Yikes, I just took a look at the blog and realized it's been almost 2 weeks since my last post! Unfortunately that's mainly due to the fact that I haven't done anything that I think would be of interest to you, but I figure I owe whoever reads this an update anyhow.
It hasn't snowed at all since the first couple snow storms back in, say, October? But the temperature continues to plunge, freezing the old snow piles into rock hard banks along the roadsides and slick ice covers the streets causing people and cars to slide around at every intersection (it can be quite entertaining). Last night I experienced my first negative temperatures at -2 degrees F. It wasn't too bad, but then again, I wasn't outside for that long.
Work has had its ups and downs. Most days it's rather mundane, routine, and slow; other days, there are simply not enough hours to get everything done, but so it goes. The trip plan for Shishmaref continues to change on a near daily basis -- as of right now, it's been moved ahead one day and I won't be staying overnight (since the next day is Thanksgiving). This actually took a surprising amount of pressure off me, but speaking with my contact in the village yesterday brought some of that pressure back because it sounded like there really wasn't a solid plan or understanding of what I'm doing over there, despite that I've been told otherwise. We'll see. At any rate, I have to admit I'm glad I'll hopefully be back here for Thanksgiving.
With regard to my "month of solitude" out here, it hasn't been too bad either. The first week was a little rough, just because work was slow, the internet was down half the time, and I hadn't really found a good state of mind to be in. Once I sort of came to terms with it though, I did my best to stay busy and distracted. I watched movies, wrote letters, did some artwork, read a lot, worked out, went to swing dance lessons, took walks on the beach, and searched for future jobs.
And so continues my life out here. I have more to post about, but somehow I keep lacking the motivation or words to actually get it up here so that'll just have to wait. For now, enjoy some Alaska-inspired artwork (some of these are from a few months ago):
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| Bears with weird-looking northern lights |
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| Prehistoric woolly mammoth |
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| Prehistoric American lion |
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| Whimsical muskox |
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| Caribou |
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