Amy's Baaa-aack

Hello again from Alaska! I'm back!! Just to visit this time though. :)

I just arrived in sunny Alaska last night. In fact, it was sunnier at 10:30 pm when I landed than at 7:30 pm when I left Seattle; though that was mostly due to the amount of clouds rather than the amount of sun. This flight was only my second time flying by myself, and I was very fortunate that nothing too crazy happened. Everyone seemed to be in a very good mood at Sea-Tac - smiling, joking and even speaking in a sing-song-y voice once or twice. I wonder if they all just got a bonus or something??

The only 'mishap' (if you can even call it that) is that my flight to Portland (where I was supposed to have a 45 minute layover) was delayed twice, until eventually I was supposed to land 5 minutes after boarding for my next flight. As a result, they transferred me and a few others on to a direct flight to Fairbanks! I ended leaving an hour later and arriving 40 minutes earlier - all for the same price!

One thing that I noticed right away is that this is not the same place I left. I left snow and dark. Now it is super green and sunny. Alaska has been experiencing a heat wave (90+ degree temperatures). It is bringing me back to when we first arrived, because I really only saw 1-2 weeks of Summer before Fall started.

With the heat comes mosquitoes. When they say there are a lot of mosquitoes, there are a lot of mosquitoes. :) The bug spray works great though!

One of the things I was looking forward to most was meeting Tali, my 'niece'. Tali is adorable! And energetic. And still a puppy even though she doesn't always look like it.

The house is actually full of animals now. Tali (the dog) and Smelly (the cat) of course, but Nuna (a dog) is here visiting for a week or so, and Leo (a cat) is also visiting. So, it is a full house and I love it! We took the dogs for a walk and we each got to hold one, it's great!

Since so much has changed (weather outside and decor inside) it is so odd being back. It's like I'm in a memory, but the memory has changed. I don't always have the best memory, so it's interesting to see what I do and don't remember. For example, I looked at the light switch for the bathroom and could not consciously remember which was the light, but I just let my arm do what it wanted to do and I was correct. Same for the bedroom light, as I was walking into the room I couldn't remember where the light was, but while my brain was thinking this my arm accurately turned the light on even though it was behind the door and dark in the room. Yay for muscle memory! It's odd... I've been gone longer than I was here... but I was still here for a substantial amount of time. As weird as it feels to step back in time, it is great and I'm very happy to be here so far!!

Best part: Laura said she hasn't seen a moose in months, yet on our drive to campus today there was one grazing on grass right by the road. I think he was welcoming me back! :)

Living Room Revamp

You wont believe this, but I finally have after shots of the work done in the Living Room.  I know... I didn't believe it would happen either.  But it did, so here is a little tour of the place.

First picture: original state (maybe a bit messier than we usually kept it, but that really provides a good contrast that makes the after shots look way better.  Second picture: after painting, but before the floor was put in.  Last picture: the after shots.  New paint on the walls and new vinyl flooring.

The couch area (from the kitchen)

The couch area.. again...

Dining room and doorway

View from our bedroom.

From the perspective of a very tall person entering our house. 

I'm quite pleased with how much more mature the place looks now. It went from a sort of vacation cabin to an actual house. Which makes me very happy!

p.s. The color most closely aligns to the last picture of each series, which was taken once there was enough daylight in the sky to flood the room with light.  I would go back and fix the levels some more in the first photos, but that would take more time than I'm willing to put in at this point. Especially for how little we would gain from it.

No Cameras

Ummmm... we still don't know where our cameras have gone since the rushed packing on the Friday that the flooring project started.  So there won't be any photos of the improvements until we have found at least one of our cameras.  Sorry to keep you in suspense..

Since I know you are all in suspense.

Sorry You're Sick

Just so you all know, we are fully moved into our place.  On Thursday the dry float was completed.  I went home around 4 or 5pm and we worked on cleaning, dusting, moving furniture, rearranging, and reorganizing our lives for the next 6 hours.  It was a long evening, but by the end, our place looked roughly like our place, except with nicer floors.

It's really good that we got that done on Thursday because on Friday Diana woke up feeling poorly and within an hour of my arrival on campus had already thrown up.  She had a pretty bad Friday.  I started feeling worse in the early afternoon and heading home just in case.  By the evening I was pretty bad too, but I feel like I shouldn't complain because at my worst I was way better than Diana's medium.  We had a night of aches and pains, chills and sweats, coming ups and outs. By Saturday I was substantially better, just a pounding headache at most movements and achy muscles.  Diana was still reeling from it, and wasn't feeling much better until late last night, or maybe this morning really.

It was pretty miserable, but now that I'm out of it, I can honestly say this:  1) I am really glad that we got everything moved to its place and were at home when we got sick.  It made things 100x better.  2) I'm glad it happened over the weekend (and that my professor was understanding about a late assignment because of it), and that I am was not in the field when it hit.  I'll be flying back to South America in 2 weeks, and it would be utterly miserable to feel like that while there (especially at the bunkers with no running water and an open-faced 'outhouse').

Anyway, once things are fully put together, and we have had time to appreciate our new floors, we will show you some before and after photos.  It'll look way nice.

A Flooring Story.

Over winter break, the carpet got a bit ripped.  We think it was Chloe.  This led to the idea of getting new floors and painting the walls.  Walls have been painted, floors have been picked out, ordered, and arrived.  We are ready to put in the new floor!

Friday afternoon: get a call from Diana saying that we need to rip up the carpet now since the landlords and handyman want to come over and check out the floors so that we can get it in the next day.  I'm thrown slightly off guard since we had planned on doing it in the evening, but it's ok since that idea was never adequately conveyed.  I run home, we move all furniture out of the living room.  They decide the handyman can pull it out himself, so I return to school.  Diana is left pulling up all extra nails and staples, sweeping and mopping the floor.  Handyman comes back to help, decides that there is a downward bow to the floor in the center of the room.

Saturday:  We go to Christina's to get out of the house while the flooring is installed.  Tali gets to play with Nuna.  We get word that it wont actually be done that night since they have to lift the floor by using a self-leveling agent.  I get upset that our estimated day of completion is now Sunday night, and we can move in Monday. But I get over it.

Sunday:  Since it was so cold, self-leveling agent didn't dry well and pulled up off the floor.  Bubble and stuff.  More is added in the now warmer room.

Monday: Sanding, leveling. Lay down glue to get tacky by the next day.

Tuesday:  Attempt to put in the floor.  A bubble forms and when they try to pull the floor back up, it rips up cement with it. That's not good.

Wednesday:  Put in a wood base, screwed in over the cement. That's about it.  Patience being tested on all fronts. At night talk about how we need to get back into the house and maybe the floor should just be floated (no glue) until the summer.  It should be quick and easy to do now.

Thursday: Minds are changed about just sticking to the plan.  Sounds like floor wont get done today.  Then minds change back to the plan.  Sounds like things will get done today. But that was the case every day between Monday and now, so....

It has been since Friday evening that our house has been a mess.  With problem after problem, we have been living at our landlords' since Saturday evening.  We had originally brought with us just a change of clothes and Tali's things, since the job was supposed to be done by Sunday night at latest.  By Sunday it was to be done Monday, by Monday it was Tuesday, by Tuesday it was for sure, definitely, no really why it wouldn't be done Wednesday.  Today it is Thursday and still incomplete.

Needless to say, it has been hectic.  We have been displaced from our home with limited resources (we grabbed our toothbrushes Sunday morning, and could get into the bedroom for new clothes on Tuesday evening).  Eating oatmeal for every breakfast.  We have to be extra careful that Tali doesn't do any damage to the house, which is difficult when our landlord's three year old son runs around yelling and dangling food right at her level, getting her riled up. The kid is sick, to top it off, and super grumpy about that. Diana has it worse than I do, since she's cooped up taking care of Tali while I run off to school and get to interact with other people and get my mind off of it.  And, it's obvious that I would be this way, but both of us need time alone, to feel we can turn off and just be at ease.  We need to not have people around us sometimes.  It's emotionally draining to be in this situation.  But whenever we go through a hard time, we feel grateful for having each other.   We don't turn on each other... we only help each other to feel better about the situation, and it's so nice to have someone there.

As of JUST NOW, I got a text message from Diana saying that she is cleaning the house.  I think that might mean that ITS DONE!  OOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMGGGGGGGGGGGGGG.  I will be so happy if it is! HOW WONDERFUL THAT WOULD BE!!

Once everything is put back to its place and all of the dust off of every surface (because, trust me, it's on every surface), I shall take photos to show you the transformation.  It's going to look awesome when all done.

And maybe at that point, it will have all been worth it. 

p.s.  Word from Diana is that it is "not down yet, he's been putting down screws most of the time he's been here.  He's going to go get lunch and some adhesive, then we have to clean off some glue from the floor that's being put down, and then we put it down"...  Whether that takes just hours, or days, at this point it a toss-up.  Your usual sense of time has no place in this project.

Alaska Weather

If you are at all interested in Fairbanks weather or climate trends, I enjoy this website.  Plus, it's got the temperature around the building I'm in right now and a view from campus.

http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/

This plot in particular leads to quite optimistic feelings around this time of the year:

http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/Climate/Fairbanks/Fairbanks_Temperature.png

A Very Alaskan Day

Well, to be technical, it spanned two days.  But it was in much less than 12 hours time.

Wednesday night as I took Tali out to make sure she went to the bathroom before heading to bed, I looked up in the sky.  For the first time since Diana arrived, we experienced the intersection of "clear skies" and "aurora activity", and the sky was full of a green aurora.  Despite being pretty cold (it's all relative... after spending a few days at 20, -10 feels much chillier than it does as you're warming up), I knocked on the window and pointed to the sky.  Diana threw on a jacket and some shoes and let out audible amazement at the lights. With our little Alaskan Husky, we took a family picture (except Smelly, who wouldn't dare get near to something that cold) under the green curtains.

Looking toward the east.  Roughly.  I don't have a very good concept of accurate direction from our house.

Enjoying the Aurora with Tali.

After about 30 minutes of being outside, we were cold and ready to head to bed, excited about the great view.  Next thing we know, morning rolls around (since Tali sleeps straight through the night and doesn't wake us up until morning).  Diana bounces out of bed, jaunts out the door to let Tali relieve herself from a night's worth of build-up, and what does she do?! Rush in and tell me that there is a moose just on the other side of the fence! So we hop out onto the porch and let Tali go to the bathroom ... she couldn't hold it much longer... and grab the camera to get shots of her eating away at twigs and branches.

The moose was probably 20-30 ft away and showed no sign of being upset or aggression.

Then I moved my position a little big and realized that there is another one hanging out too! Often there is a moose hanging out in the roadway about a half-mile away from our house.  But the day prior, I had slowed down for one moose, let her get off the road, and thought I was home-free.  But no! I go another 50 feet and there's another one! Slightly smaller and lighter.  It was the same pair eating on the vegetation next to our house.  I think it's a mother-daughter pair, but I can't imagine they will be together much longer because that daughter looks awfully full grown to me.

Older, darker one on the left and the smaller, lighter one on the right.

By the time I had packed up and headed to school, they had already made their way other to the typical spot in the road.  At least one had.  I imagine that they are usually both there, but one is just in the brush enough that you can't see her. For being so huge, they can be difficult to see.  On the day that I flew home for winter break, one jumped out right in front of us on my road.  Luckily we were going less than 20 mph, because we didn't see her until she had barged into the road.


And, for your viewing pleasure, more pictures of Tali.

Down at the pond

It's rare that she is both awake and staying still enough to get a good picture.

She jumped up into a snow path that Diana was following, originally created by a moose. She got the tiniest bit stuck at first, but made her way through the deep snow.

And, this is how Smelly feels about Tali.

Get away from me.

Photos

Just some photos of my Alaskan life.

A solar rainbow.  I make up names for it like 'circumsolar rainbow' and 'helio rainbow'.  It greeted me as I left work one day a few weeks ago.

A view of the sunset from our porch.

The only time it has got down to -40 since being back.

The end of "our" northern journey...

So, as of February, I have decided to stay down in Washington for the time being. This was a hard decision, because as everyone knows, I loved it up in Fairbanks. We spent the last weeks in Alaska with last hurrahs and bittersweet goodbyes. Though I was excited for Christmas and the chance to see my nieces, the main reason that I wasn't too sad on my way home was the fact that everyone else was leaving Fairbanks for the holidays, so it's not like I really wanted to stay there.

The holidays were wonderful. Lots of family time and catching up with friends. I got to visit with Laura once she followed me here a week after I arrived, which was a nice way to ease me out of the norm of seeing her all day every day. More importantly, Laura and Diana were reunited, which was amazing!!!

It took me the month of January to transition from long term vacation in Alaska to the mindset that I'm actually staying here and need to find a job. I was in limbo between the two for so long, because really I wished I could be in both places! It was a 50-50 split, and I finally got it to be 51-49 in favor of Washington, but that still leaves a lot of time to think about the losing 49.

What helped me move on from this limbo was starting to think about when I'll visit, and the mindset that if when I visit I miss it so much, I'll reconsider moving there. I'd like to visit in the winter and see all the snow, but if that's too soon to be a reality, I will for sure visit at the end of June for the longest day of the year celebrations.

I've been part-time nannying for my "niece", Evan, and babysitting Violet as well. I finally updated my resume and cover letter to reflect the type of job I'm looking for, and I started applying to jobs. I don't expect immediate results, because there are a lot of people looking for jobs, but I think the fact that I started to apply is a good sign for me to finally accept where I am living. :)

I decided to write this post because the end of the blog seemed abrupt, and it seemed more appropriate to have a conclusion. However this is only my conclusion. Laura and Diana are still up there, and I think it'd be cool if they still posted about their life, so I could read in. I also plan to write about trips I take to visit them, so this blog may just stay alive!

Summary

Hi guys!

It's been a while, but despite the fact that Amy has left me, returned to the land of moderate climate, I am still here. To those who care, here is how the last few months have gone:

Amy left.

I had finals.

I did well during my first semester.

I went home and visited with my family.

And had first Christmas on the 23rd.

On Christmas, I flew to Jamaica with Diana and her family.

Had 2nd Christmas.

On New years, I celebrated in Jamaica.

Mostly by sleeping until 1145, when I got up again.

Went back to Spokane and hung out with the other side of Diana's family.

Had 3rd Christmas.

Diana and I shipped 19 boxes and flew ourselves to Fairbanks.


Then we picked up those 19 boxes, bought a bunch of second-hand furniture to fill in what was missing, and have ourselves quite the home.  And it's getting even better (as of a few hours from now, it should be completely better).

While gone a dog ripped up a small bit of the carpet, we suspect it was Chloe.  This led to a series of escalating ideas that went from replacing the small area of carpet with carpet, to replacing it with linoleum (or vinyl or laminate, or whatever it is), to replacing the whole floor with it.  So we have false wood floors being installed (between now and the last paragraph, I learned that it might not get finished today and our house might be in disarray for at least another day.  Cool...).  We can't have wood because we live on permafrost and things shift and the house gets jacked up and lowered every so often. And because we had false wood paneling on the walls, and we can't live in a place with that much wood look, we painted the walls a very nice cream color and it looks real nice.  And soon it should look even nicer. I'll show you pictures once it's complete.


On another note, we got a puppy. Her name is Tali (like tally) and she was born on Christmas (at least by our calculations that she was 6 weeks old on the 5th).Here are some pictures:

The day we brought her home 11 days ago.  She's already grown from that size.

She finally got to play with a dog that wasn't a litter-mate.  And although she was quite timid at first, she got into it pretty quickly.  In fact, we are visiting with Nuna (the black lab) again right now and they have been playing hard.  Tali is passed out. 

The pond by our house is frozen and the landlords used a snow blower to clear off a section for ice skating.  It has since snowed and covered the ice with a few more inches of snow, but it's still clear enough that Tali can run around on it.

She's a snow dog!

She has an affinity for sticks.  She is pretty good at going on walks, and we are trying to teach her both to walk on leash, and stick around us when off leash.

That's the gist of my time since we last wrote. I hope you enjoyed.  I have more pictures for you of my very Alaskan day a few days ago. So stay tuned!