What a Game!!

I just came home after watching two highschool basketball games. The boys game was so close, they had to add overtime. I really got into it, shouting and hollering. It reminded me of going to Hockey games when I was living in Sweden. I have really missed it. Tomorrow they'll play the last homegames before the State Championship and I have to work, but I might catch the end of the boys game if I am lucky.

Work was good today, time really flies when I work the dayshift, 8-4. The good news are that we are hiring another deli person who starts Sunday. I will be able to get other things done again.

The weather keeps changing on us, warming up and then get cold again. My friend told me yesterday that she had seen some small birds in her birdfeeder, maybe spring is coming after all.

(But I know March usually bring more snow than any other months, so I am not too convinced.)

Day Off...

(Thursday, February 28, 2008)

Wasn't able to log onto the blog last night so I'll add a few notes about yesterday on today's blog.

I managed to run 55 laps at the gym and it felt great to run. I am thinking about maybe start training for a race somewhere in the near future. That would be a great motivation to keep running. Today, I took a morning off to catch up on my sleep again.

Last night when Troy and I walked, there was an owl hooting somewhere close by. I can't remember when I heard one before. It sounded so cool...

Met with my little sister today at noon and we played some basketball and hung out in the computer room. Today all the girls at the school were dressed like boys and the boys as girls, it was pretty funny to see the boys in dresses.

Tonight I am going to start scrapbooking with a couple of friends. I have thought about getting into that for awhile, but I don't know if I have the time to really get into it right now.

52 LAPS!

(Tuesday, February 26, 2008)

Wow, I just did a test to see if I could add a photo, and it worked. I am amazed. Maybe I can add a few for earlier posts too while I still can. I'll give it a try. Fingers crossed.

I was really enjoying my workout again, and I did run 52 laps, more than I had planned, and I really wanted to keep going, but I had too many things to do this morning so I had to get home.

I registered my truck today, so it's officially mine. I love it. It's such a cool truck. Maybe I'll post a photo in a few days. Went for a walk, poor Troy doesn't get long walks now that I have a vehicle. We take a few short ones everyday, but I miss the long walks.

Work was good and I was back in the deli making pizzas most of the day again. My boss said that people are going to start calling it Jess' pizza, because I make most of them... I like it!!!

Winter Wonderland part 2

(Monday, February 25, 2008)
Woke up to a beautiful sight this morning. Everything was dusted with snow, and it kept coming down for most of the day. Now we got the crunchy snow back that I love so much. Yeah!!!
I went to the gym without the girls this morning and got my best workout yet. Twentyfour laps around the gym is a mile and I managed 40. Tomorrow I'll try to go for 50. It was so much fun, I am glad I could get up this morning. We had some extra workers in the deli today, one deli guy from the main office and one from the pizza company that we just joined up with. It was nice to have them pitch in so I could get other things done. Didn't create a single pizza today.
Troy isn't healing as fast as I would like, but he seems happy and not in pain so I don't think I have to fly out to the vet at this point, but I am taking it one day at a time.

Payday!

(Saturday, February 23, 2008)
Sorry I missed posting yesterday. After work I went to watch the highschool girls play basketball and then I went to visit my friends Allison and Daniel till pretty late, and when I came home I ended up chatting through instant messenger with a friend for a few hours. Before I knew it, it was almost 2 a.m. and I went to bed.
Today was a good day. I got payed for the last 2 weeks and I had 101,25 hours, giving me 21,25 hours of overtime, not bad!! I have worked really hard so it felt good to see the payoff. Now I can get rid of the credit card bills I have left from the Hawaii vacation. They are not bad and they should be gone in the next month or so. I had to stay at work till 9 p.m. tonight. I am usually done by 8:20 p.m. but there was so much to do tonight that I couldn't get it done on time.
Since we started making pizza our workload has doubled, but my boss is looking to hire a person to take over that part of the deli. I look forward to that day...even though I think it is fun to make pizzas.
Carrie cooked dinner for Laicee and myself tonight, mexican. It was so nice to have a homecooked meal after all the left-over deli foods and pizza I have been eating this week.
Troy is getting better, I think. The bleeding stopped and I try to keep the worst wound covered up and clean, but he keeps ripping off the bandages I make. It takes him almost all day to gnaw through it and then I replace it with a new one. I can't tell for sure if it is healing, but he ate a full bowl of food tonight and that was the first since the accident, so I think that is a good sign.

Sad and busy day

The day started horribly bad. I let Troy out to pee this morning and my worst nightmare happened. I think he got hit by a car, because he came running back yelping and was soaking wet on one side of his body. His left leg had 3 chunks of hair missing and they were leaking a little blood. Had to leave him in the bathroom, so he wouldn't bleed on the carpet, while I ran to the store to buy something to wrap up the leg with. I am trying to keep it clean because I am really scared it will get infected. I wish I knew what happened. He was so scared when he came back. I didn't hear any other dogs or a car, but I can't think of what else it might have been.



At noon, I met with my "little sister" at the Middle School. We played some basketball with the Chief of Police and his "little brother". They beat us but we put up a good fight. I didn't bring my gym shoes and I kept slipping around with my socks on, so I went barefeet. Now the bottoms of my feet are so sore, they feel like they were burned. Oh well, it was worth it.

Today I tried registering my truck at the DMV, but they are only open a few days/week and today was not one of them. I'll have to go back on Monday. While I was there I ran into a good friend who is now a police officer in town. I have hardly seen him at all since I came back and he let me ride in the police car for a few minutes, just for the fun of it and it was nice to catch up. It is actually the second time I have been in a police car. The first time I was sixteen. No, I didn't do anything bad, I just needed a ride in the middle of the night since I had taken the wrong bus and they let me wait at the police station till somebody could pick me up.


Tonight our High School boys and girls played against the boys and girls from Skagway. It was the first basketball games I have been to here in Yakutat. It is a huge deal, and most of the town shows up, but I have always been working and not been able to go. My girls Laicee and Carrie are cheerleaders too and it was so fun to watch them cheer. Both our boys and girls team won!!! I might try to go again tomorrow.

Slept in...

I have been trying to add some photos but it isn't working right now. Maybe I can add them tomorrow. I slept so good last night and I felt so much better, mood and all. What a difference sleep can make. Weather still sucks, rain off and on most of the day, about 39F, I think. Nothing very exciting happened; worked out, went to work and tonight I'll watch a movie that I rented. Heard it was supposed to be one of the best movies made last year. I'll let you know if that comment was true.

Cleaning House!

(Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008)
Was in my deep sleep when Carrie called to wake me up for the gym this morning. Dragged myself out of bed and picked up the girls. It is really hard to give it my all when I am sleep deprived. I came home from the gym and went right back to bed and didn't get up until it was time to get ready for work. It felt soooo good to sleep. I am not going tomorrow, because I really want to catch up on my sleep.
Today I was really excited when I came home from work. The vacuum I had ordered was sitting outside my apartment. I don't think I have ever enjoyed vacuuming as much as I did today. The whole canister filled up with Troy's hair in a couple of minutes. The carpet looks great now, well it's old and stained but not filthy anymore. Well it is almost 1 a.m. and I am way past my bedtime once again.

Lots of Troy

(Mon, Feb. 18, 2008)

Jen, these pictures are for you.

Another late night. Time to change my late night habits so I get enough sleep again.

Had a great workout at the highschool gym this morning. Had a few hours off before going to work. I had a mechanic take a look at my truck and fix a few small things. There are a few more things I need to get done, but hopefully it won't be too expensive. At least the engine is really good. I love driving again.

Girls night

(Sunday, February 17, 2008)

Last night Carrie and Laicee from work came over after work and helped me change my haircolor a little. I was trying for more summer blonde, but it is really strawberry blonde now. Not very noticable to others, which is what I hoped, for so I am happy. They hung out all night and we had lots of laughs and they ended up spending the night. It was so fun to have them here.

Today I was back to work again and my cold is letting up a little. Sundays are always a little slow, not very many customers, so I was able to get caught up at work after a super busy week.

The weather really sucks right now. Rain and lots of it too. Most people are really happy because they want the snow gone. I had to wear my rubber boots, my xtratufs, to walk on the road. The slush is above my ankles. I hope it changes soon, but am thankful to have a truck to help me get to work.

Still feeling crappy...

(Friday, February 15, 2008)
Slept in, went to work, came home around 9 p.m. and have been online for a couple of hours looking at the profiles of old classmates on Facebook.
I am still really sick, but it helps being at work, not focusing on how crappy I feel. I am going to try to get to sleep before midnight but I just wanted to post something on my blog.
Am taking my dog for a walk and then I am going to bed. Goodnight.

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine flowers from the girls

(Thursday, February 14, 2008)
Happy Valentine's Day. Sorry I missed posting yesterday. I was too tired. Yesterday we went to the gym, but everything hurt so much, all the muscles are very sore. It's a good pain, though.
I bought a truck from a friend that works at the bank. Her and her husband lowered the price for me so I could afford it. I am very thankful and excited to have a vehicle, especially since it's raining a lot now and the roads are full of slush.
I am part of the Big Sister, Little sister program and today I went to meet with my "little sister" Nicole at the school. Last week we played basketball, but today since I was sick, we hung out in the library and computer lab instead. I cooked dinner for Carrie and Laicee, from work, tonight, a swedish recipe called Flying Jacob with chicken, bacon, bananas, whipped cream, peanuts, chilisauce and curry powder. It came out ok, haven't made it for a long time. They said they liked it, so that was pretty nice. Made brownies for dessert. Must have chocolate on Valentine's Day, right... I had a really good time tonight.

Sleep sounds great

Icy driveway

(Tuesday, February 12, 2008)
Had a long but good day. This morning we actually made it to the gym and it was awsome. Haven't really worked out like that since I was in Sweden 1 1/2 years ago. We are going back again tomorrow so I will have to get to bed here in a few minutes. At work we have a guy visiting for a week to train us all how to cook their products, pizzas, burgers, breakfast sandwiches etc. We allready have a deli, but there will be a much bigger selection now. There is a lot to learn and I also started training a new girl today. One more day, then I get a day off, on Thursday, Valentine's Day. (Mamma ditt kort blir lite forsenat.)
Almost fell a few times walking to work today, it is pretty bad out there. They are sanding some, but the road to the apartment is still very slippery. Hope it will be better tomorrow.

Slush...

This is my least favorite part of winter. Temperatures rising, snow turning to rain, turning everything into slush and ice. It started raining just as I was walking to work so I got soaked. Had to get a ride home after work because the roads are like an iceskating rink right now, and with Troy pulling, I would for sure have fallen.
Didn't get to the gym this morning because my friend who was supposed to pick me up overslept. I did wake up, without an alarm clock at 7:15 a.m., and got dressed but went back to bed when I realized she wasn't going to come.
We'll try again tomorrow. I have a little bit of a sore throat and a headache so I am going to bed early to sleep it off. Have been popping vitamins all day so I think I will be good if I can get 8 hours tonight. I'll start taking pictures again here any day so I can post them on the blog. It takes me a while to get into a rutine that works for me. Maybe I'll start getting two days off next week. We'll see.
By the way, my phone is working now. The phone guy happened to be in town today and came into the store, so I asked him for help. He fixed it while I was working, and I just had my first caller!!! I am really happy about being connected to the world again.
Goodnight.

More Snow

(Sunday, Feb 10, 2008)
It has been snowing most of the day, it is the real heavy crispy snow that makes a lot of noise (crunch, crunch) when you walk on it. Awsome, I love it.
Tried to use the new phonenumber I have with a borrowed phone, but it's not working so I have to get ahold of the phone company again tomorrow,(sorry mamma).
Worked 7,5 hours today and tonight I tried out my tv. I got a cord to hook-up the Directtv so now I have tv channels to watch, pretty nice. Unpacked a few personal things to make the apartment look a little more like a home. It feels better to be here now.
It's late and I am off to bed so I can make it to the gym in the morning.

Long day at work

(Saturday February 9, 2008)

Not much to report. Dragged myself out of the bed around eight this morning and went to work. Everything went well and I worked eleven hours and logged 14, 000 steps on my pedometer, not bad. I got my first little paycheck for working three days last week, small but good.
Spent a few hours with friends tonight and watched a movie. Movie wasn't very good, but the company was great.
It warmed up and we got some snow today.
It's 1:30 p.m. and I am going to bed in a little bit.

Cold!!!!!

Brrrrr...... It is very cold here tonight. I just checked the temperature on the internet so I could report it here -2F (-19C) at 10:45 p.m. When I walked home from work about 2 hours ago, my nose felt like it wanted to close-up and my eyelashes felt wet and heavy. Tonight is going to be one of the coldest, but after this coldsnap it will warm up a little, and we might get snow on Sunday/Monday. Sunset was 4:53 p.m. but we will gain 3 minutes by tomorrow night. I love gaining daylight, versus the darkness taking over in the fall.

My boss left town this morning and "left me in charge". He didn't even call and check on me. That felt pretty good. One of the worst things that happens sometimes, usually when my boss is out of town, is the power outages. I was lucky enough I didn't have to deal with that today, even though the other part of town had power shutdowns. My prayers must have been heard! It is a pain to restart all the computers and tills. Tomorrow I'll go in early and work 11-12 hours, but I don't mind the overtime and I really like being there.

Didn't take any new photos so I'll add some from my airplane ride two weeks ago over the snowy mountains that go on forever...

A bad day...

I was awoken by very bad news. Somebody dear to me took a handful of sleeping pills last night, and is now in the hospital. They had to pump the stomache and the doctor said if it was 20 min. later, the person would have died. I hope everything will be allright...

Didn't feel like taking photos today and don't want to add an old one, it doesn't feel right.

Day off, sort of...

(ophir creek road)

I took it really easy this morning. It is such a difficult task to get out of bed when it is cold outside the covers. Temperatures today was about 16F (-9C). Brr.....

Watched a great movie so I could return it today,a new release with J. Foster.

I walked to the high-school to find out what the rules are about using the weightroom and they are going to unlock it for me and some girls at work if we get there in the morning. Now I just need a vehicle, maybe this weekend I'll get a chance to test-drive one for sale.

The afternoon was spent making calls, paying bills and shovelling snow, trying to make a path to the cabin after this last big dump of snow, maybe a foot, I'm not sure. The worst is when the snowplows don't clear the piles they leave right in front of the driveway. That pile gets really hard to shovel, but I did it. Now I have about half the driveway left to do in the morning, unless it will snow again tonight. It's pretty ok since it is powder, not ice at this point. I took some videos with my camera but somehow I can't download it onto my blog.

Went to a biblestudy tonight and I ate cake and icecream and homemade blueberry topping (mmmmm....), but I don't think it will ruin my weightloss progress/competition, since I burned all those calories shoveling and walking for 40 min. Only 8 more weeks to go and I think I am only in 3-4th place.

I am going to bed early tonight since I have lots to do in the morning before work. I still have to bundle up one last time to take my pup for a quick "bathroom trip", then I'm hitting the sack. Goodnight.

Cold and Sunny Day

It was a crispy cold day, but with a beautiful clear blue sky that made the snow look even brighter than usual. I really enjoyed my 20 minute walk to work this morning, taking the longer route down by Sandy Beach. I have been trying to practise "heel" with Troy for the last week, but today was so wonderful, I just let him run wild next to me. He gets so excited when I let him off the leash and the horrible choke chain. I wish I could just skip this part of the training. Somewhere in my boxes I have a puppy training book I used in the beginning, but I might have to find it to review this part of the training. He is getting so strong that when he pulls, my arms get really tired quickly, and I love long walks, so that is a problem.
Worked 8,5 hours today, but I have the day off tomorrow. I am supposed to have Thursdays off, but my boss and his daughter have to go to Anchorage that day and stay till Friday so I was ok about switching the days this week.
Rented a movie to watch tonight, but I am getting pretty tired allready so I might just watch it in the morning instead.

Photos

Mt. St. Elias, Hae Sook and I on Cannon Beach, Cabin

Home sweet home

Sorry about the delay in updates, I haven't had internet access for almost 2 weeks. I am back in Yakutat after spending 3-4 days in LA, one day in Salt Lake and one night in Seattle. I had no idea it would feel so good to be back in Yakutat. I was planning on just travelling through, but the beautiful snow and the warm welcome was just what I needed to decide to stay for awhile. I started working 5 days ago and it's like I never left, it all came back to me and my boss is happy he doesn't have to do 14 hour days anymore. I got a $2 raise too. The customers have been so great making me feel like I was missed, I even get a hug or too when they come in. What a wonderful place to live. I am renting an apartment through the winter. Stayed in the cabin for a few nights but it is not set up for winter living at this time and this is a better arrangement. I spent hours shoveling snow, it was thigh-high on our driveway, so I got quite a workout. I think it took me 5 hours to get a thin path from the road to the door.

The photo to the left is from the plane flying over a glacier and the other one is Troy playing in the snow. He is stoked to be back home, where he can run around chasing snowballs and chew on sticks.