technicolor tundra

pictures out and about in bethel- mostly taken from the boardwalk i take to and from work. boardwalks are all across the tundra because it's usually too wet, muddy, and spongy to walk on when the ground is not frozen.


sun setting on our street


who knew flat land could be so gorgeous?

our house in the middle of our street

bring it on

going through our cold weather gear- getting ready for the snow in a few weeks!a ski mask, goggles, gloves, and a beaver fur hat may keep me warm...maybe.

onward and upward

picking up some side work doing some construction at the house being built across the street from our humble abode. the one good thing about the only consistent thing about the weather is it's inconsistency allows for some daily kick ass rainbows.

2 legit 2 quit

the trifecta of residency has been completed. in the past few weeks i have received: a library card, health insurance, and an ADL (alaska driver's license). the last being the most trying and eventful- but the written test isn't such a crap shoot when your boss is the driving instructor and has all of the answers to every possible version of the test- however, some of the questions seem obsolete considering- we have one stop sign, no traffic lights, and no highway let alone on ramps and off ramps. the only hope of putting my knowledge to use is when the ice road starts rolling- hopefully i'll spot some ice road truckers. incidentally, the bethel dmv is one woman show- a woman- barely stands 5 feet tall and operates the entire operation in one room- with a blue tooth and a step stool so she can see over the counter. it's the most efficient dmv i've ever witnessed. although it was pretty bittersweet having to surrender my maryland license.

above is a picture of the gang (l-r: courtney, chelsea, kaela, bridget, myself, and krissy) at hangar lake- where bush pilots park their single and double prop planes. it was a great fall night- excellent for taking pictures.

28 days later

so, we're nearing the one month mark of "sj: the year of the jv" and here are some things that one month ago, i never thought i would be doing today, 28 days later:

-driving f150s and suburbans full of teenagers and/or trash around 16 miles of local road
-being trained to be a eucharistic minister
-gutting & filleting fish daily
-having the highlight of most days be when the mail comes (thank you everyone!!)
-meeting the us secretary of education & alaskan senators
-teaching psychology (who uses their degree?)
-picking berries in our backyard
-getting exciting when gutting and discovering it's a female fish- yeeaaaa fish eggs!
-breaking down and spending 5 dollars for a box of triscuits
-climbing over and under the alaskan pipeline to get anywhere
-wearing sneakers
-eating school lunch (including government cheese)
-looking forward to sub-zero temps because then the mosquitos will stop biting
-loving life as a tundra woman

it's been a crazy month with lots of laughs and lots lots lots of "is this really my life?" moments- but it can only get crazier from here. thank you to everyone for the cards, emails, packages, and phone calls. i hope you have been enjoying my responses on at least a 4 hour delay.