland. So, he brings the plane here at night. Well, I walked out to me George at 8:50. No sign of George. Luckily, the Yute agent was already out there waiting on the Yute plane to come in so I hunched down behind his sled to get out of the wind until George arrived. He arrived about five minutes later and had to tow a snow machine out of the way of the plane. Then, he let me get on the plane. Now, keep in mind that it is about 6 degrees with a negative wind chill, and the wind is probably blowing about ten to fifteen miles an hour. We loaded up, he performed all his checks, and off we went. I was sitting in the co-pilot's seat which meant I couldn't see anything but instruments. I never get motion sickness on those little planes, but I had been feel a little sick at my stomach from my bug and thought about the air sick bag two or three times. On a side note, have you ever really LOOKED at one of those bags? If you are doing the "technicolor yawn" how much good is that teeny tiny little sack really going to do???? Well, we landed in Bethel without my adding any more interest to the inside of George's tiny little plane.
I got a taxi at the airport and headed over to the hospital. I went in to the area where they take appointments for the hospital clinic to see if I could see a doctor there instead of going into the actual ER. Sorry, but I don't think you should go to the ER unless it's a real EMERGENCY. I figured that I had coughed for two weeks; a couple more hours wasn't going to kill me.
I went up to the window to try to get an appointment. The guy said that he could get me a doublebook appointment at two. (It was 10:40). I asked what that meant, and he told me that the doctor had two patients scheduled for the same time period. He tried to put me in but the computer wouldn't let him. Apparently, that doctor already had six doublebooks for the day and that was the limit. Then he said he could get me an 11:00 appointment. I said, "A.M.?" He laughed. We decided I would take the 11:00 appointment. I turned around to go sit down and wait for them to call me over to one of the little registration booths to get my information. As I was sitting there I realized that I was the only white person in the waiting area. Normally, as the white people have to go to the white people clinic. I had tried to get another appointment there (I missed my first one because no planes flew) but was told that they couldn't see me until Saturday afternoon. They called me over to the booth, took my info, and directed me to the correct clinic for me. Apparently the hospital has THREE clinics inside it. I know that one is ob/gyn and pediatrics, but I don't know the difference between the other two.
I went over to my assigned clinic and calmly proceeded to read my book and wait. They called me back around 11:45 or 11:50. I went back and went through all the basic stuff: temperature, weight, medication, blah blah blah. Then, the doctor came in. I started coughing my head off right when she came in. I just knew I wasn't going to cough while I was in there just like your car never makes that noise when the mechanic is driving it to check it out. She asked me a series of questions about my symptoms. My response to every single one of her questions? YES. She told me that I had some sort of bacterial/viral infection that was rampant in the area at the time. The nurse had told me that she had suffered the same thing herself just a few weeks earlier.
She gave me a lovely shot in the rear, and I had to sit around and wait an hour to see if I would have a reaction. I DID. I almost passed out. I have a feeling I went green or white (I felt green but one never knows what other people see). I had to sit there a while longer. Finally they decided I could leave and go over to the pharmacy to get my prescriptions. When I asked how much I owed and where I should pay, she looked at me like I had said an alien was living in my snow boots. She replied, "You know, no one has ever asked about that before." So I went out to the nurses station for my clinic and asked the same question. They all just looked at each other. One finally said, "I guess they'll send you a bill."
I then headed over to the clinic to get my medication and found out it would be about an hours wait so I headed off for some lunch. I was SO HUNGRY! I went to a place called Shogun and had Mongolian Beef. Now, I had a regular-size portion with iced tea, and my ticket was $24.20. Stuff isn't cheap in Bethel. I then walked over to the grocery store (about a hundred yards away) to get some money from the ATM. I also got an ice cream sandwich ($3.17 but worth every penny). I went back over to the hospital to get my medicine and was sent into a consultation room to meet with a pharmacist. When I asked about paying for the medicine (at least my deductible) he looked at me with the same strange look the doctor did and said I would have to ask at the pharmacy window. That guy didn't know he either. He said that he guessed they would send me a bill. Does no one ever pay at this place?????
I went over to my friend's house to rest. I was told not to leave town in case I had an adverse reaction to the medicine they had given me that was similar to the reaction I had to the inhaler from the clinic. So, I hung out with my friend Sadie. I did have an adverse reaction....a BAD tummy ache. Apparently antibiotics can do that to you.
I took it easy Friday and didn't see any need to go back over to the hospital/clinic/er. Today is Saturday. I went to Saturday Market this morning and flew back into the village this evening. I had a cheeseburger and fries for lunch ($10). It was SO good. I can't remember the last time I had a good burger and fries. That's one of the big draws about going to Bethel. They actually have a few restaurants, several of which have pretty decent food.
I am back in the village now and getting ready to go to bed. Hopefully I will get some sleep tonight. I think the cough medicine I was given is keeping me from sleeping.
It is only a month until I come home. Hopefully I won't get sick again. Thanks to those of you who prayed for me.
Love
Debbie

Welcome to the Pity Party---Guest of Honor--ME

Well, here I am at home from work AGAIN. I walked back over to the clinic today. Now, lets talk about the logic of this. I am supposedly suffering from pneumonia, and I have to walk to and from the clinic in a wind chill or -16 with blowing snow. Does this sound like a bad idea to anyone else???
Well, despite my better judgement, and in hopes of getting some medicine for my cough, I went. I had an appointment at the Bethel clinic today, but no planes were flying. One of my friends said that I should add that I walked to the clinic uphill both ways when I tell the story to my brother's grandkids. (She actually said MY grandkids, but come on, who are we kidding). In actuality, I did have to climb up and over a snow drift going both ways so that counts.
Inside the clinic, I was the first to arrive for the 9:30 appointments. Apparently, that's how it works. There are like four appointments times during the day and they schedule so many people for each time slot. Luckily, since in down states you always arrive for doctors appointments early, I was at the front of the line both times I went.
Today I saw a different health aide, Norma. Now, Norma is really nice and I like her. She took down the details of my illness. My big concern is that I develop this HORRIBLE cough AFTER I started the antibiotics. She asked me the questions from the "medical Bible". It has a name, but I forget what it is. It's basically like those books that you used to read where, at the bottom of the page, you got to choose what you wanted the characters to do next. I.e. if you want to go into the haunted house, turn to page 47; if you don't, turn to page 101. Well, she asked me the questions and turned to the appropriate pages. She listened to my lungs, looked in my ears and nose, etc. etc. Then, she gave me a strep test which, of course, turned out negative. I was then sent home to rest and was told that they would call me after the doctor called them.
I battled the wind to come back home and drink some hot chocolate then had a little nap. I was home well before 10:00.
It's 4:00 now, and the doctor apparently just called back because she just called me. The doctor is prescribing some sort of inhaler for me. The health aide also said that the doctor said, "That if you aren't better in two days, you must go to Bethel." Funny, that's what I was hoping to do today. I also have instructions to inhale a lot of steam, drink plenty of fluids, and get lots of rest. It looks like I will taking off at least tomorrow and possibly the next day. I know that my Site Administrator isn't going to be thrilled, but I am certainly not going to work if it means it could cause my health to get worse.
A while back, I asked for those of you of the praying nature to pray for our generator. Well, after that plea, the generator has been in great working order. I believe that prayer works so here goes a similar request.
To those of you of the praying nature, please pray for improved health and a quick recovery for me. It is very difficult to be sick when you are so isolated. For those of you who aren't of the praying nature, now's a good time to start. :)
I'll keep you updated as to my condition.
Hoping not to cough up a lung,
Debbie

Cool Pictures

Here are some really neat pictures of cloud formations over Mt. Rainier.

Poor, Pitiful Me

Greetings to my weary readers. As you may or may not realize, I only have five more weeks in Alaska. I will have to think of a new name for my blog. My last two weeks have been blighted by my being ill. I started out with a lovely sinus infection. Nothing unusual for me. I get at least three really good ones a year. I decided to try to use some home remedies to treat myself. The symptoms began two weeks ago on a Sunday. One reason I decided on home treatment is because we don't have a doctor here in the village. We DO have a clinic that is staffed with health aides who try their hardest, but it is hard to diagnose something when you only have aide training. Usually, they go through your symptoms, call the doctor, and try to help. Most often, if you have any kind of sore throat they give you a strep test. Now, being a frequent strep throat flyer, I knew this wasn't strep. I just figured it was a sinus infection that would slowly go away. That was until I started coughing up something green and solid. That was a cause for concern for me because, at this point, I had been sick for ten days. I made my appointment for 2:30...that's the latest appointment they take???? I went over there Thursday afternoon around 2:20. I got to go right back because I was the first of the 2:30 people to get there. I had a GREAT health aide named Andrewski, who really seemed to know what he was talking about. He didn't even try to give me a strep test...the first time that I had been in without getting one. He asked me the general questions from the book and then several more. I had a sneaking suspicion that he has a sneaking suspicion what might be wrong. He looked into my sinus cavity and said that he "didn't see much infection." Which was bothersome to me because I had just coughed up a lovely little present on the way to the clinic. THEN, he wanted to listen to my lungs. His sneaking suspicion was confirmed. He was fairly sure I had pneumonia; it had been going around the village. He said that he would call the doctor and for me to go home. He would call me when he knew something. It was not 3:00 so I went home and took a little nap.
He called back at 6:30 and said that the doctor in Anchorage said I could have an antibiotic but I couldn't get it until the next day because they were already closed.
Friday at lunch, Carol, one the aides at the school, was kind enough to give me a ride to the clinic and back on her four-wheeler. I was SO glad that she did that because it was snowing like crazy, and I didn't want to make my slight pneumonia worse. I took my medicine on Friday.
Saturday I woke up with a cough that would make any smoker proud. Every time I took a deep breath, I coughed. This was a painful cough. It lasted most of the day and night. By bedtime, my chest hurt from coughing so much.
Sunday, still coughing. No more green stuff, but my chest is SO sore from coughing and coughing and they are DEEP coughs. I have decided that I will go back to the clinic tomorrow for my follow up. If things aren't looking up considerably, I will be flying out to Bethel tomorrow to see the PRN at the clinic or try to get into the ER at the Native Hospital. Flying on one of those tiny little planes with pneumonia won't be fun, but it beats the alternative. Waiting around too long and having to be picked up by the National Guard Helicopter. Boy, the whole village turns out when that things flies in.
I will keep you up-to-date.
Coughingly yours,
Debbie

Mount Redoubt blows its top AGAIN

Well, Mount Redoubt is up to its old tricks. There was another major eruption on Saturday. While it was blowing its top, we were having a blizzard. We got about fifteen inches on snow in a twenty-four hour period. Not bad for the first week in APRIL!!!
I tried to load some Redoubt images, but it doesn't look like they are going to cooperate. So, if you want to see some pictures, check out
http://www.avo.alaska.edu/volcanoes/volcact.php?volcname=Redoubt&page=images&eruptionid=610

Cama'i Festival

Two weekends ago I had the opportunity to go to Bethel for a workshop and the Cama'i Dance Festival. The workshop was on culture, and it was much more interesting than the cultural workshops I went to last year. I actually learned quite a bit. For example, I learned why Yup'ik obituaries usually don't mention the way the person died. To the Yup'ik, it doesn't matter HOW someone dies, just that they pass over to the other side. That's also why they have feasts commemorating the death of a loved one. It is to celebrate the person's journey to Heaven.
We had the opportunity to see Native dancing from all over Alaska. There was also a duo from Japan, a breakdancing group, and a Sudanese group. I will post some of these videos as soon as I can get them edited into manageable pieces.
I also had the opportunity to hang out with some of the wonderful people I have met while here in Alaska. For most of these folks, it will be the last time I ever get to see them. So, it was a time of mixed emotions. I was SO glad to see these people that I have come to call my friends. But, at the same time, I was saddened to think that I might never see them again. It's like being at summercamp. You always say that you will keep in touch, but how often does that really happen?
On Sunday, the weather was SO beautiful that Mark, Vicki, and I had to take our coats off as we walked over to the high school to make some last-minute craft purchases. When we got to the school, we saw that it was a balmy 37 degrees. When we came out of the high school, it was a different story. The sky was VERY overcast.....snow was on its way. By about two o'clock, it was snowing really hard, and Mark and I contemplated whether we should even go to the airport. Calmer heads prevailed, and we went. It was a good thing because our flight left right on time. When we got to Kipnuk, we discovered that they had gotten about three feet of snow while we were gone AND that our luggage was on a different plane.
I came home with some great souvenirs, wonderful memories, and a raging sinus infection--which I am still battling.
Hopefully, I will have the video up by the end of the week.
Six more weeks.
Debbie

A Bit of Glad News

Greetings, blog readers. I am actually going to be positive in today's blog and not rant and rave. Shocking, I know. :)
Ok, here's the situation, "My parents went away on a week's vacation". Sorry, I guess I have The Fresh Prince of Bel Air on the brain. Seriously though, here's what REALLY happened. As most of you know, I am collecting dresses for our upcoming prom. Well, I got a message on Facebook the other day from a lady named Wendy Hodges Bailey. She asked me if I was the Debbie Culpepper that JC Copper (it might have been JR) told her about. I sent her back saying that I AM the person taking the dresses, but I don't know the person she mentioned. I told her that I would love to have her donation but that I didn't want to take it under false pretenses. She said that this person had been in her shop, a consignment shop on 119 in Birmingham, and was telling her all about me. She said that she wanted to send me some dresses from her shop. I told her that I would be more than happy to take any dresses she sent me.
Well, I talked to her again yesterday and she said that she was sending...are you sitting down...about TWENTY dresses. She said that she didn't count them when she put them in the box, but that it was something like that. We chatted for a little while, and I told her all about the village. She then offered to send anything else my kids my need. She was truly concerned for the situation of these kids. I am so grateful that she heard about us.
So, to those of you who have been spreading the word about what I am doing here, I thank you very much. And to whichever one of you might have mentioned me to someone name Copper or to someone who might know this person, THANK YOU!
Wendy mentioned last night that she was running two businesses and that she and her husband both teach Sunday School. Please pray for God to bless them in all their endeavors.
Looking forward to Prom,
Debbie

Today's Fire Drill

We had a fire drill today. It was -32 wind chill. BBBRRRRR Hurry, Spring!

Fire Update and A Little Hope

From what I have heard, the house that caught fire was a total loss. But, thankfully, no one was injured. I found out this morning the reason that they let school out. Apparently, the school's intake fans were pulling the smoke into the elementary side of the building. Poor little kids were getting smoked out. There was ash everywhere this morning. It was almost like someone had burned a giant pile of paper.
I have some good news. IF the weather cooperates, next weekend I will be flying into Bethel for the Camai Dance Festival. This is very exciting for me because my village is Moravian and does not allow traditional Eskimo dancing--they think it is a form of idolatry. I will try to take some good pictures and post about what I see.
Two months until I come home.
Debbie

What A Week

Ok, sports fan, I have had the most unusual week, and it's only TUESDAY. This weird week started on Saturday, sort of. I had to go to work on Saturday; and let me tell you, Saturday school is NO FUN. I took an inservice on Non-violent Crisis Prevention. Basically, it was a class to teach us how to handle kids, without hurting them, in case they had a fit or whatever--which is a lot more common that you would expect.

Well, I had a very peaceful Sunday. My roommate was gone to Anchorage, and I cleaned house. It was so nice to be in a clean house. :) Well, Monday morning came and the weather was bad. This is where things start getting strange. About two hours into the day, the power went off, and then it came back on, and then went off, and on, off, on, off, on, off, on, etc. Finally at two o'clock, the required school day, they sent the kids home.

Today, was the really interesting part. Suddenly all of my kids started saying the smelled smoke. I went over by the windows and, sure enough, it smelled like smoke. I called up to the office and told them that something was on fire behind the school. They responded that they already knew. That's fine, but with my luck if I hadn't told them, it would have been the school. Within five minutes people were coming to pick their kids up from school. Within fifteen minutes they were calling school off. Now, it was only about 12:30 so we didn't make the required time so we will have to MAKE IT UP. I was placed as guard at the back door to keep anyone from leaving out that way---the direction of the fire. The majority of students had not eaten lunch yet so the kitchen staff was giving food away left and right. I sent one of the other teachers down to "make a plate for me" while I guarded the door. He came back with a HUGE plate of food. Two chicken sandwiches, enough tater tots to feed a platoon, and some pineapples. So we sat in the floor by the door I was supposed to be guarding and had a picnic.

I could not fathom WHY we would send kids out into the village when there was a house on fire. All they would do would be get in the way. I later found out from our "Acting Sight Administrator" (our actual one is gone for meetings with about half the other staff) that they were afraid the fire would "jump" to the school. WHAT??? So, we all left and had to tell the acting SA where we would be--just in case. When I left the school, there were big pieces of ash all over the ground in front of the school. The fire was about 100 yards on the other side of the school. Since I have been home, I have heard lots of snow machines going to get ice to put on the fire.

Now is a good time to remind you that we have NO RUNNING WATER IN THE VILLAGE. The way they deal with fires is by throwing snow and ice on it, or in summer they bring big buckets of water up from the river. So, I am currently sitting in my little green house hoping that the fire doesn't decide to "jump" this way. I will blog again tomorrow to let you know how it goes.

Trying not to choke on smoke.

Debbie

More Snow Pics

Really unusual snow drift.

That's my hand and an electricity wire. That's how high the snow is. The picture is better because I was afraid that I was going to get electrocuted. hahaha.

Grocery List

We got the weekly "sales circular" from the grocery store in Bethel today. I just thought I would give you a list of prices so you can compare to your grocery. Now remember, this is the SALES circular. I will try to add the village price, for the stuff we get in our store, also.

Stew Meat (4 lbs or more) $4.18 lb.
SPAM 2 for $6
24 Roll Soft Choice Tissue $11.98 ($16.78)
12 Pack Pepsi $8.48 ($15.00)
Potato Chips 11.75 oz. 2 for $10 ($7.50 and up)
Pringles Potato Crisp 3 for $5
Saltine Crackers 2 for $7 ($5.95)
Mr. Clean 40 oz. $7.98
Ice Cream 48 oz (round container) $6.48
Flavorite American Cheese Singles 2 for $8
Butter 1lb 2 for $8
Sour Cream 16 oz 2 for $4.50
4" Mini Cake from the bakery $7.99
Tomatoes $2.88 lb
Iceberg Lettuce $1.88 lb (yes, lettuce is sold by the POUND)
Chicken Breast (Previously Frozen) $3.98lb
Milk $9.89 gal


Now, that is just the price of the food. They charge extra to ship it out. The extra starts at $40 and goes up FAST! So, the next time you complain about your grocery bill. Think again.

Thinking of yummy food.

Debbie

Oh Where, Oh Where Will I Find a New Job?

(Title to be read to the tune of "Doggie in the Window")
Well, I did it. I signed the paper declining my contract for next year. Now, it is just a matter of turning it in, and I will be officially unemployed as of May 18. That's a scary thought in the recessionistic economy that we are facing. I know that, if I step out in the right direction, that God will put a door of opportunity there for me to find. The question that arises is: What direction is that? I really had aspirations of being a writer when I was younger. Not a novelist, I don't have the foresight to think of an ending five hundred pages away from my beginning. I would LOVE to write for a newspaper or a magazine. Something that is challenging and interesting, and maybe even allows for a little travel. As those jobs are hard to come by, I am looking into technical writing positions at Redstone Arsenal. The work isn't terribly exciting, but working with the military to improve its technical capabilities could prove to be a challenge. (Plus, the added bonus of all those good-looking military guys) Basically, the job would be to take really complicated stuff and explain it in a simpler way. Isn't that what teachers do every day???
I am also looking into working for the DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency). Their primary function is to look at intelligence and data and make an analysis as to the best ways to protect our troops. It is a "brother" of the CIA. This job would take me, hopefully, all over the world and allow me to help protect the military that protects me every day. Also, I would get to carry a really cool badge and have secret security clearance. :) The only two downsides to this position are that I don't have experience in this area, and I might have to go to some "hotspots".
I know that a lot of people would like to see me teach again. My principal here even told me that it would be a shame for me to get out of the classroom because I am so good at it. I know that I am a good teacher, not to be boastful, but I want to do something else for a while. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy that "AHA" moment that kids get. As I type, one of my girls is pouring over a book about the Victorian period. Three days ago she had never heard of the Victorian period, but I connected her to it through something she enjoys----fashion. She has also been researching the Elizabethan period. She reads my blog, so she will know that I talked about her. lol.
At least I know that I will be getting paid through the end of the summer so that allows me a little time to find what I am supposed to do. I followed the directions to come out to Kipnuk, Alaska, and I think I have made a difference here. I hope that I am able to see the sign posts for my new job as clearly as I saw the ones for this one.
Craving your prayers for guidance..
Debbie

Snow Pictures

The little girl in this picture is standing on about four feet of hard-packed snow. The boys who were shoveling only shoveled down far enough that we wouldn't have to climb a huge hill to get to work. This was five blizzards ago!

These boots were INSIDE my Arctic entry. That white thing you see to the left of them is OUR FREEZER.

ME LOVE COOKIES

One of my sorority sisters put on facebook that her daughter was selling Girl Scout Cookies and wanted to know if anyone wanted to buy some. We did. YUMMY

A Note About My Family

For those of you who read my blog for my cutting irony and wit, this blog may not be for you. For those of you who read my blog for an insight into what I thinking, this is for you. For those of you who read my blog for some other reason, I am just using you to create a great example or parallelism. (English 101 term: Parallelism).
I know I usually talk about Alaska, the weather, the people, or the food; but the mood strikes me to blog about something else--my wonderful family. A family that I love a "bushel and a peck" even though I don't tell them enough.
I got the sweetest card from my family yesterday. It was a "just to let you know we are thinking about you" card, and it was the greatest thing ever. The weather has really had me down lately, and my mom thought I could use some cheering up. My niece, who is totally too cool do anything that is even remotely uncool, even drew me a really great picture of the beach. It was supposed to make me feel warm. Well, surprisingly, it did. Just maybe not in the way she had intended. There was also a note from my mom telling me what she and my dad were up to. She was telling me about all the wonderful stuff they are doing. The great part is that she was just writing it so I would know what they were doing. I don't think she realizes that the stuff that she wrote about is so absolutely amazing. My wonderful parents are always going out of their way to help someone else.
My mom and dad send me a box on regular occasion. It is sort of a "things I miss from civilization" box. The box that is coming soon has Easter oreos in it, plus no telling what other sort of wonderful goodies. These little packages are the bright spots in my cold, wintry days.
I am even going to say something nice about my brother....I know, shock right? My brother has been living in my house while I am away (housesitting as it were, and keeping me from having to pay utilities on a house that I am thousands of miles away from). He has been taking care of things for me, planting the shrubs that I want planted but will be too late to plant, and just keeping an eye on things in general. Now, you may wonder what the big deal is about somebody living in your house. My brother, bless his heart, is following all the insane rules I have about my house: no shoes in the house, sweep constantly and mop even when the floor is clean, etc. He is also feeding my car-chasing dog, and taking care of my yard. This all is going on while he is working a full-time job and providing for the afore mentioned really cool niece. (I am going to email him later today and ask him to plant some flowers for me when the weather there clears up a little.) This comes from the brother that I fought with like crazy when we were growing up. I guess we grew out of it.
My niece has her first softball game this week. It is the first softball game of her senior year. She enjoys softball a lot, and I really wish I could be there to watch her. I hope she knows how much I miss her and think about her. I can't wait to get home in May to see her GRADUATION. Holy cow, wasn't she just born like yesterday. We are going to Costa Rica for her graduation trip, and I hope we will have a really great time together without killing each other. My mom says we fight sometimes because we are just alike....she's probably right.
Well, I know that this blog isn't really very interesting for you, but I needed to put it out there.
Waxing sentimental.
Debbie

PS. The next blog will be about stuff that might interest you more.

It's 4AM, Do You Know Where Your Blizzard Is?

Groundhog's day is supposed to be in February, right? Then why do I feel like I am reliving the same day over and over and over? It is 4:39 A.M. (yeah, you heard me A.M.) and I am awake. WHAT? This is coming from the person with diagnosed narcolepsy, and I am awake at "4 o'clock in the blessed AM" (bonus point for knowing what show that is a quote from). The latest blizzard (I think this is number eight) has me awake. The wind is blowing really hard. I don't even want to venture a guess at what the speed is. Fast enough to make a creepy howling noise, shake my house, and have me awake in what I consider to be the middle of the night. On top of all the lovely wind noise, my allergies are awake and kicking too. You may be wondering what the correlation is between allergies and wind. Well, that's easier than it sounds. The house where I am living has a little mold-in-the-walls problem. When the wind blows really hard, it shakes loose some of the mold, and my eyes feel like I have been sprayed by mace. (Reason #2 that I am awake).
I promise that, if the weather ever gets calm enough for me to get out and take some pictures, you will see how much snow we are getting. There are several houses in the village that have so much snow next to them that you can walk right up onto the roof. We need about another foot to be able to walk onto ours without having to jump a little. Kids have been climbing up and sledding off roofs in the village. You are probably wondering why the kids are out playing in such horrible weather. To them, as long as the wind is below about 25mph and the temp is above -10, the weather is fine for playing. Their parents let them go out in all sorts of mess that my mother would have a stroke if I went out in even now. And some of them aren't dressed for the weather. Now, I am not talking about having baggies on your hands and bread sacks on your feet like we did when it snowed when we were kids. (If you don't get that, you aren't old enough). I see kids out playing in the snow with just sweatshirts and jeans. Not bad if you are only going to be out in snow like we have or for a few minutes, but this is ALASKA.
I had a boy who wanted to shovel the porch to make some money to take with him to the regional basketball tournament (before you think we have a great team, EVERY team goes to a regional tournament because there are so few teams out here). I had him come in and eat something about half-way through. He wasn't wearing any socks. I asked him where his socks were. He said he didn't want to mess them up. I gave him a pair of socks to wear (not those crazy patterned socks I always wear, but real winter socks). Can you imagine going out to shovel snow with no socks? He isn't the first kid I have seen with no socks in this kind of weather. Kids come by all the time wanting to visit--it's a big deal for them to get to come inside "teacher housing" and see what it's like--and a lot of times they have no socks on.(In Alaska, you take your shoes off when you enter someone's home.) I can't even imagine going without socks in the fall, but this is the middle of winter, for heaven's sake. I try to give them socks to put on when I can.
Wow, this was going to be a rant about the weather, and it turned into something all together different. The wind is still howling, the pitch has gone up a little so that means the speed is up. I certainly hope we have a delayed start this morning. I wouldn't want to be a second or third grader walking a mile to school in this.
I am going to TRY to get a little rest before I have to get up. I won't be going back to sleep, but at least maybe I can let my mind rest a little. I also need to take some allergy medication (which might help in the resting part).
Hoping that tomorrow will be a different day.
Debbie

I'm Not in Kansas Anymore (Or Alabama, or Tennessee, or ANY Place SANE)

Good Grief, Toto, let's get the heck out of this weird place, whatever it is. I now know how Dorothy felt when her house was being moved up and around by the wind. On Wednesday we had yet ANOTHER blizzard. I have lost track. I was in my teeny, tiny little house listening to the wind SCREAM. Literally, it sounded like people screaming. It was the most unnerving thing I have ever experienced. Then, the wind started to pick up. I think the top speed was something like 78mph. I started hearing strange noises. Imagine, if you can, the sound of a gigantic metal butterfly flapping by your house. That's what I heard. It was pieces of metal roofing that had been ripped off in the wind and taken flight for their maiden (and hopefully last) voyage. I only wish that I could describe to you that noise. I can replicate it with sounds, but I can't for the life of me figure out how to write those sounds out. All night long, I heard things go flying by. It was like being in a torndao that lasted ten hours. When I went to work the next day, there was a very large piece of metal sticking out of the snow in front of my house. I had my camera, but it was just too cold to stop long enough to take a picture.
Fast forward two days. It's Friday and we are having ANOTHER BLIZZARD. I know you think I am exaggerating. I assure you---I'm not. Check with the national weather service. Our house sounded like it was being attacked by giant hammers. I lay in the bed waiting to get the call that school was cancelled. No call came. It was almost 7:45 (we have to be at work at 8:30) so I called somebody to find out if maybe we just missed the call. The person I called said that the principal had decided that the kids wouldn't have to come to school BUT THAT WE WOULD WORK!!!!! Are you freaking kidding me? I wouldn't even send somebody ELSE's dog out in this weather. I decided to call the school for myself. The principal answered. I asked, "What's the deal with school?" She said that she had decided that the kids wouldn't come but we would have a workday. Now, did I mention already that there was a BLIZZARD???????? So, I put on as much gear as I could find and walked out the door. Somebody check my sanity....because this is NUTS!!!! I was up to my thigh in snow before I was five feet from my house. It took me about fifteen minutes to get here (yes, I said HERE like as in I am at school). This is normally about a three minute walk. Can you tell that I am less than happy with this whole situation. On top of the BLIZZARD, I have a sore throat, a cough, and I think I am coming down with the flu, but by golly, I am here. What am I doing??? Gee, looks like I am writing this blog. See, work days aren't any good to people like me. I keep all my work, I don't know, CAUGHT UP so there is nothing for me to do on these days. We are going to have "meetings" at 10:00 and a math inservice this afternoon. The meetings will probably do me NO good, and well, I just don't teach math so I will be "working" some more. I might as well be sitting on the moon for all the good this "workday" is going to do me. At least I wouldn't have to worry about being blown across the Tundra if I were sitting on the moon.
I can see a window from where I am sitting on my computer. Do you know what I see out that window?? White. That's it...WHITE. No village, no houses, no nothing (pardon the double negative, but sometimes you have to sacrifice correct grammar for the sake of making a point). And I WALKED to work in this. Somebody examine my head. I definitely am NOT in Kansas, or any place remotely sane anymore.
Wondering what kind of maniac I am.
Debbie

New Power News--Is that redundant?

Ok, here's the latest on the power situation. The school is now running its generator 24-7 because the village generator is having a tough time with its "load". Not TOO problematic. Maybe it means that the village power, which you will remember brings light into my little world LITERALLY, will be more consistent. See, that's exactly what I thought, too. Au contraire. They had us both duped. **Side note...you ever wonder why people are called BIpeds instead of DUpeds? *** Anyway, back to the power situation. Our maintenance guys, also know as Gabe and Adolph--yeah lots of Adolphs in the village, apparently Alaska missed out on the whole Holocaust thing--sent out an email today about the power. They told us that anyone who lived in housing that was not connected to the school generator, i.e. ME, needed to make alternate plans in case the village generator went out indefinitely.
Ok, I have TWO problems with that. First, what exactly does in case the generator goes out INDEFINITELY even mean? Are we talking several hours, several days, or even several weeks? Two, where the heck am I supposed to make alternate plans to stay? The local Hilton? Oh wait, that's right, the Hilton is SIX HUNDRED MILES AWAY! People who come into the village as itinerants stay at the school in sleeping bags that they bring. I spend enough time at the school; I certainly don't want to start sleeping there. Besides, have you ever been in a school at night? It's a CREEPY place. AND, I would have to use the school shower. Don't even get me started on how disgusting that would be. Those of you who know me know that I am a CLEAN FREAK. Community showers are NOT, repeat NOT, my idea of a good time. They aren't even my idea of the Spanish Inquistion....much, much worse.
So, I am considering my options. One, run away. (My favorite, but one that would leave me with no income). Two, run away...wait, I already said that. Two, sleep at the school IF the situation arises. NO WAY. Three, spend my nights sleeping on Kris and Paula's couch. They are LOVELY ladies, but the have two dogs who are VERY early risers. Four, pray like crazy that it doesn't come up. Gee, Wink, can I get door number four please?? So, those of you who are of the praying mind set, please pray for our village generators. To those of you who aren't of the praying mind set, why aren't you? Pray for our generators anyway. You could use the practice.
Hoping that there will be lights and heat when I wake up tomorrow.
Debbie

Where was Debbie when the lights went out AGAIN??

Village power, or lack thereof, is really starting to get ANNOYING. First, a little background story....Kipnuk is so far from anything that we aren't actually connected to any sort of power grid. The whole village is run on generators. That means, if the generator goes out, the lights go off. Well, that has happened A LOT lately. The generator has gone down for at least an hour EVERY SINGLE DAY for the past ten days. Now, you may be saying to yourself...self, what's the big deal if the power is off for an hour or so? That doesn't seem too inconvenient. That wouldn't be terribly inconvenient except that our heat runs on electricity and our house isn't very well insulated. If it were around 50 degrees, that wouldn't be a huge deal. BUT, when it is about -20 degrees, it starts to become a problem.
Well, last night the power went off AGAIN. The guys from the village called and told us that the power was going to be off for the rest of the night because the generator was torn up and they didn't have the part needed to fix it. Oh, and we had our fifth blizzard in like two weeks yesterday so there was a LOT of snow and terrible winds. Lots of snow plus 60+ mph winds=COLD!!!!! Well, the school has its own generator for times when the village generator goes down and the school still has to run. It is also connected to the majority of "teacher housing." Did you catch that word majority? Guess whose house doesn't fall into the majority? You got it. MINE. The generator is right next to my house but, for some reason, the lines don't run power to my little green home. I had to seek out other shelter for the night. I spent the night at the home of the ever-wonderful Kris and Paula. Thank goodness they feel sorry for a fellow Southerner here in the Frozen North.
Miraculously, they had managed to get the village power back on this morning so I was able to go home to a house that was above meat packing temperatures. I had some breakfast and was doing some laundry when the power went out AGAIN!!!!!! It is very frustrating. You would think that, in an area where a whole village with elders and babies, they would take better care--even preventative care--of their generators.
Another added bonus to all this frozen loveliness is that we had to go to school yesterday, which was Saturday. We were making up the day we missed on Wednesday when they called school off because of a blizzard/white out. If I say that I am counting down the days until school is out, you can believe it. This winter has been a very harsh one, even according to the Natives. I really like the village and the people, but I am ready to be back in Alabama.
Not in the dark at this moment.
Debbie

WIND

You know it's windy when the icicles form at AN ANGLE!!!!!!!!!! This is the front of one of the buildings in teacher housing. The wind was in excess of 50 mph

Extra Extra: Southerner Shovels Snow

Well, we had ANOTHER BLIZZARD yesterday. It was so bad that they called off school. Basically that means that we had a complete white out. This was the third or fourth time in two weeks (I'm losing count) that we have had blizzard/white out conditions. These lovely blizzards have led to a first for me. I had to shovel snow. The reason being that there was snow up to my chest blocking my door. The first couple of days, I just sort of jumped out and rolled or slid down the hill toward the boardwalk. When I got home, I would have to jump down into the house. That got old, so borrowed a shovel, seen in the pic, and got busy. I shoveled enough for us to be able to get in and out, and it took about an hour. (See after pics) My shoulders were so SORE that night I was afraid that I would be dead in the morning. Then, another blizzard and more snow and it is all piled up again. ARGH, it's like trying to empty a pool with an eyedropper. I spoke with several people, and they all say that this is the MOST SNOW Kipnuk has had in as long as they can remember. We have only had maybe two or three planes since Saturday.
Under all this snow somewhere.
Debbie

BLIZZARD

Brrrrr. We are in the middle of a MAJOR BLIZZARD. The school sent the kids home early. If it is ALASKA and kids get out because of weather, you know it's BAD!!!! The wind is blowing at about 50 mph and the snow is blowing like CRAZY. You can't see the building out the windows of the school. When I walked home for lunch, one of the drifts across the boardwalk was over my head so I had to turn around and go the other direction. Several times I almost got blown over. I had to forward and make myself less of a target for the wind.
I would have never thought that so much snow could fall in such a short space of time. It is a little daunting for someone from the South, where they close schools if there is even a hint of snow.
I went home from school yesterday to find that my doorknob had frozen and I couldn't get it. I spent about ten minutes walking in 60mph+ winds (for a trip that usually takes about three minutes) and found myself thigh deep in a snow drift on my porch with a door that wouldn't open...did I mention the WIND???? I wanted to cry. I walked back down to someone else's house to try and call someone from maintenance to let me in. The ladies commented on how haggard I looked. I was soaking wet. I probably looked like a little kid who had lost their first pet. I was spent. That was the first time, since I have been here that I really WANTED to go home. I finally got it..about fifteen minutes later.
I tried to take some pictures, but all you could see was white. I might as well be taking pictures of a piece of typing paper.
If I don't blow away, I will post again soon.
Debbie

Mount Redoubt

Here's a picture of Mount Redoubt. Several of you have been asking me about it. It is about 100 miles SW of Anchorage. Depending on the height of the plume and the wind direction at the time of eruption, it could cause problems for us here in the village. If the wind is blowing toward Anchorage, and the plume is less than about 15,000 feet, we could lose mail service for a while. Loss of mail service also means loss of grocery delivery.
Hoping that the wind is blowing SOUTH.
Debbie

Back in the Village Again

I wish I could figure out how to make little musical notes beside my titles. :)
I made it back to the village yesterday a little before lunch. I came back to find my classroom a mess and my students doing nothing. I wanted to scream. Those of you reading this who are teachers understand.
Luckily, all my groceries and luggage made it back to the village in one piece. I still have some soreness in my teeth from my root canal, but it is nothing I can't handle. I might whine a little, but that's ok, right?
They are working on putting in new water tanks for the school because the old ones are going to be torn down when they add on to the school. The guys who are here working on them have to drive huge pylons into the perma frost. They are doing this with some sort of hydraulic pile driver that hits the pylons every two seconds. Now, imagine having to hear a LOUD metal sound every two seconds. It is VERY annoying. ARGH. It is right beside the school and the school vibrates a little each time the driver strikes home. It's like living on a giant heart.
I am not feeling terribly witty today so I am going to cut this short. I will be posting tomorrow or the next day about prom. Keep on the lookout.
Trying not to go insane.
D

An Extra Day in Anchorage and a ROOT CANAL

The last you heard from me, I was in Anchorage awaiting my trip to the dentist. Well, I went. She said I needed a ROOT CANAL. She called another doctor who said he could take me at 7:00 a.m. the next day. Normally they open at 9:00, but he would come in early to see me. As a result, I got to spend an extra night in Anchorage. Since I got to stay an extra day, I went to the mall.
I got up super early and went to the dentist and got my root canal. :) Then, I went to the original dentist and got the permanent filling put in (why can't the root canal guy also do the permanent filling????)
Then, I went to the airport to fly to Bethel. Somehow, I ended up in first class. Which was great because I had more room and could rest and recover from my procedure. We flew past Mt. Redoubt and could see the steam coming off. No eruption yet....just steam.
Made it into Bethel and went to wait for the "little plane". After waiting a couple of hours, they told us that there would be NO flight to Kipnuk this evening because of the weather.
Luckily, my friends who live in Bethel were willing to let me crash at their place AGAIN.
I hope I get back into the village tomorrow.
D

Anchorage and the Volcano

I arrived in Anchorage around 11:00 p.m. My flight out of Bethel was delayed over an hour, but no one seemed to know why. Go figure. I couldn't rent the car I had planned to rent because my drivers license expired this week. OOPS. I had to take a taxi to my hotel. The driver had NO business being a driver. He ran a red light (not yellow RED) and then when we got to the intersection, he asked ME which way downtown was. Luckily, I knew.
I am staying at the Sheraton in Anchorage. It is a very nice hotel. I got my room for $66 a night. I checked with the desk when I came back from dinner tonight, I asked if the room would be available for tomorrow night, just in case I need to stay in town another night. The lady at the desk said that the room I am in usually goes for $159. Gotta love hotwire.
I went to Northway Mall today. It wasn't a great mall by any stretch of the imagination, but it was a MALL!!!! I went to Joann's and bought some fabric for the parka one of the ladies is making for me. I also went into a Regis and got some things. Most of the other stores I had never even heard of. I went into a Carr's (grocery store) that is attached to the mall. I had forgotten how beautiful flower arrangements are. They have a floral department and I looked around for about twenty minutes. I couldn't believe all the fruit and vegetables they had. I wanted to buy it all.....we seldom get fresh fruit or vegetables in the village. Maybe once every two months, and then they aren't always in the best shape. I had a wonderful sandwich in the deli there. I could only eat about half of it (and wasn't going to be in a position to take the rest with me) so I gave it to a guy who was sitting around the food area.
Then, I took the People Mover (city bus) back downtown and walked around a little while. I took my purchases back to the hotel and took the People Mover to the Fred Meyer on Northern Lights Blvd. I bought a ton of groceries to take back to the village with me. There were a LOT of people buying masks in case the volcano decides to erupt. (More about that later.) I had a lot of stuff so I took a taxi back to the Sheraton. I boxed all my stuff up and decided to head out to dinner. While I was waiting on my cab, a slightly intoxicated guy decided that he thought I was pretty so he talked to me the whole time I was waiting for my taxi. He invited me to dinner and for a drink. He apparently works for one of the oil drilling companies and this was also his first trip into Anchorage in some time. I went to dinner (by myself) and had a wonderful filet mignon. I also had Key Lime Pie. It was YUMMY!!!!
I am back at the hotel and am not looking forward to going to the dentist tomorrow. I guess all the stuff I have been able to do in Anchorage will be worth the trip to the dentist. MAYBE.
Now, on to the volcano, I know that a lot of people have been reading about it. The news said earlier that it was steaming (a result when LAVA gets in touch with ICE), but it isn't spewing ash yet. If it starts to spew while I am here, I may be here longer than planned. The planes can't fly through the ash because the little bits of rock in it can blow up the engines. They say it isn't a matter of IF Mount Redoubt will erupt, but WHEN. Maybe it will wait until after I get out of here. Spending extra time in Anchorage would be great, but it would also be very expensive.
If it erupts and the wind is blowing toward the north, it might mean no mail or deliveries into the village for a while. Alaska has a lot of volcanoes. I guess they get used to it.
Not looking forward to the dentist.
Debbie

Cold Weather, A TRIP, and a Favor

Brrrrrrrrr. It's a little chilly today. The temperature, as I am writing this, is -9 with the wind chill at -35. We have been spoiled because we had several days where the weather was in the POSITIVE teens. :) I have actually walked to the post office and the store this week without freezing. I was planning to go to the post office today, but that might need to be put off for a couple of days.

I get to go to Anchorage. I am SO excited. It has its good and bad points. The good points are that I will be able to eat in a restaurant and have food that I didn't have to help cook or clean up. I will be able to do some grocery shopping. I plan to eat fresh fruit and vegetables until my eyes bug out. lol. I also will have a chance to take a shower for more than three minutes. I might even take a BATH, if I don't forget to buy something to scrub the tub--hotel tubs...SCARY. The bad side is that I am going to Anchorage to see the dentist. Now, I really like the personality of my dentist at home, but I HATE the experience. I am having some problems with my jaw, and there is a dentist in Anchorage that specializes in problems with TMJ. I have made my arrangements. Now I just have to hope that the weather is good enough for me to actually get TO Anchorage.

Last, but certainly not least, it is getting close to time when we will have our "Prom". Several of you sent dresses last year, and the girls LOVED them. Most of you have seen the pictures from the prom. I am again requesting that you look in your closets, your daughters' closets, your nieces' closets, or at your local store to find formals/prom dresses to send for the girls to use. The majority of these girls are VERY modest, so please keep that in mind. If you want to help, please contact me via email or facebook and I will give you all the information you need. Everyone who helped last year said that it was really a blessing for them. I look forward to your interest and responses.

Trying to stay warm.
D