It's supposed to start snowing on Thursday, the same day I am leaving for Anchorage to spend the weekend with my mother. I hope the weather doesn't interfere with my plans. My mom and I are supposed to take a helicopter glacier tour on Friday (it's supposed to snow that day too.)
So fingers crossed the weather won't mess with my trip. As long as I am able to leave and come back on time, then it doesn't matter. I'll have a good time seeing my mom & spending a girl's weekend with her.
Dakota was supposed to come with me, however last weekend I discovered that he no longer fits into his XL dog crate. Alaska Airlines does not fly dogs bigger than a XL. So, I could try to shove him in a crate and maybe they'd let me but it's not worth finding out in Anchorage that I can't get him home. So, he's staying in Akiak. Which will be better for him anyways. My baby boy is claustrophobic. So my sticking him in a tiny enclosed crate most of the weekend wouldn't be very fun for him.
But I still needed him to get his rabies shot. Which meant a last minute trip to Bethel on Monday. Bush planes don't care if the dog is a bit too tall for his crate. And with the vet being in town this week, it was go time!
So I know Dakota is big, but sometimes I forget how huge he is to other people. Once I got him out of the bush plane, the bush pilot asked if he could take a picture with Dakota and the plane. And then when I was walking him on the tarmac, men stopped what they were doing to watch us. Guys from the loading areas came to the doorway to watch. It was quite funny to me. And when we were waiting in the airport, Dakota sat next to me in the chairs.....and was taller than me. People paid him a lot of attention.
I did get a lecture from the vet though. When Dakota was so sick the last time, he was becoming dehydrated, so I shot water into his mouth and made him drink it. So now he hates the syringe. Well, the vet tried to give him some dewormer and Dakota backed away. I told him he doesn't like that. The vet asked me if I had read any dog training books, and did I trim his nails? I said yes on both accounts. So he told me to grab Dakota by the face and shake him until he submits to my dominance. Funny, the Dog Whisperer never mentioned that method.
So I was going to try to make Dakota take his medicine. Dakota snapped at the syringe. And then I thought about it.....Would I like anything shoved down my throat? Oh no!
So if Dakota hates taking medicine from a syringe and that's the worst thing about Dakota, life will go on. I mix his meds with chicken and he eats every bite. I don't need to traumatize the dog in the process. He minds very well. Sometimes that vet is cool and other times, he irritates me. But as he's the only vet in Bethel, what can I do?
So, last Friday was a horrible roller coaster of emotions. I hope I never have to relive a night like that one again. I'll give you the short version: basically, on my way to the Fall Festival (I was dressed up as Thing 1 from Dr. Suess) I was told a very near and dear friend had been in a horrible accident. I freaked out and went home. Then I was told that my friend had died. I felt so disconnected and my gut kept saying "This is wrong! This is wrong!" and my head said, "This is denial!!"
So in my grief, I decided to honor my friend's memory in a traditional native way. I cut my hair. Okay, I chopped my hair. 5-6 inches....gone. My hair was really long too. It was halfway down my back, the longest it's ever been.
Who cares about my hair, though. My friend was dead, right? Well, after 15 minutes of me cutting my hair, I got a phone call.....whoops! He's not dead after all. In fact, he's going to be okay after all. He's recovering.
So, yay! My friend's not dead! That's good. But I chopped off my hair! When I was able to talk to my friend, I told him not to die anytime soon, I didn't have any extra hair to cut in his honor. I didn't tell anyone in California that I had chopped my hair....and I didn't tell many people here why. So now everyone knows. And I'm slightly embarrassed about it. I don't like wearing my heart on my sleeve much less on my head for all to see. I just wanted to honor him. He's been like a rock for me while I've been here.
As far as my class is going, I've been struggling with the motivation. It seems that there is always something I'd rather be doing than my homework. And having internet issues interferes with my schoolwork. Honestly, life interferes with my schoolwork. So I am looking very hard if this is something I truly want to pursue right now.
I've actually been thinking about writing more. I've been thinking about turning my adventures here into something more. So, maybe that's something I'd rather spend my time doing. I don't know, I'll have to feel it out.
And I miss reading for fun. I haven't been reading for pleasure as much, but I've started up again. I saw on one blog they have a monthly inbox/outbox of books. I like that idea, so I'm gonna steal it!
Inbox (new books on my shelf this month): Promised (Birthmarked #3) by Caragh M. O'Brien, Dies the Fire (Emberverse #1) by S.M. Stirling, Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult, Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead
Outbox (books I've read this month):
*The Royal Mess (Alaskan Royal Family #3) by MaryJanice Davidson ~ book that takes a "what if the U.S. never bought Alaska from Russia?" It's a silly romance book but fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously and sometimes that's just what I'm looking for in a series!
*To You We Shall Return: Lessons about Our Planet from the Lakota by Joseph M. Marshall III ~ He writes a history of how native people have used the Earth and what the Earth has given us. It's a reminder that we are all a part of the Earth and should take better care of her (although he's not preachy about it all.) He's one of my favorite writers.
*The Selection (The Selection #1) by Kiera Cass ~ so what if the Hunger Games happened but instead of fighting to the death, you got to look beautiful and be on the Bachelor to win the hand of a handsome prince? So it's really not like the Hunger Games at all, but it's a dystopian YA story all the same. And beautiful women competing for one prince can be just as brutal as anyone from District 1, just different weapons...
*My Story by Marilyn Monroe ~ some people say she didn't really write this. It was published after her death....but I'm not sure. It end abruptly and it's particularly well written. It's not bad but it could have been her who wrote it. You'd think they'd have found a better ghost writer is all I'm saying.
*The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus #3) by Rick Riordan ~ in my love of Greek Mythology, I love that Rick Riordan has brought the world Percy Jackson. Yes, it's the same formula as Harry Potter but it was a middle schooler who first told me about the books and told me how much she loved them. So any series that makes Greek/Roman Mythology cool is a good read in my book!
*On Dublin Street by Samantha Young ~ Amazon told me I'd like it, and I did. It's a modern romance/erotica book but without vampires and that 50 Shade junk. And it involves sexy Irish men. I had been reading my textbooks all that week and it was nice to just read something different.
*Isabeau: A Novel of Queen Isabella & Sir Roger Mortimer by N. Gemini Sasson ~ Queen Isabella is one of my idols from medieval times. And according to Ancestory.com, I am a direct descendent of Roger Mortimer, so I was hoping this would be a good read. It was okay... I wanted to like it more but it was kind of slow.
Okay, I didn't realize I had read that much. But that was fun for me. I love talking about books and getting some good book tips. If you look to the right of my blog, those books are all my favorites (I tried to cut out the kid books), and if you know of any good books you'd like to recommend, I would love to hear it!!
Hopefully, next week I'll have pics from a helicopter ride over some glaciers!! Fingers crossed!
I leave you with: Dakota (and Lola!!)
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