Mom's visit, part 2

So, after we got saved by two random guys, I told mom we owed the karma gods. We saw a lot of cars stuck that day, for the record, but almost everyone was well on their way to freedom.  Except for this one guy one the way home from dinner.  We just walked across the street to Henry's (one of 5 restaurants in all of Kodiak), and on our way back we could hear this guy most definitely stuck in the ice.  I open my car, grab my new shovel, some ice melt, and get to work.  Hey, I've gotten stuck twice now, I know what to do!  After a bit of shoveling, a bit of sprinkling, and a little pushing later, voila!  The car was free.  The karma gods had been repaid.

Honestly though, I wish they had remembered that when everything just iced over and stayed that way for the rest of the week.  Because then we got the joy of moving me into my new place (YAY!) on the ice.  Which sucks because you have to talk down a hill to get to my door.  My poor mom. At least she stayed upright.  I told her we just needed a sled then we could slide the stuff down.  I thought it was a great idea personally.  She vetoed it, but I think she just didn't want to be stuck on top of Ice Mountain all by herself.

Ice Mountain is the new name I have given the hill I live on.  It fits.  It's been above freezing for almost two weeks and Ice Mountain is the only thing still frozen solid.  Yeah, try getting out of a car onto that.  It's unfun.

The movers came on Friday and I was so excited to have my bed and all the rest of my stuff back!  It's been around 18 months, which is a long time to have not slept on your own bed.  But the best part of the whole day was when the moving truck got stuck on the ice.  No snow shovel in the world or amount of ice melt was going to save them.  Ooops.  I felt bad for laughing, but I felt much better about getting stuck in the snow!

Sunday I had to put my mom back on a plane.  I really hated that part.  I feel like half my life is putting loved ones on planes and saying goodbye.  If there was one thing I could change about military life, that would be it.

But this time it was almost worth it.  Because watching my mom live through an Alaska winter, even if it was only a week, was priceless.  Now I know how looked to everyone else here.  "Look LOOK!  The mail truck has snow chains!  I've never seen snow chains!"  "Is that a snow plow?"  Yes mom.  "Oh that's so cool!  I've never seen a snow plow."  Yep, everyone should witness this at least once.

Included are some pictures from that week. Enjoy!

Mom's visit, part 1

So, as I mentioned, my mom was here last week!  It was awesome, I was so glad to so her.  I was also really glad she just happened to be here when I had to move into my apartment and out of the barracks!  She says I planned this, but I assure you I did not.  But who am I to pass up the opportunity to get free labor in the form of Mom?

Anyway, my mom is also a Florida native.  She's seen snow twice before in her life, so coming to Alaska in the middle of winter we knew would be entertaining.  My mom was lucky enough to fly in just hours before another major winter storm, probably the worst one since I've been here.  It wasn't really snowing, it was just sleet and freezing fog and all other sorts of ugliness.  In the hopes of trying to keep my mom from being outside as much as possible, we spent her first whole day here in the hotel or driving around.  We did, however, walk across the street for coffee.  I walked ahead, making sure everything was ok for mom so she wasn't surprised by ice.  My reward was getting hit in the back of the head with a snowball.  I get even, don't worry.  But now I can cross "Have a snowball fight" off my list of things to do!

I thought a bit later it would be a great idea to show mom my new apartment (at least, the house it was attached to).  It snowed almost a foot over night, but it was afternoon already and I was sure that the plows had gotten to work and everything would be fine.

It wasn't.

You saw that coming didn't you?

As I went to make the final turn, there was a snow bank.  Now, every one here keeps telling me I can just drive over snow, I'll be just fine.  And sure enough I had been.  18 inches?  Whatever, I can totally plow right over that.  If the snow is powder.  Apparently, that is a key factor.

Guess what kind of snow this was not?

Yeah, so I drove head-on into a bank of wet, icky snow.  And now it started to rain.  I was totally stuck.  I tried everything.  I shoveled, I used the cat litter my fiance told me to get, I used salt, I tried driving forward, backwards, turning the wheel.  Nadda.  Someone finally stopped with a snow shovel (I only had a little survival shovel).  He started digging.  Then someone stopped with toe straps.  Amen for these two gentlemen! I was out in no time.  But I looked like a drowned rat.  Oh well.  I was out and that was good enough for me!  Apparently, my mom thought this whole ordeal was hysterical.  I suppose it was.  I retold the story to my fiance.  His response?

"I told you to get a snow shovel for your car."

Dear, I believe you left out the snow part, because I did have a shovel. *sigh*  So mom bought me one for next time, just in case.  I just had no idea "next time" would be 6 hours later.

One Year Anniversary

So Wednesday was my one year anniversary of joining the USCG!  How did I spend it, you ask?  Stuck in Anchorage, where the temperature was a whopping -24 degrees.  Oh yeah.  It seemed oddly appropriate knowing that day last year I was leaving my nice, warm home in Florida for this.  Sitting in an airport terminal, eating cold pizza from the night before, wondering if we would get back to base or not.  Because, you know, after being stuck for a couple of days, I was wanting some clean clothes and some basic toiletries.

I did take some things away from my experience in Anchorage though.  -24, when it isn't windy, isn't that bad.  It feels like it does when it's in the teens here.  I think after a certain point, cold is just cold.  But, your breath freezes in your nose instantly, as well as the back of your throat.  It's an unusual feeling, that's for sure, but nothing some coffee won't fix.  Do you remember that experiment you probably did in grade school, the one where you put your hand in cold water, then in hot water?  That tingling, HOLY CRAP MY HAND IS ON FIRE feeling, even though it was just lukewarm?  Well, that's what happens to your fingers and toes when you come inside after being outside for a while.

We were delayed because of the snow storm on Kodiak. By the time we got back, my car was in knee deep snow.  Which, for the record, when it's powdery, you can just drive right over.  I looked really stupid asking for a shovel.  But it did lead me to take some really great pics though.  Enjoy!

Oh, and I finally found out why Kodiak-ians call bald eagles dumpster chickens.

Yes, that is our nations most majestic bird, in a landfill.  There were at least a hundred of them.  To be fair, there were some hawks too.  But I did have to laugh at the irony of the scene.

Blizzard #2

Ok, ok, my bad.   I was gone for another week.  I have no real excuse other than I was exhausted and wanted to sleep a lot.  On Friday, we got another blizzard.  It dumped a couple feet of snow overnight, but it was very powdery, so the snow drifts could be quite high.  It was about 3 feet in a lot of places on base.  For a while, it was ok even though it snowed maybe another foot.  Then Tuesday it stopped snowing and started raining.  While it was nice and melted a lot of the snow, we now have a lot of ice everywhere.  Tuesday night when I left work it was like an ice rink everywhere.  It's still snowing, which is a blessing and a curse.  Things aren't as slippery now, but it's hard to see the ice and it can still take you by surprise.

This same storm system moved through Cordova.  In the past few weeks, they have gotten 18 feet of snow.  The National Guard has had to dig them out.  Here, the combination of snow and rain has sunk many boats in the harbor.  Oops.  Since I have no personal funny stories (yet) here are some pictures I've taken of the frozen bay.

Merry Christmas!

or, whatever other holiday you celebrate.  They are all pretty awesome.

For me though, Christmas the only time of year my family ever came together under the same roof.  Which, looking back at it with older eyes, was probably for the best.  I'm used to mom or dad (or even me) having to work that day, so I understand life goes on and the world does not stop.  I just need to ask my parents about that.  Dad's a firefighter, mom's in healthcare.  But this is the first time I will be half a world away.

And I'm ok with that.  The man is with his family in Minnesota. And my family will meet, just as they always have, and eat dinner with a turkey and a ham since my cousins don't eat turkey, two kinds of dressing ("stuffing" for you all not from the south), turnip greens, pepper vinegar, and ambrosia.  I've left out about 20 different dishes we always have even though there's only 12 of us, maybe 16 if my out-of-state cousin comes home.

My watch section is off, so that means I get to cook dinner for a few of us random people that had no other plans.  We get to decide what Christmas in Kodiak looks like to us, and that's pretty cool.  Apparently it looks like ham, mashed potatoes, peas, pies, and whiskey.  Sounds like a good plan to me!  Especially the whiskey the part.  Keep ya warm you know?

Even the rest of Kodiak is getting in the holiday mood.  Some fishing boats are back and there's fresh crab for sale.  There's a couple of guys carving wood sculptures outside.  Lights are everywhere, even on base.  Best of all, it looks like I may just be lucky enough to get my first white Christmas!  It snowed a bit today, and is supposed to snow tomorrow.  That alone makes it all worth it.  But with that being said, dear Kodiak, if you put me though all this crap so far and I don't get snow tomorrow out of this, I will be very, very, unhappy.

So, to all, enjoy the day where ever you are, with whom ever you are with. Remember not all of us are lucky enough to be with our loved ones, but be assured that those of us in the military, the fire service, the police service, or health care are making a sacrifice we chose to make. One we made so you could be safe from tragedy not just today but everyday.  And we will be with our second family, a family bound not by simply by blood but by oath, courage, and commitment.  It is the greatest gift we have to give, besides surrendering our life for yours. It is one that we give freely - even though it can take a toll on those we are parted from.  So do not waste such a gift my friends.  Celebrate it. 

"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist....he lives, and he lives forever" - in us.

My parents

I love my parents.  We have a very unique relationship.   I could go on and on about it, but I think it is best summed up with a picture and a video. 

I got this comic attached to my Christmas gift:

Gee, thanks.  There's no snow out right now, but I really enjoyed being reminded of what I have to look forward to.


I also got the following Frosty the Snowman from my mom....There's a singing dog in the last few seconds of the video, I did not get him. Yet.  I should also mention he came with a note attached that said "Someone to keep you company in the snow."

Whatever Mom and Dad.  You all have a sick sense of humor.

Things I have learned about Kodiak

Since living in Kodiak, I have learned a lot about it's people.

Sweatpants and Xtra-Tufs are Kodiak chic. 

Cute on your kid, not on some salty old fisherman with holes in the crotch of his sweatpants. I could not find a picture, but I wouldn't want to permanently scar you anyway.  (Also, why is this kid holding a very large bottle of wine?)


What I (regretfully) do not have a picture of is the Kodiak baseball field.  It is named Coon Field.  It's after a person, and has been named that way since the 70's.  Honestly, I don't think I need to go into why this makes the vast majority of people I know break out in hysterical laughter.  It's so....not politically correct.  If you can't figure it out from here, you got problems.

Main aisles in Walmart include canning and shoe care.  Canning is for the salmon I have learned (mom, you should stock up here for your jams - I have never seen so many canning supplies) and the shoe care is a byproduct of the military being here.

Fishing and hunting are the main tourist draws here in the summer, so hotels have such wonderful features as "Large freezers!" and "Places to clean your catch!" and "Near Kodiak Taxidermy!" To take your prizes home, you can go to the airport where they will pack and freeze it for you in ready-to-fly packaging.  Now, this is obviously smart business practice by catering to your customers.  But I still laugh when I pick up a hotel brochure and its the biggest selling feature they have.  I would personally want a private balcony with a hot tub, but what do I know?

Store here don't really sell ice.  I guess you just shovel snow for all your cooling needs.  That's what we did at a party - put all the beer in the snow.  Worked wonderfully too.  I recommend it.  But it did actually freeze the beer.  So that was a minor inconvenience.

Finally, the cold weather and lack of sun is clearly having an affect...

...Or maybe I went back to Florida?  Whatever these people are smoking, I want some.  Because it gives you some serious dreams.

Part 4 - The storm

Bering Sea storms are common in the winter.  It’s a part of living in the region.  But forecasters were saying this storm was going to be bad.  It was still too early in the season they said, and that was why this one was going to be so bad.  So bad in fact, some coastal regions of Western Alaska were being evacuated because of storm surge.  I was mentally prepared for my job to get more difficult, maybe some distress calls, some difficulty communicating, but I never thought about what would happen when that storm hit Kodiak.  At first, it just was snowing.  And it kept snowing for days.  I had to go shovel it a couple of times, but nothing we did could keep up.  It just kept coming down.  Plows couldn’t keep up, and the piles that they had cleared from the roads were much taller than I was.  We had maybe a foot a snow fall in the first few days.  Not much by anyone else’s standards, but then the wind hit.

50 mile per hour winds.  This was a hurricane in Alaska.  I had been warned these winds would get bad, but what I wasn't expecting was for them to blow all the snow away overnight.  Drifts of snow that were much higher, it was all just gone.  And it was in the teens.  Even the pilots wouldn’t fly in this weather.  And if there’s one thing I’ve learned about Coast Guard pilots is those people are crazy.  So if they refuse to go out, I know it must be bad.  But it got sunny again, and warmed up a few degrees and I thought the worst was over.  No, apparently that was just a break in the storm.

Then it snowed for days a second time.  Not so much wind this time, so it wasn’t so bad.  It was in the high twenties, so it would have been a nice time to go play in the snow, only I was working.  Of course. Then I came home after a long weekend and I saw what I knew would be bad.  My car’s thermometer said it was 34 degrees out.  This lesson I did learn in Cape May.  Snow melts then refreezes into ice.  Never in my life did I pray that it would get colder, and fast.  Before this got worse.  But pray I did. 

The next day, it was sunny and in the low twenties.  Sure enough, I was right. Ice everywhere.  I had yet to find a pair of ice cleats in my size so I was just going to have learn to navigate this stuff the hard way.  Sometime around noon, I realized I was starving and I decided to brave the roads and go get some sushi.  This should have been a simple task.  Only as soon as I tried to back out of my parking spot, I realized I was not going anywhere anytime soon.  I was stuck.  I got out, no snow behind me keeping me in, so I kept looking.  Sure enough, my front tires were sitting on ice.  And I have a front-wheel drive only vehicle.   After about 45 minutes of trying to get my car to move, I knew I was truly stuck and I needed some help.  Thank God for salt and being stuck on a CG base because I was out in no time.

Only I forgot the sushi place was closed on Monday.  So I settled for pho and pad thai instead.  I now also have ice and a small shovel in my car.  You know, just in case.  And it was a good thing too, because the next day we had white out conditions and it was 4 degrees, wind chill of -25.  But I wasn’t dumb enough to go out in this.  I knew one thing for sure: the snow was kicking my Florida ass.

My first 10 weeks, part 3 - snow

It's November 1st.  I had just gotten qualified as a watchstander.  I had gone into work for a short day.  Imagine my surprise when I look at the security cameras (there are no windows) and see snow!  Real, fluffy snow!  When I leave, it's stopped but over everything is an inch thick blanket of untouched lovely snow.  I could hardly contain my excitement.  I drove back to base as fast as I dared.  Once I got back, I parked, threw open the door and just started some odd combination of dancing and kicking snow up off the ground.  I made a snowball.  I threw handfuls in the air.  SNOW!  This was FUN!
 
Seeing as how I had been up for about 36 hours at that point, I decided I would sleep first, then go play.  I was very surprised when I woke up and saw that this lovely white fluffy was now all brown and dirty.  The plow had cleared it all away!  No more playing in the snow today, but I knew there would be more days to come.  I also needed snow boots, so I took care of that the next day.
 
Then it happened.  Lots of snow.  And by lots I mean 3 inches.  And I had to drive to work in it while it was still coming down.  Alright, it was now or never.  My car was covered in snow though.  But I had my handy dandy broom ice scraper thing so I knew it was going to be ok!
 
Note to self: wipe the snow off the door first or a giant pile of it will fall in your car.
 
But I got the snow off and was off to work.  I drove slow, I was doing good.  This snow thing wasn't all that bad.
 
Second note to self: your car does not turn as well in the snow.
 
That should have been obvious looking back, but it wasn't.
 
I hit a snow bank.
 
Clearly I am ok because I'm still here.  I didn't even damage my car.  But I learned a very important lesson.
 
I also learned that when a car drives in the snow, it compresses it and makes ice.
 
Ice is slippery.
 
I fell on my ass.
 
For those of you keeping track: Snow 3, Amanda 0.  And on its way was what forecasters had been calling "the storm of the century."