Today (Tuesday) was the thirtieth anniversary of my familiy's arrival in Alaska. We arrived on Easter after the Exxon Valdez spill and flew over the oil slick as we arrived. The oil spill was on Good Friday (anniversary as last Sunday) and we stopped in Anchorage at the airport before boarding our flight to the village where we lived for 3 years. It was 85 F. when we left Georgia, and was -20 F. when we landed in rural Alaska.
What took you to Alaska in the first place. Did you work for an oil company? Surviving thirty years in Alaska , well for me that would be outstanding. Congrats.
Once in a while, during the depth of winter, especially when I was laid up with injury, but when it gets to this point in the season and the light is back. My wife commented that our daughters were amazed at how well I am getting around now compared to a year or so ago. We saw them at son #3's wedding in Omaha in December. I will have to do some logging soon to clear out the trees that have died around the place. I am still uneasy working a chainsaw alone or climbing ladders. But to answer the question, we are happy here and unless the state does something with taxes to drive us away, I think we will probably die here.
I got a job with the Federal Government. That is what took me to the "boonies" of Alaska. I moved in here after 3 years of incredible long hours just to get a bit of a rest.
My husband works between 12 and 15 hours per day..has done for 40 years or more.. perhaps we should retire to Alaska for him to get some rest..
In much of Alaska, things slow down a lot when the snow arrives. In the summer, there is a disorder that is kinda the opposite of SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) that some have named HASLE (High Activity and Stress Leading to Exhaustion). Many here go non-stop while it is light, and there are those who try to drive home after being without sleep for an entire weekend. It leads to many asleep-behind-the-wheel accidents, often head-on collisions. We learned shortly after coming to Alaska that you have to live by the clock, not by the sun, especially in the summer. In rural Alaska, if you have your heating established and your food put up, you can wile away the winter darkness reading book, or whatever. In the "civilized" areas, that is not completely possible, but life does slow down. When I was in the rural areas, however, due to the job requirements at the time, I seldom got more than a couple hours sleep a night and would work 7-day weeks without a day off for months at a time. When I did get free time, however, we would hop into the boat and be in total wilderness in less than 5 minutes.
Congrats on thirty years of life in Alaska. My grandson will graduate from college in a few more semesters. He was checking into a summer job in a mine in Alaska. Even before he was a teen, he used to talk about Alaska and wanting to go there. I would love for him to get the opportunity to go to AK, but I wish it could be for a safer job. At least working at McDonald's, he could see outside during the day.
The dogs do that. We call it "making snow angels". I guess it feels good./ They don't seem to do it much when it is cold and the snow is dry, but when it warms a little, the dogs enjoy rolling on their backs in the snow.