Madly Disorienting

I've just returned to Alaska from a two-week vacation back in Washington. I had quite the head trip trying to transition from Alaska to home. I remember staring into the distance, only to find my eyes "bumping" into trees, mountains, bushes....everything! I had a deep set stare into the Auburn River Valley for a few minutes before I snapped out of it. There was just so much stuff! The temperature was really nice for the first day, but sometimes it felt bizarrely, almost uncomfortably warm outside. Even when I got cold, it was more of a "skin" cold rather than a true bone-chilling cold. Eating food was also a difficulty for me, and at Christmas dinner I could barely put away a single plate! Grandma's succulent delicacies tasted too rich,salty, sweet, and heavy. It felt like the food was knotted up in my stomach rather than digesting. Eating plain rice and beans with fish for a few months has quite an effect on a person! I eventually normalized back to "lower 48" life and "slipped back into my old ways" according to my brother, but it did take a few days before I felt somewhat comfortable. I was finally able to eat food like I used to by the end of my two week visit.

Aside from being weirded out for a few days, it was a great feeling to be around family and friends once more. I was insanely social, almost to my detriment. As Jake said it, him and I need "vacations from our vacations." I figure that I will have plenty of time to be by myself up here in the village, so it's almost like a vacation in itself...except for the teaching and planning for 12 hours a day. Even though I miss my family and friends a HUGE amount, being in a place where I am free from "distractions" (lovable as they are) during my first year of teaching is probably beneficial.

The main crux of having left the village for two weeks--FROZEN DOOR!?!?!? It took me 15 minutes to get the beast open in -20 degree weather, and it took two cups of hot water being poured on the lock to free it! The first cup was merely warm water and it refroze to the deadbolt almost instantly. Arah!