(no subject)

It’s the third to last day of March. I haven’t been keeping up with my blog as of late. As of late I’ve realized that my reading public is a lot larger than I had suspected and a lot closer. I reacted quickly to this revelation and erased an entry that in hindsight was harmless. All my entries are harmless, in fact, as they are my opinions, my thoughts and my thoughts have never really disturbed anyone but myself.

My blog was set up to allow my friends who are faraway a glimpse into my life, what I do here, how I feel, my observations. As hard as I try and think I’m somewhat good at, keeping in touch with everyone I’d like to keep in touch with, while also living my own present life, is difficult. I won’t say it’s impossible, because nothing is impossible, but it’s extremely difficult.

I’ve gotten good feedback from what I’ve posted on this page. I like having my friends read my musings, my varying sadness, my adventures on this island. And I like it for myself. It allows me another space to churn out thoughts, to put out words that won’t make it in the local paper. And it will be a recorded testament of my time here which I can look back at during a later stage of my life and replay old thoughts, an old self.

It seems natural that now I feel a bit more restrained when it comes to writing these blog entries. A blog is never meant to be private, but I had somehow made myself believe that only those I knew would read it.

But as it’s turned out, that’s not the case. And I’m ok with that.

Police Report Excerpt

From the Wrangell Sentinel, March 16, 2006 issue:

Thursday, March 9
Suspicious person: Officer observed a man standing on the sidewalk wearing a hardhat, cork boots and carrying a chainsaw. When asked, the man said he was hoping to find a job and was just waiting.

Dead Man's Island

Since last Wednesday I have been housesitting for a family who is away in Arizona, exchanging the it’s-still-snowing Wrangell weather for arid dry hotness. I’ve been left to care for their 9-month old Alaskan husky, Yooper, who I have grown to simultaneously love and hate, four roaming kittens, and Molly, a black cat. I’ve also been left to live in their house that’s set back from the road, has incredible views of the water and mountains, and sits below a mountain of pine trees.

This weekend I tried to take full advantage of the sunny, although very chilly, weather by partaking in as many outdoor activities as I could. On Saturday I got some more exposure to crabbing by going out on the water to re-bait some pots. The day and our surroundings were made priceless by the calm water and the cloudless sky. It is at moments like these where a camera is integral to revealing the true beauty, but at the same time, actually having one and taking a picture would be much too bothersome and ruin the essential essence of the moment (don’t worry, I will never use the phrase ‘essential essence’ ever again). On the way back from the harbor, I got to drive the boat – my first time ever driving a boat. I love having firsts.

Afterward, I took a long needed walk with the Alaska husky. The walk was made that much better by conversation with Matt who took the walk with me along with his dog, Shelley. A long walk with someone to converse with is a beautiful thing. We also spotted a bald eagle perched quite near us. The closer we walked had no bearing on this eagle’s comfort level. Matt said Wrangell eagles have become habituated to humans. The bright yellow of its beak and claws struck me the hardest as I had never been that close to an eagle before. Only when Yooper ran up to it did the eagle take flight to a low branch.

When I drove up the driveway on Saturday afternoon after the walk, I wanted so badly to truly love Alaska, because at that moment, I felt I could.

My outdoor urges carried on into Sunday with kayaking. While I have kayaked before, this time was completely unlike my bikini-clad kayaking adventures of the past. This time was in Alaska. This time I was kayaking in cold water – huge distinction. I didn’t think it would be easy, but I didn’t realize all that it entailed – the gear involved (learning about new outdoor gear here is the same as learning new vocabulary – it’s what people speak in), the non-cotton garment requirement, how wet I would get and how cold I would feel with the wet clothes sticking to me. But despite all of that, despite my freezing cold, wet fingers, and despite me sitting in a pool of seawater the spray skirt couldn’t defend, I had an amazing time.

Mike (Not to be confused with Mike from Petersburg, this Mike has been my upstairs neighbor for the past month and has been a welcome confidant. Apparently, unbeknownst to me until Mike arrived, the apartment above me is used for rotating medical students from University of Washington who are doing their family medicine rotation in Wrangell. He’s one of the most knowledgeable people I have ever met and we seem to never run out of things to talk about. He is, sadly, leaving in a week and a half) and I paddled in a tandem kayak (thank god for the tandem component) from Reliance Harbor past town, past Petroglyph beach, to Dead Man’s Island.

Mike has had to tell me the history, as he knows it, of Dead Man’s Island a few times before I’ve been actually able to retain it. The details of his version are sketchy (for someone who has only been here four weeks, Mike has an extensive knowledge of Wrangell history and folklore. He has an extremely curious mind) but sometime back in the early-mid 1900s, there was a population of Chinese men who worked in Wrangell in the canneries and whatnot. The Chinese wanted to be buried in their homeland. So when one of them died, instead of being buried in Wrangell, he would be brought to Dead Man’s Island and kept in barrels, their body salted for preservation, until the next ship set sail for China. Hence, the name Dead Man’s Island.

The island itself had a thick, mossy, foliage carpet giving each step in my Xtratufs a soft, cushy landing. It was unlike any terrain I had ever seen. Light green everywhere, deflated netting hanging from trees, branches. On the island is this statue of a bear that has been knocked down and is now a bit overgrown with green. Next to it is an indecipherable plaque. I felt that maybe my presence there would conjure up some Chinese spirits. No such luck though.

The ride back to Reliance Harbor wasn’t as long or as treacherous as I had thought it would be. We even had the company of a sea lion for a little bit.

Real Crime Update

The police chief just called and gave me an update on the murder case, finally. Steve Cross was arrested yesterday afternoon for the murder of Tim Wade. I wrote about this in a pervious entry but just as a reminder, Wade was a visitor in Cross’s trailer February 7 when the murder occurred. Cross was in the trailer upon the police’s arrival and had since admitted to the shooting. The Wrangell police just received a grand jury indictment charging Cross for murder in the second degree. According to LAW.COM Dictionary (which may or may not be a reliable source – any law people, please feel free to correct me if I am wrong), second degree murder is “a non-premeditated killing, resulting from an assault in which death of the victim was a distinct possibility. Second degree murder is different from first degree murder, which is a premeditated, intentional killing or results from a vicious crime such as arson, rape or armed robbery. Exact distinctions on degree vary by state.” Cross’s bail is set for $50,000.

Crab Pot Pulling

As I was slaving away at work last Friday (actually that’s a lie. I never slave away at work unless it’s a Tuesday) when I got a phone call from Matt. He asked if I wanted to go pull some crab pots, and since I really, really did, I left work in the middle of the day for about an hour to do so.

We left from Shoemaker Harbor where he keeps his boat (soon to be name Canoe). I am never quite armed enough for the elements, especially Wrangell elements. He lent me an orange float coat and gloves.





This is Matt expertly pulling up a crab pot that his roommate, Bob, had set.








That’s Shelley behind him.









While the pot may seem quite empty, I was really excited. Especially since the second pot we pulled had zero crabs in it.








Don’t they look delicious?











This is Matt measuring the crabs. They have to be 6½ inches, or something. I’m not sure if they are allowed to be smaller or bigger. He told me, but I clearly wasn’t paying that much attention, enough to remember anyway.












After pulling out Bob’s crab pots, Matt rebaited them. He put in two small fishies.








This is me struggling to pull, what we find out to be, an empty pot. I’m sporting my Xtratufs and the orange float coat. Also take note of the typical Wrangell weather.






This is me smiling, having a good time pulling the pot, before I let Matt pull it up the rest of the way.



On our way back to the harbor, a bigger boat came racing after us. The guys on the boat accused us of messing with their pots, which we obviously hadn’t done. The pots we touched were all very well marked with Matt’s name or Bob’s name. The guy accusing looked very stern and angry and Matt got all paranoid that they would in turn mess with his pots, so we hung around a bit just to see. But I don’t think they did anything.

Tune In, Wednesdays 7-9

It is the first day of March. Which means that in six short months, I’ll be turning an age that I don’t agree with, but we’ll see how I feel when I get there. March seems very promising for some reason.

Tonight will be the start of my time on air. I’m officially doing my first radio show – “You’re listening to KSTK, 101.7…” It’s not actually my own show. I’m covering for Karl while him and Amy are away in San Diego, so I’ll do this week and then next week and then about five weeks while he’s away in April. Exciting and a bit nerve-racking also, even though I logically know there is absolutely nothing to be worried or nervous about since no one will be listening anyhow, or if they are, it’ll be about 150 people. That’s peanuts.

I have no clue what I’ll play. I’ll let randomness take over. I will play a Footage song, I know that.