Sitka is my New Home

Kathy came home last Thursday, after two and a half weeks in Sitka, which was a little long.  She was much appreciated by her SEARHC Sitka co-workers, and her boss, since staying an extra four days meant he didn't have to fly over and take a turn.  She now has the experience in working at a second clinic under her belt, and some time in a town with ten times the population of Klawock.  

Today it was my turn to fly away.  This was my first trip in a small plane, and by small I mean a ~12 seat single prop Cessna.  Luckily it was a clear day, and I got a nice view of Klawock and the surrounding area from 2,000 feet, a great view.  I had no idea what was behind SEARHC, the hill across from Viking Lumber, and The Cliffs, and now I know.  Klawock should and could absolutely have a hiking trail up the hill, providing a nice view above Klawock, like Craig has in the Sunnahae Mountain Trail.  

The flight went fine, and was just a half hour to the Ketchikan Airport.  I had just a one hour layover, and then caught the Alaska Airlines 737 for the 40 minute flight to Sitka.  The flat approaches to both Ketchikan and Sitka made me think of the drop-out-of-the-sky San Diego airport, and how it must scare the crap out of pilots used to 'normal' approaches.

Wow, I may have time to catch a movie while I'm here, at a theatre!  Kathy did, sharing the movie with just five others!  Maybe it was an off-night.  

We've had two mornings of snow since Spring officially arrived.  I went for a long walk around Klawock yesterday and heard my first robin, a sure sign of Spring.  

I'm really looking forward to this three-day Heritage Tourism Conference.  I'm expecting to learn loads to take back to the Klawock Tribe for some projects we are planning.  

Still missing my Henry Boy like crazy.  It will probably be at least another three months before I can get time off to make a trip to San Diego.  I'm trying to get Kathy to fly home in April, for an early birthday present.  I think Henry needs to see at least one of his Wescott grandparents as soon as possible.  Kathy wants Henry to call her Nana, the Tlingit version of grandmother.  :-)  I'm very happy with Grandpa.  


Hope you all have a good week.  I know mine will go pretty fast. 

Never in a Million Years

did I ever dream of living on an island in Alaska.  I really never dreamed of living anywhere in Alaska.  I wanted to visit, sure, to see the whales and the glaciers, but never thought about living here.  I like sunshine and being warm too much.  I'm also a stick-in-the-mud, not relishing grand change.  I did imagine living somewhere else beside San Diego, but there are so many other places, and how could I pick one place?  I was frozen by family, sunshine, too many choices, so easier to stay put.  And yet..... 

Clouds and snowy mountains peaking through, across Klawock Inlet.

Today, we live in a very, very small city, on the far side of a huge island, a three-hour ferry ride from the nearest town of any size, which is still very small compared to San Diego.  Who hasn't heard of Ketchikan Alaska?  Who has heard of Klawock, or even Craig, which is twice the size of Klawock?!  I've got a case of Island Fever, is my problem.  I need a trip off the island.  Thanks goodness my employer is supplying one.  Just one more week.....

Kathy is certainly gaining much valuable experience here, no doubt about that point.  She has many clients, from teenagers to senior citizens.  It's very different working in a such a small clinic, with many patients related to friends, co-workers, each other.  She sees a client or two or three where ever we go.  She's finally getting used to this, and just riding with it, following the lead of the client as to how to react.  

This is big country, that's for sure.  I've seen the map with the State of Alaska superimposed over the lower 48, and it spreads from the coast of Georgia to half way across the country, and the Aluetian Island string extending all the way to California.  The northern coast fits just inside the U.S. border with Canada.  

We are looking forward to the return of salmon, when the world changes greatly, bears coming out of hibernation, bald eagles returning to large flocks (we still see or hear one occasionally), and also the return of herring, which brings the whales.  I can hardly wait to see orcas and humpbacks and minkes and maybe other kinds.  

I received this question from a Facebook friend:  "Hey I have a friend at work that used to live us there he says they have a hot line so you can pick up road kill?  Sounds cool; do you ever use it to get something special? He says he used to get deer and even a bear once.  Is true or only BS?

Here's the answer.  You know, most of the people here are about hunting, and subsistence, and I seriously doubt that someone who hits something either doesn't want it, or doesn't know someone that wants it.  So there is no need for a hotline, because it's gone immediately.

I certainly mean absolutely no disrespect to all of the wonderful people who live on Prince of Wales Island, when I occasionally note how trying it is to live on a remote island.  Many people who live here will tell you that taking a winter vacation off the island is mandatory to keep your sanity.  My point in commenting on island live is completely about me, and how this life isn't for me, at least at this point.

We had about four inches of snow last night, so cool.  The sun was out all day today, and warmed the snow off the trees.  It began snowing again before sundown, so we'll see how it looks in the morning.  

The dogs just love the snow, as you can see!

 

More Sitka, MORE Sitka, More Snow, and Seattle?

It snowed again last night, covering everything in about two inches of white.  It's beautiful but no problem driving, and the snow plow doesn't even come out.  By noon, the temperature was up over 40, and maybe there was some rain, because virtually all of the snow had disappeared.  

Monday night was a Tribal Transportation Committee meeting, and the department director and I got the tentative go-ahead on several projects.  Last night was the full Tribal Council meeting, and we got the final approval.  One project is for me to attend a three-day conference on cultural tourism in Sitka, March 25 through the 28th.  I'm pretty excited, as this will be a great opportunity to learn more, from other existing such programs, from governmental agency reps about funding opportunities, and to go on several Sitka Heritage tours.  The added benefit is time off this island, which I'm overdue for, and can hardly wait for this change of scenery.

Ironically, Kathy's time in Sitka has been extended:  she will be coming home the 22nd, and I fly out the afternoon of the 25th.  Her stay is the longest we have been apart since she took her Mom on a cruise to (can you guess?) the Inside Passage, where they actually visited Sitka!  Funny how things work out.  

Yesterday was a Happy Feet Day for me.  The weather was good enough that I actually wore regular shoes, instead of my hiking boots, which I'm force to wear because of rain or snow most of the time.  It was so nice to have comfortably loose and flexible shoes instead of the stiff and tighter boots.  We need more days like that.

You may have seen we've had 24" of rain through February.  That's more than double the yearly average for San Diego, and it's our total for just two months.  Talk about a drastically different environment.  I'm surprised that I'm not bothered by the much colder climate.  I would much rather be hot than cold.  I would wear shorts and flipflops everywhere, if I could.  And yet, it's not so bad, as long as I've got my big coat, a hat, and sometimes gloves.  It is a pain to remember that the car needs work on real cold mornings:  the windows have to be scrapped, and the wipers pulled free.  I guess the rubber actually freezes to the windshield.  We don't need to go without wipers again, and pay for another motor.  

Quinlan and I went for a long walk on Sunday, down to the main road, along it past SEARHC, over the Klawock River Bridge, back on the main road, west onto Bayview and down along the harbor, past KCA where I work, to the end of the peninsula and the ball park where the Canada Geese are almost always found grassing on the grass, around to Anchorage Street, and back to the main road.  Along the way i took good video, with narration, of different parts of the city.  They all turned out really well, except when I went to upload them I found they were over 300 mgs, and would take about four hours to upload!  What?!  Yesterday I went to the Craig Library, where they have a T-1 line, and it was still going to take one hour, for a five-minute video!  I've got four of them!  So, still working on a solution.  I really want to get these videos uploaded to show off the city in a whole new way, much better than stills.  

We found a cool set of tracks in the snow this morning, right outside the office.  It was nice snow, so showed off the tracks very well.  My best guess was mink or some kind of weasel.  

Another one bites the dust:  one of the most active members of the Serra Mesa Community has received an offer he can't refuse to go to work for Boeing Commercial Airplane in Seattle, and so is getting his house, etc., in order to make the move.  He was a real asset to the community, and they will really miss him.  

More From the Island

March 11, 2012, and I and the dogs have survived a week without Kathy.  I'm sure it's tougher on the dogs than it is on me:  they do not get the pampering from me.  It's good for them:  they will appreciate Kathy that much more when she returns, this Friday.

She's had a good time in Sitka.  Yesterday she got a personal tour of a bear rescue place.  They had here go into the empty enclosure and hide their food, so they had to use some their natural skills to find the food.  There were three three-year-old brown bears.  Kathy said they weren't huge, but they were big enough!


Sorry about no pics of the Aurora Borealis:  cloud cover keeps us from seeing any!  Here is a link to pictures though, the best I can do: Alaska Daily News Pictures

Friday our Tribal President came in and told my boss and I that it was time for our "Employment UA."  I looked at her and she had the same blank look as I:  "What's a UA?"  Urine Analysis!  Ah, well, that might be a problem, cuz I just went.  Luckily there were eight others in line, so I started drinking as fast as I could.  My turn came, and nothing.  More water, still nothing.  I had a nice chat with the tester.  Finally, after 50 ounces of water, I came up with a sample.  He tested it right then and there, so that's done.



The tester was an interesting guy:  he doesn't eat anything he hasn't hunted or fished himself.  He probably isn't the only one on the Island, but he's the first one I've talked to about it.  Each AK resident is entitled to shoot five deer, so he gets ten between himself and his wife.  He has lobster pots, shrimp traps, etc.  

It snowed today, four or five times, but wasn't enough falling or cold enough to stick.  Maybe tonight.  I took Quinlan for a walk this afternoon, when there were actually some patches of blue sky.  We walked over to SEARHC, then down Bayview, around the city, and to the park, and about that time we ran into blowing snow.  I was shooting video at several spots along the way, hope to get them up on YouTube soon.  We were gone for about an hour and a half, an nice long walk.  We saw Canada Geese, a Great Blue Heron, Kingfishers, and a few Bald Eagles, oh, and of course Ravens.

 There are two tribal meetings this week, so we should get more direction, approval from a few of our projects, and for my trip to Sitka at the end of the month.

Rain Returns, Job Moves Along, Kathy is Gone, Dogs are Wa, Wa . :-(

I didn't realize we'd had so much rain until I took a drive down the road to Craig, and counted 25 waterfalls streaming down along The Cliffs.  Wow, haven't seen that many in a maybe months.  So I checked the Klawock Airport NOAA weather website, and found we've had over 1.25 inches since midnight.

I had one of my favorite dinners last night:  Chef Boy-ar-dee's Beef Ravioli, mmm mmm!  There was one large glass of wine left, red, of course, so I enjoyed that with my yummy ravioli.  What will tonight's dinner be?  

Kathy is having an interesting time in Sitka.  She told me about traffic, signals, an actual urban environment, complete with a McDonald's and a Subway.  She is enjoying meeting people she has talked to over the phone but never met.  She has even been recruited for a position there!  Now that we have found out there is a way to fly direct from Klawock to Sitka, it may be our vacation spot of choice.  People on the island don't seem to think much of Ketchikan.  

The poor dogs are depressed, wondering where their Kathy is and why she's not coming home to them.  

Last night was another Prince of Wales Marathon Committee meeting.  We settled on a supplier for the medals.  I also heard about one member's rollover crash, which happened last Saturday.  This is the second one I've heard of in a week, and both happened to drivers who have lived on the island a long time.  The first one, there were no injuries, and the car was okay.  The second one, the driver lost control, and rolled down a 30 foot embankment!  She was okay, the Ford Escape doing it's job, but it's totaled. It was four wheel drive, too.  These two accidents have been very sobering for me.  Both accidents happened in curves of the road, where shadows cover the roadway longer than other adjacent sections, so stay icy longer.  I'm going to be driving even more carefully from now on.  


Last week I got to attend two and a half days of workshops on managing EPA grants.  This was extremely helpful, as much of what I learned pertains to all federal grants.  

Sitka, Snow, and Frozen Pipes

Kathy flew to Sitka this morning, for a two-week stint at the SEARHC Clinic there.  It was a beautiful sunny day today, and she had a nice flight in a little Cessna.  It's a one hour flight, much better than flying to Ketchikan, then transferring to Alaska Airlines, and flying to Sitka.  She is staying in an apartment, so doesn't have to eat restaurant food every day.  There is at least one theatre there, too, so she'll get to go to a movie!  


 

View this afternoon of the mountains from the Klawock-Hollis Highway

She'll be handling walk-in clients for them.  They are down three people, so have a big backlog.  This trip came at a good time:  we are both needing some time off the island.  Even though it's work-related, it's definitely a change of scenery, and a much larger town, so will be a good change.


So, I get complete control of the TV remote, for two weeks!  Ha!  I probably won't be using it much, as I've got three good books to read. 

I was sent home from work right after Kathy left, due to frozen water pipes.  It got down to 21 degrees overnight, and was cold all weekend.

My job is going well.  There is a Tribal Council meeting tomorrow night, and we should get more direction after that meeting.   

The shoreline freezes overnight, then the tide goes out and the ice breaks up, and creates a beautiful example of natural art.

The juncos are our best birdseed customers, coming around soon after we put it out.  There are a few other little birds, but we haven't seen a jay for a long time.  The cold and snow doesn't bother the ravens at all.  They are ever-present, flying, congregating, jabbering.  Canada geese are still here, too, some having never left.  I saw some this weekend standing on the ice.  It looked like they were a little bewildered.  We still see the occasional bald eagle, too.  


I don't remember if I wrote about the ridiculous 'normal' cost of a crown that Cigna Insurance tried to foist on us, $250!  I appealed this, and after two months, they finally changed it to the full cost of what our dentist was charging, of which they paid half.  This meant an increase of $300 in their share.  On top of that, they allowed the dentist to re-bill for several other clients, who also got rebates, pretty cool.  All was fine, until Cigna sent us an 'Explanation of Benefits' for Kathy's crown, and guess what, they said the 'normal' and covered cost was $250!  So, another call, and the Customer Service Supervisor I'd been working with was a little embarrassed, as she should be.  I wish I had the contact information for someone higher up in the company:  this is ridiculous.  


That's all I can think of to write.  Between the weather and the scenery, there really isn't much else going on.  I'm sure by the end of the month, the bears will be out of hybernation, maybe the herring will have returned, and there will be lots going on!

Island Life: Snow, Mountains, Water, Work

We had more snow overnight, just as the locals predicted.  It was enough to coat everything.  The dogs both love new snow, love to role in it.  This is about the third snow we've had in the last week, none of them major.  


I don't think either one of us really mind the cold or the snow.  The snow is a beautiful bonus, and the cold is not as bad as we expected.  The rain is a different story.  


I was in an EPA Grants Workshop on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday morning, with 10 other tribal staff members from around the island.  This was very interesting, and helpful.  Three of them used to work in the office I work in now, and one of them is now a Councilmember for the tribe.  


What do I really do?  I work in the Tribal Transportation Department, which is all of two of us right now.  Since there is no road construction going on yet, it's pretty quiet.  Once the City gets the sewer line replaced, we will start back up, having our contractors pave the last major section of road in the City.  We have already paved most of the City.  Next, we will be looking for more roads, even outside the City, to get details on and add to the list of future projects.  My director is in the process of ordering one of the new GPS tablets, to replace the simply GPS unit we now have for field work.  


These tablets are amazing.  I heard about their use from archaeologists when I worked at the San Diego Archaeological Center.  They present real-time satellite maps as you walk along, and allow you to fix points, add notes on the terrain, obstructions, etc.  


So that is part of what I do, field data collection.  The data has to be loaded into a computer, then added to the detail of the roads.  We submit new projects, or 'road inventory,' data to the State once a year, then it's accepted by the Federal Highways Administration (FHWA), who then will provide us with grants to improve the roads.  


As the roads are being improved, I take before and after pictures for our records, and the FHWA.  I also maintain records on the status of all the projects, so we know at any moment in time if we are on track, time and money-wise.  


Our new director also has me looking into other projects, such as a Cultural Heritage Tour program.  This whole island is rich in cultural heritage, but severely lacking in any attractions or educational offering to visitors, and we both feel like there is great potential for such a program.  It would not only celebrate the heritage, it would hopefully provide new jobs, for tour guides, Native artisans, etc.  


Kathy is going to Sitka for two weeks, flying on Monday.  The clinic there has suffered a loss of staff, and is getting behind in its services, so asked for volunteers from the other clinics to come and help them pare down their backlog.  Kathy has been to Sitka once before, on a cruise with her Mom several years ago, but not since.  This will be a nice change of pace for her.  I'm trying to get her to fly to San Diego sometime in April, too:  she needs a break, from the island, and her heavy client load, and, of course, to see Henry!  Oh, and Kelli and Jared, too.  :-)


Brady is scheduled to fly home from Halifax tomorrow.  He's been there for 11 days, visiting three different offices of his company, updating computers.  His weather has been very similar to ours, in temp and snowfall.  Communicating has been tougher than usual:  he's in the Atlantic Standard Timezone, which is an hour earlier than Eastern, while we are in the Alaska timezone, so we are five hours apart, crazy.