Let it Snow

I was supposed to fly out today to the village and could not because of the bush planes being grounded by a blizzard.  I was told that the winds in the village were reaching 50 miles per hour.  I have no desire to get on an airplane of any sort in those winds.  My friends in the village let me know that I did not want to get on a plane.  I think it's nice that we watch out for each other.

I understand the Alaskan fatigue with cold weather around this time of the year.  We are staying in more, resisting public outings and making more excuses to just build a fire in the woodstove and stay in.  I find I'm using the overhead lights more in the house; I usually cannot stand so much harsh light, so that I have a sense of more daylight.  The sun starts coming up at 9 and makes it all the way up between 10:00 and 10:30 am.  Then, the sun heads back down around 5:00 pm.  It's not what people think that it is dark 24/7 here.  I'm told we have to go further up into Alaska for that to happen.

I'm told that the sun stays out until 11:30 pm in the summer and that we all will go wild with our kayaks and such.  I know that the tanning places are looking good.  The steam room at the gym is a happy place.  The bed with the electric blanket on, lovely.  I am gravitating toward anything warm. 

So, that's the way we get through winter here.  We watch movies, exercise a lot at the gym and at home, have people come over so that we don't have to go out, make the outing at a restaurant so everyone will show up, clean up email on our computers, sort out photos and take care of any business that we don't want hanging over our heads in the summer time.  We clean, dirty, clean, dirty, clean.  We brave walks on the beach in the bitter cold.  We find a few close friends and go with the flow of hanging out in our own homes until we're absolutely ready to gear up and head out.

It's relaxed, no pressure and respectful of each other's quest for peace.  There is something to be said about living where the elements determine the activity level.  We are so in the now.  I think that at the same time, we're looking really, really forward to the sun, warmth, 67 degrees, like that's 60 degrees warmer than the usual winter day, of the promised summer months.  In the meantime, I'm hitting the gym, a nap and more work today.  The pace works for me.