I meant to write during Thanksgiving Break, but other things got in the way.
The days since my last post have alternated between stressful whirlwind and slow, painful trudge, with a few highlights along the way.
Thanksgiving was a nice diversion, a chance for the staff to come together and share a delicious meal. It was also a refreshing break from the kids, the responsibilities of teaching and our ever-present homesickness.
This is not the first time I've ever moved away from my friends, family and everything I know. It's not even the second. Mike and I have both had extensive experience in dropping everything we know. We figured this would be helpful on our new adventure and it has been, to a point. We are not miserable here, not at all, but we are discovering a deep love and appreciation for the people and places we left behind. It is curious, because beyond all of the specific things I miss in Seattle, I also miss the city itself. A place can be more than the sum of its parts this sum can have character all its own. The city has moods, as if the collective energy of our individual lives contribute to an almost tangible whole. If you live in Seattle and need an example, think about the first sunny day in May after a relentless, rainy winter. The joy in the air is as warm and palpable as the sunshine on your pale, Vitamin-D deprived skin.Maybe those connections and feelings come only with time, or maybe small villages don't have enough humanity per square inch to make them quite as tangible. Either way, I miss being a part of Seattle's collective consciousness.
In other news, the sea has fully frozen over and is safe to walk/ ATV/ Snowmobile on. It's quite an experience to walk out onto an ocean that was liquid just a month or two ago. It is also hauntingly beautiful out there, like a white and blue desert.
It is also really damn cold out. Most days hover around single digits and negative single digits, but some days get down to -20 to -30. Our pipes have frozen twice, once on Thanksgiving day (good thing I'd already done my cooking) and last weekend. Not having running water SUCKS. Thankfully, we have excellent and hardworking maintenance guys who fixed it reasonably quickly.
Here are some pictures of our backyard frozen waste:
These are from Thanksgiving, while there was still some liquid on the sea:
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| Last weekend, with the freeze complete. |
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| Mike is walking on water! |
On an unrelated note,
Mike has found a new hobby: he makes beautiful jewelry out of chainmaille rings.
He's quite good at it and has almost sold enough to cover the costs of his materials. Not a bad way to occupy your time. Plus, I get free custom jewelry, which is GREAT.
Other than that, our lives have been relatively uneventful. We go to work, we come home, we do it again the next day. We count the days until winter break.
I am beyond excited to go home.
Love you all and see some of you very, very soon.
