Roll 'Em!

Another day, more movies...is there something wrong with sitting in the dark for hours??

So-Where the Hell Will You Be Anyway??

Just thought I might give a little location information for those of you who have been asking-the little red dot is reasonably close to the future center of our narrative. It is about 400 miles west of Anchorage.

Film Fest

The fifth annual Traverse City Film Festival starts today, at least for me. Nine movies in the next four days. Michael Moore gets most of the infamy, but the volunteers do an amazing job of coordinating events, and the crowds are large and diverse. The only bad part is that it gets harder to get tickets every year. I guess that is a good thing overall. I'm curious to see what the movies will bring. I'll try to post here as much as possible.

For Those Of You Who Wonder...

http://www.ktuu.com/global/video/popup/pop_playerLaunch.asp?vt1=v&clipFormat=flv&clipId1=3864996&at1=News&h1=New program fast-tracks teachers to rural Alaska

And One More Thing...

Many, many thanks to all of the folks who staged and attended my going away party last Thursday night. It was delightful, and I love all of you. Please feel free to follow these further adventures as they progress...

A Deep Breath...

Time for a recap...I am continuing to prepare for Sunday's flight to Anchorage. I think that I have gotten all of my personal financial and bill-paying matters in line. My poor puppy dog had a seizure this morning, but my very cool vet has come through like a trooper and has provided me with some medication very quickly, so that I can treat him if it becomes necessary. It is possible that this is a one time event, but nothing is clear for the moment. Many thanks to Jana at Meyer Vet Clinic for all of her help, and Dr. Meyer is a prince. In other news, the bike shop is promising a new bike by the weekend, and we are getting ready to attend the Traverse City Film Festival starting tomorrow. Sunday is the day of Exodus to Anchorage and Points Beyond. Watch this space for further information.

Sunday Night

The reality of things is beginning to sink in as more people call or want to get together before I go. It's a good one for the most part, but I have been here for an awfully long time. Some partings are going to be difficult. Knowing that we'll be back at Christmas time makes a difference.

Yay!

Praxis II is done! Hooray!

Pant, pant...

Breathless and busy...Cadillac to Gaylord to Grand Rapids and back for going away party on Thursday...then the phone goes out and the dog needs to go to the vet and I need to study for the praxis II for tomorrow...and it's nearly midnight...and I have to catch up with posting or I'll get out of the habit and all of the people that I told about this silly thing last night will think that I've given up on the habit already and they'll be disappointed...and they'll stop reading it and they'll forget about me...and...and...and....oh, yeah, and my Pal Lindsay just got a job teaching in Hooper Bay and I'm really excited for her....and I think that the local paper is going to run an article on my bike accident so that more people will wear their helmets...and I can't wait to hear that my new bike is ready, and I need to finish Invisible Man (Ellison, not Wells) tonight.....and...(whew..)...

Heavens to Mergatroid!

Bicycle crash update-the insurance company for the driver that hit me is going to pay for a rebuild on my bicycle. The bike manufacturer has a crash discount, and the components of the bike other than the frame, the crankset, and the seat are intact. I hope to have it done and stored before I leave for Alaska. I am pretty excited! And I'm feeling quite a bit better...

Due to Popular Request...

A couple additional images from last night's fun. The GF wanted to know why she doesn't get included in any of this-I would think that she might want to avoid the negative consequences to her reputation by virtue of association with me.

Kids, it isn't just the tie...

This one is mostly for my AKT2 buddies...the original "magic tie" picture, and a few shots from a fundraiser that we attended last night for the local concert band at a very tasty local restaurant. Wine tasting (soon to be a thing of the past), various snacks (including chocolate espresso beans), and dinner at Chef Hermann's great tables. I do believe that a good time was had by all. I have a couple more days at work here, then it's off for the 5th annual Traverse City Film Festival. A little fun before the hard work of the fall and the winter, about which I am becoming more excited as the days wear on.

Okay, enough whining..

I was reading the past several entries and decided that I couldn't stand the negative tone, even the one where it was supposed to be a joke. I am feeling better, and do remember how fortunate that I am under the circumstances-everyone keeps reminding me. Everyone is right. Not everybody gets to bounce off a windshield and live to complain about it. Now for more ice packs, and the wine tasting this evening.

Keflex

Just a little infection...time for some antibiotics...bruised everywhere I have skin...boy, am I ever going to be more careful from now on...

So Much...

Time for the final frantic push to get out of here. Have to balance that with extra doctor's appointments related to last Thursday's car-bike encounter, Praxis testing, and the need to get everything done at once. Thank heavens that I'm the only one who has ever had to put up with this kind of thing before...more to say later when time permits.

Ouch. My Bike.

As if I needed any proof that bikes and cars don't mix...for reasons known to someone besides me, I decided to cross the road ahead of a very nice lady who was driving at the posted speed limit. Unfortunately, the speed limit turned out to be 55 m.p.h. You will not see any pictures of her caved-in windshield, or my bruises. Yes, bruises. That was it. Nothing broken, ruptured, fractured, compressed, mangled, or anything else of that sort. In fact, I was out of the E.R. in about three hours. The look on the face of the physician's assistant when he gave me this news after the tests was priceless.

Needless to say, the whole thing didn't turn out that well for my poor bicycle. Carbon fiber is supposed to be strong, too...something tells me that the bike frame and the windshield took up the brunt of the impact. Better that way. Oh, and by the way, my helmet was cracked. O.K., kids, here is your object lesson on that subject. I'm still here, and writing this about 48 hours after impact. Still sore, but still kickin'. Thanks to everyone who helped, and especially the Cherry Grove Township E.M.S.

Now I can show these pictures to my students and say: "So you think you're tough, eh???"

and now for a little background...

Napaskiak, for those who don't know and love it, is a village in Alaska about 400 miles west of Anchorage. The population is mostly Yup'ik Eskimo, and as of the last check that I know of, numbers a bit over 400. I have had the good fortune to travel there three times already, and I like the place. It will be a big change from life in the garden spot of Northern Lower Michigan, but I am looking forward to it.

I am a guinea pig of sorts. I am a member of a new alternative certification program designed to place teachers in what folks in Alaska call the "Bush." I have had the privilege to be part of the first group of teachers certified under this program. I hope that my fellows will start blogs of their own, so that we can compare and communicate as we go through this seriously life-changing experience.

Getting ready-and brief explanations...

It's Thursday, and I've got about two more weeks to go. I leave for the banks of the Kuskokwim River on August 2. In that short time, I need to wrap up my law practice, take a Praxis exam (the dread of all good people), and mail a bunch more packages to Alaska. For some Quixotic reason, I have decided in this 56th year of my life to go and teach junior high students in a village called Napaskiak, in Western Alaska. I'm excited...

A word about the title. It's not as silly or as tasteless as the others that my friends and I came up with, and it is literally true. Metaphorical travel lanes include the airways and the mighty Kuskokwim river. I think that they'll do just fine for my needs.