I saw it, I swear!!

(Warning - words only - no pictures to go along with this post!)

Sadly, I didn't have my camera with me yesterday when I saw the sun peak out for the first time in - I'm not kidding - two weeks. And, probably more sadly (is that how you say that), it was a short-lived visit for the sun, and we're now back to rain.

"They" (whoever that is!) told me that the winters would be tough here in Kodiak. I was warned about the hours of darkness in mid-winter, when you feel like it never really gets light. I can say that it was weird to get used to, and even weirder to see the sun so high in the sky when we were on the East Coast in January! It was weird to never feel any warmth from the sun, even when it was shining bright on a beautiful December day. But I was used to going to work in the dark in the morning, and coming back home in the dark at the end of the day. I'm from New England... that's what I've always known. I was ready for that! I was ready for my normal February blues. That's what February is for!

But no one warned me about May.

Today is May 11th. It's Mother's Day, which is always one of those days when you think of flowers, and a sunlit brunch, and, what is that called again? Oh yeah, spring. You think about Spring when Mother's Day rolls around. But, here in Kodiak, "they" might call it spring, but it's still winter. The only difference is that we now have 15 hours of "daylight" in order to be able to see the rain and gloominess.

We don't have flowers (well, a friend of mine from church says that some daffodils popped up at her house, and someone else mentioned seeing a crocus, but I haven't seen them yet). We don't have warmth (it's 40 degrees out today), and we don't have sun. Instead, we've had cold rain for two weeks - two weeks!?!?! It's MAY, for crying out loud! There should, at least, be warm rain, and there should be flowers, leaves (at least buds), green grass and picnics!

I don't know if anyone could have prepared me for this, even if they'd explained all this to me in detail. I think I would've thought it was just a bad year last year, or maybe they're just more sensitive to the bad weather. But consider this my public service announcement for anyone who is coming to Kodiak to live, or even to visit... May sucks. It just does. February will be dark and there will be snow and it will be cold. But you'll expect that because it's February. For May, you have to change your expectations - don't look for all those things you're supposed to see in May. Look for rain, cold, maybe some snow, and generally gloominess. That's what you get in May in Kodiak.

And, when the sun happens to make a quick appearance, don't waste that time sitting in your car, driving around town running errands. Instead, get out, walk around, and turn your face to the sky. You'll want to store it up for the next two weeks of rain. *sigh*

I guess I knew it wouldn't always be sunshine and roses around here - literally and figuratively - and I apologize to those who didn't want to hear me whine, but I said we'd share life in Kodiak with everyone, and that's life this week.

Off to check the forecast to see how much longer I can expect the sound of rain pelting against my windows.

Oh, one more quick thing:

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all the wonderful mothers in our lives!

Becca