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

Picture Work

This is a picture from last year's Prom. I just wanted to get you thinking about how you can help. I will be asking about dress donations VERY soon.

A Little Bit of Disappointment and a Whole Lot of Fun

Well, today has been one of disappointments and rebounds (literally). We were supposed to have a jr high basketball tournament in the village this weekend. Three other teams were going to be flying in for it. Our jr high teams are made up of 6th, 7th, and 8th graders; boys and girls play on ONE team. Most schools wouldn't have enough kids to play if you divided them. Also, our high school girls' team was supposed to go to Scammon Bay for a game. Now, I have a friend who coaches one of the teams that was supposed to come in for the tournament. I was SO excited that she was going to be in the village. It is a treat for someone to come to see you out here in the middle of nowhere.
Well, around 10:00 the weather started going downhill FAST. The girls were supposed to leave for Scammon Bay at 11:00, and teams were supposed to start showing up in Kipnuk around 1:00. By 11:00, our girls were on the infamous "weather hold" and other teams were holding in their respective villages. The weather continued to get increasingly worse. At 2:30 or so, the girls' flight to Scammon Bay was cancelled and teams started calling Kipnuk to say they weren't coming. The jr high coach and the girls coach decided that the two teams should scrimmage.
Here's where the fun starts.....
I was getting ready to go home around 4:00 when one of the girls, Melody Chuckwuk, said, "Deborah, are you going to come cheer for me?" Now, I ask you, how could I say no? I said I would and took my snow boots back off, put my indoor shoes back on, and headed to the gym.
When we have basketball at the school, EVERYONE gets drafted to help. I have done the scoreboards, kept the books, (both things I had NEVER done before), taken money, you name it. Well, the coach said, "Here, do scoreboard." Sure, I thought. Why not. So, I set the clock for 6 minutes. Now, our jr high team has about twelve or thirteen kids, and our girls team has eight. At the end of the 6 minutes, they took a one minute break and went again. The jr high put a whole new team in and the same girls kept playing. Six minutes of scrimmage, one minute break. This went on for SIX periods and the coaches and the kids kept saying, "One more!" The kids played like this for TWO HOURS of almost non-stop, hard-core playing. Remember, the girls only had three subs. So, by the time, they were about an hour and a half into the practice, the girls had been playing almost the whole time and the jr high had swapped in and out. It was like watching the Keystone Cops play basketball. They were rolling on the floor after the ball, letting it go between their legs, everything you could imagine. And every time the buzzer would sound that the six minutes were up, everyone would say "AGAIN, AGAIN!" Even the girls, who I am sure at this point were about to die, were saying they should go again. At one point, someone was passing the ball, and one of the girls said, "Not me! Not me!" I laughed and laughed and laughed.
What made it even funnier was the fact that, even though this was a SCRIMMAGE, there were probably about 75 people (more than 10% of the village) there watching it. There's not a lot to do here, so when some sort of basketball thing is going on, people come out in droves. Basketball is like life here. The whole village can't get enough of it. So, each time there was a good shot or something funny happened, there was this huge reaction from the "crowd." It was like we were at the NBA finals, and this was only a practice.
So, to make a long story longer, my friend didn't come, the jr high tournament was cancelled, the girls will try to leave for Scammon Bay tomorrow, and I am trying not to get blown away.
Until we meet again.
Debbie

Blue Monday

For those of you who don't recognize it, "Blue Monday" is from a Vonnegut novel. Kurt Vonnegut has always been one of my favorite writers, AND we share a birthday.
As for why it was Blue Monday yesterday......Here at CPMS (Chief Paul Memorial School), we have what is called a "blue" schedule. Basically, that is the schedule we use when there is a funeral in the village and school gets out early--don't ask me why they chose blue.
Now, you may be thinking to yourself, "Self, why would school get out early just because there is a funeral in the village?" Well, the answer is simple. The school gets out early for funerals because, if we didn't, there would be no students in the school anyway. When there is a funeral, it is a village event. The WHOLE village turns out when there is a funeral. When you have a community of less than 700 people that is as isolated as this one is, everyone is related.
Yesterday was a Blue Monday because there was a funeral in the village. They let school out so that everyone could go to the funeral.
A little background on the young man who passed away. His name was Lewis Paul, and he was killed in a snowmachine accident late Thursday night/early Friday morning. He had a wife and five young children--one was a newborn and one recently adopted. They would have had the funeral sooner, but they had to wait for a coffin to come from Anchorage for the burial and his family to come in from another village where they were visiting relatives. We had no planes coming in to the village for the majority of last week, so the coffin didn't come in until late Sunday. They had the funeral on Monday, the earliest possible day. The reason that they have to have the funeral as soon as possible is simple; there is NO embalming practiced here in the village. That means, they basically keep the body COLD until the funeral can happen. The put the body on ice in the summer; and in the winter, they put it in the person's house or in the Sunday School building. When you go to the funeral, there is no heat on in the building....heat would be a bad idea for a room where there is a body that has been dead several days, if you see what I mean.
For the funeral, the have readings from the Bible and songs. (Most of the service is in Yupik.) Anyone who wants to can come up and sing, and whole families (extended) go up to the front to sing. I saw one funeral where one of the groups had about thirty people in it. Then, the mourners file past the body. Eventually, the service moves out to the cemetery. During this time of year, they can't BURY the coffin because the ground is frozen solid. So, basically, they take the coffin out to the graveyard and put it on the ground. They put a sort of chicken wire around the coffin to keep animals from getting to it. Then, as it warms up, the coffin slowly sinks into the ground over time. You can go out to the cemetery and tell how long various graves have been there because of the amount of "sinking" the coffin has done.
The picture in this post is one I took back in the summer. You can see the different "levels" of the coffins in the cemetery.
Debbie

Diamonds Sparkling and Winking in the Moonlight.

I only hope that I have the words to express to you what I saw because, try as I may, I couldn't get a picture to show its beauty. We have had quite a bit of snow as of late. Well, one day last week we had a particularly heavy snowfall. I was walking to work, and the moon was reflecting off the snow like a sea of diamonds. It was the most breathtaking thing I had ever seen. Each step caused a different pattern in the sparkles. It was so beautiful. It was also still snowing and the various snowflakes that were falling would catch the reflection of the moon and wink on and off. I told one of the other teachers, who was also walking to school at the time, that it was like snow from the movies. I actually remember thinking to myself, if someone were going to ask someone else to marry them, this would be the perfect setting. That same day, I went over to Kris and Paula's house for dinner. When I was walking over, I saw all the snow glinting and glistening with the reflection of the moon. I stopped to take a closer look at the snow that had piled up on the railing to their house. It was SO delicate. It was like little puffs of cotton, each little flake standing up individually and not all crushed down. As I looked, I could see the reflection of off individual snowflakes. It was so amazing to be able to see the details of all the wonderful, intricate patterns. I tried and tried to take a picture that would show the beauty that I was seeing, but I had no luck. Just imagine the snow that you see in your dreams. I have always wondered why people call snow a "Winter Wonderland", but now I know. I wanted to stay out there forever. I wanted to jump into a snow bank and just lie back and watch the snow fall. I have never wished to be a little kid (so those things would be ok) so much in my life. I wanted to tilt my head back, throw my arms out, and spin around in circles (like you always see people do in the movies). I hope that I can always see the world with the eyes that I saw that snow with.

You Wouldn't Believe It

You wouldn't believe what I was able to do yesterday. I made what Klinger from M*A*S*H would call a "first class scrounge". I traded one can of Coca-Cola for a head of lettuce, a cucumber, and some tomatoes. I couldn't believe my luck. One of the itinerant ladies was in the village and had the vegetables. She wasn't going to eat them, and offered them to me. She said that she would give them to me if I would trade her a can of Coke for them. You bet it did. SCORE!
I am using this blog entry to show my class how to blog, so later.
Debbie

Techno Eskimo

Several of you have asked for this to be on the net. Here it is. TECHNO ESKIMOS!!!! For those of you unfamiliar with this, it is a video that the students here submitted in hopes of winning technology for their classroom. They were assisted by Mark Broz, our history teacher.

Happy, Happy Joy, Joy

Well, another day in the tundra. We have had about three to four feet of snow, my guess, in the last thirty-six hours or so. It is supposed to continue snowing the next three days, but then it is supposed to warm up a little. We are expecting positive digits later this week.

I had the best meal last night. It was almost, not quite but almost, like being back in civilaztion. Many of you have heard me talk about the two wonderful ladies, Kris and Paula, who feed several of us on regular occasion. Well, last night was one of those occasions. We had delicious pork chops, potato salad, and corn. For dessert we had, are you ready for this, homemade ice cream and WAFFLE CONES!!!!!!!!!! Paula had to go to California for the funeral of her sister Kallie, and brought Kris a waffle cone maker back for Christmas. They were so delicious. The ice cream tasted like snow cream. Now, I know you are thinking to yourself, "Can't she have snow cream all the time???" The answer, unfortunately, is no. The snow here is SO DRY that it squeaks when you walk on it. It doesn't make for very good snow cream. :(
I was going to attempt Macbeth with one of my reading classes, but decided against it. Instead we are looking at a book of short stories by O. Henry. That way, I don't have to explain "gory locks". haha.
My new schedule gives me the last hour of the day to plan for things. Not my favorite time, but I guess I will deal. Hope you are all warm.

How COLD is it?

Sunday's temperature a balmy -18 with a wind chill or -32.  A very brisk snowfall.  Yesterday it was -43 for the wind chill.  To give you an idea of how cold that actually is, my hand sticks to the door knob of my house if I touch it without gloves on.  Also, we have ice on the INSIDE of our door.  There's ice about three feet up on the inside of our inside door.  That's cold.  We have a little "artic entry" and that leads to our "inside door"  that mean, that technically the ice is inside the house.  neat, huh?

The new semester starts tomorrow, and I should have gone up to the school and done some work, but it was just too cold.  My roommate walked to the post office and said that she felt like she had frost bite in her lungs.  I wonder if that is possible.  

We are supposed to warm up later in the week, to about -5, and I plan to take full advantage of it.  I haven't been to the "store" since I came back from holiday vacation, and I really would like to have a box of milk.  I will try to remember to take my camera to the store so you guys can see what sort of facilities we have here. 

Slavic finished with no other incidents, thank goodness.  We have had a lot of students absent, but it should improve on Monday.

Big times in the little village of Kipnuk.  Our kids are going to get to take drivers' ed and welding.  How, you may ask, are students going to take drivers' ed in a village with no roads??? It will be "virtual" drivers' ed.  I can't wait to see what that means. Apparently welding will also be done virtually.  At the end of the class, the kids can take the Alaska State Permit Exam and get their drivers' permit.  That way, if they are ever somewhere they can find a car, they will be able to practice driving.  Go figure.  I will definitely be updating everyone on that.

Warm wishes from your eskimo friend.

SHUT UP

Nothing about the village to report today. But something for my fashion-conscious friends. All of you know that I LOVE shoes, purses, and cute clothes. Most of you also know that I really enjoy watching TLC's What Not to Wear. Well, I was watching it tonight, and they had a shirt which I own as the after. :) :) I couldn't believe it. I told the lady I was watching with, "I have that top, I have that top." It was very exciting for me.
For those guys who are following my blog, you wouldn't understand, but you ladies do.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend. I will be working out a syllabus for a computer applications class with NO MATERIALS!!!!
D

Jingle Bells, Shotguns Shells, Yupik with a gun

Greetings Blog Fans,
It's a warm -45 this morning. I had an eventful evening yesterday that I know will interest you. As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, Slaviq (yupik spelling) started yesterday. Well, little did I know so much excitement would come as a result.
A little info on what happens. Groups go from house to house singing carols in Russian, visit a while, and get small gifts or candy from the host. Apparently there is also fireworks at the end of the night ( a little fact which no one happened to mention to me).
I was feeling kind of puny yesterday so I went to bed (for a nap) around 6:00 p.m. I woke up at around 11:55 p.m. (so much for a nap). I decided that, since I was up, I would have some hot chocolate. While I was drinking my hot chocolate, I heard some loud pops. I thought to myself, "Gee, where did they get fireworks?" I listened to the popping for a little while--it was WAY TOO COLD (around -50) to even thinking about going outside to see them. Occasionally I heard the pattering sound that you hear with fireworks. I finished my hot chocolate and went back to bed.
When I woke up this morning, my roommate asked if I heard the shotguns. Shotguns??? No, I told her, I heard fireworks. She said that there were fireworks but she heard shot guns too. Now, how does a girl from the city (her) recognize the sound of shotguns when I (a girl raised in the rural part of Alabama) thought they were fireworks. I thought she was just imagining things. Turns out that she was right.
When I got to school, I heard several people complaining about the shotguns. Man, I must be really naive to think it was all fireworks. Apparently, during the celebration, some people had out their shotguns---which everyone in the village owns---and were firing off shots of celebration and the pattering sound I heard was shot hitting the roof of my house. The people "celebrating" with their shotguns apparently had been shooting them up in the air within a couple of yards of my house (more specifically, right at the side of the Site Administrator's house). And then had moved a little farther along in the housing area and were shooting them in front of the special ed teachers' house.
Several people are going to file a complaint with our local VPO--village police officer. We don't really have any law enforcement in the village. Most people just behave or look the other way when someone else misbehaves. A complaint will have to be filed with the state troopers if there is any action to be taken.
I suggested to the site administrator that she speak with the priest in charge of Slaviq in hopes that he will speak to them about this before today's festivities begin.
I will let you know what happens.

Well, here goes.

Hello Readers,
Several of you have asked me repeatedly to start a blog about my outrageous adventures in Alaska. Hey, the public has cried out and so I have responded. I am not going to guarantee a laugh a minute or a smile a day, but I certainly will try to keep you informed and entertained.

Today is Wednesday. The actual temperature is around -22 with a wind chill of -43. It is so cold out that the inside of your nose (you know the stuff I mean, don't make me say it) freezes the second you walk outside. Even the natives are complaining about how cold it is? This comes from a group of people whose ancestors lived part of the year in houses made of ice.

Yesterday was the first day back to school for kids. Several of them mentioned my having gotten my hair cut and wanted to know WHY I had cut it. I tried to explain to them that it was easier to wash (a good thing when limited water is a factor) and takes less time to dry (a great thing when it is well into the negative digits). They couldn't understand that I would do that. Most of the people here in the village hardly ever cut their hair. I guess not being able to go to the local CostCutters or Sams is a hindrance.

Wow, there is a lot of pressure writing this. I don't feel at all witty or humerous today. One of the kids said something funny earlier, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was. Oh well.

Today is the first day of Slavik which is a celebration similar to Christmas or Channukah. We will be having Slavik in our village for the first time this year. Several students will go to other villages to celebrate Slavik with their families. Here at school we have a "subsistence or prolonged absence" form. I was asking one of the girls who had a form yesterday where she was going. She said, "To Kwig for Slavik". I asked her how that was subsistance and her sister said, "Because we get CANDY!" Subsistance is usually a time to gather food, clean fish, or prepare animals.

I will do my best to keep you up-to-date with this blog.
Debbie