Current Events part 3, CGC Healy

One final news item on the agenda (for now).  The Cutter Healy.

Oh come on, you saw that coming didn't you?  I mean, how could I, a Coastie in Alaska, not write about my shipmates who made sure a city in Alaska got gas?  Not the kind you get after eating beans either, but I'm sure after Mexican night on the cutter that's what happens.

Anywho, in case you lived under some giant rock, the Cutter Healy broke through a lot of ice to get the tanker Renda to Nome, AK.  Because they were running out of gasoline.  I mean, in a town were gas is $7 a gallon, who would want it, anyway?  In case you missed it, that's how we get heat up here.  And in case you are completely clueless, Alaska is freakin' cold. I would know.

That's here, last week.  Nome is hovering around -40 right now.  Sucks to be them.  Yeah, I'd want my damned gas too.

The Healy is also the USCGs only working icebreaker.  Which, for some reason the government has seen as exceptable.  But now, America wants to drill for oil in Artic Circle.  I would just like to ask- how are you going to get there, since, uh, you know, there's only 1 working icebreaker?  And uh, who is going to save you when another BP oil spill happens?  Oh, you didn't think that far ahead did you?  Well, I'm glad Admiral Papp did, and he's been telling you this for a while, but no one listens to the Coast Guard.  We don't exist.  Most people don't even know we are military.  And we go to war too.  And we get shot at.  And we've died.  But hey, we just sit around and look cool for Al Roker on TV right?

Alright, enough of that rant. My mom comes up here tomorrow! I am so excited.  Thing is, she's seen snow twice in her life.  Oh, I am sure I will have some funny stories to tell after this week.  Should be entertaining to say the least!

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.

Happy New Year!

It's  -8 degrees.  What.The.F#$%.  "Oh, it never gets below 0 in Kodiak." Liars.  All of you, liars.

That said, I lived.  And it warmed up. To 6 degrees.  Hurray!  At least there is no ice or snow.  Small miracle I guess at this point.  The bigger miracle is that I've lived somehow.  I don't know how I did it, mind you.  The thermometers on the "thermostats" say it's less than 50, and you can see your breath sometimes.  So, it's cold inside too.  They have the a/c running nonstop.  And apparently this isn't an issue that can be fixed.  I'm sure it can, people are just lazy.  Soon though, I will have my own place and I will warm!  I can't wait.

Thank rant being out of the way (one I have shared with everyone who will listen - sometimes by force), I must say 2011 was a great year and I'm sad to see it go.  I joined the Coast Guard, got hurt pretty badly but I recovered, bought my first new car, met an amazing guy, met some great people, finished "A" school, moved to California and Alaska, and now am planning a wedding!  Woah, that's a lot.  Maybe 2012 will be a bit slower paced?  I doubt it.

Resolutions for 2012:
Make the next rank (well, that could take until March of 2013, even if I pass this fall)
Get orders to somewhere with seasons
Get back into volunteering


Anyone else have any resolutions for the coming year?
 

My watch section

So I can't go much further in my blog without talking about my watch section. They make up the majority of the people I know on this island so far, and while they laugh relentlessly as me, they have also been a huge source of help.

It's warmed up here the past few days - to 40 whole degrees.  I never thought I would call 40 degrees warm, but there you have it.  Tuesday night though, it got warm, then got below freezing.  Remember that whole car getting stuck thing?  Well, I saw it happening again as the time came to leave work.  But I severely underestimated the amount of completely solid ice there was outside.

I just needed to get rid of my car and use ice skates.  It was icy like that.  And I had to drive home.  I was a bit nervous, but my supervisor was nice enough to agree to follow me home.  Because, well, I have decided I don't want to die and get eaten by bears.  Too much stuff to do.

But first I had to get to my car.  One of my shipmates told me she likes to pretend she's ice skating.  That was actually somewhat helpful.  So instead of the teeny tiny baby steps I had been taking, I was trying, not so gracefully, to glide across the ice.  Another shipmate pointed out it was easier to walk in the snow.  I had figured that out already, but there was no snow in front of me.  What awful time to give that advice.  And of course, my entire section was laughing behind me.  Assholes.

So after skating all the way to my car in my uniform and boots, I got to my car without falling.  I even got home safe and sound without the slightest bit of sliding on the ice.  I even had a shipmate from the section make sure I made it inside.  As I tried to step up on the curb without busting my face open, I hear this snickering.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to laugh.  But you look like a penguin."

...................

Go ahead, let that imagine sink in.  It's like a cross between an actual penguin in blue clothes and Bert dancing in Mary Poppins.

I have decided that it can mean only one thing: I have adapted.  I am now a cold-weather bird.

My First Winter - The backstory

So, here's the deal.  I am from Clermont, a smallish (well, its not so small anymore) town outside of Orlando, Florida.  Yes, the land of sunshine and Mickey Mouse.  I had been born and raised, gone to school, worked, gone to college all within a 50 mile radius.  My entire family lived in that circle too.  A couple years ago, I decided it would be a great idea to join the United States Coast Guard.  It took a while to get everything in order, but in January of 2011, I started my journey at bootcamp in Cape May, New Jersey.  Up until that point, I had seen snow twice.  I was too young to remember the first time, and the second time I was in NYC with my dad a month before I shipped out.  There were a couple of snow flurries while we were there.  This was the highlight of my winter experience.  Anything below 60 was cold, and I was going to bootcamp right after a legendary blizzard.  So began my journey with the white stuff.

In bootcamp, there was snow, oh yes.  But the trucks cleared it overnight and I never really got to experience it, because well, running outside and making a snow angel would be unsmart in such a setting. One time I did sneak around to the back of the barracks building and stick my hand in it.  HOLY COLD!  Then I scampered away back to formation where I pretended the stuff didn't exist.

When I graduated in March, I went to sunny California.  After school finished there, I was to go to my first permanent duty station, Kodiak, AK.  Where is Kodiak, you ask?  Well, its an island off of Alaska in the Gulf of Alaska, 150 miles or so south of Anchorage.  With 7,000 people.  The Walmart is the size of a Walgreen's in Orlando.  In Alaska.  Where it snows.  And it's cold.  And I had no idea what any of this meant.  I had the joy of getting here the day before my 23rd birthday, September 16th.  So I have to learn about this winter thing. And fast.

Let's recap. Cold. Island. Snow. Alaska. No real civilization. Yeah, this is going to be fun.