It snowed in Bethel last night. They call it the termination dust. Dust, because it is a light dusty snow. Termination because it is the termination of summer. We're supposed to get ours tonight. There were a few light flakes this afternoon.
Weather wise, it has been in the 30's pretty much this whole week. It has also been very windy. I'm told that our temperature doesn't get too low, too often, but because of our location we get a lot of high winds.
The sun has also been pretty funky. When I got here in August it was light from 6:00 in the morning until midnight. Now, the sun comes up around 8:00 a.m. and goes down around 9:00 at night. Because of the location and layout of my house I still get some sunshine in my windows until after 10 though.
I'm still trying to get used to the whole time thing, especially when it comes to TV. I watched the Bears on Monday Night Football and the game was over before 8:00. I still had time before How I Met Your Mother started. By the way, even with 17 penalties against the other team, "a win is a win."
The two biggest sports around here are basketball and NYO. Anyone who has ever seen me on a basketball court knows what to expect there. Remember Michael Jordan? My skills are similar to his (baseball and acting). Occasionally the kids will need an extra person to even up teams and they'll ask me to play. I'm one of the tallest people in the village and everyone wants me on their team until we start playing. Then I'm kind of like Rachel when the Friends gang played football on Thanksgiving.
NYO is Native Youth Olympics and it is amazing. They do things like balance on one hand, kick a ball that is suspended over their head from the ceiling, and other wild activities. It's hard to even explain. I'll take pictures and post them when competitions start next week.
More on names. Our postmaster's last name is Mail. Is that funny or what? I thought people were just calling her that when I first heard it but that's it.
I have also received a Yupik name. It's cool because it's a sign that you are being accepted. I don't know how to pronounce or spell it but a lot of the kids have been calling me ??????. However you say it, it's the Yupik word for raven. There are quite a few ravens in the area and as far as I can tell it is a sign of respect.
Some of the other names I've been called: Tommy Boy and Tom and Jerry.
I've also been called Hairy. They are fascinated by the hair on my arms. Almost every day the elementary kids try to touch the hair on my arms. They either like it or some tell me I should shave it off. Occasionally I have my top shirt button unbuttoned. When they saw some of the hair on my chest I was asked "what is that?" Apparently, I'm not only one of the tallest people in the village, I'm also one of the hairiest.
They have a cable channel here called Boomerang. It shows old cartoons and it's funny when the kids talk about my type of cartoons. They watch: Josie and the Pussycats, the Wacky Races, Johnny Quest, the Banana Splits, Magilla Gorilla, Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw among others. I guess I watch some of them too. More of the kids know Popeye and Olive Oyl than Hannah Montana.
Heading back to Bethel tomorrow for another new teacher training. Next week is my turn to cook for the group. Any suggestions?
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Lions and tigers and Bears (and moose), oh my!
Sorry, no lions or tigers, however I do have some Bear and moose news. I was able to watch the Bears game today. It was just like being at home except of course the game started at 9:00 am. Speaking of Bears, I haven't seen the Cubs lose a game since sometime in July. I haven't really been following them too much either so I'm just assuming they've been winning a lot since I've been gone.
Last night I had fresh moose for dinner. It was kind of a stew/casserole type of thing. It was mixed with rice, peppers and Craisens (of all things, they use Craisens a lot up here). Just about every Saturday all the teachers get together at one of the houses for a pot luck. The house is usually the same because one couple generally likes to host. But, each week a different person is in charge of the main course. Last night it was Melissa and Marat's turn. Melissa is our third grade teacher and Marat is her husband. He is from Russia and has blended in well with the locals and often goes hunting with them. Last weekend they went out and shot themselves a moose. And last night we ate that moose. I even brought home leftovers. Tonight for dinner I will finish up my moose with some salsa. (On a side note, I have no idea what I'm going to do for my turn to cook. I told them I usually order out for pizza when I have people over but that's not going to work here).
(My parents and other family members are involved in the Moose Club. They always wanted me to join as well, now, ironically, the moose has joined me.)
We had our first frost Thursday night/Friday morning. It was already a little tough to walk to school. My house is down a little ramp and when it is wet/frosty it makes it very slippery to get up to the top. Funny thing about the weather though, after the frost on Friday, yesterday it was in the 60's and I didn't even wear a coat. We've also had sun every day this past week. I've seen the sun more times in the past 7 days than I did in the first 4 weeks I was here. Lately the sun has been coming up around 7:30 and going down around 9:30.
I haven't done too much adventuring. Generally it's go to work and go home. Although I have been doing a lot of observing. Last week we had an open house and most of the parents preferred to sit on the floor when they came in. We would bring out chairs for people waiting in the hall but pretty much anybody under the age of 50 would just plop on the floor or a table.
I'm curious, according to the "Stats" page of this Blog there are people from Australia reading along. Are you really out there?
I bought tickets for going back and forth to Chicago next month. I'm leaving here on Wednesday the 13th and coming back on Monday the 18th. Very excited. I'm coming home for Becky's (and Zach's) wedding but that weekend will also be surrounded by birthdays (Aubrie, Mom, Jason and Alyssa).
Through some wheeling and dealing I've been able to get myself an extra laundry day too!
Last night I had fresh moose for dinner. It was kind of a stew/casserole type of thing. It was mixed with rice, peppers and Craisens (of all things, they use Craisens a lot up here). Just about every Saturday all the teachers get together at one of the houses for a pot luck. The house is usually the same because one couple generally likes to host. But, each week a different person is in charge of the main course. Last night it was Melissa and Marat's turn. Melissa is our third grade teacher and Marat is her husband. He is from Russia and has blended in well with the locals and often goes hunting with them. Last weekend they went out and shot themselves a moose. And last night we ate that moose. I even brought home leftovers. Tonight for dinner I will finish up my moose with some salsa. (On a side note, I have no idea what I'm going to do for my turn to cook. I told them I usually order out for pizza when I have people over but that's not going to work here).
(My parents and other family members are involved in the Moose Club. They always wanted me to join as well, now, ironically, the moose has joined me.)
We had our first frost Thursday night/Friday morning. It was already a little tough to walk to school. My house is down a little ramp and when it is wet/frosty it makes it very slippery to get up to the top. Funny thing about the weather though, after the frost on Friday, yesterday it was in the 60's and I didn't even wear a coat. We've also had sun every day this past week. I've seen the sun more times in the past 7 days than I did in the first 4 weeks I was here. Lately the sun has been coming up around 7:30 and going down around 9:30.
I haven't done too much adventuring. Generally it's go to work and go home. Although I have been doing a lot of observing. Last week we had an open house and most of the parents preferred to sit on the floor when they came in. We would bring out chairs for people waiting in the hall but pretty much anybody under the age of 50 would just plop on the floor or a table.
I'm curious, according to the "Stats" page of this Blog there are people from Australia reading along. Are you really out there?
I bought tickets for going back and forth to Chicago next month. I'm leaving here on Wednesday the 13th and coming back on Monday the 18th. Very excited. I'm coming home for Becky's (and Zach's) wedding but that weekend will also be surrounded by birthdays (Aubrie, Mom, Jason and Alyssa).
Through some wheeling and dealing I've been able to get myself an extra laundry day too!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Weekend in Bethel
I have to start by first clarifying my title. I did not spend a weekend in Bethel, although I was there Friday night and Saturday. But "Weekend in Bethel" is a better title than "Friday afternoon and most of Saturday in Bethel".
It's funny how schedules and time are not as important here. Our plane was supposed to leave Chefornak Friday afternoon between 1:30 and 2:00. I got a call at about 1:00 saying the plane would be there early and we should be ready to leave in 15 minutes. On the way back from Bethel Saturday evening we were supposed to leave at 6:00. We landed in Chefornak at 5:45. It's almost like traveling back in time.
On the way back we flew over the spot where we were stranded on the boat last weekend. As I was re-tellling the story to Jessica, the other teacher on the plane, I mentioned that I was a poor Irishman who was only able to be on the boat in the first place because I won a ticket while gambling. I was trying to move to a new land where I could find my fortune. She told me that she was a wealthy young lady who was engaged to someone she didn't truly love. I told her about my adventures on the boat; dancing, hanging off the bow, eating fancy dinners. I told her about wanting to become an artist and she even agreed to pose for me. Oh, we had dreams... Then, of course disaster hit, the boat crashed into a huge ice (I mean sand) berg (bar). After that it was kind of a blur although I do remember hearing Celine Dion at some point.
Speaking of ice (kind of), on Thursday I had my first Alaska snowball fight. There was a pile of ice chips outside of the store and some of the kids said they were going to throw it at me. Being the responsible, mature adult I am; I took it and threw it at them first. There was a woman from the village (Gladys) who helped me and we pretty much took care of those troublemakers.
Something that is odd/different here is the name situation. All of the teachers/adult are referred to by their first names. It took a couple of weeks for me to get used to it but actually it's kind of nice and I think it helps with teacher/student relationships. It's also funny how everybody knows everybody. I thought it was cool when I lived in McCullom Lake but this is even better. If I need to call a parent I just go to the office, tell them the student's name and the secretaries either tell me the number right away of just dial it while I'm standing there. Then when you call a parent it's not odd for them to walk to school and meet with you right then and there.
I get my first paycheck this Wednesday!
By the way Zach; I watched Bear Grylis today for the first time. You're right, I am just like him.
It's funny how schedules and time are not as important here. Our plane was supposed to leave Chefornak Friday afternoon between 1:30 and 2:00. I got a call at about 1:00 saying the plane would be there early and we should be ready to leave in 15 minutes. On the way back from Bethel Saturday evening we were supposed to leave at 6:00. We landed in Chefornak at 5:45. It's almost like traveling back in time.
On the way back we flew over the spot where we were stranded on the boat last weekend. As I was re-tellling the story to Jessica, the other teacher on the plane, I mentioned that I was a poor Irishman who was only able to be on the boat in the first place because I won a ticket while gambling. I was trying to move to a new land where I could find my fortune. She told me that she was a wealthy young lady who was engaged to someone she didn't truly love. I told her about my adventures on the boat; dancing, hanging off the bow, eating fancy dinners. I told her about wanting to become an artist and she even agreed to pose for me. Oh, we had dreams... Then, of course disaster hit, the boat crashed into a huge ice (I mean sand) berg (bar). After that it was kind of a blur although I do remember hearing Celine Dion at some point.
Speaking of ice (kind of), on Thursday I had my first Alaska snowball fight. There was a pile of ice chips outside of the store and some of the kids said they were going to throw it at me. Being the responsible, mature adult I am; I took it and threw it at them first. There was a woman from the village (Gladys) who helped me and we pretty much took care of those troublemakers.
Something that is odd/different here is the name situation. All of the teachers/adult are referred to by their first names. It took a couple of weeks for me to get used to it but actually it's kind of nice and I think it helps with teacher/student relationships. It's also funny how everybody knows everybody. I thought it was cool when I lived in McCullom Lake but this is even better. If I need to call a parent I just go to the office, tell them the student's name and the secretaries either tell me the number right away of just dial it while I'm standing there. Then when you call a parent it's not odd for them to walk to school and meet with you right then and there.
I get my first paycheck this Wednesday!
By the way Zach; I watched Bear Grylis today for the first time. You're right, I am just like him.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Labor Day weekend
Today is Monday-Labor Day. The first time I haven't watched any of the Jerry Lewis Telethon in a looong time. One of the highlights of the past week though, is I got my cable hooked up. Yes, I am now the proud owner (user) of 18, that's right 18 channels. I have mostly been watching Game Show Channel, ESPN and TBS.
Yesterday we went out on the river in my Principal's (KC) boat. It's an inflatable with a wooden bottom. With the motor the whole thing weighs about 400 pounds. It's pretty sturdy. Three of us went, KC, Matt (another teacher) and I. It was enjoyable for the most part. We were cruising along and were about 5 miles away from the village when we slowed down and stopped. Matt and I both brought our cameras and I thought "that's nice, he's stopping so we could take some pictures." It turns out we were stuck on a sandbar. (At this point, if you are my mom, you might want to stop reading and skip down to the end.)
We tried to push the boat off with our paddles and if that would have worked I wouldn't have much of a story to tell. Unfortunately, for us but fortunately for the story it didn't work. So, KC, wearing waterproof boots and clothes gets off the boat and pulls while I paddle/push and Matt steers. Turns out the flow of the river and the wind are working against us so KC says "Tom, you're going to have to get out and help pull the boat." "Really?" I say. So, I, wearing cheap, supposedly waterproof boats and regular old jeans, get out of the boat to help push/pull. The bottom of the river is gooey mud. The kind that if you stay in one place for more than 3 or 4 seconds you sink and get stuck. And when two guys are trying to pull a 400 pound boat upriver, against the wind in a foot of water, you stay in one place a lot. When you're not in one place, you are usually falling into the water. At least there was a variety, either stuck in the mud or falling into the water.
We do our sloshing and pushing and pulling and move about 10 feet. KC (our principal and our leader and a former college boating participant) says "guys, I'm really worried." Being one of the guys, I'm worried too now. (Once again, mom, don't read this). He explains to us that the tide is going out and if we can't find the right way to get the boat out, we'll pretty much be stuck there. At this point, he in his waterproof clothes and me in my waterfilled clothes are still in the river and its more windy. We get to a point where the water may be deep enough that we can put the motor back in. He tells Matt to do that. Matt, about 5 feet tall and around 100 pounds, struggles with the 150 pound motor so KC goes to the back of the boat and help him with that. I am now doing the pushing, pulling and steering while they work with the motor. Eventually, we get out of the sand/mud, get back in the boat and move along. You would think we would be heading back now.
We're guys, we don't head back. We cruise along again and get stuck again. This would be the point that I could say "if you want to know what happened then, reread the last two paragraphs." Only this time, after we get unstuck, KC says "I'm really worried about Tom." Being Tom, I'm worried too. I'm pretty much soaked from the waist down but only damp from the waist up so that's good. I'm cold, shivering a little and he says "do you guys want to go back to the village?". Of course that's the sensible thing to do, so we go out again. We go down a slough (pronounced slew) which was pretty cool (in a Fonzie sort of way, not in a I'm about to get hypothermia way.) Very calm water, little wind and some nice scenery. We stopped and walked on the tundra a little bit which is a very odd feeling. At this point I am freezing and they're taking their coats off so we decide I should probably get home.
We're heading home and I notice the water in my boots is higher than my ankles. When we finally get back to shore, it takes about an hour to get the boat out of the water and back to the storage shed. I'm wet, cold, muddy and bleeding, get my stuff from home, and go to school to take a shower. When I get there I realize I forgot to bring a washcloth so I have to wash with paper towels. Later on I was told I can punch a few holes in my "I live in Alaska" ticket.
OK mom, you can come back.
At night we went to one of the teacher's houses and played board games. Actually one game but it took about 5 hours to play. It was a lot of fun. Today my arms are a little sore but other than that, not doing too bad.
Yesterday we went out on the river in my Principal's (KC) boat. It's an inflatable with a wooden bottom. With the motor the whole thing weighs about 400 pounds. It's pretty sturdy. Three of us went, KC, Matt (another teacher) and I. It was enjoyable for the most part. We were cruising along and were about 5 miles away from the village when we slowed down and stopped. Matt and I both brought our cameras and I thought "that's nice, he's stopping so we could take some pictures." It turns out we were stuck on a sandbar. (At this point, if you are my mom, you might want to stop reading and skip down to the end.)
We tried to push the boat off with our paddles and if that would have worked I wouldn't have much of a story to tell. Unfortunately, for us but fortunately for the story it didn't work. So, KC, wearing waterproof boots and clothes gets off the boat and pulls while I paddle/push and Matt steers. Turns out the flow of the river and the wind are working against us so KC says "Tom, you're going to have to get out and help pull the boat." "Really?" I say. So, I, wearing cheap, supposedly waterproof boats and regular old jeans, get out of the boat to help push/pull. The bottom of the river is gooey mud. The kind that if you stay in one place for more than 3 or 4 seconds you sink and get stuck. And when two guys are trying to pull a 400 pound boat upriver, against the wind in a foot of water, you stay in one place a lot. When you're not in one place, you are usually falling into the water. At least there was a variety, either stuck in the mud or falling into the water.
We do our sloshing and pushing and pulling and move about 10 feet. KC (our principal and our leader and a former college boating participant) says "guys, I'm really worried." Being one of the guys, I'm worried too now. (Once again, mom, don't read this). He explains to us that the tide is going out and if we can't find the right way to get the boat out, we'll pretty much be stuck there. At this point, he in his waterproof clothes and me in my waterfilled clothes are still in the river and its more windy. We get to a point where the water may be deep enough that we can put the motor back in. He tells Matt to do that. Matt, about 5 feet tall and around 100 pounds, struggles with the 150 pound motor so KC goes to the back of the boat and help him with that. I am now doing the pushing, pulling and steering while they work with the motor. Eventually, we get out of the sand/mud, get back in the boat and move along. You would think we would be heading back now.
We're guys, we don't head back. We cruise along again and get stuck again. This would be the point that I could say "if you want to know what happened then, reread the last two paragraphs." Only this time, after we get unstuck, KC says "I'm really worried about Tom." Being Tom, I'm worried too. I'm pretty much soaked from the waist down but only damp from the waist up so that's good. I'm cold, shivering a little and he says "do you guys want to go back to the village?". Of course that's the sensible thing to do, so we go out again. We go down a slough (pronounced slew) which was pretty cool (in a Fonzie sort of way, not in a I'm about to get hypothermia way.) Very calm water, little wind and some nice scenery. We stopped and walked on the tundra a little bit which is a very odd feeling. At this point I am freezing and they're taking their coats off so we decide I should probably get home.
We're heading home and I notice the water in my boots is higher than my ankles. When we finally get back to shore, it takes about an hour to get the boat out of the water and back to the storage shed. I'm wet, cold, muddy and bleeding, get my stuff from home, and go to school to take a shower. When I get there I realize I forgot to bring a washcloth so I have to wash with paper towels. Later on I was told I can punch a few holes in my "I live in Alaska" ticket.
OK mom, you can come back.
At night we went to one of the teacher's houses and played board games. Actually one game but it took about 5 hours to play. It was a lot of fun. Today my arms are a little sore but other than that, not doing too bad.
Friday, September 3, 2010
The first entry.
Today is Friday September, 3. The beginning of a three day weekend. Not as exciting as it sounds as there's really nothing to do here. There is the 12th annual Toksook Bay Blackberry Festival in another village but it's too far by boat and too expensive by plane.
Anyway I'm here. For those of you who are new to my adventure, here's the basics. I left Illinois on Sunday August 1st, flying from Chicago to Anchorage, Alaska. My first time in Alaska. I stayed overnight in Anchorage and left for Bethel the next day. Bethel is the "big" town to my village (think Mount Pilot to Mayberry, although not nearly as big or advanced). I was in Bethel for 4 days for new teacher training. On Thursday of that week I flew to Chefornak, my village.
Chefornak is a village of about 400 people. There are no roads or cars, only two very small stores, a church and a community center. And a big school. Most of the people here have no running water (including me). That's why I spend a lot of time at school. I'm teaching at the school which is officially named Chaputnguak School but is usually called Chefornak School or just the school. The school has about 200 kids from K-12. I teach Special Education. I have about 15 students-the youngest is 3 and the oldest are 20.
I have taken some cool pictures but right now I'm not able to get them on the computer.
I'll also add some more information as we go along.
I hope you're still interested. It should be an interesting ride......
Anyway I'm here. For those of you who are new to my adventure, here's the basics. I left Illinois on Sunday August 1st, flying from Chicago to Anchorage, Alaska. My first time in Alaska. I stayed overnight in Anchorage and left for Bethel the next day. Bethel is the "big" town to my village (think Mount Pilot to Mayberry, although not nearly as big or advanced). I was in Bethel for 4 days for new teacher training. On Thursday of that week I flew to Chefornak, my village.
Chefornak is a village of about 400 people. There are no roads or cars, only two very small stores, a church and a community center. And a big school. Most of the people here have no running water (including me). That's why I spend a lot of time at school. I'm teaching at the school which is officially named Chaputnguak School but is usually called Chefornak School or just the school. The school has about 200 kids from K-12. I teach Special Education. I have about 15 students-the youngest is 3 and the oldest are 20.
I have taken some cool pictures but right now I'm not able to get them on the computer.
I'll also add some more information as we go along.
I hope you're still interested. It should be an interesting ride......
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