Back from the Great White North!

Well, now that I'm back from ST Paul Island, I can finally fill you all in on what I was doing for the last three weeks. Due to some crew manning issues back here in Kodiak, I was the lucky winner of an extended vacation in lovely remote Alaska. For those of you logging on earlier in the month you saw what I was able to do the first week that I was in ST Paul, but after the first week the caribou season was over and I was resorted to trying to pass time other ways. It was probably a blessing that hunting season was over, as the second and third weeks I was there the weather was less then desirable.

Here is a picutre of the Loran Station where we stay while in ST Paul. The crew of this unit are sent here for one year at a time with a free trip home for 30 days in the middle of their tour. Needless to say, they quite enjoy having the aircrews come thru and give them a constant change of faces for the two months we are there. Besides the 18 stationed here, there is small village on the island that has a couple of hundred people that live here year round. Most of them either work for the native corporation or work in the fishing industry.

Here are some of the photos I took while delployed. Hope you enjoy.

Just a small amount of snow, there are windows in the building but they can only use them during summer months. This truck, if that's what you would call it allows them to travel on the roads when plows can't get out to them. They also got a snow cat halfway through my stay. The banks below give you some more prespective to how much snow there is, and how much it drifts.

In between the mulitiple days of blizzards we were able to get some ship landings done (unfortunately that meant yet another trip to Cold Bay), and also to hike around St Paul. You can see the overriding theme in all these pictures though is that it's cold. It averaged around -15 celcius.

When the sun did come out it was quite nice, and let us chase down some of the local wildlife (fox and caribou).

Lastly there is a picture of the real reason that we are here. The crab season in full swing. When the ice allowed the boats would come in to off load their crab. Hope you all enjoyed, and there will be more to come.

Jason

When will I learn?

When will I learn that I live in Kodiak and that dressing like I live on the South Shore of Boston is just silly? The good thing is, at least I'm laughing at myself about it, so I figured I'd share it with everyone else, too. Why not, right?

So, yesterday was sort of a major church holiday, Palm Sunday, and a day that I usually will get a little more dressed up than your average Sunday. Of course, come to think of it, that generally didn't turn out in my favor in Massachusetts, either, since we always started the service outside and I was always freezing... but I digress....

Saturday night, in an effort to get a jump on my Sunday morning, I tried on a bunch of different outfits to decide what to wear. I picked a Plan A, and followed it up with a Plan B. I then laid Plan A out, another timesaving mechanism, and headed to bed. Here's Plan A:

I didn't mean to make the shot look that artistic, but I wanted to make sure you could get the full effect of the heels. Yes, those are roughly 3 and a half inches with a platform. And that would be cute gray pants, a cute cotton/cashmere blend sweater, and fishnet knee-highs. Plan B wasn't nearly as fancy (pinstripe khakis), but still included heels. Anywhere else, either one of these outfits would have been suitable. I might not have wanted to wear the gray heels for Palm Sunday at our old church because of being outside in the grass, but, otherwise, perfect.

Well, I don't live in Massachusetts anymore. Xtra Tuffs are a way of life around here. It's not just because people are lazy and don't want to wear shoes that you tie, or that they're somehow adverse to looking nice. No, it's because they're practical. And 3 1/2 inch gray (suede) heels are not practical. They might not be practical anywhere, but they definitely aren't practical here. This is why:

By the time I took this picture, a lot of the snow had already melted, so it's not a totally acurate view, but you get the idea. I woke up Sunday morning, and took a quick look out the window to determine if I should go with Plan A or Plan B. Instead, I ended up having to go with Plan C, since the driveway was still covered and there was a wet, sloppy, slushy two inch or two of fresh white stuff. Plan C, by the way, was regular khakis (I couldn't wear JEANS on Palm Sunday!), a cashmere hoodie (cashmere means it's fancy!), a plain white t-shirt, and.... hiking boots. Yes, hiking boots. Nice, brown leather Columbia hiking boots, but hiking boots, nonetheless.

Sigh.

Meanwhile, I got a neat picture of Fred's footprints in the snow, so it wasn't a complete wash.

If only we could've gotten such good prints when we spent all that money on the ones in clay. Figures.

So that's my funny "getting used to living in Kodiak... STILL" story. Of course, by the time we leave here, I'll have the same problem getting used to the rest of the world!

With that, I'll leave you with one more shot. This one shows just one of the reasons I like it here. This is the view from my office window. Not bad, huh?

That's all the news from here. Jason FINALLY gets home this week, so my life will get a little less boring, I suppose! Hope everyone got a good chuckle!
Becca

Hunter Man!

This will be your fair warning... this post is not for the faint of heart. That means you, Mom! Given your reaction on the phone today, I'm guessing you're not going to want to see this!!




I'll try to take up enough space with the "talking" to make it so people have to scroll down to see the picture I'll be attaching....


Keeping in mind that part of the draw of Kodiak for Jason is getting back to what I like to call his "Northern Redneck" roots, he was in his absolute glory earlier this week. For those that don't know, he's currently deployed to St. Paul Island for SAR (Search and Rescue) stand-by for the Opilio Crab season. St. Paul is one of the Pribilof Islands, located in the middle of the Bering Sea, sort of North of Cold Bay (Jason's other favorite place) and West of, well, not much. It's very isolated and very small! Here's a little information, if you click on this link: http://www.naturescapes.net/012004/hf0104.htm



And, here's a map! This map came from this http://www.tsuru-bird.net/st_paul/ website. I just want to give them credit!

So, you can see, it's pretty much in the middle of no where! But, if you clicked on that first link, you'll also see that it's got a relatively diverse amount of wildlife, from fur seals to puffins, to caribou (or, reindeer). Here's where we pick up the story and incorporate the title of this post.

With being in the middle of no where and all, you can imagine that the guys might be just a little bit bored out there, and in search of things to do. For the group of guys out there this past week, hunting was that thing to do. Apparently, the caribou herd is a little large right now and the Native Corporation is concerned that they'll start to starve sooner than later. That means it's easy for the guys to get their tags for the caribou, and head out in search of the herd, which, incidentally, is not that hard to find.

Jason had some good luck his first real day out, strapping on some snow shoes and following the herd for a few hours. As he and his buddy sighting in on a couple of the hapless 'bou, something spooked the herd, and they took off. That is, they all took off but the juvenile male Jason was sighting in on. So, with one shot, he took his first caribou, which will likely fill out freezer for, and provide some of our friends some meat, until he goes back next year. He actually got a second tag to head back out before the season closes late next week, so there's a chance we'll have even more. Reindeer Wellington, anyone?? Seriously, though, Beth and Zach shared a caribou roast with us shortly after we got here, and, I have to say, it was quite tasty. So, if you can get past the obvious Rudolph and Donner and Blitzen references, he'll make good eatin'! Here comes the money shot - if you don't want to see a dead, slightly blood animal, don't look any further!!

Proud Jason with his 'bou!

I think it's safe to say NOW we're really assimilated to the Kodiak/Alaska way of life. He shot a strange animal - and my mouth is watering thinking about the meat! Anyone can go fishing to fit in - this clinches it!

That's the latest from here! I'd add something about myself but all I've been doing is trying not to die of boredom while he's gone!! I know, sad. That's it, though! Hope you enjoyed the story of Jason the Hunter Man!

Becca

I'm an Aunt!

(And Jason's an Uncle!)

This is going to be a quick one because my dear brother in law apparently already has Daddy-brain and has neglected to take pictures, so I don't have any of those to share. But, I wanted to make sure I welcomed my new niece into the world!

Yesterday morning, Maryanne kindly woke me up just before my alarm went off for the first time at 6:10am our time. I probably wouldn't have answered the phone, but I saw it was her, and immediately got worried that something had gone wrong with Erin and the baby (I posted on the blog about our trip that she had gone into early labor, and was looking at bedrest for a while). Rather than the news being bad, though, the news was GREAT! Despite being on meds to try to keep her from going into labor, the baby decided she wanted to make her appearance anyway, and Erin had her early in the morning on 29Feb.

Luckily, they had given Erin steroids after the last scare, so the baby's lungs are developed enough, and she's doing pretty well. Jason got the chance to talk to Josh today from St. Paul, and Josh said she's still in an isolette, and probably won't be able to go home until at least Monday, if all goes well. Erin, on the other hand, will be cleared tomorrow, most likely, after her C-section. The baby was still about 5 weeks early, so she hadn't turned yet - I guess she was just anxious to see all the fabulous St. Thomas sun and sand!

So, welcome to the world Regan Vega!! (I really hope I'm spelling that right!) I can't wait to meet you!!! My little peanut of a niece weighed in at only 4 lbs and 7 oz, and was just 17 inches long! But, she's healthy and will hopefully start eating like a champ sooner than later. Josh said that's their big hurdle right now!

Congratulations, Josh and Erin!!! Your lives will never be the same!!

Now - let the spoiling commence!!!!!!!!!!!!

A feast for the eyes!

I'm running about a week and a half behind, but I got some great shots out at Spruce Cape two Fridays ago, and I've been meaning to share them. Other than the wind, and a week-long rainy interval, not much has changed weather-wise since then anyway. So, we can just pretend this was today.

Spruce Cape is one of our favorite walks. You head out on the trail through the woods, equipped with YakTrax (http://www.yaktrax.com/) - unless you're Jason today, and you prefer sliding along on the ice instead - and hike out to a point of land that juts out and generally has more wind than anywhere else on the island. Ok, maybe not that much wind, but it's usually breezy - and cold. From there, you get a view of Ft. Abercrombie and, on a clear day, a couple of the smaller islands around Kodiak. You also get to see one of my favorite views, which are these two giant rocks that stick out of the water, looking a little like a gate to Kodiak. I always wonder how they ended up there. Anyway, I almost always bring my camera out to Spruce, because I'm determined to get the best "wave crashing against a rock, throwing spray everywhere" picture that I can get. So far, I haven't had that much luck, but I have fun trying. On this particular Friday, though, it wasn't that much fun to try. It was cold. Really, really cold. And windy. But, it was still pretty! So here ya go... your feast!

Anyone want some snow? I think I know where you can find some.....

This second pic just looks cold, doesn't it? Those are the two rocks that make the gate I was talking about. I just love this spot and this view!

And this guy just happened by while I already had the camera ready. He really cooperated by flying right over my head, not too far away. This shot is with my regular lens, probably zoomed to about 70mm or so. He was joined by a friend shortly after I snapped this shot, but because of the light behind them when I shot over my head, they just looked like two big birds in the picture. Oh well, I think this one suffices!

Someone, I think, decided he didn't need the liner in his coat. I was NOT this cold. I dress for the weather - heavy coats, mittens, YakTrax... I even had a hat in my pocket that day. I didn't wear it, though - didn't want to mess up my hair!

And, finally, since we were out and about, we ran down to the two auto supply stores downtown to look for sparkplugs for the truck. While Jason was inside, I ran across the street to get a harbor shot. I wanted to get a shot of an eagle on a fishing boat, but they weren't cooperating, so I had to just settle for the fishing boat(s).

Hope you enjoyed the view. It should be illegal to live in a place so gorgeous!! The view of the mountains and harbor as we came over the hill into town on the way to church yesterday literally made me catch my breath. It's just so pretty, even in the middle of the winter, following a week of rain. What's not to like about that!

A Surprise, a Shower, Some Snow, Lobstahs and Wii...

Anyone wondering what all those things in the title have in common?? That would be our two week trip to the east coast in a nutshell!

This post falls under the "better late than never" category. I actually have some new, neat Kodiak stuff to post, but I'm going to go back to the vacation instead, because, well, I want to post some stuff from that, too. So you'll have to wait a little while longer (ie, as long as it takes me to work up the energy to post again) for the latest Kodiak news, but let's take a trip back in time!

I would've shared more information about our vacation during the last two weeks of January before we actually left, but I couldn't. Although almost everyone knew we were coming, one very special person had no idea! We decided to leave Jason's mom out of the loop, in order to surprise her! I can't even begin to describe her reaction when she opened the door just after dinnertime, expecting the neighbor, only to see Jason standing there! PRICELESS!! Of course, then we had to shake her and get her to breathe, but eventually she took a breath and we had a great time laughing about the whole thing. Little did she know that she'd be put through the whole thing again a few hours later when Josh (Jason's brother) came in. Maryanne, please forgive me for this, but it's too good not to share. This is my poor mother-in-law when Josh walked through the door:

If you look closely, you'll see that Josh is grinning. I'd say smiling, but I think grinning is more appropriate! I was so glad that I got this picture because I didn't get a good one when we got there. I'm not kidding - this was the exact same reaction from earlier in the night. Once she stopped crying, she was pretty happy to see us all. Project Surprise was a success! Sorry about the smack you got, Jim!!

So, from the surprise, we move onto the shower. The day after getting to Scotia, we hopped in the car and headed up to Lyons, NY, where Josh's wife, Erin, was already at her parent's house, in town for her baby shower! After an overnight at Jim's mom's house (are you seeing the start of the travel pattern here??), the ladies all went to the shower and the men hung out with Josh's father-in-law, avoiding the shower at all costs. Maybe Erin will hate me for this, too, but here's a shot from the shower - we could all only be so lucky as to look like this when roughly six months pregnant!Erin's reading the note inside one of the many books she got - we all gave her books for the baby instead of cards! That little baby has quite the library already! (Special note: We've got Erin (and the baby, and Josh) in our prayers right now - Maryanne called from St. Thomas today to tell us that Erin seems to have gone into early labor. She's still about 7 weeks away from her due date, so we're a little worried right now. They're going to try to stop her labor, and then she'll probably end up on bedrest for a while. Hopefully everything goes ok!!)

From Lyons and the shower, we moved on to Oswego, NY, and Jason's dad's house - and the SNOW. On the way, because it IS upstate NY in the winter, near a Great Lake, we ended up driving through white-out conditions. A storm rolled through, dropping an official total of 34 inches of lake effect snow on Oswego in about a half a day (but at night). Besides being absolutely petrified as we crawled our way toward Oswego, the rest of our visit was really good! This is what we woke up to the first morning we were in Oswego:

To be fair, I did not wake up to this. All the snow was cleared off the car by the time I finally woke up! Jason and his Dad were both up and out the door early, though, to get dug out and cleaned up the best they could. The snow almost came up to the top of the tires on our fabulous rental car (Chevy Malibu = NOT good in the snow, by the way!), and then we got a little more later in the day. We were luckier than some of the surrounding towns, though... I think one town got something like 55 inches. That's a LOT of snow! But, unlike Kodiak, the streets were cleaned up fairly quickly and I didn't miss any shopping days!

From Oswego, we went back to Scotia for a couple more days and had a great day of shopping with Jim and Maryanne. I think Jim probably did about 4 years worth of shopping in that one day, but we ended the day at a great restaurant with a variety of beers on tap, so I think he was happy in the end!

And, finally, we wrapped up the family visiting portion of our trip with a half a week in Connecticut. This is where the lobsters and Wii come in. I swear, if I never saw Wii bowling again, I'd be a happy lady! Ryan and Gina, and Papa and Grandma also made the trek to CT while we were there, so it was a nice little mini-family reunion. Mom threw together a "little gathering" the Saturday night we were there, so we also got to see about 60 of our closest family and friends! It was HUGE crowd, but a great chance to see everyone at once! Meanwhile, when we weren't having a party, the boys (and MOM!) spent most of the time testing out the new flat screen TV in the (also newly-designated) "Wii room" at Mom and Dad's house. This was a standard view for most of the time we were there.

The only thing that changed as the week went by was WHO was in the room. Dad, Mom, Ryan, Gina, Heather, Fran, BreAnna, Uncle Fran, Nolan and Ben all got in on the action at some point in time or another. And, seriously, Ryan, we could totally see the reflection of the TV in the picture out in the hallway... you weren't fooling anyone when you'd sneak off for a while. We ALLLLLLL knew what you were doing. That goes for Jason, too.

So we saw everyone, we played Wii, we shopped, and we had some New England seafood.... lobster! My only rule for the trip was that I was NOT going to eat anything that I could get here in Kodiak. That definitely keeps the options wide open considering our limited choices here, but lobster is one thing that we don't even see on menus here. So, the first night we were in CT, we had a lobster dinner that was just lobster, salad and cheddar biscuits. And, although my lobster was yummy, I have to say, I've been converted to crab. I mean, lobster is good, and I'll still eat it when I get a chance, but it's just not the same as crab. Oh, sad... another tie cut with my New England roots! At least the lobster gave me something fun to take pictures of with my fancy macro lens, though, so it had that going for it!LOBSTAH! Do you think there's a reason they call 'em bugs?? Incidentally, this little guy got into the water a little bit after the rest, and, thus, ended up being underdone. Jason, the man who was scarred by a lobster encounter as a child and has never eaten one since, of course, got that one. Needless to say, he STILL hasn't eaten another lobster. He, too, will be sticking with crab.

From CT, we headed to Boston for a one-night mini-vacation. Not that seeing all the family wasn't a vacation, but we didn't really stop moving for almost two weeks, so we took a night for ourselves. We had a fabulous Italian dinner in the North End and went to see Blue Man Group at the Charles Playhouse. We had seen the show about 5 years ago when Jason lived in Plymouth and I came up for a visit from NC, but it still kept us laughing the whole time! We enjoyed walking around the city, and just taking in the sights! Like this one:

We then had a few hours the next day to walk back to the North End from our hotel and feast on some Mike's Pastry cannoli, and pick up a few pounds of cookies for the road! Finally, on the walk back to the hotel to pick up our car, we stopped for a nostalgic look at Dad's favorite ship... Dad, this one is for you!

We ended our trip with an extra night and day in Anchorage after getting allllll the way to Kodiak and then just turning around because we couldn't land, and then a cancelled flight the next morning while we waited for the runway to be cleaned up enough for the jet to land. Any other day, I'd probably welcome an extra day in the "Big City," including the yummy Moose's Tooth pizza we got to have for lunch. But, after 2 weeks away, we were just ready to get home! We finally made it in on Saturday night (instead of Friday), picked up the dog, and then had two of our neighbors offer us food for dinner since we didn't have anything. Having neighbors like that is just one of the reasons we missed Kodiak while we were gone!

So that's our trip in a nutshell... surprise, shower, snow, lobstahs, and Wii! We had a great time, and started to miss everyone right away. The good thing is that we know when we'll see most of our immediate family again, so we have visits to look forward to... that makes it a little easier to be away. We're back into the swing of Kodiak life, though, and I'll share a little of that in a couple days. That's all for now!

We're alive...

... we made it home from our 2 week+ East Coast jaunt, but I'm pretty sure I'm still too tired to put the effort into a recap and update. Needless to say, driving all around the greater Northeast, seeing ALLLLLL of our families, shopping our feet off, and eating like fools was wonderful and tiring all at the same time! From lost luggage (for real, Jim!) to an extra night in Anchorage (who doesn't like an extra day of vacation, right?), the trip was sandwiched by crappy air travel, but it was all worth it in the end.
For now, I'll say it was fantastic to see everyone - we miss you all already! - and I'll come up with a proper post sometime in the next few days, complete with pictures and all that. I'll also say that, as nice as it was to be back "home," it's even better to be back HOME! Who knew a tiny island 5000+ miles away from all the things we love (you know, stores, restaurants, oh, and family and friends!) could become the place where we're happy, even after such a short period of time!?! But it IS home (at least for now!), and we're happy to be back!

More to follow soon... I promise!
Becca