Friday, September 30, 2011

A Quiet Week, and a Missed Opportunity


Thursday, September 29, 2011
We find out that it is normal for a parcel post package to take a month or longer to go from Maryland to Klawock, even if it makes it to Kent WA on 17th of September.  What?!  That's just crazy.

TV out, for another day.  I search again for the guy who supposedly cuts hair, on a certain street but don't have the address, with no luck.  I need a haircut!  Some businesses don't put up signs advertising their business, which I find just nuts, especially today. 

Wednesday, September 28, 2011          I take Kathy to work, then head home to get ready for a 10 o’clock appointment at the Thrift Store and Food Bank for a tour and introduction.  Kathy calls and says her contacts are bothering her, and she needs her glasses, so it’s back to Klawock first, then to Craig and the Thrift Store. 

Victoria isn’t there yet, so I just volunteer, and am put to work, sorting through a thousand and more books, not categorized at all, culling old ones to make way for newly-donated ones.  This seems worthwhile, as there are paperbacks dating from as far back as 1969!  I’m making room, emptying crates on the floor, and opening some books up for a display, as if it’s a bookstore.  Why not?  I’m also beginning to categorize them, and will print some signs for the different categories first chance I have to do so.  Just because it’s a Thrift Store doesn’t mean presentation counts for nothing. 

Victoria arrives around noon with spaghetti lunch, and we all sit down to eat. 

There are many customers today, and It’s gratifying to see them taking advantage of this resource.  Victoria gives me a tour, and explains how the all-volunteer bank works.  I stay until it closes at 2, and then volunteer to come back on Wednesdays. 

The Great Blue Heron and Kingfisher were hanging out together, nearly side by side, on the fish pens his morning, pretty cool.  The Kingfisher then moved over to the opposite side of the pens.  When I came home in the afternoon, I heard the awful squawking call of the heron, and looked out to see him/her standing on the walkway leading to the dock, pretty funny.  There has been much more heron activity here lately, and I have no idea why.   I've seen the heron a couple of times a day lately, and have no idea what changed to attract him/her.  I still haven't seen it catch a fish yet, but I did see the kingfisher name one, and watched him maneuver it in his beak so he could swallow it down.  His/her chattering call is much nicer than the squawking noise that the heron makes.

Back home, and I take the dogs for a walk.  Lakota is much better since we started her on medication on Monday.  The vet thinks she has arthritis.  She wants her to take it easy for a couple of weeks, which we will do, so it’s a short walk. 

Afterwards, I see that the hatchery technician’s car is parked at the hatchery across the street, and I go over to see if I can get a nickel tour.  Her name is LeAn, and she is very nice, glad to have some company, and happy to have someone show some interest in her job.  I tell her about the woman I worked with at San Diego Canyonlands in San Diego whose name is Leann, with just a slightly different last name, and what a crazy coincidence that is!  She tells me most people ask about her Dad, who with his father and two sisters, spent two winter months shipwrecked at the Dixon Entrance one winter, and all survived!  His dad wrote a book about the experience, which I put on my mental reading list.  She also tells me she was college classmates and friends with daughter of Arne Fuglvog, a staffer to Senator Murkowski, who he advised on fisheries issues, who fished illegally for years.  She said he seemed like a real nice guy, and was shocked to find out he had been consciously fishing illegally for years.

No TV, second day in a row.  The satellite signal is down, for some reason.  We didn’t even have any severe wind before it happened. 

The temperature dropped today, down to the mid-40’s, instead of the rock steady 50’s, looks like Fall is coming in. 

 Tuesday, September 27, 2011

I get a call from the Craig Police Department:  they selected another candidate, bummer.  Oh well, I really wasn't looking forward to the two graveyard shifts each week anyway.  The interview process is always good experience, for the next time.

The construction across they Klawock Causeway is completed, and the traffic signal has been taken down.  Funny, as this has been their since we got to the island, and was the only signal in Craig or Klawock!  Have I mentioned, too, that there are nothing but two-lane roads on the entire island?  Yep, and those are virtually empty most of the time, so obviously there is no need for more than one lane in each direction. 

She is a POW native, did commercial fishing, thought she was done with fish, then got interested in college, and came back and found this job, which she is very happy to have it, sees great potential, for now, but doesn't get paid much, and says she won't stay around very long at this meager salary.  Budget for this hatchery is only $65,000, including her salary!  She needs to get a raise, and soon, or she is walking.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Another night with no rain, and a morning dawns with some sun!  This is three days in a row, a new record.  I take Kathy to work, then return to Craig, and the vet, to wait for Lakota’s appointment at 9 am.  The vet is very nice.  She believes Lakota’s tumor is not related to her limping.  She says the tumor should come off, before it gets infected.  She suspects arthritis is bothering her, so prescribes medicine for that.  She is booked up for the next month for surgeries, so get back to me on a date and quote. 

Next stop is the Wheelhouse Coffeeshop.  I run into Victoria and Amy, the Craig Librarian.  I do some work on the computer.  Victoria gets a call, from Craig City Manager John, who is looking for our last name, Victoria tells him I am right there with her, and brings me her phone and I talk to him.  He has a question for me.  Life in a small town, fun.

No call from the Craig Police Department. 

No comments:

Post a Comment