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
Friday, February 27, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
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
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
Sunday, February 22, 2009
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
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
Thursday, February 19, 2009
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
Thursday, February 12, 2009
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
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
Sunday, February 8, 2009
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
Thursday, February 5, 2009
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
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
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
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
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
Sunday, February 1, 2009
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
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
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