Day 21 - Anchorage AK - 5 July
Quote of the Day: From Zander last night as we stepped out of the airport. “Are we going HOME now?” I thought he meant TX. I explained that we would be in AK for a week and then would fly back to WA and drive for a few days and be home. He listened patiently and then said, “NOT THAT HOUSE - the BIG one with the river (creek) and the play station games (game room).” Sad….we’d not realized how much he missed nor remembered Alaska.
Alaska is magical! Everywhere I look there are trees, mountains, wildlife. It refreshes my soul in a way that is difficult to explain. I have come to love the people and town that we live in in W TX; but my spirit soaks up the natural awe and wonder of AK. Even doing the most mundane things here is refreshing. Shoot even when noticing the Hell’s Angel’s club house outside your rental you have to also notice the trees, mountains and flowers…. ::snort:: Maybe this is why I got so overcommitted when we lived here, it was just rejuvenating to live here. ::snort::
We did business this a.m. It was raining - good time to run those errands. Josiah and I renewed our driver’s licenses. Mike tried to but has to go back tomorrow. We think his new TX address created a problem with his CDL license (new laws). He'll probably lose the CDL until he retires from the USAF. Mike also registered the Camry. Then we went to the PFD office. They said that Stacia can be signed up as an Alaskan - we’ll just need to send them her birth certificate. We’ve hesitated to mail those - but I guess we will. I don’t have it yet. They said when she turns 18 she can file and get the PFD’s for the years that we haven’t filed for her.
We ran up to the base. No need for car passes on THIS base either…..still laughing about how different bases are interpreting the General’s instructions. After getting dinner at BK - a place we used to eat 3 or 4 times a week - we ran over to Matt and Summer’s house and barged in on them. I don’t post photos of minors without the agreement of parents - so no photos. BUT the fellowship was sweet. They are getting ready to move so we barely caught them. We missed Kevin and Carleen and Randy and Joyce by ONE DAY! ::snort::
After we left Matt and Summer’s we headed to the BX. Mike and the boys wanted to buy fishing tags. I let the younger set play in the play area and I updated the blog. THEN we decided to go ahead and eat dinner…..of course we hadn’t realized it was 9:00 p.m. ::snort:: They weren’t too happy to fill our order. I noted Stacia was getting cranky and was shocked when I checked my watch. I need to remember the summer light thing up here. ::snort:: We got home and Mike and the boys asked if we’d mind if they headed to Ship Creek. Off they went. I’m charging the cell phone so I can call more friends in the a.m. I was able to connect here at the apartment and so got our checking balance so that I can pay bills. I am also doing laundry daily….which is better than waiting every 3 days. ::snort::
Well - just like “that” the connection disappeared again….guess I’ll post this tomorrow. ::snort::
12 comments:
wow - your vacation is making me exhausted!
I had a lot of catch up to do, since you took your vacation somewhere around the same time as I did, but *I* didn't have internet access, lol!
The whole "sticker" thing with cars is like that no matter what branch of service, I guess. We were made to removed AND return our stickers (stuck to a piece of paper, in a bazillion little pieces) at one post, but the other didn't care. We still had our stickers on when we shipped our van overseas (they didn't make us remove them) and they stayed right there the whole year we were in Germany. When we got back to the states, we had easy access to the post since we still had our "old" stickers.
Can't wait to read/see more on your trip!
Sis:
What a sweet boy....Alexander has a keen memory. Hope he has a great time at his HOME in Alaska.
l/p
I'm so glad you're able to post again ~ I was really missin' my daily fix of De'Etta! Oh, how my stomach clenched in jealousy (not in a bad way, I'm just wishing I was there, too!) over the mundane errands like getting your driver's licenses renewed and getting Josiah's car registered in Alaska. I truly do miss living there. You're still doing the PFD thing huh? We decided not to continue, since we don't know for sure we'll be able to move up there again. That's our desire, but there aren't as many jobs there for retired C-130 pilots are there are in Arkansas. LOL We'll just have to wait and see. If we do move back up there, how would you feel about us living down the block from you? ;)
Love the pics ~ hope everyone's feeling better soon. I'm praying for you and the fam.
Love,
T.
De'Etta,
Thank you so much for the visit. It was a wonderful surprise. How funny that the guys headed out fishing that quickly with the gear! You are welcome to post pics of the kids together (just make sure I'm not showing in my grungy clean the house clothes!)
Love,
Summer
Trish
Well we're sort of doing the PFD. The older 3 have NOT gotten it because they aren't sure they will be back. We've not gotten it for Stacia but since Mike had to turn in some paper they sent for himself he asked about her status. Since she is born to AK residents she can claim all years when she is 18 if she choses to be an AK resident and get all back pay.....
NOW - WE DO PLAN TO RETIRE HERE....in fact, we are looking at property. The problem is that we aren't quite sure if God will have us do something ministry wise up here when we retire..or simply retire and so it's tough to know if we look in the boonies or where there are people. LOL
Summer.....I'll go ahead and post kid pictures tomorrow....I don't think I took ANY of us adults. LOL
Sounds like Alaska really is your home in your hearts, even Zander. Hope your time there is wonderful.
Too bad about the CDL... bummmer.... I would sure hate for him to have to take all of those tests again if ever wanted it for driving bus, truck, etc. I just added the bus and pass endoresements to my CLD in December.
Cindy - yeah - it is a bummer. Mike has all the tags for bus, big semis etc. The problem is that now you have to list which state you are driving in. If he says that he is going to drive interstate he loses his AK CDL. He said he wasn't....which meant that the only place he could drive would be AK. BUT when he gave them our TX address - they were stumped. He went back yesterday for his licencse and they still don't know what to do. He'll go back Monday. He suspects that since he doesn't live in AK he will lose the CDL....which isn't terrible right NOW since he isn't driving...and really....he still has his MILITARY CDL which lets him drive the buses that he would be driving. LOL
Linda - what a hoot!
Maybe (hopefully) they'll come up with some creative way for him to get to keep the CDL!
Sounds like a busy, wonderful time. Sad to miss friends by one day. Glad you're getting caught up on laundry. Ha!
Post a Comment