Back In The USA

Just kidding, although it often seems as if we live in a totally different world n Alaska. I actually like that aspect of our lives quite a bit. We kind of went our different ways on the plane, as we weren't sitting together for the most part. I ended up sitting next to a woman from up on the Yukon who was going to see a boyfriend in Chicago. We had some interesting conversation about our respective villages. I managed to get some dowse time in, although not a lot. As morning began to show its face, we crept Eastward towards O'Hare airport. My wife and I went through our usual routine upon landing, with the difference being that she had five additional people to keep track of. It apparently presented no significant challenge. I went off to pick up what turned out to be a giant black Chevy Suburban. It was a beast, but it accommodated seven people, their luggage, three dogs, and their kennels (broken down, of course). No small feat. We had actually reserved two smaller SUV's, but this did the trick very nicely. Our next course of business was to get out of Chicago and on to breakfast in Indiana. Once this had been accomplished, we headed to Cadillac, MI, our home base for the summer. Haircuts and some coloring changes followed, and we were treated to a cookout by my wife's parents, who did such a great job of helping out with fundraising when they visited in April. Our trip was off to a flying start.

Leisure Hours In Anchorage

I wrote earlier about the frantic dash that we made to the airport in Bethel, and the close squeeze we had in getting everyone on board the plane. Once the relatively short flight to Anchorage was complete, we faced the question of what to do in order to keep busy for the next eight hours while we waited for the 11:30 flight to Chicago. Of course, we did the things that people do in airports to pass the time. We read, we ate, we gossiped about people passing by. The doggies needed a walk, and that managed to kill a solid ten minutes. After many weary hours, we came to the boarding gate, where we would enter the airplane for another six-and-a-half hours of tedium. At least we might be able to sleep on the plane...