Hello from the rapidly thawing far north,
As the greeting says we are now in the middle of a rapid defrost cycle. Up
until Sunday we had not seen temps above freezing for about 6-7 months. Except
of course for that one freak day late last year when it rose to 33 (above) and
rained for a bit before the temp plummeted the next day to 20 below, freezing up
any formerly movable part to a solid iron consistency. Sunday it went up to the
mid 30's where it has stayed since.
Saturday and Sunday we went out ice fishing across the sound (you PETA
folks will be happy to know the fish still remain safe from us) and had no
trouble negotiating the icy streets of Kotzebue going to and from the sound on
the snowmachines. Monday some friends went out and I declined the offer to
accompany them, so of course they caught fish. They had no trouble getting out
either even though the temp had now been above freezing for two days. Since then
however, most of the streets have thawed completely leaving rivers and lakes of
water to negotiate. Where the ice remains on some roads and in parking lots it
is mixed with water and riding or walking in the foot and a half deep slush is
something that if I hadn't experienced it, my life just wouldn't have been
complete. You south Louisiana folks have "shrimp" boots. Here they wear
"breakup" boots. Oh, there's still plenty of ice and snow out there where the
plows don't reach believe me, but I am astonished at the rate it is melting.
Parts of the tundra are already exposed and the mountains of snow in town are
noticeably loosing altitude. We were hoping for another weekend or two of
snowmachining but just getting from the apartment to the sound now means riding
on concrete and gravel which is to say the least, hard on the skegs. (Skegs are
hardened steel runners that bolt under the skis of the machine and provide extra
grip for steering.) Breakup of the sound is still over a month away but the two
to three feet of snow on top of the frozen water is getting soft. I suppose
unless old man winter provides a last gasp on his way out, it might be time to
mothball our sled and snowmachines for the summer. There is a snowmachine race
scheduled for this weekend and something called snowmachine poker scheduled for
next weekend. (Snowmachine poker is where the folks that sign up ride out to
different camps and receive a playing card from each camp. They get a certain
amount of cards then ride back to Kotzebue to see who wins the pot.) I suppose
time and Mother Nature will tell if they occur. We can still get around town
and out on the sound (at least for a ways) with the 4 wheelers so when the
sheefish finally decide to arrive by town, we should be able to get out and fish
for them. Note I did not say catch them.
Apart from the regret I feel about having to put the snowmachines away and
possibly missing the best fishing time, we are looking forward to summer. It
feels good to be able to venture outside without gloves on running the risk of
having your fingers go instantly numb. It also feels good to not have ice
forming on your nose hairs, mustache, beard, eyebrows, eyelashes-anywhere there
is hair (no, not there, I for damned sure aint that brave {or that stupid} But,
I do recall a story from one of the EMT's about an ambulance run to pick up a
drunk couple who had been having sex and passed out in the snow. They both had
frostbite on their calf's and buttocks). I don't miss trying to get the ice out
of my mustache and the pain that brings either. We go to bed now with the sun
shining and get up in the morning with it shining. Somewhere in-between there
is some darkness which I verify on my nightly excursions to the bathroom. It's
not full darkness but a twilight that banishes all chances of seeing the Aurora
Borealis again until the fall.
Soon the ice will leave and the flowers will arrive in abundance. Different
ones will trade places with each other as the summer progresses keeping the
tundra alive with color. The tourists will begin to appear, each with a
medallion around their neck (so they know who they are) and wonderment
noticeable in their eyes (or maybe it's just disbelief that folks actually live
here or maybe they just cannot believe they paid as much as they did just to get
that medallion that says they've been to the arctic). The mosquitoes will
arrive one day in mid June and the berries will begin to form. We will keep
trying each weekend to get onto the beach with the 4 wheelers and will
eventually succeed traveling farther and farther each time as the ice recedes.
Hopefully a fire or two will be in the works for those rides and a bit more
fishing will occur. With access to a boat this year we hope to get out more and
travel up the Noatak River where we hopefully will get more chances to see
caribou, moose, and with luck, grizzly and musk ox. Maybe we'll take a boat ride
down to the Arctic Circle itself just to say we did it. Some friends did just
that last Sunday with their snowmachines and had a good time. It has been a
long, cold, dark, winter this year. Some folks say that's the way it is each
year-that the winters seem longer and longer. If this year is an example, I
believe it.
Cathy and Gary have moved to Anchorage. Cathy left about two weeks ago and
Gary followed this past Saturday. They have pretty definite plans and are
following them in earnest. Cathy is enrolled to start school in the fall with
intents to graduate from nursing school. She and Gary have been spending most
of their time looking for jobs since arriving in Anchorage. Cathy had an offer
from the same hospital ER Christy works for but they could not work out the
hours to fit her school schedule. She may be going to work as a desk clerk at
the Marriott in Anchorage. Before they left Kotzebue they bought a new vehicle
and yesterday they bought a clunker so they have two. Part of their planning
involved saving money and the sale of some of their belongings, their
snowmachines, and Cathy's 4 wheeler. This is where the money is coming from.
Christy continues working for Providence Hospital in Anchorage as a monitor
tech/secretary while her live in boyfriend continues working towards his x-ray
tech license through a correspondence course. He is not working as he does this
but Christy assures me he is good at doing laundry.
I am heading for Anchorage next week to attend a 2 day APIC (Association
for Professionals in Infection Control) conference and will spend the weekend
down there. It will be good to feel 50-70 degree weather and see green and
flowers for a change. Since I will be there for the weekend, maybe I'll have to
buy some more flowers for the house so Christy has something to kill. That's
not an easy feat in Anchorage during the summer either; she just has a talent
for it. Anchorage during the summer is temperate and beautiful so flowers
usually bloom and last all summer long. Except of course at 13031 Summer
Circle, that's where the killer resides and stalks her prey.
Well, believe it or not I don't have much more to say right now. I'm not
sure if the writing bug is deserting me or things here are just getting to be
old hat and just not as stimulating to me as it used to be. Maybe it's time to
move on to some other Alaska locale. I guess only time will tell.
Hope you don't get heat stroke down there. Oh, and eat your heart out
thinking of all those folks living out their dreams as they vacation in the 49th
and most beautiful state in the country (and our home) this summer.
Take care,
Carlo
PS Oh, here's something new I saw recently! Tuesday I walked into the hospital
and a man standing by the desk in the administration office was wearing a suit
and tie! I don't think I've seen one of those since moving to Alaska, not even
in the big city of Anchorage. I don't know what he was doing here but I bet he
wasn't from anywhere in this state. The hospital administrator doesn't even
wear a tie much less a suit. He at least unlike most everyone else, doesn't
wear blue jeans, he at least maintains his professional appearance-he wears
slacks.
For problems or questions regarding this web contact
carlo@samsicles.net
Last updated:
12/28/05