Currently: September

Currently living/working: We wrapped up so many jobs this month! Justin’s grand total was 90 hikes & 25 presentations, while I did 47 hikes and 41 presentations! We’re mostly here this fall, so we’re keeping the yurt open for rentals as long as the weather doesn’t drop below 0. Going into the winter, Justin will keep up his part-time tourism job & I will keep subbing at the library. 

Current mood: The end of the season was a doozy for me. Probably because Justin was in Africa and I was “holding down the fort” solo. Things had certainly slowed down, however I suddenly felt so exhausted and over it! I believe the sinking sun angle and diminishing quality of the sunbeams played a role in my sudden bout of excessive lethargy. In any case, we got through it and I am ready for dormancy!

Currently proud of: Justin climbed Kilimanjaro! I’m so dang proud of how he once again defied the impossible with his hidden health issues. Of course it goes without saying I’m proud of the whole team for their efforts! I’m hoping Justin can write a blog post about the experience soon, so stay tuned for more details. 

Current guilty pleasure: We hereby declare late September FREE STUFF MANIA. As the local businesses close down, the restaurants usually donate food to our local food pantry (Neighbor to Neighbor). It’s an enormous amount for an organization that has very little storage, and the perishable items need to go quickly, so Neighbor to Neighbor opens pickup to the whole community. What a gift! The next gift is that Holland America and Princess employs roughly 4000 people each summer for their operations in Denali. Often these adventure seekers have never been to Alaska and fly in, which means limited luggage for 4 months of dorm-style living. Every summer, these employees accumulate SO.MUCH.STUFF, and when it comes time to leave the state, they leave it behind! Justin & I see the stuff, and we’re like, they couldn’t pack this Twix bar? Or unopened medicine? I can always count on stocking up on our cleaning supplies & shampoo/conditioner. But then, there are always items that leave us scratching our heads as to why they even had them in Alaska. This year, it was the snorkel gear. Can someone local explain that to me?

In any case, there are a few other gems during September, like Justin’s poker buddy who owns a tiny convenience store and offloads all his refrigerated drinks for the winter. And then sometimes the hotels update their furniture and art. Justin’s middle name is FREE, so this all tracks for him!

Current confession: Some of our summer gigs flopped, while others were far better than we ever could have imagined! After 6 years of navigating the seasonal work scene in a small tourist town where we live, we’ve learned a lot.  The biggest takeaway is that not all seasonal employers are created equal. Some gaslight you into thinking you’re the problem, others treat you with respect. Still, seasonal work is not for everyone, but fits us like a new pair of hiking boots—a little uncomfortable, yet exactly right fit for flexibility and the ability to adventure that we want to have. We’ve also discovered that having skills in like 16 different lines of work is our best defense to prevent burnout. Rotate the hustle and keep it fresh! But sheesh, what a wild rite of passage for out-of-town bright-eyed seasonal workers who come up dreaming of wildlife and mountain views, then find themselves elbow-deep in 40+ hours/week of dishwashing.  

Currently not excited for: I feel like we had a fleeting fall this September—maybe 2 stunning weeks. Winter’s curtain came down, flushing all the fall colors from our deciduous trees leaving behind bony stick fingers among a brown landscape. We’ve had 2 big snow dumps already, but they’ve all melted quickly into yucky slush. I wonder what kind of winter we will have. Last year was constantly swinging between our normal snowy deep freeze and weirdly warm, wet spells. Will we have the same chaotic cycle this winter? I hope not!

Currently worried about: Now heading into my 7th winter in Alaska, I recognize some other unhealthy patterns. Yes, I have seasonal depression, but thankfully have found tools to combat that, like working outside the home at least 1 day/week, joining book/knitting club as opportunities to socialize, and therapy when needed. The one thing I haven’t mastered is the weight gain that comes from inactivity in cold and dark Alaska (as well as just being extra squishy in menopause). It’s easy to stay active in the summer, but my hot girl summer quickly turns into thick girl winter. We don’t have indoor gyms, and while I typically ski a few times a week and do yoga when I can, I need to do more. I become pathologically cozy and unmotivated when it gets dark!

Currently excited for: This was our 4th summer renting the yurt out, and although rentals looked slow and spotty to start, we ended up with 100 nights rented (through Sept. 30), for which we are very grateful! Plus, there were 17 nights in which friends & family stayed. We love having a rental property—more than just for the obvious reason of passive income, as it’s nice to live vicariously through others’ impressions! And I’m stoked that we will have a second yurt rental for next summer (although I admittedly have low expectations for how many nights we’ll rent—it’s more of a long-term investment). Anyway, thought I’d share a few of my favorite messages from guests this summer that gave us a chuckle, specifically the last one where the person basically asks how to shut off Alaska’s midnight sun. 

Currently thankful for: As serial road trippers from 2011-2019 combined with the fact that we’ve lived in like 10 states in 20 years, we have so many friends around the country that we rarely see anymore. So we love when people from our different life stages decide to visit Alaska!

Currently amazed by: I have a trip back East planned for mid-October to visit my mom, who is going on her 640th day of hospice! 

Currently regretting: Neither of us saw a single grizzly bear this summer! I remind guests all the time that wildlife is elusive … we have 300 brown bears with the equivalent of the state of Massachusetts to roam … so adjust your expectations! But I live here!! Shouldn’t I have more of a chance to see them??? Granted, I’ve only driven far in the park 5 times this summer, but still, I was surprised. 

Currently reading: Not sure if anyone has seen the incredibly mixed reviews for All Fours by Miranda July, but it intrigued me because of the perimenopause/menopause undertone. And for that reason, it resonated with me since menopause flipped a rebirth of a new (and improved? Still TBD) me. With that being said, this book is full of raunchy erotics that were borderline smut, and not my typical genre. However, the writing was brilliant and refreshingly honest.  

Audiobooks kind of feel like cheating to me, but I listened to Amy Schumer’s The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo. I do love Amy Schumer’s movies mainly because she is just so crass. The book details stories of her coming of age, and even though there were times I cringed at her forwardness (and I assure you I am not a prude), her storytelling made the most mundane details extremely long and fascinating. I did think her internal monologue was overkill at times. 

Currently watching on Netflix/Peacock: Given that Justin & I were apart most of the month, our watch report is dismal. On Netflix, I finished North of the North (pretty accurate portrayal of northern cultures in my opinion) and Justin continues to watch Shameless (brutal family drama). We did breeze through Black Rabbit with Jason Bateman these last 2 weeks. So good! But awful at the same time!