Just Another Day

New York was a good, exhausting trip. My body never really did adjust to the time change, and I averaged about 4 1/2 hours of sleep each night… that’s low for me. I’m not sure if it was time difference or just nerves. I’m hoping nerves and that I’ll be able to rest soundly tonight.

My presentations went well. Participants ranged from 4 at one session to around 80 at another. I’m glad to have my first conference over, and I couldn’t help but marvel at how out of character this all seems for me. While I wouldn’t label this a comfortable experience, I believe I’m constantly stretching my skills. Yikes!

I got my matching girl present in NY. Ape, Amy, Trish, and I are starting to have very similar closets, because every time they’re together they find something we all need. So, that was my one mission for purchase this trip. They are all going to love their new pashminas. Okay, so I bought it half to be funny, but I like them. 🙂

Just a little shopping tomorrow and then up to the big city of Unalakleet. I’m trying to decide on what to pick up for Bill’s birthday dinner. He has no requests, and since Alaska has no Dairy Queens, there will not be the “traditional” ice cream cake. I’ll have to assume that will be in place Sunday for Jimbo’s b-day.

Call me and catch up! Love to you all!

I’m enjoying my time here. The 4 hour time difference played a few tricks on my sleeping, so luckily I had the morning to just relax. I did manage to head to the fitness center. It’s HUGE! They’ve got tons of machines and equippment, but I was most impressed by the televisions on every bike, treadmill, eliptical, stepper, etc. Plus, there are a bunch of big plasma screens around the place. Incredible.

Christy, my manager & friend, took me to Macy’s after I’d showered up and gotten ready for the day. It’s “Flower Days” or something there, and the whole first floor was surrounded in flowers. Pretty neat! I talked myself out of buying a skirt and shirt – $90 a piece! If the shirt had been right, I’d probably be poor right now. Macy’s kind of beats walking down to the old Alaska Commercial. 😉

I’m staying at the Marriott Marquis right on Broadway. My room overlooks Time Square. In fact, I have a direct view of the Good Morning America studio, and MTV’s TRL is right next door. It seems a little unreal… like these things only belong on TV.

My pre-conference meeting went well, and I saw one of my principals at registration. I also got to meet up with one of my favorite co-workers, Terri. She’s just such an uplifting person. I’m now going to take one more look through the topics I present tomorrow. I’ll be happy when tomorrow’s over and the conference is in full swing.

This will likely be my last entry over here, as the internet costs a fortune. Take a look at the pictures thus far. 🙂 Have a great week!

Green grass and sunshine greeted me in Minneapolis. It’s perfect, as this is how I’m always picturing Minnesota when I’m sick of Alaska! 🙂 Unfortunately, this is just a teaser stop – I’ve got about an hour in the airport before I head onto the plane to New York.

I’m now sitting in the Northwest World Club. I get to come in here with my AK Air boardroom pass as long as I’m traveling on Northwest. Pretty sweet.

I had a very restless night’s sleep. I struggled to fall asleep early, but knew I needed to in order to stay rested after early morning wake-ups the rest of this week. So, at 11:45 PM I awoke to a loud banging noise. It happened to be a woman trying to get into my room!!!! The front desk had checked her into my room – somehow the computer had me as checked-out. So, after sitting there for 5 minutes while she kept rattling my door, she left and I called the front desk and got things figured out. Thank heavens for deadbolts!

This morning came early, and I was really in no mood for the couple next to me who seemed to be trying to pass their bottle of bloody mary as a healthy morning vegetable drink. The “lacka lacka lacka” noises the guy was making were not cute after about the first 5 seconds, and I was worried that the entire 5 1/2 hour flight was going to be bad. They both fell asleep (or perhaps passed out) after an hour or so, so it was fine. Also, I got the seat with lots of legroom again. love that!

Now I’m just passing a few minutes until I hop on the last flight. I talked to Ape and Grandma. They were enjoying some tasty enchilladas, and I only wish I could be flying up there to join them. Instead, I plan to make the most of my first adventure to NY.

Hope you’re having a great weekend so far!

The end of the year is drawing near! I have to admit that this year has gone faster than any other I remember. When I say that I start feeling old… that sounds like an old person thing to say. 😉

I start my journey to New York tomorrow evening. I’ll actually only get as far as Anchorage – happily I’ll get to see my long lost hotel family at the Courtyard. It’s been a while. 😉 Anyway, at 10:30 Saturday night I’ll hit LGU airport in New York, New York. Good times. I’ll try to blog from there.

I’ve been eating way too many gummy bears and kettle chips lately. Shopping at Costco is not a good thing – 6 lbs of gummy bears stairing me in the face each moring is awful. Tonight I made some Au Gratin potatoes from scratch! I was inspired after seeing Barb make some scalloped potatoes for Easter dinner. Very tasty.

You wouldn’t believe this daylight. It’s quarter ’til 10, and it might as well be 5:00 in the evening. I’m struggling with sleep at night, ironically – naps come easily during the day. 🙂

Ape’s got a dreaded trip to the dentist in the morning. I don’t hate the dentist, but I don’t remember it being a pleasant experience when we were young, either. She should do just fine with a quick cleaning. I need to get in, myself, but am a little leary of going here in Unalakleet. There’s an awful lot of silver walking around in the mouthes around here. I’m afraid I might have a cavity, too. Serves me right with those darn gummy bears. Alright – I’ll proclaim it here – no more gummy bears for me for the rest of my time in Alaska!

6 of our 7 boxes flew in today. That was pretty sweet! I realized I bought a lot of cereal. I think I could eat cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Food, food, food. Goodness.

Two of my favorite guys have birthdays coming up soon. Bill’s present came in the mail, and I had to give it to him. He got a set of 60 climbing holds for the wall he’s going to build. I am anxious for him to get started. It’s going to be fun. Dad’s birthday is 2 days after Bills. I suppose I’ll miss an ice cream cake!

Sounds like gas is going up, up, up down south. That’s not a good sign for my tubing plans!

Many of you know that spring is a busy, complicated time of year in schools and for teachers. Quite a few of my friends and family will be looking for new jobs due to cut backs and various other reasons. Keep your fingers crossed for them all!

xoxo!

We decided to get a jump start on our final year in Unalakleet (you’ll be hearing “final year” from me a lot this coming year, as I’ll be laying it on thick!). Anyway, we left Valdez around 9:00 this morning and were in Anchorage before 10:00. We rented a car and headed straight to Costco. Now our bank account is empty. Actually, I think we did pretty well. We wanted to stock up on dry, non-perishable items for next year so we wouldn’t have to in the fall. We ended up mailing 7 boxes and took two totes as luggage. Mailing stuff is pretty cheap – our boxes were around 50 lbs. and averaged a $10 shipping charge. It ends up being quite a bit cheaper than buying stuff here in town. …As April will tell you, everything in Unalakleet costs $8 🙂

Our shopping and shipping trip took all of our time, and we headed back to the airport at 2 to get our luggage checked in for the flight. We then headed to the board room for a comfy chair and a snack.

The flight to Unalkleet was pretty quick, and I think I dozed most of the time. Had to catch up on sleep after a wonderful time in Valdez. If only we had more time!!!

It’s 9:40 PM and very light here. We’ve now got over 17 hours of visible light. My body just doesn’t get it. I’m going to have to fight myself to fall asleep.

Dad says the weather at home continues to be beautiful I’m happy for all enjoying it, and know my time is coming soon! I can’t believe I’ll be home in less than a month. I can’t wait!

Hope you’re all well.

It’s been a good trip to Valdez. The weather has been pretty nice this week. We got snow today, though. It’s amazing how quickly it all changes. Yesterday was bright as can be and warm.

I hear Minnesota weather has been incredible. Dad tells me the ice on the lake went out. Yea! And I guess April and Amy enjoyed some 90 degree weather down in Iowa this weekend. I got to talk to all of them, plus Lo and Mom. It always helps when I can at least chat with everyone back home… especially when I’m away on the holiday.

This is the first Easter that none of us girls were home. No Easter bunny – nothing! Many of you might be saying, “The E. Bunny hasn’t visited me since I was 6.” Well, traditions die hard in the Aune household! And I’ll tell you, I’m planning to try my hardest to help Mr. E. Bunny find his way back to Black Bay Road next year!

I finished my quilt, and I think I’ll like it. I actually didn’t like it at all for a while, but it’s growing on me. It’s a “raggedy” quilt, so one side is smooth and the other is raggedy at the seams. The raggediness helps, as my seams are far from straight! 🙂 I’m going to post a few pictures of the quilt in the gallery for you to enjoy! http://www.bbryson.com/pictures/categories.php?cat_id=19&sessionid=837bd10e57cca3a0b5cac950690b6851

We’ll head out of Valdez around 8:30 tomorrow morning. If we’re able to get a rental car in Anchorage, we plan to go get some Costco stuff and mail it up. The plan is to get some of next years shopping… cereal, flour, canned goods, etc… done now. It’s really a big pain, so it’d be good to get it done. In the long run, it’ll save us a lot of money if we can be organized now. So much planning!

We’ll be back in Unalakleet tomorrow night, and we both take off on Friday. Bill will head to White Mountain and then Nome, and I’ll be going to New York. There’ll be plenty of work to do this week before we take off

Guess it’s time to think about packing up – and maybe having a little creme brulee. I totally already ate fruit pizza, but who’s counting?

I’ve had a request to update my blog, so here it is! 🙂

I’m now in Valdez – have been since Wednesday. I’m having a very nice time. Barb and I have been getting out on long walks daily, and the weather has been gorgeous. I will try to get some pictures uploaded to the gallery, as Valdez is so much more beautiful than Unalakleet.

My big project since I’ve been here has been to finish a quilt I started about a year and a half ago. It’s a “raggedy” quilt – one side has fringes on every block, and the other side is smooth and looks like a regular patchwork. All the prints are plaids, and it’s sort of cute. Barb is humoring me, because she’s a great sewer, and my seams are totally not lined up. Seriously, it’s almost embarrassing, but I’m going to like it. Pictures to come. 🙂

Bill just flew in from Anchorage last night. He had to do tech stuff for the job fair this week. So, we picked him up and made him grill some chicken for dinner. What a sure sign of spring when the grill is lit!

Tonight Bill Jr. will get back from town, so Bill and I are in charge of dinner. We’re making enchiladas, salsa, and I’m making a black bean salad. I made some creme brulee that had to chill over night, so I’ll try to burn the top of it this afternoon. We’ll see how it tastes.

I understand that Amy and April are keeping busy, doing a little shopping, and I bet having a good time doing girlie things. I think I’ll try to give them, and everyone else back home a call this afternoon or evening.

Hope you’re all well! Happy Easter!

I’m now in Valdez. Had a late night out in Anchorage and an early morning getting to the airport. The good news is, I think my cab driver was the least crazy yet. 🙂

I got a ride from the airport to the Bryson’s with one of Bill’s old classmates. Rudy (the dog) met me at the door with a frisbee. He’s not much of a guard dog! I grabbed a nap, did a little work, talked to Ape, and then Bill Jr. got home. So, we caught up, and I kept him from getting back to work, but it was nice to visit. Barb got home shortly after, and we headed out on a nice long walk. The weather here is gloomy looking but warm enough.

More visiting over some yummy lasagna, then Barb and I watched LOST. She’s not seen it before, so I’m sure it was sort of uninteresting for her. Come to think of it, it wasn’t as action packed as it usually is. Bill joined us for a little Mythbusters, and then we watched some cooking show.

Now I need to get myself to bed and hope for a restful night’s sleep. That’s been a challenge for me lately.

The weekend’s close! Enjoy!

I will know now to bite my tongue when I think about writing how nice the weather is getting. I woke up to fresh snow! What the heck?

I was right about the snooze button – it wasn’t light enough at 6:00 this morning to think about running outside. For heaven sakes, I don’t want to come upon an unexpecting bear! Stupid scary animals! I’ll just let that be my excuse, rather than admitting to the fact that I’ve become really bad at mornings!

I did a little on-line shopping last night – I needed a new outfit for the upcoming New York trip. I figured the “Brevig Mission Huskies” sweatpants and gray zippered “hoodie” probably won’t cut it over there. Though I’m something of a fashion icon around this neck of the woods! Ha! Anyway, I  got this cute dress, shoes, and purse – all on sale, and still felt totally guilty… I rarely justify $ spent on clothes. So, then I walked to the post office this morning, and low and behold, there was a random check from work for almost the identical amount that I spent – just cents off! I will take that as some sort of intervention. 🙂 Anyway, these random checks I get are kind of fun. I think it has to do with me not being on the Foundation’s insurance plan or something. I never know when they’ll show up or how much they’ll be. What a nice little lift!

Bill’s at work, despite my best efforts to get him to call in sick. He’s been wrestling a cold for a few days now and not sleeping very well at night. Of course, I just thought having him around the apartment would interrupt the monotony of my work day. It’s probably a good thing he’s not here, though. I’m starting to feel like I might actually get my stuff learned!

Lo heads back to work tonight… or maybe she went yesterday, I guess I’m not sure. Anyway, she was saying how she doesn’t care to have to be in the nursery during her shift. If I was there, I think I’d want to be there all the time. I’d hold all the babies! Speaking of which, April’s report is that Ethan is a great baby and a good snuggler. I want to see him!

I also got an e-mail from Andrea who is an exceptionally busy lady! Sounds like delivery of Alex went smoothly last week, and the whole family is doing well. They’ve got a full spring and summer ahead of them, and I hope we’ll fit somewhere into those plans. 🙂 I’m very much looking forward to a chance to reconnect with distant friends this summer. Last summer was great – with the wedding we had a chance to see a lot of people, but we didn’t really get quality time with anyone.

Anyway, I should get back to life.

XOXO

I had big plans to work this weekend, but I just couldn’t bring myself to open the white binders calling from my office and pracitice presenting to a non-existant audience. I’ll continue with that tomorrow.

I did get some cleaning done. The laundry the two of us go through is amazing! I feel like the washer is going non-stop, and I’m constantly fighting the rest of the residence in the 14 Plex for a dryer. Between that, floor scrubbing, and changing the shower curtain liner – my Saturday felt pretty much shot. It wasn’t a bad day, though. Sometimes cleaning days are better than others.

I purchased the latest Sheryl Crow CD last week and have been listening to it non-stop. I suppose I’m a little behind the times, I guess this came out last year. Anyway, I like it.

My friend Stacie and her kids were supposed to leave yesterday afternoon to begin their 5 week visit to Washington state. Unfortunately for them, the flight was cancelled due to mechanical problems. It worked out nicely for Bill and I, though, because the Johnsons then stopped by and livened up our Saturday night. We had some tasty sloppy joes and then headed down to their apartment to watch The Honeymooners. It was a cute movie.

Bill and I were being lazy again today, and I was working my way out of hitting the treadmill – which has been the norm lately. It’s just been getting so boring lately, not to mention, I’ve just been lazy. Anyway, Bill decided he’d run with me, so we hit the road and did a nice 3 mile jog. He drives me nuts! I’ve been on that treadmill a few times a week all winter long, and he hasn’t run in years. Still, he kicked my butt! Oh well. With all the light we’ve got coming in, we’re thinking about trying to get up in the morning and run before he heads to the office. I have a feeling the snooze button is going to be getting a lot of use until this crazy idea passes. 🙂

I didn’t hear from my sisters this weekend. I guess April went to visit Ethan, so I was hoping for a report. Sounds like Rick and Sue were up at the lake, and Lo and Ape were both at Dad’s this weekend. I’m also waiting to hear from Mom. Okay, now, all of you should recognize my big cry for phone calls. 🙂

As much as I’m missing Mexico, I’m appreciating the weather. It’s starting to feel like early Spring here. It was 28 degrees with wind-chill today, and some puddles are starting to form. Spirts are lifting!

Well, time to get ready for bed. Have a good week, everybody!