Anchorage, For Now

On Thursday afternoon, we arrived at last in Anchorage. The sun shone and the birds cheeped. Well, sort of. Our new rented home is only a block from our former house. After meeting our landlord Richard and moving the contents of the car including two cats into our new home, we went for a walk in our new (and old) neighborhood. The familiarity of it all was offset by a new house here, some taller bushes there. It is taking some getting used to.


The next day it began raining like crazy as if we had somehow brought the weather with us. It's been raining ever since. Ah well, a glimpse of sunshine will have to do.

We've been driving around making all the changes to utilities and phone and buying things we need right now. Because of a snafu, our container has been delayed until later this week so we are making do with a folding chair here and a borrowed futon there. Last night, Monday, Simon arrived in one piece from his two weeks in Washington. He had a great time visiting friends and we are very glad to have him back. Our adventure in Anchorage begins today. Please drop us an email, card or call. Thanks for following.
 

Jimmie, Kami and Simon

739 West 15th Avenue

Anchorage AK 99501

907-561-5612

(our new home number)

907-350-2132 Kami cell

907-360-3860 Jimmie cell

 

Alaska-Canada-Alaska

 

The container, at last loaded with all our worldy stuff, was driven away on Monday. It goes on a ship to Seward and will be trucked to Anchorage sometime next week, we hope. Our adventure began Tuesday at 3AM as we raced around the near-empty house packing up the car with cats, sleeping bags and what-not. 

We boarded the ferry for the 14 hour trip with a ferry change in Juneau. After arriving in Haines we drove another 150 miles to Haines Junction in the Yukon Territory of Canada. It's remarkable we had to cross national borders to move to another area of the same state.

On Wednesday we drove 300 miles from Haines Junction to Tok. It took all day and it rained all day. The Al-Can Highway, as this section is called, is in a perpetual state of disrepair. We managed to entertain ourselves through the day of dismal road and weather.

We’re Outta Here

It’s come to this. Another empty house, another moving scenario. This time there is no panic. Kami and Jimmie are just sitting and waiting for the container to be picked up at noon. We have been cleaning and packing. We have the rest of the afternoon to return a few things and drop off keys. The landlord walks through at three and we have been invited to dinner with friends.The cats know something is up - most of their soft beds have disappeared.

Our ferry leaves at 5AM (that’s right) so we will pack up the car tonight and try to sleep before our early morning departure. What have we forgotten?

Boxes

Saturday we sent Simon off to Anchorage by himself, a big deal we think. It was hard to see him go. He will spend the next two weeks in Washington visiting friends and relaxing while his parents complete the task of moving. More and more of our things are being packed and stacked. However did we get so much stuff?

Since we sold most of our furniture we are left with boxes (and more boxes) of mementos, do-dads, flotsam and knicknacks. The container arrives tomorrow and we have until Monday to fill it. We should have plenty of room but packing always takes longer to do well. Kami works until Friday and Jimmie is anxious. 

We were feeling like banana slugs over the weekend. Somehow we managed a to enjoy a final hike on beautiful Beaver Lake Trail in the rain.

Raining on our parade

Happy Fourth of July! It was a wet parade, but no one seemed to mind. Afterward we went home and ate barbeque on our folding table and camp chairs. Simon continues with Arts Camp for music and Kami struggles to keep up with her job as the days close in on us. The cats enjoy digging in the boxes we haven't taped shut.

Three weeks to go

Packing has slowed and we've been tying up loose ends. Kami is still working at the hospital. The cats got their travel shots yesterday. We are just waiting until it is time to pack up the container. 

Simon has been involved in the music camp and was invited to participate with the high school group. He has had a wonderful opportunity to learn more technique and improve his music skills during the Sitka Fine Arts Camp. Here is a link to his performance last week. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POAbj1djH6E

We hope previous pictures did not give the impression that Sitka is a sunny place. In the last two weeks we have seen the sun on two days. Here are tourists from the cruise ships enjoying Sitka's weather.

Moving Sale, House Purchase (not) and Rental

The last week has been hectic. Last weekend, Simon and Kami flew to Anchorage for two days to inspect a house we had our hearts set on. Alas, it was not what it appeared on the internet photos (imagine that!) and we declined to buy it. Not to be deterred, Kami found another house to rent, in our budget, in our old neighborhood and in the school zone we wanted for Simon. This will give us more time in our eternal quest for the perfect place for the five of us to live. Our new landlord is willing to accept our cats not as pets, because those aren't allowed, but rather as members of our family. Since it is on a fairly busy street, they may lose a few lives while we live there.

Meanwhile, in Sitka, Jimmie oversaw the Moving Sale. We put up some furniture and assorted junk and it was all gone in less than two hours. Less stuff for us to pack, we figure. Now we can use the living room to stack boxes that are ready to go. This time we are numbering each box and writing a short description for each. With experience comes wisdom. Since it's our third move in three years, we have learned it helps to know where things are when you need them.

This last week Simon has been attending the Sitka Fine Arts Camp over the bridge at Mt. Edgecumbe High School. He is with middle-school kids from Sitka, Anchorage and other places, playing music with the orchestra and jazz band and learning about photography and animation. Kami and Jimmie hiked along the Harbor Mountain ridge trail. The weather was glorious and views were terrific.

Hiking and Packing

 

Last weekend we took a long hike to Indian River Falls. The trail is well developed, with occasional boardwalks across muddy sections. The rise was fairly gentle and at the end, the falls were magnificent. We enjoyed a cold pizza picnic while watching the rushing waters. After a bit, the sun came out for our weary return.

Our experience with packing has helped us to pace ourselves. As things go into boxes, we ask ourselves if we really want to keep them. We're surprised by how many pairs of shoes and boots we possess.

Kami and Simon leave Friday to go to Anchorage to attend the inspection of our new house and visit friends. Saturday, Jimmie will run a garage sale to try to unload the larger furniture pieces we no longer want. Throughout our neighborhood, various rhododendrae are in full bloom.

Summer Means Time to Pack

The season is upon us. The weather is cloudy, rainy, sunny and windy in turns each day. Can't really say we've worn shorts yet, but one day we almost considered it. With our decision to move comes about a million decisions about what to keep and what to ship. We moved here with about 4800 pounds of stuff in a 20 foot container. Now we get to ship up to 42,000 pounds(!) to Anchorage using a different shipper within the state. Makes it easy to decide what to keep, but we still want to be rid of things we've not used in Ellensburg or Sitka. What could they be?


One thing we'll miss is walking in Totem Park, just a few minutes away. The forest is dark and the occasional totem pole is both spooky and reassuring as we walk the several paths which meander from the river to the beach to the town. Walking has become our favorite form of exercise. Moving to Anchorage means we will use our car much more often.

The Last Day of School

This morning we walked to the corner and went our separate ways on this, our last day of school. It's great to walk to work and school under bright skies. Simon completed 7th grade and Jimmie finished his long-term substitute position. Kami continues with work next week, but we all get to enjoy the Memorial Day weekend.

This week we made an offer on a small downtown Anchorage house and began planning to put all our things (once again) into a container for shipment to the big town. We intend to really (for sure this time) get rid of all the things we can live without. We also need to book passage on the ferry from here to Haines to drive our car and two cats about 1200 miles through Canada and back into Alaska. What an adventure is in store for us. Simon wants to skip the trip and visit friends in Washington, so it may be just Kami and Jimmie, or maybe (probably) just Jimmie and the lovely felines, Blackberry and Luna for several days while Kami flies there on a jet in just two hours.


We are feeling the pressure from all the summer visitors and feel the need to vacate ourselves sooner than later. Meanwhile we have lots to plan and do.

ReMoving to Anchorage

After several months enjoying the splendor of this beautiful island in Southeast Alaska, we have come to the conclusion it is not the place for us. There seem to be more reasons to leave than stay. We've decided that Anchorage, for some odd reason, is truly our home. We will be relocating ourselves yet again, this time to our former home town of Anchorage, Alaska. Follow us as we voyage across seas and sands and skies to our new, and old, home in SouthCentral Alaska.

Jimmie, Kami and Simon