Welcome 2019

Wow! What a year?!  We are on our second winter in Alaska and it's not as "neat" as the first one.  Mainly because of the long days of darkness but we are back to gaining light so we are in the home stretch!
Since we've been in Alaska: I'm on my second job and Joe is on his third.  We are both enjoying these current jobs so hopefully no other work changes :). We sold all of our furniture and excess belongings and moved from a 2 bedroom condo to a furnished studio.  We lost our beautiful mountain views but we gained a fire pit, places to walk to, and more freedom from stuff!  We've had two visitors: Amanda and my Mom.  

We bought Stevie, an RV, and sold Stevie.  We did do some camping, some hiking, some more hiking, and recently snow shoeing.  We bought a camper, which is in Chicago, and we are looking for a truck for it as we speak....we are getting closer and closer to our traveling life.  

We aren't rushing it because it is our life but we are not going slow either!  We canceled a gym membership, I started a month to month program with Pure Barre and I'm actually staying with it (except for today, I canceled today).  Tux is Tux and is doing his thing but he did see a moose in our yard, he wasn't too sure about that!  Life is good and we keep plugging along without becoming complacent and routine.

 We rung in 2019 with a staycation downtown in The Hotel Captain Cook (it's literally a 10 drive for us now).  

It was nice and I drank too much and I'm slowly recovering.  Joe was back to work today and I'm back to work next week.  Today I have the place to myself to do laundry, clean dishes, blog, read...or absolutely nothing. productive it can go either way really!

It will be interesting to what 2019 brings to me and to us!

Holidays are always interesting to me.  I've never been big on them, maybe as a kid when we got those big stashes of gifts but... as my brother and I grew older those gifts diminished and it was more focused on things that were really important.  Mom would decorate but I remember the holidays becoming more and more low-key.  I'm good with that.  
As a 42y/o I have close to NO stress during the holidays.  I'm not running around shopping (which I hate in normal situations) and I'm not going into debt.  Joe and I don't exchange gifts. We spend time with each other having a good time.  People see us as slightly weird but it's our life and we're happy with it.  I've been with people who were really into the holidays, the stuff that t.v. specials are made of.  If that stuff makes people happy... go and do it, but don't judge me for not partaking, or looking at me with pity because my boyfriend didn't buy me anything!  We don't need anything and if we do, we buy it ourselves.  We do the same thing for Valentines Day and birthdays :). I have family and friends that don't understand and that is o.k., it's my life and it works for me and my partner in crime.

Another New Year thing that I keep chuckling about is the resolutions.  I've tried to do resolutions in the past, I've even blogged about it.  Needless to say, like most people they eventually fall to the way side or I totally forget what I "promised" myself.  I see tons of post about reset groups for health.  It's great to be held accountable and to have a plan to get healthy,  I need that but I've begun to learn that all that motivation needs to come from ME.  I can ignore people on my email or text reminders but I can't get away from me, how I feel and how I look.  
I started Pure Barre a few months ago and I've been maintaining at least 3 sessions a week.  I've been trying to do 4 but life stuff keeps happening :P. It's a good workout for me and I feel better when I do it but I also acknowledge that I need my time when I can get it.  It's that balance thing.  I don't want to add stress to my life because I canceled a session or didn't make my quota.  I'll go when I go and get the most out of it, appreciating that time I give to myself by strengthening my body and mind.  
We put so much pressure on ourselves and there is no need.  I want to excel and do well in my job and stay healthy but instead of pressure I can motivate myself in a non judgey, not critical way that encourages growth and movement.  It's hard, as a society we are programed to be more harsh :(
I need to get busy with my day, I feel that is what needs to happen now on my day of solitude.  So I'm cutting this blog of ramblings short and moving on to the next thing that strikes my fancy.

Been busy and late on post...

Chilln' in our new digs!

Well, Joe and I have moved into our new digs.  A studio apartment that is furnished.  Yep, we’ve gotten rid of all of our furniture and downsized all that extra stuff that you don’t realize is accumulating in drawers, closets, and bins!  Granted we still have stuff to get rid of, and we are going to do quarterly sweeps of our stuff.  So every few months we are going to go through our bins, Tupperware, and kitchen stuff and get rid of things we have not used.  Currently I am doing the hanger swap from those plastic hangers to some thinner ones, if I still have items on plastic hangers after so long then that clothing will be donated!  

We have been in our new studio for almost a month now and we are doing well.  People are always shocked when we tell them of the small space we are now living in and what our future plans are. We’ve heard “well, you really got to like the person” um duh and we do.  Joe and I can occupy the same space and still be focused on individual things.  Yesterday was a prime example…

Sunday’s usually are not my best day…. I get the Sunday funk pretty bad and now that we are getting into darker days and gloomy winter weather, well it’s not a good combo for my depressed tendencies.  Some Sunday’s I’m good and I feel o.k. but yesterday was a struggle.  I did manage to shower *high five* but that was the extent of my movement, oh I did wash and put away laundry *high five* but the rest of the day, ALL of Sunday, I was on the internet.  I attempted to read but that lasted 5 minutes.  As a social worker, I know this type of activity is not healthy but as I tell my folks as long as you don’t build a house in that funk it’s o.k. to have a day or two.    Joe also has his Sunday funk and like me, sometimes it’s worse than others. He had a decent Sunday, he even worked out!  He spent most of his internet browsing in a more productive fashion by doing research. I felt bad for being a lazy butt but Joe in our relationship fashion, was not judgmental, did not force anything on me, and just gave me my space to do absolutely nothing and not feel totally bad about it.  This all went down in a studio apartment all day.  Even when we have our moods/funks/etc. we are able to not feed into it, make it worse, or feel weird about it!  How amazing is that?!

New place has a fire pit!

Now it’s Monday, work is typical Monday with a dash of crazy due to the first snow of the season and not a lot of people at work.  But I’m good. The funk of Sunday has not lingered and I’m feeling motivated to be productive.  

We haven’t been overly busy this past month getting settled into our new place, but looking back on some pictures I’ve taken we’ve been busy enough!  

After Mom's visit, and my last post, we had the awesome experience of driving into Denali park.  You can only drive so far in your own vehicle, with a pass, but at the end of the season and to give back to military they give a certain number of passes and there is also a raffle.  If you win, you get to drive as far as the road takes you.  Our neighbors had a pass and invited us along and it was amazing. Of course pictures cannot really do the beauty of this state justice.  We were blessed with a clear day but that also appeared to keep a lot of the critters away.  We did see a few bears, some elk, and a fox...along with the butt of a moose walking back into the tree line :)

Denali

Tourist in our back yard!

The weekend we moved into our new place Joe noticed there was some motorcycle travelers from Chile stranded on one of the many social media groups we follow. Since we were pretty much moved, just needed to organize and get situated, Joe took off to go pick them up and give them a ride into town.  We ended up having a couple of meals with them and picked their brain on their travels.  Awesome experience!  Joe got to spend more time with them due to not working during that time. Since then he has scored a state job that he is enjoying better than his other two jobs.  It's more of an office work gig, he's a program manager, and he gets to interact and talk with A LOT of people with the overall goal to get Veterans back to work.  

New traveling friends!

I can't believe 2018 is almost over! Before we know it we will be in 2019!!!  I believe I've found a work out that fits my needs and I'll actually stick with!  Pure Barre is a low impact high intensity workout and I've been able to go 3 times a week for a month now!  I cannot recall when that has happened LOL.  What I like it is low impact, you really work your muscles but I need to start adding more cardio somewhere.... the place I go is supportive and the little changes in the routine stop me from getting bored with the workouts.  Good music and the workouts go by quick so I don't find myself always looking at the clock.  The first week that I went they had a wine down Wednesday, yep they had wine for people!!!! So yeah, best workout place ever!  Nothing like a little treat for working out :)

Time for a reset

Tux is not amused!

We've had a couple of good visitors but now it's time to get down to business.  As you can see, Tux isn't a big fan of being productive but it's what we have to do... damn adulthood!  But before I get into that stuff, our summer in Alaska is coming to a close :(

Mom's visit...she brought in some good HI sunshine!

Mom came for a month long visit and we had some decent weather while she was here!  We did some tourist stuff but I couldn't take a lot of time off so Mom was left to her own devices and she got familiar with our bus system.  She got out and about and saw Anchorage on her own.

We did the Kenai Fjords Tour which was amazing!  We saw whales, otters, puffins, otters, seals, glaciers, and amazing scenery!

Although this glacier was BIG it has shrunk dramatically over the years :(

We visited an old abandoned mine which is a quick drive from our house.  The park was closed, but we could walk around and it was beautiful.  Alaska amazes me on a regular basis!

We have been busy with Mom's visit but now she is back home in Hawaii and now we are in purge mode!

Like I mentioned in a previous post we are moving from our 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment to a studio apartment AirB&B.  We have a month to purge all of our stuff!  It's a mental process just as much as physical one.

We've been slowly downsizing and I've been keeping my buying down to a minimum.  Whenever I'm out and about, shopping or window shopping, I always ask myself now "do I need this? how will this fit into my traveling future? what will it replace?".  Knowing my goals and what I truly value has allowed me to stay focused in my day to day life.  I am able to ask myself how does this thing or this action fit into my value.  If I can't answer that question, I move on from it.  

For the past few weeks I've been thinking about my bathroom.  As a female we have tons of stuff in our bathrooms.... make up, hair products, face products, and just random stuff.  Today I purged my bathroom and my jewelry.  It is already feeling "more simple" and I'm just getting started!

In addition to this physical purge of all of our stuff we are doing a reset on our bodies.  With our visitors our eating habits have gotten out of whack and we both feel like our mental and physical selves need a reset, just like our purge of stuff.  

24 day reset!

We've done this once before and what we like about it is that we don't have to totally change our diet.  We eat healthy and as clean as possible.  So...for us that means less eating out and no alcohol LOL. So starting on Tuesday, after the holiday of course, it's game on!

one step at a time

Life is crazy and we never know what is next.  Being able to know your true self and your values allows you to keep moving forward in a way that fills one's soul.  

Slow internet... it's really selective internet!

I'm at work, not a place I like to blog but the computers are running on molasses!  Well, the programs and internet sites that are connect to my work are not working so here we are! I've restarted my computer 4 times and nada so I blog:P

Work is still going smoothly with no real complaints.  Things are at a pace that is almost a tad slow for me but I'm doing other things with my time.  Researching diagnosis, taking the time to really prep for people I'm working with, and doing some education. 

This past weekend, Joe and I took Stevie out for the weekend.  We didn't drive off far, it was just a regular weekend but it is amazing how camping and being out in nature changes one's mood.  After last week I was fine, wasn't overly stressed or anything along those lines.  We go out camping and it's like my work is a world away, although we just drove 2 hours away!  We spend a full day hiking on Saturday and it is confirmed...I did something to my knee :(  I have an appointment already scheduled so we will see what is going on with that!  Can't be restricted to only 4 mile hikes!  Not here in Alaska!

The trail we chose to go on is actually around 16 miles or so, an out and back.  You hike 8 miles out to a glacier and then come back.  We made it to almost 4 miles.  So we did a total of around 8.  We attempted to make it to the 4 mile marker but we were thwarted by marshy land we could not navigate through or around.  So we turned around, found a clearing, and took a power nap before heading back to Stevie.  Not a lot of food traffic on the hike so it was pretty low key and relaxing. 

Getting back to Stevie we relaxed with some drinks and grilled some cheeseburgers.  We heading home early on Sunday and it worked out great because we got back before the other RVs, so no line to dump, and we had the day to get ready for the week ahead!

Animal sitings update:

Buffalo: a big herd

Caribou: 9 alive and 1 carcass
Deer: 5

Dall Sheep: lost count

Rabbit: 1

Prairie Dog: 1

Tundra Swan: lost count
Moose: lost count
Bald Eagle: lost count
Porcupine: 1
Sea Lions: 4

Artic Ground Squirrel: 1

New job, updated animal sitings, random outings

Two weeks down at a new job and so far I am feeling that this has been a good employment move for me.  The morale/vibe of the place is good and the pace not a regular crisis mode.  I got an office with a view which was a nice surprise.  I'm redoing my name tag.  I'm not sure why some things are difficult to make neat but it is what it is.  

My view :) I LOVE all the natural light I'm getting right now.

I'm fixing this to make it neater, sorry Army NCO this just isn't cutting it for me!

This coming week I'll take over the anger management group and then hopefully have my schedule updated in the system so I can start being scheduled with individuals.  Things are moving at a steady forward pace which as been a nice change from the last job.

After my first work week, we took Stevie to Seward for the Mermaid festival.  We were both fighting a head cold but we decided that since we had Stevie, she is warm and we can be comfortable, that we'd still make a go of it.  I'm glad we did.  It was rainy and overcast the whole time but it was a nice get away.  Relaxing and beautiful.  We stayed right on the water!  We saw bald eagles and some sea lions playing in the water while we had our morning coffee.  

Our view from our camping spot once we pulled in to Seward AK

rainy weather doesn't stop the annual Mermaid Festival in Seward!

The Mermaid Festival was a small venue but it was good, local vendors and some local music!  Since we were both under the weather we brought soup for our dinners ;) With me working it was up to Joe to gather most of the things for Stevie.  When I got off of work I asked if he had certain things, packed up my clothing etc, and we were off.  I found out once we got there and it was time for dinner that Joe does not get to pack up kitchen stuff anymore.  We were missing some key items, like more than one spoon!  As usual we adapted and had a good time.

He forgot the spoons, he got the cooking spoon!

We are currently finishing up a three day Memorial Day weekend.  We kept it low key but decided to drive up to Talkeetna to check out the town.  We went past it on the train in the winter and thought it looked cute and fun.  We were right!  It's a small town and touristy.  The place was busy and everyone was walking around, it takes about 10 minutes to walk the town!  The cruise ships have started coming to Alaska and some of them dock in Whittier.  There was a group of older ladies that were visiting from Albany NY and took the train to Talkeetna.  They were having a good time and one of them was getting ready to sign up for a helicopter ride around Denali!  It was a relaxing sunny day.

on the banks of the Susitna River... background is Denali!

air strip.... they are every where here in Alaska!

On the way home we stopped at Lynne Lake because a friend of ours was helping his folks clear out some lake front land.  It turned into an impromptu canoe ride which we did not complain about!  Joe went back the next day to help clear some more land while I went on a little hike with a friend.  

Random canoe ride!

Have I mentioned how beautiful it is around here!

It is so beautiful here, it's so hard to capture in pictures but we try.  The nature here is amazing.  A few days last week I would pass by a moose with her two calves.  Today we were driving home and there was a moose having her dinner on the side of the road!  So far we have not seen or come across any bear but we have our bear spray that we take with us when we are out and about ;)  At the end of this blog I added our animal siting updates....it's fun but we are getting to the "lost count" range with some of them.

When we are not out and about we enjoy our lazy time at home with Tux the Judger.  We have a wonderful bay window that looks out towards the mountains so we always have a great view, once we look over the roof tops!

Animal sitings update:

Buffalo: a big herd

Caribou: 9 alive and 1 carcass
Deer: 5

Dall Sheep: lost count

Rabbit: 1

Prairie Dog: 1

Tundra Swan: lost count
Moose: lost count
Bald Eagle: lost count
Porcupine: 1
Sea Lions: 4

Unemployed in Alaska

at our camp site in Homer AK

Yep, we are still unemployed but I got a firm job offer yesterday and may be starting my new job 14 May, so that has taken some stress off.  Joe is still looking and has applied for some government jobs of his own but is in no real rush due to starting his last two classes for his bachelor's degree.  He is using his post 9/11 GI Bill, so he's getting paid a decent amount of money to take classes :). As Joe said a month ago...we will be fine!

Chris, Grandpa, and me

Things have a way of working out when you don't fight them. After I submitted my 2 weeks and was on leave, my Grandmother in Missouri took a turn for the worse.  She was in her 90's so it wasn't a big surprise.  Everything happened quickly and within a matter of days I was flying out to support my Dad during the funeral.  I got to see a lot of family I have not seen in awhile in addition to my brother.  If I was still working, it would have been stressful for me taking the time off and navigating all of that.  So I'm grateful that I could just do my thing and fly out with no additional stress.  I got to visit with Grandpa.  He suffers from Alzheimer's but he's happy.  With Grandmother gone, she was slightly controlling, he gets to watch westerns all day :)

Off to Homer AK

Stevie

When I returned, Joe and I took our new family member to Homer AK.  Stevie is a 97' Fleetwood Sport Jamboree.  She is are trial run for living small :P and a way for us to get out and explore more of AK without worrying about hotels etc.  Homer hadn't woken up yet, so it was more of the sleepy fishing town while we were there.  We boondocked on the spit and practically none of the stores and restaurants were open yet.  I guess the magic open time is in May.  We spend 2 nights there.  One thing that Homer is known for is the bald eagles.  There wasn't as many as pictures show, it's probably a season thing too, but we saw enough!  They are amazing birds!  The size of them and to see them just flying around...we were constantly in awe!

boat docks at the Homer spit

We had a decent walk about in Homer, walking 8.8 miles one day!  Joe and I usually end up doing a lot of walking.  It's a great way to see things and take up time when you got nothing going on, which is usually the case when you're camping.  

all to our selves!

Stevie is great!  The heater is awesome!  We had some things things that brought up questions but we either figured them out on the road or just adapted until getting home.  Joe has a friend that rents RVs here in Anchorage and he cleared up some of our questions.  We did good for our first packing for a trip too.  We under packed kitchen stuff but over packed clothing LOL. It's a learning process but we are good and going with what we got, working together to solve problems.  The only thing we didn't try out was the shower.  

a must have for AK traveling!!!

We may be taking another short weekend trip next month.  We will see how things go.  Stevie needs a good washing, outside and in before our next adventure.  

down time while camping

My goal is to do quicker blog updates... there is so much to say and share when we go on our trips and even life here in AK.  We tend to have a lot of relaxing time while we camp so there is no reason not to do an update ;)

And SWITCH

Joe and I don't do anything "normal" and it works for us.  A few weeks ago Joe gave his notice at his job.  He enjoyed the people and the concept of the job he was a fan of but he had similar issues with his work environment as do/did I.  

My work environment was having a negative effect on my mental health.  Joe was beginning to worry about me.  I was coming home in a mood, either angry/frustrated or depressed.  I was in a constant state of being tired no matter how much sleep I got.  Every morning I would have to force myself out of bed, there was even one day I didn't even shower before going into work!  My depression was strong and deep, only getting deeper the longer I struggled in that work environment.  Joe said we'd be o.k. financial for a few months if I put in my notice.  I hate not having something lined up and I also don't like not having an income but my unhappiness at work was overriding those worries.  One morning Joe sent me a picture of me from Florida, I was on a beach cruiser and smiling...he text "I remember this girl".  I cried and knew I had to quit work, the environment was not going to change any time soon.  Coworkers have shared with me their struggles that have been going on for years.  I did not have the motivation to fight the system.  So a week after Joe put in his notice, I submitted my two weeks and yesterday was my last physical day at work.

Before I put in my notice I had a telephone interview for a position on base.  It's a slight pay cut but it sounds less stressful, smaller work community, structure, and more follow through and accountability.  As usually I feel as though I bomb telephone interviews, thinking I sound like an idiot or after the call replay conversations thing "I should have said this".  I submitted my 2 week notice at the VA on Friday and on Monday I received an tentative offer email for that position! 

dog sitting Luna, dog cuddles make everything better

This process of quitting my job has been interesting for me.  It's always a hard decision even if it's for one's own sanity.  My frustrations with work were echoed by a majority of my coworkers and we were banding together to bring issues up to the managers and leaders in hopes of a change.   When I decided to quit my job, with no other employment lined up, a coworker stated "You are amazing".  

This gave me pause, it was said as she was leaving my office.  Amazing? Really? for leaving a toxic work environment that was doing me more harm than good?  I got to thinking about it and I've been commended for just doing stuff like that before.  I left a government job in Utah and moved to Hawaii.  I had a safety neat but no real job.  I just moved.  After graduating with my MSW I went against what "made sense" and followed my gut, things have been working out wonderfully.  When I went off to India and volunteered for 2 weeks, I had no job and shouldn't have spent the money but I went and had a profound experience and things worked out.  I am blessed!  I have been in positions where people have been helpful and have provided some security and safety but at times I just go and do.  That is what I did with this recent situation.  I have been at the VA for 7 months and gave my 2 weeks.  People were surprised at how sudden I was leaving but NOT surprised as to the why.

Joe and I both have our history of jobs that suck your soul.  We are making it a priority to enjoy life, even if that means taking a pay cut at times.  We are o.k. with that.  We don't have to make X amount of money, we just need to pay off our debt and then move on to our next big thing.  

Although leaving the VA was best for me, it's always hard to say good bye and stop therapy with Veterans.  I did my best to inform them of my leaving, ensuring I personally talked with each one either by phone or in person.  One of them gifted me with this painting.  I'm always in awe when a client takes the time to do something to give to me.

gift hand painted from a client

So here we are, both unemployed.  I'm working towards a start date...the DOD hiring process is never quick.  We have time off to focus on down sizing, selling things, and enjoy more of what is in our back yard!

Baby steps, enjoy where you are at

It's a lazy Sunday here in Alaska but we are going to be checking out a used Class C around lunch time...sssh don't tell anyone :). 

Joe is more excited than I am, I'm always a wait and see before getting excited.  Too many times of getting ramped up just to be let down I suppose.  We are going with an open mind due to we both know this will not be our "forever" vehicle.  It's our starter vehicle! The one that we try on for size, gets our feet wet with in regards to living in a vehicle so we can narrow down our needs, must haves, and it would be nice to have.  We have a pretty good idea of what we "must have" but it's amazing how things begin to change once you're in it.  So we will see how this progresses.

We are getting exposed to spring weather in Alaska.  Like most areas we will have a bout of "warm weather" where things begin to melt.  Like right now we may reach 40 degrees today but within a couple of days it's snow snow snow!  It's not really called "spring here" but "breakup".  Which is a fun way of looking at the weather... I see that I'm breaking up with the cold dark weather but it really describes the TERRIBLE road conditions.  In Alaska they don't use salt on the roads, they use gravel of some sort.  So during the winter you are pretty much driving, in some areas, over packed down snow and ice.  No big deal you get use to it.  But now with the weather warming up that snow and ice is breaking up and you are driving on like the worst back country road imaginable.  Plus with this thaw and freeze craziness, once you get to the road, there are potholes that will blow out your tire if you are not careful in addition to all the gravel that was laid down...wind shield cracks are the norm.  So although the Alaska mountains are and will be forever beautiful in the background of my day to day driving, the roads are surround by black dirty snow and booby trapped roads.

Well my coffee is done and it's time to get moving and see what our future may look like!