Living an Unfinished Adventure
We are all living in cages with the doors wide open
Breakups (a.k.a. Spring) in Alaska are messy. Let’s face it—this land’s relationship with winter has always struck most of us as verging on obsessive. So the ensuing seasonal shift, though expected, comes with the volatile clinginess and emotional roller-coasting that those in any ending, co-dependent relationship might feel. We’ve come to accept this year in... Continue Reading →
I’ve been single parenting it for two weeks now. Having lived in a community with a high military population as well as North Slope—oil and gas working families, I’ve sat through many a conversation (quietly) between people temporarily single parenting. Having always had a present working partner, I merely nodded empathetically and stayed guiltily mum.... Continue Reading →
As a child (maybe 10 or 12?), I remember one of my favorite activities was going out to 'get lost' on my bike (yes, that sounded like, "Hey Mom, I'm going to get lost. I'll be back I think!"). There was a neighborhood a mile away from mine that was nicely bordered by four busier... Continue Reading →
The world is replete with quotes inspiring us to push the boundaries of fear and become greater because of it. “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” Helen Keller ”Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” Ambrose Redmoon “Always remember, it’s simply... Continue Reading →
I was speaking with a friend a month ago and she said something that I began to mull over here and there. She commented on how the past summer she had acted more like a tourist and had enjoyed Alaska so much more for having gone out to see it. I can fully admit, with... Continue Reading →
January can be tough. We always have a cold snap—which is brutally beautiful, and means it takes more effort to get out with kids. School has resumed, which in our household means bickering afternoons and scheduled weeks. We always seem to have less family time even when we plan for sports that everyone can do... Continue Reading →
In October and November, it is cold, it is brown, it is dead, it is dull and we wait. We wait for the cold to overcome this tail end of fall when the leaves have blown away and the branches scrape the overcast sky. We wait for snow and ice, and hope that the ice... Continue Reading →
If you have not been able to see the beginning of the Iditarod, you should put it on a bucket, or a list, or both. Like any race, there is excitement, anticipation, prayers barring injury and a general communal pride among the spectators. I have been watching my children play outside for the past few... Continue Reading →
When the temperatures start to plummet from the feverish summer highs of 60°F to the winter average of 23°, our kids start to whine. The clothing is too bulky, hands are too cold, and very soon it comes down to the ultimate complaint: "We don't want to go outside!" With the snowdream of happy kids,... Continue Reading →
One afternoon we decided to take advantage of my husband's day off and take a quick ski on the frozen river that is our town's namesake. As we were loading up, he impulsively decided to throw the new (old) bike in and 'maybe give it a try'. Which quickly transformed our peaceful river ski... Continue Reading →
Living an Unfinished Adventure 