Sun 24/7

Well I have decided to post again. The Ocean has broken up, and there is a steady stream of ice grinding it's way down to the Atlantic. It is beautiful up here! It is about 50 degrees outside now, and that feels hot after surviving the cold dark winter.

One thing I miss about the winter is the dark. I never thought I would ever say that! The sun is now up 24/7. I use blinds and black out curtains to fake my mind into thinking it is night out. What light does get in, I tell myself it is just street lights. I understand now what night shift workers go through.

The birds are coming back to the area. So are the bugs. So far we have had 2 flies, and a gnat in the house. I heard it is going to get worse. I hope my use of garlic and onions works for us up here as well. Anyway, I have been getting out and walking more. I will try to get a short film of the ice flows. The grind together as they move and sound like someone walking on a gravel path.

This link will take you to a site run by the city. It has some film of the ocean breaking up. Enjoy!

http://kotzpdweb.tripod.com/kotzvids04.html

Richard gets lost in a Blizzard!

It has been awhile since I add to this. Feb. 27, there was a blizzard here in Kotzebue with white out conditions. Richard attempted to walk home in it, and got lost. He found a house and called me from there, saying he was close to home, and hung up. I waited an hour, no Richard. I started to panic. Called 911, and they would not send anyone out "unless they were bleeding to death or having a heart attack". All I could do was wait. 2 hours later Richard walk in the door. He only had to walk about 150 yards from the hospital.

The bad news about the whole thing is, someone else also got lost in the blizzard, and Innupiat man. They found him frozen to death. I am hopeing what I keep telling Richard will sink in. We are NOT in a safe area even though it looks like a town! I feel really sorry for the family that wasn't as lucky as I was.

I have made a album of what it is like up here. You can see all the snow the storm dumped! The drifts are 18 ft deep in places! Enjoy!

http://s352.photobucket.com/albums/r348/tennkress/alaska/?action=view&current=222d2ca9.pbw

Winter Wonderland

A couple of mornings ago, the temperature dropped to -38 degrees F. I had closed down my blinds to help stop a draft. In the morning I opened them, and my windows had frozen. Near the top was a beautiful snowcrystal. I took a photo of it a bit later as the sun was setting. The photo does not do it justice! Enjoy!

http://s352.photobucket.com/albums/r348/tennkress/alaska/?action=view¤t=snowcrystal.jpg

Longest Night

Well, happy Winter Solstice! We are at the darkest time of the year up here. The sun rises at 1 PM and sets at 2:42 PM. Of course, some of that time is the twilight, and with clouds, it doesn't really get bright. The past week or so, it is an almost constant blizzard. I posted a clip in my last post. Tonight the power went out. Down in Tennessee it was an inconvenience. Up here, if it stays out for even an hour, it gets pretty cold. If it gets too bad, we just head for the hospital. They have double generators, so we should be okay. It is kind of scary when the lights go out. You could easily freeze to death in your home, and it wouldn't take long to do it either. I know I am going to really appreciate spring this year! The scenery is gorgeous right now, but it is too cold for me to be able to enjoy it in person. I am stuck with watching out of the windows of my house or from the cab. I do love it here believe it or not, but I would pay $100 for a Whopper! I miss fast food! Happy Holidays if I don't post again before then!

Longest Night and a Blizzard!

Well, we have reached the longest night. We get about an hour of sunlight, and it is cloudy, so still is dark. On top of that, today we had a blizzard. I got my new camera so I hope you can see this. It might take a bit to load for you. Enjoy! Oh and Merry Christmas Everyone!



http://s352.photobucket.com/albums/r348/tennkress/?action=view&current=MOV00003.flv

I broke my foot dang it!

Well, two nights ago I managed to break my foot, and learned how un-hospital-like the hospital is. I broke my foot the night before, but the taxis were not running. So I waited and went to the hospital. I had to walk in to the ER. At first, they didn't take me serious, since I was walking on it. That all changed when I took off my shoe, and they went into shock seeing it. It is very swollen and black and blue. The x-rays showed it is broken. They will send the films to the radiologist in Anchorage, and I am supposed to go back on Thursday or Friday. Glad I got neuropathy and nice pain medication! I am still walking on it without a cast or anything. Sigh....

Now for interesting stuff. I found a link to a sight that you can do a walking tour of Kotzebue, AK. Check this out, it is fun! I live at 439 6th ave. You might be able to find it. Have fun!

http://www.untraveledroad.com/Tour/USA/Alaska/Arctic/Kotzebue?w=5E

Daylight Hours Are Shrinking!

I woke to the forecast for tomorrow on the radio. The sun will rise at 12:07 PM and set at 3:24 PM. That will give us about 3 hours and 17 minutes of daylight. We will get down to 45 minutes of sunlight by Dec. 21. Today our high will be -10 degrees Fahrenheit and the low will be - 28 degrees Fahrenheit. The wind off of the sound will be 10-15 knots. Interesting isn't it?

That is our only radio station for music by the way. It plays whatever they feel like playing, sometimes rock, sometimes gospel, depending on who is the disc jockey at the time. I got to get thinking about Christmas soon. If I don't presents won't get out on time. Ugh! Whoever invented shopping for Christmas should be shot! Just kidding. It presents a unique challenge from Alaska!

Anyway, I better get going. 3 hours to do everything I need to do sucks! Take care all!