The Student Has Become the Master.....

Okay, not really.....

Why am I up so late writing you may ask? Well! I am waiting for my Nyquil to kick in (this post may get quite interesting once it does) and I've been thinking.....

So next week is the last week of school. And then my traveling will begin...I am going to observe a school for a week in Salt Lake City, Utah for work, then I am going to California for a quick visit (the airfare was soooo cheap and it was crazy for me not to take a side trip - plus, I miss everyone!) and then it's back to Akiak to move into a different house and get ready for summer school.

But my thoughts were on those new teachers....because right now, they are going through the same thing I went through last year...what should you bring, what about shopping, and of course, what winter gear should you get....plus, all the other new household stuff that you need to know....a water filter OR a water distiller? And if you have pets, wow! those questions are nearly endless: how do I get my pet there? will my pet be safe? how will I get food/bedding/litter up there? What if my roommate doesn't like cats?

And let's not forget those questions involving bush life and your actual job!

Yessiree, I certainly know what's going through their heads right now. I don't know if any newbies read my blog, I know there are people from other countries who do...but if this is your first visit here, start at the beginning. I actually went back and read some of my earlier stuff. Man, this has been quite a year!! And it's not done yet!!!

But, since I am going to be running the summer program with my friend Owen, I will be working with the "newbies" for the same new teacher orientation that I went through last year. And I have some advice for those coming in June:

You MUST bring:
*mud boots (the taller the better!!!)
*bug spray (I had 30 bites in one week!!!)
*a sleeping mask (we are on 20 hours of daylight right now, and your house may not have curtains)
*a jacket for cooler days (but expect some warmer days too)
*other pairs of shoes (I didn't and was lucky to borrow my roommates hiking boots)
*food (shipping it up in a tote is the best way (priority will take a week, regular may take a month) but I stuffed camping food in my suitcase, but it got old really quick)
*other household items to make your two weeks easier on you - trust me it's worth it!
*a camera - you'll want to take pictures


Things to Remember:
*you will go through culture shock
*some people will try to scare you with gnarly stories...i had more gnarly stories in that one week than I did for one school year
*you will meet some amazing people
*it will be green and beautiful but you probably won't see much wildlife - I had to go to a zoo here...
*the floors in the school where you sleep at during the workshops are hard....bring something for that!
*shopping doesn't always have to be a huge stress....there's are TWO stores in Bethel that will ship food to you normally the same day....it saved me when I was waiting for my bush order, AND amazon.com will ship groceries to Alaska for free now....plus, there's Fred Meyers too. But my two favorite stores to shop at in Anchorage is the Walmart & Sam's Club (the ones at the Diamond Center) where you can do bush shipping. Go for a COD at Walmart just in case something happens to your order. But you can shop a lot cheaper than I do but I don't care, I make life easier on myself. Also, you can check totes as your luggage on a plane, coolers too. So that's another way to go too.
*the mail takes a long time...and the post office may or may not be open when it's supposed to....out of all the stores I have shipped stuff from, Old Navy is the fastest. (who knew???)

And that's just for those two weeks in June!! I haven't even begun to cover the stuff for the rest of the year!!

I still don't have all the answers and shortcuts for living out here in the bush. I don't think I took full advantage of all the activities you can do here. I'm hoping over the summer, I can get involved in more activities and hopefully visit some fish camps. I want to do more and now that I've gotten accustomed to life out here, I'm ready to try! I hope those who are need the advice found it helpful and the rest of you found it interesting....I just thought I'd throw it out there, just in case someone needed some direction.....