4.21.2009

sunny springtime

The snow is melting fast in Fairbanks! Work at Woolly Rhino goes fast. I'm on my feet folding, sweeping, selling bullets, and greeting and smiling at all the old men that come into the hunting/fishing and hardware side of the store. Some of the old men are very nice and say things like "Has anyone told you how lovely you look today?" and others are nasty and say "You have a booger on your nose," referring to my nose ring. School is still is session...lots of work remains. Two weeks til summer months in Willow. Days are long and sunny now. Bikers have come out of the walls like flies. Temps are in the 50s and I am enjoying school in the sunshine.



4.07.2009

spring o9


My life is filled with textbooks, typing, events, attending class and since last week, work. So maybe it's a bit crazy to add WORK to my already full school schedule but already I'm managing my time better and not flittering it away in front of the toyo heater!

Here in Fairbanks, I am busy busy buzzing around. My dark winter was full of activities and snow. I spent the beginning of February preparing for a ski trip with my friend Eline of Valdres Folkehøgskule. Then I had ten days of skis, pulks, bonfire lunches and lots of candy bars and trail mix! I took a disposable camera along and recently had the pictures developed, perhaps it will be possible to scan them in... even though many are covered with a mittened thumb... I took some notes along the trip, I will type them up with the pictures.

Nights when I came back were filled with school work, beer bonfires, cooking dinners with E, ivory jack's. The days were filled with sun, snow, clouds, skis, course work, toyo heat, cat, the cold and a non-working car for a while....

Lately I have begun to panic about my school load...  I waited until almost spring break to start on my correspondence course so I have 2 lessons a week until the end of this month. Lots of reading and typing!! I have two big projects at the university: term papers for Modern Scandinavia (presumably on Sámi land use) and Polar Exploration + Literature (Admiral Byrd). Only a few pages of my planner left until deadlines and I am using the days as much as I can. We have sunlight past 8pm now, daylight past 9. I get tired though and fall asleep sometimes before the work is done, putting it off until the next day.

I'm being so good and diligent in the schoolwork department, as soon as I get caught up with my AK history I know I will be able to make progress on my projects and feel confident about the end of the semester!

I can't believe it's been a year since my last cramming and essay writing in Norway. I miss Tromsø and the spring time there... biking, bbqs, climbing, janna's cooking, charlotte's cooking, but not so much my own diet of grilled cheese and pasta.... haha.

I am double-majoring in History and Northern Studies now. All-in-all it is very slick... I only need 18 extra credits for the history degree, everything else double-counts or is already done!!
So the end is in sight...