Yeah, you say, -40 F? That's not that bad. Well, it's actually been colder than -40, but my vehicle's thermometer doesn't go any farther. It stops there. But really, who can tell the difference between -40 and -50?
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Eyelash icicle, frozen nostril cold
Yeah, you say, -40 F? That's not that bad. Well, it's actually been colder than -40, but my vehicle's thermometer doesn't go any farther. It stops there. But really, who can tell the difference between -40 and -50?
Home for the holidays... just barely.
It was the Sunday before Christmas. My flight to Anchorage was late and then almost diverted to Kenai due to ice fog. I was mildly concerned about the prospect of being stuck in Kenai and missing my flight to Seattle.
The ice fog cleared, I got to Anchorage, but my flight to Seattle was canceled anyway. SeaTac was out of de-icer. Or so I heard.
Lucky for me, I have friends in Anchorage. I couldn't get on a flight until 0200 Christmas morning. I still had to come back on the 27th. $500 for a three day trip? Better than not spending Christmas with my family. Even if my friends are really nice.
My friends took me to their health club a couple times. I went for a swim because I just don't get to do that very often anymore. I miss swimming. I swam 30 laps and then stopped to ask someone how many laps were in a half mile. I figured I'd done that, at least. When he told me there were 44 laps in a mile, I figured it wasn't that much more, so I might as well do it. It only took me 45 minutes, even with that break at lap 30. Swimming is such a nice workout, and it's good to switch things up. I get tired of doing the same three or four miles on the elliptical.
My friends also dragged me along to the food bank where I handed out boxes of stuffing, canned veggies, turkeys, rolls, ice cream, gravy, and potatoes. That was fun. It was really nice to see how many volunteers were there. I wish the whole Christmas spirit thing could last all year.
On Christmas Eve I went with my friends to their Lutheran church. It was very nice and everybody really SANG (which is more than I can say for some Mormon congregations). I enjoyed that.
I got to Seattle on Christmas morning after being up all night. That's why my Mama has embarrassing pictures of me sleeping in the living room.
I got to see family, eat my Mama's wonderful food, relax by the fire, read, and watch some movies (I think I watched 3 movies, which is what I normally watch in 3 months). A mere three days later I was back on the plane and headed home. Everyone in Seattle may be whining because of their 15 inches of snow... but up here, it's -50 F. AND we've got lots of snow.
The ice fog cleared, I got to Anchorage, but my flight to Seattle was canceled anyway. SeaTac was out of de-icer. Or so I heard.
Lucky for me, I have friends in Anchorage. I couldn't get on a flight until 0200 Christmas morning. I still had to come back on the 27th. $500 for a three day trip? Better than not spending Christmas with my family. Even if my friends are really nice.
My friends took me to their health club a couple times. I went for a swim because I just don't get to do that very often anymore. I miss swimming. I swam 30 laps and then stopped to ask someone how many laps were in a half mile. I figured I'd done that, at least. When he told me there were 44 laps in a mile, I figured it wasn't that much more, so I might as well do it. It only took me 45 minutes, even with that break at lap 30. Swimming is such a nice workout, and it's good to switch things up. I get tired of doing the same three or four miles on the elliptical.
My friends also dragged me along to the food bank where I handed out boxes of stuffing, canned veggies, turkeys, rolls, ice cream, gravy, and potatoes. That was fun. It was really nice to see how many volunteers were there. I wish the whole Christmas spirit thing could last all year.
On Christmas Eve I went with my friends to their Lutheran church. It was very nice and everybody really SANG (which is more than I can say for some Mormon congregations). I enjoyed that.
I got to Seattle on Christmas morning after being up all night. That's why my Mama has embarrassing pictures of me sleeping in the living room.
I got to see family, eat my Mama's wonderful food, relax by the fire, read, and watch some movies (I think I watched 3 movies, which is what I normally watch in 3 months). A mere three days later I was back on the plane and headed home. Everyone in Seattle may be whining because of their 15 inches of snow... but up here, it's -50 F. AND we've got lots of snow.
It could be any coastal Alaska town
The weekend before Christmas I flew out to my old stomping grounds for a wedding. My ex-roommate was getting married. I hadn't seen her in years... since 2002. I hadn't been back, but her wedding was a good reason to go.
I flew because I didn't think I could stomach the 10 hour drive. The $260 flight was worth every penny. It's amazing that there is still no security whatsoever on those little flights.
Anyhow, back to the wedding. I got to town in the morning (with two flights a day there's not a lot of options), but the hotel was nice enough to let me check in early. So I took a nap, worked out, and walked around town. It hasn't changed much and I remembered my way around even though it had been 6 years.
The small boat harbor.
The wedding was at 1700 hours. I saw all kinds of old friends. Suzie, my former dispatcher (who always knew the latest gossip) hadn't changed. She filled me in on the earthquake style changes at the PD. Things have really gone downhill, according to her. She was my favorite dispatcher.
I saw a bunch of guys from the FD (since my old roommate worked there for years). Not much has changed; a few retirements, a couple new faces.
The wedding was really quick and the food at the reception was great. Charis was happy to see me and I was glad I was able to go.
The LDS church.
Sunday I didn't leave until the evening flight so I bundled up and walked to church. People were really surprised to see me, after all this time. In Sunday school we talked about being more friendly to each other at church. I thought they'd done pretty well since I was set upon after sacrament meeting by friendly hand-shakers. But I realized I can improve in my own little church. I should be friendlier and more outgoing.
Anyway, because of that lesson, I felt I had to at least pretend to be nice to my ex-boyfriend when I ran into him. He was the one who broke up with me because I was going off to the police academy and he wanted someone to drive his bus and do his accounting for his river rafting business. I tried. I shook his hand. Said "Hi." Luckily, the encounter was over quickly.
Another bit of luck was my friend from the FD (and the former branch president) invited me to his house for dinner. His kids were home for the holidays, so it was a big family meal. I remember when his daughter worked at the Subway. She's in college now. I was more than happy to spend the rest of the afternoon with them instead of sitting around in the hotel lobby.
Unfortunately, the PD Chief (who was Lt. when I was there) wasn't at church. He was on his way back from some kind of training in Las Vegas. I wanted to thank him for giving me a good reference and to tell him I got the job here. This means I'll have to make another trip to see him and to go fishing. I think I'll wait for summer.
It really is a pretty little town if you don't know about all the crap that goes on.
I flew because I didn't think I could stomach the 10 hour drive. The $260 flight was worth every penny. It's amazing that there is still no security whatsoever on those little flights.
Anyhow, back to the wedding. I got to town in the morning (with two flights a day there's not a lot of options), but the hotel was nice enough to let me check in early. So I took a nap, worked out, and walked around town. It hasn't changed much and I remembered my way around even though it had been 6 years.
The small boat harbor.
The wedding was at 1700 hours. I saw all kinds of old friends. Suzie, my former dispatcher (who always knew the latest gossip) hadn't changed. She filled me in on the earthquake style changes at the PD. Things have really gone downhill, according to her. She was my favorite dispatcher.
I saw a bunch of guys from the FD (since my old roommate worked there for years). Not much has changed; a few retirements, a couple new faces.
The wedding was really quick and the food at the reception was great. Charis was happy to see me and I was glad I was able to go.
The LDS church. Sunday I didn't leave until the evening flight so I bundled up and walked to church. People were really surprised to see me, after all this time. In Sunday school we talked about being more friendly to each other at church. I thought they'd done pretty well since I was set upon after sacrament meeting by friendly hand-shakers. But I realized I can improve in my own little church. I should be friendlier and more outgoing.
Anyway, because of that lesson, I felt I had to at least pretend to be nice to my ex-boyfriend when I ran into him. He was the one who broke up with me because I was going off to the police academy and he wanted someone to drive his bus and do his accounting for his river rafting business. I tried. I shook his hand. Said "Hi." Luckily, the encounter was over quickly.
Another bit of luck was my friend from the FD (and the former branch president) invited me to his house for dinner. His kids were home for the holidays, so it was a big family meal. I remember when his daughter worked at the Subway. She's in college now. I was more than happy to spend the rest of the afternoon with them instead of sitting around in the hotel lobby.
Unfortunately, the PD Chief (who was Lt. when I was there) wasn't at church. He was on his way back from some kind of training in Las Vegas. I wanted to thank him for giving me a good reference and to tell him I got the job here. This means I'll have to make another trip to see him and to go fishing. I think I'll wait for summer.
It really is a pretty little town if you don't know about all the crap that goes on. Sunday, December 14, 2008
EMT 2
Several years ago, I got certified as an EMT 2. It's a state certification that allows me to intubate, give D50W, narcan, IOs and IVs.
My first successful IV was on Me, who was unfortunate enough to be visiting while I was taking the class. I was so excited to get the catheter in the vein that I forgot to press on the vein to keep the blood from gushing out. His blood got all over the Chucks pad, the floor, and his arm.
I'm still really good at making a huge mess.
After I got my certification the first time, I left the state. I was doing the seasonal Ranger thing and I expected to be back in time for winter.
My plan was derailed when I got my permanent job in Boston. So here I am, a few years later, back in Alaska. My EMT 2 expired in 2007. But the fire station 45 minutes down the highway was putting on an EMT 2 class. And my boss even let me go on work time. I didn't have to take any time off, despite the fact that I can't use my EMT 2 skills in the park. Even if I take the National Registry EMT Intermediate test. But whatever, he still let me do it, which was really cool.
To become certified, I needed to get 10 successful IVs. At the fire station where I volunteer, all kinds of guys with big, ropey veins volunteered to have me stick needles in them. A lady from church drove all the way down to get stuck during class. She had great veins. I couldn't see them, so I had to do it by feel. The challenge was really neat. I even convinced the cute trooper to stop by. He said he would, but then he got stuck doing some court security gig for a tiny courthouse having a big trail. He lucked out.
Now there's just the big day of testing tomorrow. I should be studying, but my brain is full. There's a written test and then an afternoon of practical stations. Should be fun... when it's over.
My first successful IV was on Me, who was unfortunate enough to be visiting while I was taking the class. I was so excited to get the catheter in the vein that I forgot to press on the vein to keep the blood from gushing out. His blood got all over the Chucks pad, the floor, and his arm.
I'm still really good at making a huge mess.
After I got my certification the first time, I left the state. I was doing the seasonal Ranger thing and I expected to be back in time for winter.
My plan was derailed when I got my permanent job in Boston. So here I am, a few years later, back in Alaska. My EMT 2 expired in 2007. But the fire station 45 minutes down the highway was putting on an EMT 2 class. And my boss even let me go on work time. I didn't have to take any time off, despite the fact that I can't use my EMT 2 skills in the park. Even if I take the National Registry EMT Intermediate test. But whatever, he still let me do it, which was really cool.
To become certified, I needed to get 10 successful IVs. At the fire station where I volunteer, all kinds of guys with big, ropey veins volunteered to have me stick needles in them. A lady from church drove all the way down to get stuck during class. She had great veins. I couldn't see them, so I had to do it by feel. The challenge was really neat. I even convinced the cute trooper to stop by. He said he would, but then he got stuck doing some court security gig for a tiny courthouse having a big trail. He lucked out.
Now there's just the big day of testing tomorrow. I should be studying, but my brain is full. There's a written test and then an afternoon of practical stations. Should be fun... when it's over.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Caylee Anthony
The little 3 year old from my NCMEC ad has been found dead. It's most likely her, anyway.
Here's the article.
Very sad. Whenever their faces flash across that ad I hope that it's a custodial abduction, not a homicide. That poor kid.
Here's the article.
Very sad. Whenever their faces flash across that ad I hope that it's a custodial abduction, not a homicide. That poor kid.
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