thoughts..

August 23, 2014
I have been really terrible about keeping up with this this summer. It really has been a whirlwind contract, even though I was here for three months, it went by so quickly.
We didn’t really do much special my last week, aside from my buying a really nice pendant for myself in Juneau. Skagway was a lazy day full of browsing around stores and sitting in the sun. I worked the afternoon shift in Ketchikan, which gave me no time at all to get off.



Having spent a summer in Alaska, I guess I can see how other youth staff can get tired of it and not want to spend a second more there than they have to. Yes, it’s rainy a lot, and cold (definitely a major negative, especially for me), and it’s repetitive. But, there is just something about it. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just because it’s me, and I use my imagination for things to do while out and about (how many people find a playground a swing for half an hour just because it’s sunny?), and because I see the beauty in God’s creation regardless of the weather. I am absolutely pleased that I was given the opportunity to spend this summer here. I needed that somewhat, away from the flurry of ports and big cities in Europe, and the overcrowded towns in the Caribbean. It really did allow me to connect more with Creation and my Creator, because, despite all my protests, I had been feeling like I was starting to take it all for granted.

I have met some amazing people this contract, a lot of people that have helped me in some way or another. Some I wish I had been able to get to know better for longer, and others I admit, I was okay with knowing as little as I did. Some taught me what I want to improve on in myself, others showed me exactly what I don’t want to be like and why. It’s made me realize that I am a combination of the people I’ve known and the places I’ve been. Everything up to now has influenced my life in some way or another, positive or negative. And I am so very thankful for that.

As frustrating as my job is at times: being away from family (including pets), the politics of living with the people you work with, the sometimes (in my mind) unnecessary regulations we have to abide by on the ship, the short-lived friendships, the annoyances of embarking/disembarking/hotel limbo. I really do love it. I may complain, I may rant, I may talk sometimes like it isn’t worth it; but in the end, I really do love it, and sometimes just need time to sit back and think over what makes it worth it. Sometimes it just takes one person to question me for me to realize that I’m being stupid and negative.

Here I kindly ask, if you can tell I’m in a frustrated mood (I was earlier this morning, which is why I’m thinking about it so much right now), let me rant for a short time to get it out of my system, then, please, STOP me! Otherwise, I’ll just talk myself into getting more upset, and I regret wasting all that energy later. I don’t like it.


Anyway, I really am blessed with the people in my life to help me stay collected, calm, and generally me. Aside from my frustrations this morning, in the past week, I have felt more blessed than I have in a while (part of why I made the big purchase I did in Juneau). I found a job that is absolutely perfect for me and that I love, I get to travel the world for free, I get to meet some amazing people from all over the world, I have opportunities to do things that some other people would never consider or never have a chance to do. I have the best family anyone could ask for, they’re supportive in my choices, they’re encouraging to me on those internally rainy days, they’re there for me whatever happens, they are not resentful when I (unintentionally) ignore them for days at a time. They take care of me when I’m home, take care of stuff for me when I’m not home, make sure I keep on top of stuff when I am and when I’m not at home, pick me up from and take me to the airport at all times of the day, never consciously ignore my calls no matter the time of night when I forget the time difference. They record TV shows for me while I’m gone, send me presents to open on Christmas even after we celebrated before I went away, they are always there when I finally land after a long day(s) of flying after months at sea, and understand when all I want to do is hug them, then crash into bed. They look out for each other so I don’t have to worry (too much) about them while I am gone, and keep me updated on almost everything that happens back home.

I can not say just how much they mean to me.

I have the greatest friends as well, whether it be ship friends, college friends, or just old friends. There are some that I can tell absolutely anything do, my most random thoughts, and know that they will not judge me. Others I can go for months without responding to, but when we do talk again, it’s like no time as passed. Some know exactly what questions to ask about my life, while others are just content to let me talk myself out. They keep me down-to-earth, level-headed, and hold me accountable when it’s necessary.
I just wanted to let everyone know that I am making a new goal, a conscious decision to not take the places and people in my life for granted, to thank God every day for the new and old people and experiences I encounter at every point in my life.

I think it may be time for me to start a new blog. I need a new focus, not just my daily life (which, to me can sometimes get so repetitive, even in new ports and countries and all that).

lots at once

August 15, 2014
It has been busy here in Alaska the past week or two. Marti came on board, so most of my free time last week was spent hanging out, catching up with her, and showing her around the ship and ports and such.
Last week:
Juneau was a tender port, plus Marti had immigration and drill to go through, so we didn’t get off until later in the afternoon. We did a bit of shopping, got a crepe and hung out in the Viking using the internet until I had to get back for movie night in the Loft. The teens and I ended up playing Apples to Apples and Monopoly (which is their favorite game this week) before watching our movie. They’re a good group of teens, the ones that show up at least which has only been maybe a max of 7 at a time (out of the 90 or so on board). Marti, Lindsey, Randall (Lindsey’s boyfriend) and I decided a few nights ago to watch Land Before Time in one of our rooms after work tonight, so we got out food and stuff, and somehow we managed not to fall asleep through it (it helps that it’s only about an hour long!).
Skagway, Marti worked the morning shift, and I slept in and hung around until she was off duty. We’d discussed the day before going hiking if the weather was nice, and it looked sunny and beautiful out, so we decided to go on one of the longer hikes! I had the trail maps, so we set out, equipped with my camera, some water bottles, and some snacks. It was the perfect day for a hike, warm enough I could wear my sandals, but cool enough that we didn’t get too hot as we were climbing. The maps said it was a 14 mile total hike, we managed to do it in less than 4 hours, including frequent picture stops. The hike was Icy Lake and Upper Reid Falls; I’d been to Lower Reid falls a few weeks ago, with Abrie and that was much less of a hike, for a much prettier waterfall. The lake was beautiful, glacier water, that part was definitely worth the hike at least.
Ketchikan was rainy and cold. I had the morning shift, Marti slept in and waited for me. We got off the ship together, wandered around town and through Creek Street, then around the shops. Not too exciting of a day considering the rain, but we ended up just using the internet in the OB

Vancouver, Marti and I went out for a bit in Vancouver, to the Olympic Cauldron, then to get some internet for a bit before she had to get back for Open House.
Marti and I both had the day off in Juneau this week, she actually had the night off as well. I really wanted to do something other than just stay in town, so we went up to one of the booths selling tours, discussed a whale-watching one (too expensive for Marti at the moment), and ended up deciding to go on a short city bus tour to the Mendenhall Glacier. It got us out of the rain, we learned a bit about Juneau, and I finally got to see this glacier. We had an hour at the glacier site, and would’ve liked to ‘hike’ (the glacier’s receded from this land, so it’s very very flat) to the falls closer to the glacier, but the trail was closed due to flooding. Maybe another summer, the falls looked beautiful from afar, and they’re a lot closer to that giant glacier, plus it would be a short trip to and from and including plenty of pictures since it’s only a mile! Anyway, we enjoyed our time there, and the bad weather stopped for a bit, so we had a dry time there after the rainy bus ride. It was good to get away and do something other than sit in the Viking doing stuff on the internet (or pretending to do stuff on the internet because the people you hang out with were online and not really talking). We had some time before I had to be at work after all that, so we got crepes for dinner and looked through pictures for a bit. Overall, it was a very relaxing day.
I had the morning Skagway shift. I was surprised that so many kids showed up, and so early in the morning, and on such a beautiful looking day outside. But, a good many of them got picked up by lunchtime at least, so they did see some of the pretty day. I went outside and sat on one of my rocks by the train tracks to talk on the phone for a while, then got Marti once she was off work, and we got ice cream, and watched the three seals swimming around beside where we were docked. They were cute, looked like relatively baby ones being so small.

random thoughts (a bit late I know)

August 2, 2014
I just realized…. I only have three weeks left. Wow, this feels like it has been such a short contract, 3 months, but I guess after the total length of time I was on the Nieuw A, everything is going to seem short. And the realization that I only have a short time left (3 times in each port!), made me think about all the plans I had at the start of this contract, and expectations. Let’s just say this contract is nothing like I thought or planned it to be. Pensive day. That long long list of excursions I want to do might just have to keep until next time though (except maybe a few…), because………. (drumroll)……………. my friend Marti is on board working with me! She worked at Bonclarken with me a few summers and attends Erskine.

So, right now it’s like three aspects of my life are merging! It’s a bit confusing because there’s so much she needs to learn about the job and living on a ship, but then I want to catch up with her about the goings-on at Erskine, and reminisce about camp. It’s also a completely different kind of merging from when my family has come onboard as guests. As guest, I have to have special permission to hang out with them, and eat meals with them, and I also have my usual job and the stresses involved there to deal with, and I still want some time to hang out with my crew friends. I’ve mentioned before, it’s wonderful having family on board, but exhausting. But Marti is working as youth staff, and she’s my roommate! Eating together is not a problem, since we’re nearly on the same schedule (I’m on teens, and she’s with the kids, but I always make an effort to eat early for lunch and dinner so that I can see people anyway). She’s getting a taste of my current life, which is thoroughly amazing. I’ll admit, sometimes when I get back home, it’s somewhat difficult to relate to my old friends. Either they listen with disinterest when I want to tell about my adventures and don’t ask questions, which kills my desire to tell them anything else, or they make no time to talk to me during the short amount of time I’m on vacation. It just gets harder for me to try every time. Of course, that’s not everybody, but I am glad that Marti will understand some of my life nowadays, and we can talk about it.

busy busy busy

July 30, 2014
I know, it’s been ages since I last updated. My parents were here last week, which definitely kept me busy: work, family time, work, oh yeah I should eat, work, family time, sleep somewhere in there, friends I should hang out with them some too, work, excursion, dinner, etc, etc. My bottom bunk (since I don’t currently have a roommate) was a giant jumbled pile of clothes since I would have 2 minutes to change every time I ran to my room: work clothes, smart casual, ashore clothes, OB clothes, formalwear, pajamas, and more uniforms.

As stressful and busy as it is working with family on board, I really did enjoy it! Definitely wouldn’t like it every week, but it’s nice every once in a while.

Things have settled down(ish) now, with only one month left for me here. It’s gone by so quickly! I haven’t been able to do much of anything on my list! Hardly any hikes, and very few excursions; the next few weeks I feel are going to be very full for me trying to get stuff done!

I understand how some people could get really tired of Alaska, mainly because of the rain, definitely having a lot of rain gets you down and prevents a lot of adventures, but still, there’s just SO MUCH to possibly do when it IS sunny, that I doubt I’ll complain about coming back for a full summer contract another year (maybe not next year… I want to make it to the Baltic), maybe I’ll be able to get stuff done (and not have to work most Skagways, which is the best place to do hikes, but you need a bit of time for that, which I haven’t had, nor have I had a hiking buddy).
Anyway, this week has been my week of rest; every 7 weeks should be one of rest, right? Just like every 7 days; time to reflect, relax and appreciate everything God has given. I’m long overdue for that; I don’t think I’ve really stopped GO-ing since my vacation after the Nieuw A. It’s nice, I guess perfect timing seeing as it’s been raining the last two ports. I only got off ship in Juneau to run some errands (I needed goldfish, a Dr. Pepper, and a crepe; the essentials in life, haha), and that only took an hour. And with General Drill and Port day in Skagway, I didn’t even try to get off there. I have gotten a good bit of work stuff done. I helped Christine number and organize the programs (I kind of miss doing that, Erskine’s FAO helped me get really good at that kind of thing, and in my opinion it’s therapeutic work, simple, easy and repetitive, which sometimes I need to get my mind off all the craziness that’s going on outside. I decorated lots of letters for our kids this week as well! All my tweens, and most of the kids ones are complete, except for the actual letter-writing part; but they’re pretty! That’s the most important thing, right? Haha, it was good for me :)

Jenn is back after her short fill-in on the flagship, and we found out yesterday that Jordan got promoted to Show Host, so he’ll be leaving us in Vancouver. It seems this summer is definitely the summer of Club HAL switch-arounds, especially on this ship. I’ve never really seen it this bad with transfers and the like. Of course, it’s my first time in Alaska so it might be like this every year, and I’ve just missed it all by being in New England/Canada and the Med. So much for the idea at the beginning of the contract that we’d have a stable group in Club HAL for the entire summer… It’s almost over anyway, so I’m just going with it...

lunch date and Lumberjack show

July 17, 2014
I had the morning port day shift. It wasn’t too bad, a few of the kids came for Just Dance time before we arrived in port, then got picked up to go ashore. One stayed and we played Lego Star Wars for the next hour. Kayleigh and I had a lunch date planned, since we sadly haven’t gotten to see much of each other in the month and a half I’ve been back, so we met at the gangway once we both got off work and changed. It was another beautiful day out!

We met up with Alana, Christine and Curtis in my usual grassy spot and they came with us to lunch. At the restaurant, we’d ordered already when Jessica and Richard, photogs, came in, and of course we invited them to join us as well. Our table was really full and we had to pull up another chair for when Bonnie finally joined us as well! It was fun, surprisingly not everyone spent the whole time on their phones, so we got to chat and hang out, just enjoying being off the ship with friends (I was solar-powered happy, so I was jumping around a lot). It was nice. Kayleigh had to get back to work, so I walked most of the way with her, then did some shopping of my own since I’d made plans with Alana to attend the lumberjack show at 3.

I found a store that had a lot of cool things, and ended up buying some earrings (more than likely I will go back for another of the 5 pairs I was looking at as well, one pair was made of blue sea glass!). Alana and I found each other and got into the show with pretty decent seats. It was another fun hanging out time. We cheered on our team-which ended up winning- and took a lot of pictures and chatted.

We’re not the greatest friends, more like close acquaintances, but we’re closer now, and it’s good to know that if I run into her and neither of us have plans, we can do anything fun together and have a good time, without it being awkward.

waterfall in Skagway

July 15, 2014
I had today off until 8! That was really nice :) I slept in, went off the ship with Jordan before his tour with his friend, and hung out on my own for a bit, came back on the ship for a late lunch and to keep Lindsey company for the last little bit of her port day. Abrie, the techspert and I had made plans if it was nice to head out on our own photography expedition, so after his 3:30 class, we got our stuff and walked to the Gold Rush Cemetery and Lower Reid Falls just outside of town.

It was really fun actually. We had good timing because as we were walking along by the railroad tracks, all the train tours were returning, so we got some interesting pictures of the trains, and the tracks, and flowers. It was a bit longer of a walk than I was expecting, but that was probably because we stopped so often for photos. The weather was beautiful (I was in sandals!), so it was the perfect day for it.

It cooled off immensely when we arrived at the cemetery, under the cover of trees and right at the bottom of the mountain, where the wind was constantly blowing. I’m not that superstitious, but it would be really easy to believe that ghosts were wandering around the cemetery. The cool breeze, the sound of the wind through the leaves, the creaking of trees as they bent with the wind, the graves over a hundred years old…

We followed the path through the cemetery up to the waterfall. It was much colder there, a valley with no sunlight finding it’s way down into it, and of course the rushing water. We got a bit adventurous and climbed around with our cameras trying to get some interesting, atypical shots. It was fun, even if I did get muddy and slide around a few times. Nothing happened to the camera at least, jeans can be washed, but my camera is much more precious and not so easily fixed if anything happens! It was fun. It was getting late, and closer to all aboard time, so we made our way back to the ship, and I had a little bit of time to go through my pictures before I had to leave my hall before they started stripping and waxing the floor (an hour before I had to be at work :( I went instead and hung out with the kids and tweens to kill time since I couldn’t be in my room).

another rainy juneau

July 14, 2014: Juneau
I didn’t get off the ship in Vancouver, mainly because I’d been up somewhat late last night, but also I just wanted to sleep in and had Open House at 12. It would’ve been a great day to go out, but oh well. Instead, Christine and I worked Open House; we managed to watch the entire movie Planes before anyone showed up to look around and register. I’ve learned though, that the number of people that show up on the first day is absolutely no indication (at least here) of the typical numbers for the week. Only a few showed up for registration and first night activities, but a lot came the next morning for the sea day.

I’m on teens this week, there aren’t too many showing up but they’re all pretty willing willing to play whatever game I suggest; so we’ve been playing a lot of Skip-Bo, Phase 10, and MarioKart.

I worked port day today, had two kids for half an hour each, so most of the afternoon I had to myself. Since we’re writing letters to the kids, I figured I’d help out and decorate the names at the top for Jordan, since he has over 30 regulars. I put a lot more effort into that then I should probably, Christine only spends about 2 minutes per name, but I spend a minimum of 5, probably because I use a lot of colors, and write in bubble letters to fill in somehow. They look really nice though. :)

After port day, I met up with Jordan and Lindsey and the three of us got off the ship together, Jordan left us for a bit to meet up with a friend who’s on board for the week, while Lindsey and I ran some errands and hung out, which we haven’t had much of a chance to do lately and we’ve both missed it. We met up with Jordan at the Viking and pretty much hung out with crew for a while until it was time to make our way to the crepe place and back to the ship for work. I didn’t have much to do, so I hung out with the tweens and kids in the Screening Room and watched a bit of Mr. Peabody and Sherman before heading up to the Loft. My teens were rather happy it was movie night, they were all pretty tired from the day. They left not long after we finished the first movie, around 10:30. That seems to be typical of this group, which would be great if I didn’t have to stay in the Loft and close sometime after 11:30. Sitting there for an hour after everyone leaves gets a bit boring, and a bit creepy as well if we’re rocking a good amount, there’s creaks and the lights swing around. It is relaxing though, just hanging out there on my own, reading usually.