Leaving on a jet plane

Sun peeking through the clouds in Elim

A week without students is a week spent traveling and recruiting, and lordy moses did I ever!  Before heading out I was sort of surprise ambushed with the news that I would be teaching a course, and in turn was tasked with recruiting for it.  Needless to say, this trip had a little more added pressure than last time.  My first stop was in Elim, which is located between mountains where the air currents can really get ripping.  Turbulence doesn’t sufficiently describe what I experienced; I was tossed around with my white knuckles clutching the bottom of the seat saying involuntary Hail Mary’s until we finally landed.  Luckily, the trip over was not a harbinger of bad things to come during my stay.  While every village I’ve been to is picturesque, Elim may take the cake.  It is the perfect combination of ocean, seaside cliffs, and lovely, tall, glorious trees.

Elim K-12 School

Drying salmon for the season

Overlooking Elim

My day was spent bouncing from room to room to present and convince students to sign up for my class.  Poor kids didn’t know what hit them; I think my unbridled enthusiasm and pep shocked them into applying for my Careers in Education course more than anything.  Success!  One of the students had just gotten back from a NACTEC session, so she showed me the ropes and gave me the low-down on Elim.  In spite of her help I still stuck out like a sore thumb; it’s hard to imagine getting lost in a school comprised of only two hallways, but yep, I’m that girl.  One teacher noticed my lost puppy look and came to my rescue, inviting me over for dinner and a quick jam session (of course I brought my ukulele!).  During travel weeks I pack enough food to last me the trip, and without access to a refrigerator or microwave my “meals” generally consist of granola bars, beef jerky, and almonds.  The prospect of a real, justifiable dinner was the very best gift imaginable.  I’ve always appreciated the simple things, but being an itinerant emphasizes just how much I value a warm meal, a comfortable bed, and a private shower.

In villages the district owns housing for teachers located directly adjacent to the school, which is utilized by most staff members.  A quick knock on the kitchen wall served as the dinner bell, and other teachers came to join in the festivities.  It was a feast the likes I’ve never seen in Alaska!  I was treated to a gourmet BLT on homemade bread, with romaine, tomatoes, and thick slices of bacon.  I was served oven roasted beets, caramelized leeks with summer squash, and a garden salad to boot.  Now to understand just how special this meal was, here is some background.  Nome has 3 grocery stores and is fortunate enough to receive ample shipments of produce, but the quality is sometimes questionable at best.  Thanks to an organic farm in Washington, this teacher receives weekly shipments of the best organic produce, which can be sent to even the most remote villages.  It blew my mind that such fantastic and diverse produce could exist in a village without a grocery store!

Local biker gang!

The playgrounds are always full of kiddos!

My school visits are always short, lasting only one overnight, so it was time to leave before I knew it.  The secretary was also flying out that day, but for a very different reason.  Her family has been in Elim for generations, living off the land and fully embracing the subsistence style of living.  Disturbingly, a company from the lower-48 has been conducting testing in the mountains surrounding the village, analyzing uranium deposits in the rock and determining the financial viability of extraction.  This woman was flying to a conference to plead her case of protecting this land, discussing the irreparable damage that excavation could cause for the ecosystem and people of this region.  While this company only sees dollar signs, a whole community hangs in the balance.  I can’t even begin to imagine what this radioactive material could do to the fish, caribou, streams, and drinking water, not to mention the utter destruction of the landscape.  Come on people, didn’t anyone watch Avatar?!  I can only hope that her pleas do not fall on deaf ears; the business mindset truly disgusts me sometimes.

Cliffs of Elim

My next stop was in Koyuk, and after having students from this school attend both of the first two sessions at NACTEC, I was surrounded by familiar faces.  What a good feeling to walk into a place where I actually know people!   There is only one plane that travels from Koyuk back to Nome, so I spent an extra day in the school.  This allowed me to deliver my spiel, and still have ample time to visit and observe classes in a more informal way.  I read stories with kindergarteners, traveled Google Earth with a 3^rd – 5^th grade Social Studies class, and was interviewed by the Journalism students.  Even with the hundreds of observation hours I’ve logged, the dynamic teaching and quality of education I witnessed in each classroom still left me impressed and inspired.  I enjoyed the bicultural class most of all; students were busy sewing beaver, raccoon, and seal skin mittens, and making traditional wooden masks used during dancing and ceremonies.  Each mask had a wooden bite-piece on the inside, so that it could be held against the face by biting down, eliminating the need for unsightly strings laced behind the head.  Students were also tying knots in a huge net hung across the length of the classroom, sized to catch beluga whales.  I so want to be enrolled in this class.

The cemetery on the hill in Koyuk

Koyuk K-12 School

Materials in the Bicultural Classroom

The morning routine was also an unexpected treat.  Students begin their day with breakfast in the cafeteria (freshly baked blueberry coffee cake, yum!), and many of the village elders join in for meals.  After some free time in the gym, students find their seat on the bleachers with their homerooms, and the principal delivers the morning announcements like a pep rally.  A few brave students volunteer each day to lead the pledge of allegiance, and the principal relays all of the typical daily messages to students face to face, as a whole school.  Two students had a birthday when I was there, and we all joined in a rousing rendition of “the birthday stomp” to celebrate!  Students were dismissed with a school cheer; I guess one morning they even had a frozen t-shirt unraveling contest!  I used to enjoy the televised morning announcements in Averill Park, but dang this was awesome.  I left feeling energized, and really included in the school community.  I think every school should start the day off like this!

Morning Announcements in Koyuk

 

My flight back to Nome was smooth sailing, but certainly not the typical airline experience.  I realized that I should expand on this a little more after my mom inquired as to whether it gets tiring going through bag checks and security each time I travel.  Quite frankly, the airports here are little more than a runway (and a bedraggled, packed-dirt one at that!).  Flight times are flexible to say the least as destination itineraries may be combined for efficiency, and depend on who and what needs to go where.  About an hour before your estimated flight time, you personally call the pilot with the school radio to find out where they are currently in route to, and to provide an update on current weather conditions.  You then anxiously wait by the radio to hear the “touch-down in 10 minutes” warning, when you are whisked away by truck or 4-wheeler to the runway, which is the highest point in town.  The only security to speak of is in providing your total weight with baggage.  Once the plane lands it’s a hop out of your vehicle and onto the aircraft, and away you go, flying into the great (usually fogged over) blue yonder!

71 miles on this baby!

Musk Oxen on the Nome-Teller Highway

Hard to see, but I saw a herd of 30+ Reindeer

Muddy roads lead to a muddy truck!

 

Once home, my traveling didn’t end.  This weekend was the annual Cultural Festival in Teller, only a 71 mile drive from Nome.  I am admittedly directionally impaired, but this was one road-trip I couldn’t get lost on; I followed the Nome-Teller Highway for the full time, and each rare instance of oncoming traffic was accompanied by a friendly wave.  It was also the perfect time for a trip, as this road was recently grated so the notorious potholes were not an issue, and in a few short months it will be inaccessible due to snow.  Definitely not a road that gets plowed in the winter.  The drive was beautiful, with plenty of flora and fauna to feast my eyes on.  Once there I was invited to attend the potlatch dinner, which easily fed over a hundred people.  In Alaska, potlatches are gift-giving festivals, having been traditionally tied into the economic systems of indigenous people.  Elders ate first, followed by the out-of-town performers, clearly showing the respect and value these folks have earned.  I was lucky enough to enjoy some moose heart stew and muktuk (whale meat and blubber) for the first time.  I was the only white person in the place, but I was welcomed just the same.

Potlatch, yum!

Fork full of muktuk!

 

Following the meal was the dance performances, and I was blown away.  Students from all over the district were flown in to perform, and it was amazing seeing them in this capacity.  I always loved watching my students in NY during their theater productions and athletic events, but this was a whole new experience.  My students were dressed in traditional costumes and performed Eskimo dances in their native language.  Each dance told a story about building an igloo, hunting migrating birds, or friendship.  Huge drums made of stretched seal stomach and willow branches were used to provide the back beat.  I could feel each song in my core, and am still awe-struck.  I feel so privileged to have been able to attend such an event!  Teller was beautiful, and having now been to 6 out of 15 villages in the district I can honestly say that I’ve enjoyed each and every one, especially because they’re each so different.

My first glimpse of Teller

Teller K-12 School

Eskimo drumming (the stick hits the bottom rim)

Eskimo dancing in colorful kuspuks

A mother goose and her gaggle

Session 2 Crew!

While junior high students just get a taste of NACTEC (staying only 4 days), high school students get a full, heaping helping.  This week my students finished out their two weeks, delving deeper into their chosen course of study.  So the thing about students being here for a weekend means that their learning experience is still on; and as a teacher I play a role in providing that.  Yup, I worked on a Saturday.  A rainy, dreary, cold Saturday.  Fortunately for me I was on shift with a great “house parent” (charged with keeping order among the kids at the house during the more unstructured time), Nome High School was hosting a volleyball tournament open to the public, and the mix of students at this session were excellent.  Unbelievably so.  All in all, the circumstances made my job easy, and working on the weekend wasn’t so bad because I got to experience students in a more laid-back context.

Hauling buckets of cement

Pouring the foundation for the wind turbine!

It ain't work if your hands ain't dirty!

Speaking with the house parent was also fascinating; having the work hours of 8pm-8am attracts characters with an interesting set of interests and activities.  For example, this particular man spends his summer days diving for gold, and does so every year.  He told me about finding a nugget slightly smaller than his pinky, which was worth $1,000 in its natural, unrefined state.  He told me that he’s become so accustomed to being around gold, that right now about $400 worth has been rattling around in his toolbox because he hasn’t gotten around to turning it in, and really isn’t in any hurry.  Because housing in Nome is at a premium, he lives on West Beach in what he calls a “palett palace”; rustic is an understatement, and many of the ramshackle residences in this location are built from cast-off wooden shipping paletts.  But dang if they don’t have one of the best views in Nome!  I imagine it’s not all that different from the tent-city that sprouted up in 1898 when gold was first discovered here, minus the gamblers, claim jumpers, saloon keepers, and prostitutes.   

Mining equipment reminds you of days of old, and days of gold!

Most gold towns are of the boom-and-bust variety, existing today as abandoned ghost towns.  While I feel a little “old-timey” for saying this, Nome is still a profitable destination for gold prospectors as is still being mined 113 years after the so-called “Three Lucky Swedes” struck pay dirt in Anvil Creek.  In fact, a day on the beaches of Nome pays better than an $8/hour job in a fast food joint in the lower 48.  I really have to get myself a gold pan!  The ocean is always dotted with dredges of all sorts (one even uses an excavator that scoops into the sea; imagine the rust damage!), and recently one capsized losing a $60,000 load of gold.  Driving along Nome roads leads you past huge pits in the ground with all sorts of heavy machinery collecting dirt and rock in staircase crop-circle patterns.  Stones are crushed down, the gold is melted out, and the leftover gravel is returned in heaping piles or sold to other areas to make roads.  The season is short however, and it won’t be long before the gold folks follow the way of the birds and fly south for the winter.   

Gravel pit gold mining

So back to the students!  I can’t imagine ever getting tired of learning from these kids.  Two girls from Teller taught me my first full-length Eskimo dance called “Uncle Sam” (I was told it was the easiest to learn).  Our performance was without the traditional drumming, but it really was quite beautiful.  Each turn of the wrist, or bobbing at the knee means something special, and each dance represents the hunt, harvesting, or other significant events in daily life.  I also learned the rules of “mixed 6” volleyball, and got to play a match.  As I mentioned before, the athletic pool is quite small at schools in the district so they must form co-ed teams to fill out the roster.  Due to this, they have created different rules to make it fair; at least one girl must be on the court at all times, and a girl must hit the ball before it can be volleyed back over the net.  My favorite part however had nothing whatsoever to do with the game or the rules.  Each time a person messes up, everyone on the team gives them a low-five hand slap for encouragement.  In all of my athletic experiences in NY, I’m used to the exact opposite!  Needless to say, I got the most low-fives. 

I lost to kids who've never touched a bowling ball before!

I continued with my First Aid training this week, and all but 4 received their Red Cross certification.  Students also got the chance to learn from me outside of the classroom, during an interview they conducted about my job.  They asked me a standard set of questions (best and worst part, type of certifications and education required), but the best questions were the ones they thought of on their own.  I know that we get the cream of the crop here at NACTEC, but their thoughtfulness, genuine curiosity, and higher order thinking always impress me.  Especially considering the fragmented nature of their education due to the 25% teacher turnover rate each year.  I loved answering questions about what it was like teaching 35 students in a class (How did they all fit in one room?  Did they all get their own desk, or did they have to share?), having 300 students in a grade (Were they all strangers to each other?  How do they all play on the same team?), and living in a suburb (Are there skyscrapers?  Are there any animals or do all of the people, cars, and buildings scare them away?).  It still boggles my mind that I taught more students in one year than the total number of residents in these villages.

Practice splinting in First Aid Class

One happy patient!

After spending two weeks with this bunch, it really was sad to see them go.  We hauled them out to the airport bright and early, as flight times are just a suggestion.  I honestly got a little misty watching their planes take off, but I know they were all super excited to get back home.  The most heartwarming part was that when asked about the thing they missed most, and were most looking forward to getting back to, it wasn’t pop, or tobacco, their TV or their 4-wheeler.  It was their family, every time.  So before they left, I had two gleaming moments.  One student christened me with an Eskimo name; Ligliq, which means “mother goose”.  But it was the toughest student of the session, who tested my patience and pushed my buttons each and everyday, who gave me the best gift of all.  On his way out the door to meet his plane he suddenly turned back, and rushed towards me to give me a huge bear hug.  He quickly spun around and was back out the door, but he didn’t have to say a single word to let me know that he appreciated what I did.  It just doesn’t get any better than that.

At the airport before heading back to their villages

Outside of work, life is still good.  After living without cable for 2 years, it’s almost bizarre being able to turn on a TV again (it’s included in our rent).  It’s still rarely on, but when it is the commercials always garner a chuckle or two.  In NY I always used to joke about how Sonic Drive-thru commercials were a tease; those chili cheese tater tots always look so good, but the closest Sonic is a few states over!  In Nome, every commercial is like this; if I see one more never-ending shrimp at Red Lobster advertisement I’m going to hop a plane and be the next one in line for a skewer (or 10).  Although I have seen my very first ramen noodle commercial, and let me tell you cup o’noodles are ubiquitous in the Nome cafeteria so they must be doing something right. 

We may not have shrimp, but we do have moose jerky!  Yum!

I also enjoy listening to our one shared radio station (KNOM and KICY split air time) and actually look forward to hearing the school’s lunch menu for the day, the quote of the day, and the joke of the day.  I’m so used to hearing these voices that I experienced my first star-struck moment.  I was invited to West Beach for music around a bonfire, and was introduced to some of the other young people in Nome.  It was so funny to immediately recognize the voice from the radio, and compare the picture in my head to the guy standing in front of me.  I certainly didn’t expect the purple highlights in his hair; upgrade!  Music nights have been a weekly indulgence, where folks get together and jam.  I am now the proud new owner of a ukulele, and it’s been easy to join right in.  Chords are called out so once you know a few you’re making music with the gang!  Playing uke has actually been a bit addicting; I feel like a little kid, up in bed past midnight strumming away and not wanting to stop even though my eyes won’t stay open.  Ukulele, who knew?!   

The beach is beautiful and the driftwood for a campfire is plentiful (although we're not sure where it washes up from; Nome has no trees!)

Official Alaskan, finally!

My packages, stacked neatly on our kitchen table

It only makes sense that after the worst week I’ve had in Alaska, follows one of the best.  After spending six weeks without my most important personal belongings, my packages FINALLY came!  Here are the things I was most excited to see, starting with the most important; toothbrush charger, razor, bed sheets (I can finally retire my sleeping bag!), alarm clock, and sweatpants.  Brushing my teeth with a fully charged electric toothbrush is honestly as good as it gets.  I have heard horror stories about damaged packages, and although they were slow to arrive, they all remained in pretty good condition.  The only evidence of a thrashing was a burst open container of oatmeal and a completely busted up tin box.  The things I was most worried about (glass bottles of dinosaur bbq sauce, laundry detergent) were perfectly fine!  Now that I have my things, I’m starting to feel like I actually live here rather than just being on an extended vacation.

Can't imagine how this happened, but at least the flamingo (made for me by an AMS student) survived inside of it!

Another momentous development was that I finally own a vehicle.  It’s hard to imagine how difficult it is to obtain wheels in Nome; just having the money for one is not enough, not by a long shot.  All vehicles must be barged here, which leads to a very limited number of vehicles in town, with a tremendous demand.  It also adds $3,000 to the total cost; cars that wouldn't be worth scrap metal in NY go for $2,000 here.  The main avenue of buying and selling in town is “Nome Announce”, which is similar to Craig’s list, but posts are communicated through an email list.  Much to my chagrin, cars would be posted, and within an hour they were sold.  I still don't have a cellphone or internet access due to clashing business hours and work hours, so by the time I called anything I was interested in would be long gone.  The vehicles I did have an opportunity to test drive were available for a reason; one truck leaked oil as if you had opened up a faucet upon engaging the 4-wheel-drive, and another one wouldn’t run unless it was in 2^nd gear, was missing a muffler, and couldn’t be opened from the inside unless you wound down a window.  Cars in Alaska must be insured, but they do not need to pass any inspections.

My new truck, next to the beast I've been driving

A little battered and bruised, but just my style!

Luckily, the stars aligned and the Driver's Ed teacher was selling his truck; I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.  My new ride is a 2000 Nissan Frontier truck, with a crew cab and short bed; and it’s small enough that I don’t need a ladder to get in it.  It has the superficial dents and body damage typical in Nome, but everything that should run, does.  It even has some extras like a bed liner, roof rack, tail hitch, seat covers, and both a battery heater and engine block heater.  I had never imagined plugging in a car, but it is an absolute must in the temperatures that I'm in for this winter.

Getting the title switched over was a bigger ordeal than purchasing the truck.  It’s widely accepted that everything takes forever at the DMV, but Nome takes it to a whole new level.  The office is only “open” 3 hours per day, and never on Thursdays, as they give road tests at this time.  I arrived promptly at 1pm, however the door didn’t open for another 30 minutes; and boy did the line grow!  Once inside, it took almost 2 hours to process my business alone.  On a positive note, my time was not spent for nothing; I walked out with a brand spanking new AK license (I couldn’t believe you didn’t have to wait for it to be mailed!), new plates, and all of the necessary paperwork.

I'm officially an Alaskan; or so says the DMV!

Thanks to the Chronic care Active Management and Prevention (CAMP) department in town, I now also have a membership to the rec center in town, which is equipped with a rock climbing wall, gymnasium, weight room, and saunas.  Usually a membership is quite costly, but CAMP has a grant to run a “Step by Step” program encouraging a healthy lifestyle among residents.  For $10 they will measure and weigh you, analyze your blood cholesterol levels, and set two goals for improved fitness and health.  For your trouble you receive a free 3-month membership to the rec center.  So essentially for $40 I can have an unlimited year-long gym membership; try and beat that Planet Fitness!

My entrance into the program couldn’t have come at a better time; running along the coast has become considerably less enjoyable, as Nome has been getting continuous winds averaging 45 mph.  While out running, I truly felt like I was in an alternate reality; tears were ripped from my eyes, and mid-stride a gust would push me so hard that my footfall would be at least 6” to the right of where I was expecting it to be.  I have never felt wind that powerful before, and running on a treadmill is a great improvement.

Monday was Labor Day, and let me tell you, Nome knows how to celebrate in style.  The annual bathtub race was held downtown at high noon, and five teams of four people clad in straw hats, suspenders, and duct tape met at the starting line on Front Street with their tubs on wheels.  There were bicycle wheels, truck tires, custom body work, and all types of steering columns.  Each team also had to have a passenger, and many groups choose a young child to sit in the suds while they pushed.  At the go, each team pulled the plug and rushed down the main drag before their tubs were empty.  The winning team left with a trophy, but the team winding up as the caboose did not leave empty handed; they proudly accepted their “Last Place” plaque.

One team getting ready at the starting line

Mad dash down Front Street!

Later in the afternoon was the annual duck race.  The Rotary Club sold numbers for 1,000 ducks, which were all dumped into the Snake River and left to float.  The wind was so strong that some of the quackers went in the wrong direction, but the first three to make it to the bridge downstream won cash prizes.  At the finish line it became an “everybody-pitch-in” moment, with all of the kids jumping in the water to collect the wayward ducks.  After performing a few rescues, a few kids took a break to teach me how to properly skip a stone.  How is this a skill I hadn’t aquired in my 25 years?!  It was surprising how well attended these town events were; people really came out of the woodwork to celebrate.

Dumping the ducks in the river

Away they go!  Too bad mine didn't win

Skipping stones with the kiddos

On Tuesday, the new group of 26 high school students arrived.  Now I admit that I was dubious, but this bunch has been nothing short of amazing.  I was pleasantly surprised to see familiar faces, as many of the students I had met in Golovin were attending this session.  My preconceptions that high schoolers would be more difficult than the younger students that I’m used to were unfounded; these kids are laid back, kind, funny, and surprisingly compliant.  High school sessions are also much different than those for junior high.  Students stay for twice as long, and include a weekend (which I must work).  I still begin the day with a morning workout and Red Cross Training (although the “call 9-1-1” step and much of the other content isn’t quite relevant here), but students spend the bulk of their day receiving intensive training in a specific course, and obtain college credit.  This session the course selection includes Renewable Energy, Career Exploration, and Driver’s Education.

Some of my students hard at work

I’ve learned so much during the week I’ve spent with them, and they’re all so willing to share.  I now know a handful of Eskimo words; gussuk means white person, quyana means thank you, and alapaa means it’s cold!  One handy trick they taught me is that applying mucus from your nose to areas of your body that may be susceptible to frostbite will help stop the progression.  Upon discussing this further (I mean come on, I don’t want to be the only silly gussuk fooled into rubbing snot on my earlobes) I’ve found it to be a truly legitimate strategy in the bush.  I was also able to watch the beautiful art of Eskimo dance, and even learned some moves and the significance behind them.  I learned how to imitate the call of a sandhill crane, which I put into practice as hundreds of them circled overhead, gathering into one massive flock preparing to migrate.  Thousands of beating wings and their peculiar croaking calls filled the skies for a entire day, and by morning they were gone!

Sandhill cranes; they are much larger than they appear here (and supposedly good to eat)!

Cultural differences are also more apparent with the older students.  During every break, it is important to keep track of students because more often than not if I can’t find someone, they are in the shower.  Hot indoor showers are all but nonexistent in the villages, so it is not uncommon for a student to take 4 showers in one day.  Another quirk is that when they see someone they know, they let out a noise that is almost indescribable; a combination of a fire siren, whistle, and wolf howl.  Many of them call each other by all or part their Eskimo name, which usually begins with the letter B.  At the same time, they’re just how you’d expect.  One boy can play all of your favorite 80’s hits on guitar (REO Speedwagon anyone?), they all miss going on their cellphones and facebook, and they are homesick for their villages.

Working on the CAT simulators

He shoots!  He scores!

Because high school students stay at NACTEC for two full weeks, they are allowed to be “checked-out” by immediate family members, which is exceedingly difficult to determine.  It is typical to have lots of siblings, and one boy is the only male in a household of 14 sisters.  I can only begin to imagine the lady slaying he will do in the future!  In addition, many of these kids have grown up in multiple homes, passed among family members, at times based on which relative has the greatest financial need.  Children are a significant source of income, as each child receives a yearly Permanent Fund Dividend (averaging $1,500/person), and social services money from Kawerak (similar to a state department for the villages).  Therefore, children may be raised by aunts and uncles, grandparents, or even older siblings or cousins, making them more like mothers and fathers.  And nearly everyone is a cousin.

Family structures are also sometimes more complex based on child rearing traditions in some villages.  We couldn’t accept one student because she had recently given birth and was still nursing, and a few of the girls have babies of their own at home.  Starting as soon as possible, some girls may have their first child, which will fulfill the role of almost a dry run.  Girls will use their experiences to learn how to raise a child, make mistakes, and after a time will give this child to their parents to raise.  Under native law, this son or daughter will then become their sister or brother, and is treated as such.  This practice actually makes quite a bit of sense to me; real life learning is always the best.  And honestly, it's not at all uncommon in NY for a grandparent to go to court, fighting for the custody rights to their grandchild.  It's just intriguing that teenage pregnancy can have a different, refreshingly positive connotation and cultural significance.

Making a frame that will become the base of our 40' wind turbine

Laying the grid before pouring concrete

Pounding the dirt!

I’m still getting used to a variety of new things.  I had frost on my windshield on September 8^th, which is a new early record for me.  Restaurants do not serve regular creamer with coffee or tea, offering small packets of dried non-dairy creamer instead (they don’t need refrigeration and are easy to ship).  Bottles and cans are just thrown out, as it would cost more to ship that item to a recycling facility than the 5 cent return.  This makes sense, but I still can’t help but cringe every time a pop can gets crushed and tossed!  Our neighbors upstairs have a 5^th grade son who is a welcomed regular at our apartment.  It is culturally acceptable and even expected for people to just walk into homes without knocking, and this child is no exception.  One Sunday morning I walked in to find him sitting quietly at our dining room table after I ran outside for a quick errand!

I’m so relieved that the major things have fallen into place.  I feel like a whole new person now that I have my belongings, have access to a safe and comfortable workout, and am able to use my own vehicle to go from place to place at will.  It also doesn’t hurt that I’m really loving my job this session too.  I know I will face many more challenges and difficult days, but it’s nice to be reveling in an upswing.