A Paycheck, Wow!

Rain and snow, warmer temperatures.  Very icy.

I received my first paycheck on Friday, yippee!  It's a great feeling to finally be back among the employed!  


Kathy had a greatful client bring in a half dozen duck eggs to thank her.  That was nice.  Makes you think we live in Mayberry or someplace, right?  :-)  She fried them up and served them, and I didn't even notice any difference from chicken eggs.  When she first told me she had them, I thought sure they would taste different. 

Kathy drove to the Hydaburg office on Friday, which really surprised me.  This is one of the worst paved roads on the island, twisty and always much worse weather than other areas, plus there are no guardrails!  She drove very carefully, she said, and it took an extra 30 minutes one way.  


I worked for four hours on Saturday, putting books back on the shelves at the Craig Library.  It was totally emptied so new carpeting could be laid, and the walls repainted.  It will look spectacular when all put back together.  I didn't know this was going to happen.  About day three, I went by to return books and get some new ones, and walked in on empty shelves and lots of prep work going on.  I was that guy, asking "Are you open!"  Doh!   This is the best little library I've ever seen.  It sits up on a hill, and looks out over the harbor, to the islands, a perfect view to lose oneself.  With new carpeting and paint,  it will be even better! 

Our favorite coffeeshop is closing up and moving south, to Oregon, boo.  After three years, and four years on the island before that, they are moving to greener pastures, i.e., a better business climate.  Bummer.  They are really nice, and have a beautiful shop.  We've purchased quite a few locally crafted pottery items there.  



My new employer shot down my trip to San Diego.  Wow, this is a major bummer.  I was so looking forward to seeing family and friends, and warm sunshine.  I don't know how I can make it until God know when, when I see Henry again.

We had a nice long Skype session today with Henry and Kelli and Jared.  We've done this several times before, of course, but this time, it felt very different to me.  Before, they were less-than-satisfactory previews of my visit to San Diego.  I felt like I was being teased.  I could hardly wait for the end of February.  This time, it was my one and only chance to interact with the boy, and so felt much more important, and much more fulfilling.  He is something special, that boy, and his parents, too.  We got to see him running around the living room, riding the big dump truck we got him, only it's not so big now that he's grown so much.  He is quite a character.  I can't help wondering when I will see him next.



I talked to Brady today.  He was in Chicago last week.  They had a snow storm one night, which dumped a foot of snow on the city, closed the roads and even shut down the taxis.  Brady knew the office was just a mile from his hotel, so he started walking.  It took him and hour and a half!  He said the snow was a foot deep!  I forgot to ask him if he had the right boots on.


Tuesday he flies to Toronto for two days.  On February 20th, he flies to Halifax for 12 days.  He's hitting all the cold spots during their worst weather - lucky him.


Faith is at the Sundance Film Festival this weekend.  How fun would that be?  Faith and Brady also found out the breeder where they got their cats is going to replace Animal for free.  Since Pixie greats them at the door each evening hoarse from mewing all day, they thought this is a good idea.  

Snowing and Snowing, and Some Light at Work

Temperatures are hovering around 30 degrees, and there's been snow on the ground for a couple of days.  Today it snowed so hard between about 2:00 PM and 4:30 PM, I didn't recognize our car in the parking lot, and there were only about 12 cars!  No kidding!


Tomorrow brings the end of my first full week at work in a very long time, and it's been a strange one.  We had a consultant show up, arranged by the Director who no longer works for the tribe.  She was a wealth of information, and really got us going, us being me and the department assistant.  We were on a roll there for a couple of days.  Then, drama descended upon us, and she was gone, just like that.  We were both bummed.  She gave us enough information and training to keep going though, thank goodness.  Also made two good connections with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and am anxiously awaiting good information from them.  


Kathy had the car today, since she had a dentist appointment.  That's a funny story, as 1) she had met the hygienist at a meeting earlier this week, 2) one of the receptionists is our landlord, and 3) the other worker goes to our church and we had met her previously.  It's so different, working in a small town vs. an anonymous big city.  It takes some getting used to.


So, when my workday ended at 4:30 PM, for some reason I decided to walk to SEARHC to meet Kathy and go home together.  It was a little worse outside than I'd imagined, but it wasn't a blizzard, and I had my thick coat on, so it was more adventure and fresh air, except the snowflakes were big and blowing in my face.  I made it, though, then couldn't find the car!  Kathy wasn't answering her phones (she was in a session), so I waited, got impatient, and started walking home.  At least in this direction the wind was not blowing in my face, plus the snowing had slowed down.  Not a bad walk, altogether, and got my exercise for the day.  :-)

Easing Back into the 8 to 4:30, and Warming Temps

Klawock Cooperative Association ("KCA") Tribal Buildings

One week ago I got the call, taking me off the unemployment rolls, finally.  It took just 18 months, and 2,500 miles, but I'm now gainfully employed, thank goodness!  Thanks to Martin Luther King Day and a mix-up, I didn't start working until Wednesday, which was nice, as besides me having to adjust back into the working world, Kathy and I have to adjust to having two people get ready for work each morning, and figure out how we do this with one car.  Up to now, it's been very easy.

A week ago, our most challenging weather began, too, with an overnight snowstorm, and drastically lower temperatures, down to single digits.  Oh, and the sun came out!  That day began something like five straight days of clear skies, unheard of since we arrived!  This amazing brilliance had no effect on the daytime temperatures, though, as they stayed in single digits!  That's cold enough, believe me, but add even a little breeze, and my hands began aching within seconds of being uncovered.  Why would I uncover my hands then, you might ask?  Well, I had to in order to take pictures.  Even without the breeze, my face would go numb after just a few minutes:  of course, we had to continue our nightly walks for the sake of the dogs.  :-)  We even notice a big drop in the warmth of the cabin, as it dipped to 46 degrees overnight, a new record by far.

Brady texted me yesterday, from Chicago:  "It's 13 degrees here, do I win?!"  I had to text back yes, it's only 17 degrees here!

Today the temperature jumped up more, all the way to the high 20's, a big improvement, as cloud cover returned.    The ice on the water began breaking up.

Klawock Harbor and back of KCA Building

Back to my new job, Transportation Technician for the Klawock Cooperative Association, a tribe of mixed Tlingit and Haida Alaska Natives.  I'll be tracking costs and progress on tribal transportation projects, from paving roads to building roads, bikeways, and hiking trails.  It should be challenging, fulfilling, and interesting all at once, and working for a tribe is an extra bonus.  

Here's my desk, with a map of Greater Klawock on the wall.  Most of the projects I'll be tracking can be found on this map, but there are others that are outside the city limits.  Up in the right hand corner is Bob's Lake:  one of our projects is to build a trail to and around it.  On the bottom of the map, looking like tan ground, is the Klawock River, and another project will be improving the hiking trail that runs through the forest just above the shore of the river.  


It's been a fun week, and I'm excited to go back to work next week and continue learning more about my job, the projects, KCA, and Prince of Wales.  


How ironic it is that the very next morning after buying plane tickets to visit San Diego for two weeks and a day beginning the last week of February, I get a job!  Putting in for time off for just four weeks after I start is a little awkward.  I've offered to pare it back to a week and two days, and hope this is approved.  Keep your fingers crossed!

The view of the KCA docks out our office window.

Icebergs hung up by the receding tide and warming temperatures in the Klawock Harbor.

Just Call Me Transportation Tech Doug

Thursday, second day of work, and it was much like the first one.  It's a bit warmer, made it up to 17 degrees, and the clouds came in later in the day, so it got even warmer.  The forecast calls for three days of snow, maybe accumulating up to 12 inches, yikes!


My fellow new employee and I continued to read up on manuals around the office, files, and some resources on the Internet.  I did find an email that said if the City of Klawock couldn't drive the tribes snow-plow without damaging it, the tribe would add that task to the job description of the Transporation Technician (me!), and have him do it.  Hey, that would look good on a resume, snow-plow driver!  


Tomorrow I have some new ideas for digging out what it is I am supposed to do, so am looking forward to my first Friday at work in a long, long time.  So far, the one-car routine has worked out.  It should be fine, in that I can easily walk to SEARHC where Kathy works, or even home, if she needs to keep the car.  


Speaking of weather, we weathered the depth of the winter solstice and hardly noticed. We had Kelli and Jared and Henry here when the shortest day of the year hit and they started getting longer.  We already notice a big difference, but now we know those really short days don't last very long.  

Wednesday, and another day of complete sunshine, this time with double-digit temperatures.  Yes, it was a warm 13 degrees today, not enough improvement for me to notice the difference.  I took my gloves off to take pictures of a frozen bay, and a 15 mph gust came up, freezing my hands instantly.  Ha, we used to thing 25 was cold!  :-)

My first day on the job was a little different, in that the Transportation Director position, my boss, is empty, apparently unplanned, so the two new employees didn't get much in the way of instruction or direction.  The office is a bit rustic, but sits right on the shore of the Klawock Bay, with a few out the window of the snow-covered docks and boats, and across the water to snow-covered mountains.  Wow, what a view!  My camera is acting up, so I don't have pictures yet, but should have them soon.  


The little Craig Library is being made over, with new carpet and new shelving.  It's shut down for a week and using lots of volunteer labor to make it happen.  It will look brand new when it's all finished.  

Jared called me on my first day at work.  He and Henry were playing a game while they waiting for Kelli, and Henry was laughing at Jared's antics, so he thought to share this with me.  The next best thing to being with Henry is hearing him laugh outloud!  Thanks Jared, you made my day.  

Friday the 13th and Sub-freezing Temperatures, Continued

The weekend was quite, and cold.  It went down to single digit temps, despite the sunshine.  Yes, sunshine, for FOUR STRAIGHT DAYS now, unheard of in our experience!  The trouble is, the thermometer hovers around SEVEN DEGREES!  This is, by far, the coldest weather I've ever experienced.  We still go outside, even take walks, but short ones.  Amazing to me, the dogs don't seem to notice the stark difference between low 30's and seven degrees, and will both take the opportunity of a walk to roll in the snow, every time!

The car sure notices the difference.  The door gaskets freeze, and one has to tug hard to get them open.  It takes a few cranks extra cranks to get the car started, too.  Oh, and the ice on windshield, this time on the INSIDE!  Crazy!  It also takes a lot longer for the interior to heat up.  Kathy left a can of soup in the car overnight, and it was frozen the next day!  

It's Monday night, and I am reading before going to sleep.  Suddenly my light goes out.  Okay, power outage, not unusual on the island.  It's typically back up within hours, no worries.  Not this time:  we wake up to my phone wakeup alarm, and still don't have power.  The heater uses oil, but it also uses electricity, so there isn't any heat.  I can't check the Internet, no electricity.  Luckily I bought some decent combination night light and security lights.  Once I get myself out of bed-it's my first day at work, so I have to be on time-we both take showers by the minimal light.  The sun still isn't up.  At least we get warmed up!  

Kathy drives me to work, but there is no one there, and the doors are locked.  We decide to go back home, so she can finish getting ready, then go to SEARHC, where they have a generator, and hopefully find out when the power might be restored.  It's warmer at SEARHC, but not many lights on.  We find out they should be back on within the hour, and suddenly the come on!  I say goodbye to Kathy and head back to work.  

There is still no one there.  I decide to wait in the car, and read my book.  It's so cold outside that I can't do this for very long without resorting to starting up the car again.  I manage to do this, off and on, until 10 AM, and then go home.  About 10:30, I call again, and this time someone answers.  I explain that I was supposed to start, and am transferred to the Office Manager, who explains there was a mixup, that the full Tribal Council must approve all hiring, and they don't meet until 5:00 PM tonight.  Well, this explains why no one has called me asking where I, on my supposed first day of work!  Guess I'll write this off as a good dress rehearsal!  I'm also wondering why no one called me back to let me know.  I'm not the least bit mad, though:  I really, really need to get back to work, and this looks like a very good opportunity, and I still can't wait until I can get started!  Keep your fingers crossed, please, that there are no other hiccups, and stay tuned!

New Snow, New Job, and New Low Temps Around the Corner

Not only did we survive Friday the 13th, it's one I will never forget, for a couple of good reasons.  

First, we woke to a light snow on the ground.  It's always nice to see fresh snow.  By the time I went out to drive Kathy to work, there were three inches of snow, and it continued to snow much of the day!  It was beautiful, everything covered in white white.  It's dry snow, too, so crunches nicely when one walks in it.  Thanks goodness we now have working windshield wipers.  


Second, at about 8:15 AM, my phone rang:  it was the Klawock Cooperative Association, one of two tribes on the island, asking me to come in for an interview, this morning.  Sure, I'll be there!  Awesome, and interview!  I quickly began getting ready for my 10:15 slot.  

The snow continued to fall all morning.  As long as the snow plow hasn't pushed up a snowbank at our driveway, I won't have any problem getting out.  I'm in luck, and head across the bay to the other section of Klawock and my appointment.

The interviews are running behind, which is fine as it gives me more time to review the job description and line up how my experience fits so well with it.  With so few opportunities on the island, especially at a higher pay, I should be nervous, but I'm not:  I'm determined to be loose and friendly, and not so serious as I often am during interviews.

Finally it's my turn.  I have seen both other applicants:  both appear to be Native Alaskans, and know everyone in the office, not good for me.  It's a panel interview, with four people from the Tribe.  They have a set of 10 questions, and explain they will be rating my answers on a scale of one to five.  First question, am I a Native.  Hey, I'm not, but if Natives only get a bonus of five points out of 50, so I may have a shot at this job!

The interview goes very well.  I am relaxed and friendly, as even noted by one interviewer.  Cool!  They seem impressed by my answers and experience.  They tell me a decision will be made by Tuesday.  There are two ways to measure success of an interview:  do you feel like you made all your points and connected to the interviewers, and, did you get the job.  I felt like I knocked it out of the park on the first measure, and it was good just to get the practice of a real interview:  I tend to get rusty over time.  

Next stop, the medical clinic, to try and get a prescription re-filled.  I'm a walk-in, so this may take a while.  To my surprise, I get called right away:  maybe because of the snow, or date.  Because of my history, and being a new patient, it's decided to give me an EKG and draw blood, as well as my prescription, one of my better doctor appointments of all time.  :-)


I see Kathy, who is fighting off a cold, and has a patient coming, so doesn't want to go out to lunch with me.  I sit in her office and tell her how well the interview went.  She asks me if I wore my Xtratufts to the interview (these are rain boots, but literally everyone wears the Xtratuft brand.  There is even a high school rock band called the Xtratufts.)  I tell her yes, it's snowing and so it's okay to wear these, even to an interview.  Hey, they were under the table most of the time any way!  She thinks not.  

I drive to Craig to pick up my prescriptions and do some shopping.  I'm on the way back, and my phone rings.  It's one of the Klawock Tribe that interviewed me, and he offers me the job!  Wow, I guess I made a good impression!  Of course I accept, and I start on Tuesday!  I don't remember being so excited to start a job!  It's been 18 months, and 2,500 miles since I last had one.  This will be for more or less a nonprofit, helping the community, and should bring lots of satisfaction, as well as a paycheck.  I feel very fortunate!  It will continue our integration into the community, too.  I can hardly wait for Tuesday!

Teeth, Birds, and Exercise, Finally!

January 12, 2012, Dad's 82th birthday:  Happy Birthday Dad!  Hope you have a special day, and many more.  

So, since I last posted, a few things have happened.  First, we got our Lance Armstrong elliptical, yea!  We decided that, since we had the money, buying our first exercise equipment was the best way to get us both into exercising.  We've spent way too much time on the couch since we got here.  As is often the case, the company doesn't ship to Alaska, so we did what every one else on the island does, had it shipped to a freight company, and they brought it up to the island and delivered it.  Putting it together took about four hours. They provided the hardware on a bubble-pack, marked for each step of assembly, and also provided the tools, so it went up pretty easily.  It sits in our living room, in front of the television, and works out great:  I still get to watch TV, but now I'm burning calories and improving my heart.  Kathy is nursing a cold, so hasn't gotten into a routine yet.

Tuesday was another dentist appointment, this one to work on the second, and last, crown replacement.  This was on a back molar, my most expensive tooth, my one and only root canal.  The dentist drilled out the crown, then got to work on the underlying decay.  It wasn't too long before he pronounced the decay too deep:  the tooth could not be saved.  I got lucky, in one respect, since it was the back molar, it didn't have to be replaced.  The 'operation' was a success, and the patient survived, and only had to resort to the Vicodin twice during recovery.  All in all, not so bad an appointment, and I'm good for six months. Now, if I can just get the insurance company to come to their senses. 

We also finally have windshield wipers, yea!  Here is a very simple thing it's easy to take for granted, though less so in a rain forest!  I had to pay for the replacement myself, and the installation, since there is no authorized Subaru mechanic on the island, but the alternative was to spend about $700 to get the car to Juneau and back, not to mention my time:  it's three hours one way to Ketchikan alone, then it's 17 hours to Juneau!  Even figuring in overnight travel, that is still a long time on the water. 

 Despite the arrival of winter and it's tendency to a quieter time for nature, I've managed to attract a steady flow of birds to our porch.  Jays, juncos, and chickadees come by as fast as I put out more birdseed.  Twice I've found birdseed in my boot, and it's got me wondering what's going on:  who is hiding birdseed in my boot?  

It's All Fun and Games......

until the kids go home and the house is empty, and the holidays are over.  Our log cabin is too small for four adults, let alone six and an active toddler, but we would have them all back in a heartbeat.  Maybe we would put us or one couple up in a Bed and Breakfast close by, but we'd still rather have them here.  We had a great time with them all here.  Now we get to see the Facebook updates about McCannell's at the Zoo, Henry showing off his animal calls repertoire to the zoo clerk, and 80 degree sunshine.  :-(  Oh well, it's only another 2.5 years we will be on the island.

We did learn a very important lesson from the holidays:  don't have people visit in the winter!  Kelli and Jared had an unplanned night in Ketchikan on their way in, as planes were grounded.  Next Brady and Faith ran into grounded planes, two weeks later.  On the way home, Brady and Faith again had to take the ferry, as the little planes were grounded.  This forced them to re-schedule their Alaska Airlines flights, which they did, only to have that flight cancelled:  the incoming jets couldn't land due to weather.  Faith was lucky enough to get the last seat on a plane to Juneau later in the day, then fly out to Seattle, where she caught an early flight the next day.  Brady spent the night in Ketchikan, then flew out to Oakland.  Phew, what a trip for them!  Winds of over 50 miles per hour, both in Klawock/Prince of Wales and Ketchikan will certainly screw things up.  

View from the trailhead bridge

We had a great time with Brady and Faith.  They had some uncharacteristic sunny weather.  We did the Sunnahae Mountain trail, a Harris River trail, with Quinlan, the easy Klawock River trail, and all of us hiked part of the 20-mile Spur trail, named for it's location on the highway to Hollis, not it's length.  This was the same trail we used to cut down our Christmas tree.  This time, we drove farther up the road to the trialhead, but still were stopped short due to deep snow.  Judging by the smell of hot transmission fluid when we stopped, the transmission was not happy about the trip over the snow.  From there, we hiked up the road and got to the trailhead, where we crossed a few bridges, then turned around.  It was a brisk 36 degrees, but dry.  We didn't see or hear a single bird.  We did see quite a few deer tracks though.

Trailhead Bridge at 20-mile Spur Trail

 Brady and I had seen a river otter track when we hiked out to the Harris River, pretty cool.  the thick tail-drag sign was pretty clear evidence of who had passed by.  The bald eagles seem to have almost disappeared.  Brady and I got a great look at one standing on the side of the road, unruffled as we flew by at 40 mph, but otherwise, we saw very few of them during the time Brady and Faith were here. 

We also took a long walk on Cemetery Island, in the rain and wind.  It's still a nice hike.  

We had Sandy, our landlord, up for Happy Hour one night, to meet the kids.  This was fun, and we heard more about life on the island.  

It was a special and unforgettable Christmas, just wish it wasn't such a major pain in the butt to get to and from here!  They are looking forward to coming back in the late spring or summer, when the weather is better, the flowers are in bloom, salmon are running and there is more wildlife to see, and the hassles of traveling to the island are near gone.  We, too, are looking forward to their return!

Happy New Year, MMXII!

It's Sunday morning, January 1st, 2012!  I hope everyone had a safe and fun New Year's Eve.  Can anyone tell me why Dick Clark continues to be part of the night?  I'm hoping he was holding out for the 40th anniversary, and is not going to call it quits.  Kelli swears he called out "....fifteen, fourteen, fifteen, twelve...." during the countdown!

Brady speeds down Hemlock Road on a plastic sled, chased by the dogs.

We just missed the East Coast ball drop live, then caught the West Coast version, then went to bed and so missed the Alaska timezone one, or at least us old folks did:  Brady and Faith stayed up.  We took a nice chilly walk in the 36 degree weather, after missing the live ball drop from NYC.  There is still lots of snow.  We saw a few fireworks, then headed home.  Brady and I had fun throwing snowballs at each other.  The dogs got a good walk, and we got energized by the chilly weather and fresh air, so drove out looking for a party!  The streets of Craig were empty.  The Moose Lodge had a few cars, but seemed pretty quiet.  The Hill Bar had more cars, but was quiet, too.  The Craig Inn, or what we call the Pink Bar, was all lit up with  six or seven neon beer signs, versus the normal single one.  There were about six people milling around outside, more action than I've ever seen here.  This is the one bar we were warned away from:  regular fights, for one.  Most of the time you can't even tell it's a bar, open or not.  It's a classic example of the islands apparent disdain for signs proclaiming their name:  many places of business have no outside clue they are in business.  Weird.  It does stand out though, with the entire front of the two-story building painted pink.

It was really a beautiful drive to Craig and back, as was the trip to Thorne Bay earlier in the day.  That trip was through a Winter Wonderland.  It took us about an hour to drive over there.  It is a very scenic little village, notable for no homes with two or three or six junk cars out front.  It, too, sits on a bay, as does every community on Prince of Wales.  We saved over $20 on a 40 lb. bag of Kirkland dog found, so well worth the trip.  Other items are much cheaper too, plus, I heard a question while paying that I haven't heard since we moved here, one that is very common, and useful, in San Diego:  would you like cash back?  I nearly fell over!  The AC grocery stores in Craig and Klawock won't give cash back.  It's one of the differences that make me wonder if we are still in the United States!

Quinlan chases Brady and Faith as they sled down Hemlock Rd.

This morning, the snow is off all the trees and it's a thinner on the ground.  The weather station at Klawock Airport doesn't report any overnight rain, so it must be the warmed 40 degree temperature and winds that worked over the snow.  It's great that Brady got his wish, a very White Christmas!