I'm an arenophile

As promised, here is my sand collection in its completion. I keep it on a shelf at school so that the kids can look at them. I am generally so NOT a collector. I really dont get the urge to collect anything. Keeping these jars of sand are my exception. I can keep them at school rather than home, so that makes a difference. I dont think I would collect them if I had to keep them at home. They all have very specific memories, so that makes collecting them more meaningful as well. It really is very interesting how different each sand sample is.

In other news...we're up to 5 ABOVE zero today! It was so warm, it was crazy! It started to snow though and the sky is all overcast now! If we want sunny days, we have to tolerate the cold. We're supposed to get about 4 inches tonight. And the drifts are crazy big already! We get a drift right in front that basically turns our stairs into a slide.

Tomorrow is my field trip with my Biology kids. We're taking a tour of the power plant and the water treatment facility. Then we'll go to a pizza buffet for lunch. After that, we'll go for a presentation at UAF Bethel and then a presentation at the hovercraft place. It should be fun!

Additions

These are the newest additions to my sand collection. If you click on the picture, you can get a bigger view and see how different they all are! I put the sand out on these plates to dry out before putting it in the jars. I will try to remember to take a photo of my collection next time I'm at school. I keep them at school because the kids like to look at them. I only started collecting when I was in Spain the summer of 2002 and dont have very many jars in my collection because I only collect from beaches that I actually go to. Online there are lots of people who will trade sand or send you sand, but that just doesnt appeal to me so much. Each jar of sand that I have hold memories. I am, however, going to try to send my extra sand out to one of those collectors and try to get some sand from Coney Beach in Manhattan. I went there many summers ago and totally forgot to get some sand. I would love to add that to my collection.

It was bound to happen

My car wouldnt start after work today. The plugin cord got blown off by the wind and my truck sat all day without being plugged in. It was bound to happen! Hopefully it will start tomorrow after being pluggin in all night at school. Everything is just that much harder when it's this cold. I know you all must be sick of hearing about the cold, but that's really all that is going on these days.

My robotics team started back up with practice today, but I ended up sending several of the team members home early because they were just goofing off. With travel coming up next week for the state competition, I am really in a tough spot with a couple of these kids who dont pull there weight on the team. I really cant validate spending school money to bring a kid to Anchorage for the state tournament that doesnt help the team. What do you guys think? Does being on the team all year give you an automatic pass to travel to state with the team? Would it be wrong of me to tell a kid they cant come after spending the whole year with the team? I'm trying to work out this dilemma.

Our New Year's resolution is going well so far. If you dont remember, it was to FLOSS. Both Avery and I have been flossing at night.

I am really bummed that I am going to miss the K300 dog race this year. It is on the same weekend that the state robotics tournament is on. I was really looking forward to being involved with the race this year by volunteering, but NO!!!!!!!!

I'm taking some of my HS kids out on a field trip on Monday. We have a full agenda planned and it should be a great experience for the kids. I'll post pics after the trip. It seems like things never get any less busy. I always think to myself....everything will calm down after ________ is over and then I'll have time for __________. But it never works that way. After robotics is over, I still have some lessons with the Boy Scouts to finish up. I have a sleep over at the school with some of the 8th graders to plan. I still have to work on all the stuff for the class that I'm taking. I need to take a Praxis test if I want to remain certified to teach in the state of Alaska. I have to buy supplies, prepare, plan, and cook for a ThanksSuperbowl party. I need to find a place to get a job this summer! And I need to do all of this stuff in the next month or so! Geez! It's never ending!

Ok...it's past my bedtime, I should really get some sleep!

Ridiculously cold update

	Wind Chill Advisory
Statement as of 3:25 PM AKST on January 07, 2009 ... Wind Chill Advisory now in effect until 12 PM akst Friday... The Wind Chill Advisory is now in effect until 12 PM akst Friday. Winds of 10 to 25 mph combined with temperatures of 15 below to 25 below will cause wind chill temperatures as cold as 55 below. These conditions are expected to continue through Friday morning. A Wind Chill Advisory means that very cold air and strong winds will combine to generate low wind chills. This will result in frost bite and lead to hypothermia if precautions are not taken.

You know it's cold when....

they cancel school in Alaska! It's -50 with windchill this morning! Enough said.

Dear Bad Luck Truck,

I know it's cold. I dont really want to get up in the morning either, but life must go on even when it's -20. Just be happy that you are not effected by the windchill as you are not made from cells, which are made from water. If you weren't such a gas hog, I would start you earlier in the morning to give you more time to warm up. It is already costing a fortune to keep you plugged in all night. I know you want a battery blanket for your birthday. I can't believe you're almost 3 years old already. Your loving mother, Alisha PS. You can turn off the check engine light. There's nothing wrong with you, it's just cold, get over it! Wind Chill Advisory

Statement as of 8:44 PM AKST on January 06, 2009 ... Wind Chill Advisory remains in effect until 12 PM akst Wednesday... A Wind Chill Advisory remains in effect until 12 PM akst Wednesday. Winds of 10 to 25 mph combined with temperatures of 10 below to 25 below will cause wind chill temperatures as cold as 50 below. Winds will weaken by noon Wednesday allowing wind chill temperatures to rise above 40 below. A Wind Chill Advisory means that very cold air and strong winds will combine to generate low wind chills. This will result in frost bite and lead to hypothermia if precautions are not taken.

Cheek for Breakfast

I went to the dentist this morning and got my crown put on. They numbed up the right side of my face pretty good to put the crown on (I'm so happy it's over). Then they also numbed up my left side a little bit for a filling (I totally understand why people dont like the dentist). So, everything went well(as well as it can when there's a dentist with a drill in his hand) and I was out of their by 10:45am. The last half hour or so sitting in the chair, my stomach was growling so when I got back, I woke Avery up and we went to breakfast. Two problems with this...1:I wasnt supposed to chew on the left side for 24 hours because of the new filling. 2: I couldnt feel my right side AT ALL! So I ate my breakfast and it was really weird and kinda like work because I had to check before eat bite to see if the last bite was actually gone and not just stuck in my cheek somewhere.

So, a couple hours later, the numbness wears off and the inside of my right cheek hurts...turns out I chewed up the inside of my cheek pretty good when I was trying to eat breakfast. OUCH! It still hurts! So, learn from me and eat breakfast before you go get all numbed up at the dentist. :)

In other news...
Avery's dentist appt when very well. He was complimented on how nice his teeth are and doesnt have any cavities. His weird warty thing turned out to be, well....a weird warty thing. Doctor said it is similiar to a wart, but caused by a different virus and will clear up on its own. He said that a white pearl will come out of it! I told you it was weird. Because it is right under his belly button, we've been calling it his second belly button. He's trying to grow an outty.

It read -23 on my trucks temp gage when we drove hoome from the airport. Thankfully, the guy who was house sitting for me got my truck running and picked us up from the airport. Very nice! Unfortunately, I came to frozen pipes. Fortunately, after running some hot water through the pipes that were open, the frozen ones thawed out. YAY!

As I was unpacking tonight, I realized I just have to pack again in 9 days. Next weekend, I am going with the robotics team to Anchorage for the state competition. It should be fun, but I wish it wasnt so soon. I feel like my life is planned from one trip to another these days.

The best part of being home? Taboo! We have really been missing him alot these last few days. Sounds like the house/dog sitter took really good care of him. I think they may have even spoiled him some. One of the guys' buddies was saying that he shared some steak with Taboo. I think he's happy to have us home too!

So, after two dentist appts today, Avery and I both have a New Year's Resolution. Want to know what it is?

Floss!

Cold Snap, for real!

We get to go back to Bethel tomorrow after a couple of dentist appts to some pretty seriously cold temps. I found out yesterday that my truck wont start because the battery is dead. YAY! At least we've got some groceries to take back with us so we dont have to pay ridiculous Bethel prices.

The whole state is under some pretty intense temps. Fairbanks is all the way down to -45 ambient. Some other places around the state are below -50. Pretty crazy stuff! Notice the difference in the windchill temps between Anchorage and Bethel. Anchorage is surrounded by mountains so they dont get very much wind. I hope it's warmer where ever you are!

Bethel, Alaska (Airport)

Updated: 40 min 51 sec ago

-17 °F Clear

Windchill:

-35 °F

Anchorage, Alaska (PWS)

Updated: 0 sec ago

-9.5 °F Clear

Windchill:

-10 °F

Happy Anniversary, Alaska!

Today is the 50th anniversary of the day Alaska became the 49th state of the United States of America. There are many good articles out on the web about this important milestone and the state government has even formed the Alaska Statehood Celebration Commission to organize events for the anniversary. There are some festivals and activities happening today that we might try to get involved with, like fireworks and a bonfire tonight.

In general, it is an exciting time to live in Alaska. Here are some of the highlights...
Governor Palin runs for VP
Many new officials elected to office
50th anniversary of statehood
the highest pfd checks EVER were paid out a few months ago

Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve was a fun time out with a friend from Anchorage and some of his friends. The first day of this year was spent lazying around most of the day and then going to dinner and the movies with Avery. We saw two movies last night. The Day the Earth Stood Still was a bit of a let down...not very good at all. Then we saw Yes! Man and it was hilarious. I have never heard an audience at a movie theatre laugh as hard as we all did last night. Today, we are heading out soon for a doctor appt for Avery. He's got this weird little warty/bump thing on his stomach that has recently started hurting and turned red. After that I think we are going to try to have some dinner and go do some shoe shopping. So...not much going on...nothing near as exciting as Honolulu...that's for sure!

I hope you all had a great New Year's Eve...any resolutions?