Taking the Bethel Plunge

Around here that means buying a house. Bethel has a unique housing market. You can only find 7-8 listings at a time. There are no realtors, the houses tend be expensive (just like everything else in town) and you cannot count on being able to sell your house quickly. Buying a house here means you are planning on sticking around in a place where a lot of people don't. Bethel is a very transitory place. There is a lot of moving between the villages and Bethel and a lot of outsiders coming and only staying for a year or two. After we had been here for a few months one of Jamie's friends asked Terrence how long he had been in Bethel and after Terrence answered him he said, "you'll leave." It wasn't accusatory just a prediction with pretty good odds. The boy himself was from Chevak, a village on the coast. However, it is not good for a town to always be in such a state of flux. People get hired, have to learn about the culture, get trained, then they get some experience and then they move on and the cycle repeats. It has a real negative impact on services and the quality of them. Some people who come here don't like it and are literally counting the days until they get to leave. I am happy to say that we are not one of them. I truly like this town. While it has it's difficulties (like -30 days in April and hauled water and sewage)it also has many wonderful things about it. I have been so happy with how the boys have done here. Jamie's experience in school and with friends has been so great. We have great jobs and clients and the luxury of doing the kind of work we really want to do. We are really lucky to be here. So while taking the plunge is not something a lot of people do I am really glad we are doing it. We gain so much by living in this unique place. And I love our new house! It has beautiful views of the tundra. The open design and interior are very nice. It is a good size for us, big enough for everyone to come visit and stay awhile. Four years ago I would not have predicted that we would be doing this at this time and in this place. However, for our family I think it is the right decision. Both boys are flourishing here and we are learning so much.

Sewards Day- a holiday you didn't even know existed

We actually have today off of work. I got to spend a rare morning alone with William. Poor James had school. He would have had it off but they had an extra week of Christmas vacation when the school's pipes burst.

We are very happy because the temperature is not below zero! We have been walking everywhere and it is so nice to be outside. I think William is enjoying the outside world. The poor guy probably thought the outside was only for looking at through the window after the winter we have had.

Cama-i weekend was last weekend. Jamie was looking forward to it, just like he does for Easter or Halloween. He had a great time running around with his friends on Friday night. I ended up running admissions this year and I am glad to say it all went smoothly. Terrence and William didn't spend a lot of time at the festival because it is a very crowded event. However, William was able to get up close to the stage (and by close I mean his chin was resting on the stage) and see some Yupik dancing. He liked it but his favorite part was the clapping. A young Yupik girl in the audience was tickled with him and took his picture. I thought it was ironic, the gussak baby getting his picture taken, since it is normally the other way around.

Cama-i was a much needed break from the regular routine. In this part of the world winter just goes on and on and it was nice to have something to look forward to. It reminded me how different the pace of life is out here in Bethel. We just don't have a lot of places to go. I have to admit I was pretty peopled out by last night.

Work continues to be an uphill battle. It is hard to see clients struggle and even harder to deal with broken institutions that are not doing a very good job. I wouldn't want to be doing anything else but fighting the man is not as much fun as I imagined it when I was a teenager. It is good that we have such great coworkers to lean on and commiserate with.

I am dreaming of grass and warmer weather. I know it will come eventually. I can't wait to get the boys out on the river this summer.

Wind Chills 40-55 Below Zero

It has been a really cold winter. We have had temperatures below zero for about six weeks now. In many ways I think we have adjusted well. Last weekend we didn't even leave the house and it felt normal. In these temperatures there aren't many places to go. Thankfully we had a break from the cold when we went to Anchorage. There it was a balmy 16 degrees during the day.

Jamie had an extra week of Christmas vacation because the freezing temperatures broke the water main for his school. Our offices at work are cold. Luckily, our house has been able to stay warm. I know this is not the case for many people across the delta. It is a struggle to heat any house in these temperatures, some houses in our area are constructed with plywood and have very little insulation. Unfortunately, a hearing assistance program, that previously served 900 families, has been cut to only serve 200 families this year. While the cold temperatures are frustrating to us I know they are causing real suffering for others in our community.

Bath time!

So tired.