Inner Beauty

A friend once said college is like a roll of toilet paper; the closer you get to the end the faster it goes. Apparently, life didn’t get the memo that I’m not in college anymore and Bethel, Alaska is nowhere near Omaha, Nebraska. It’s hard to believe it’s been nine months since my arrival in Bethel. It seems like just yesterday I was staring out the airplane window at this delta I would call home for the next year. Nine months later I find myself a bit wiser (most days), a few pounds heavier, definitely a few shades whiter, and a great deal more empathetic than the kid who arrived in Bethel sporting his orange Spurbury boat shoes.

I have always understood empathy as the ability to relate to others circumstances and surrounding. Empathy is the type of ideal than can be taught, as I was fortunate enough to have had throughout my many years in Jesuit schools, but cannot be fully understood until one has fully immersed themselves in another’s way of life. While I don’t pretend to be an expert in empathy after immersing myself in another’s culture for one year, I will admit that my time and experiences in Bethel will be a foundational building block as I take the next steps in life. Once I was able to begin and understand empathy, it seems as though everything else became easier. I became better at my job, I started to see the beauty in Bethel, and best of all I stopped talking about myself and started to listen more. Bethel is a perfect example of inner beauty. We all know what it is, we all see it daily, but more often than not we pass it over and continue with our daily lives. So…what does inner beauty in Bethel look like…? Everything!!!

As I’m writing this blog it’s about 60 degrees outside, ducks and geese are flying everywhere, a Robin has made a nest right outside our office, there’s about 20 hours of daylight, and the river is flowing freely now. I know right…seems hard to believe that less than a month ago everything was still lifeless and frozen throughout the tundra. Never have I lived in a place that can seem so desolate and lifeless in the middle of winter, only to transform into the continents largest wildlife refuge several months later. It’s spectacular to say the least. In the past month, I have seen large flocks of ducks, geese, swans and cranes flying overhead. My once 40 minute walk to work has turned from a Man vs. Wild episode into a birding nature tour.

Upon arrival, I was amazed at all the junk lying around town. I thought to myself…how can Bethel citizens put up with all this junk. What I didn’t realize is that it’s like having a hardware store outside your font door. Anything and everything you might need to fix something can be found within a four house radius. Think of all the times when your car’s engine has exploded on the way to work and you thought to yourself…gosh darnit…I wish I would have saved my old cars engine. In all seriousness though…it’s not as big of a deal as we all make it. There is a definite amount of pride that comes with having a tidy house and yard, but does it really make your life that much worse if your neighbor has a little junk in there yard? What’s more important is that there’s a functional family living inside that house.

Speaking of people, I constantly come across the argument that there’s nothing to do in Bethel. I hear this statement at least daily while subbing at the high school. Ok…you got me there. Finding healthy outlets can be challenging at time, but they are available…I promise. One of my biggest highlights living in Bethel has been the ability to participate in various intramural sports. Who thought that after my college glory days I would still be tearing up broomball rink or ultimate Frisbee field? I love competition (for those of you who couldn’t tell) and being able to stay active and compete is absolutely awesome. Alaska sports are much like the job market; there’s always an opportunity to try something new. Being a kid is a challenge regardless of geographical location, but it seems even harder sometimes being a kid in Bethel. Kids are constantly reminded of the hardships life has in store, but I also think that being a kid in Bethel can be a gift in disguise. If there is one aspect of Bethel that has made me appreciate this place though, it’s that kids are allowed to be kids. Watching Bethel kids play around in mud puddles or rolling around on snow banks (sometimes at the same time) is a refreshing site.

So…what next? Every time I start getting settled into a routine it seems like life speeds up and it’s time to make the next big decision. This time it’s the CAREER decision. I was fortunate enough to be approached with an enticing opportunity here in Bethel working within the hospital. The organization is called YKHC (Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation) and they are the overseeing body for health care throughout the YK Delta. I have until July 1^st to give them my final decision which gives me some time to pursue other interesting opportunities back home. Mommy and the girlfriend were not quite as excited as I was when I told them the news about possibly remaining in Bethel for a bit longer, but I think the thought is growing on them a bit (very very slowly).

Regardless of what decisions and opportunities come about in the next few months I can without question look back upon my time in Bethel and know the experience was an excellent investment in myself. I hope I was able to make one tenth as much of a difference in the community as the community made in me.

Tomorrow will be an exciting day as I embark on my first real Alaskan adventure. Six of us are heading up river about 4-5 hours in several boats in hopes of conquering dead trees left behind by this past winters wrath. The technical term for what we are doing is “logging” but more than anything, it signifies the start of summer. The basic just of logging consist of gathering dead trees that were killed or uprooted by the past winters ice. Once 40-50 trees are gathered over several days, a raft will be build in order to float the trees back to Bethel. The total float time back will be somewhere in the ball bark of 20-24 hours upon which the trees will then be cut up and turned into firewood for next winter. Luckily for me I am going with several extremely skilled outdoor individuals who have done this many times before. I was trying to tell them that “logging” was not covered in my high school or college curriculum and have absolutely no idea what I’m doing, but there taking me anyway…so jokes on them. Tom Sawyers aint got nothing on me!

Top Ten

Ten Lessons I’ve Learned from Bethel

1.) Grocery stores can be a fun place to hang out.

Few spots are quite as social as the Bethel Alaska AC Value Center. Some towns have Wal-Mart and shopping malls, Bethel has AC. Whether board, hungry, drunk or simply in the mood to do some springtime shopping for this year’s new shade of tan Carharts, AC is where the party is. Assuming Miley Cyrus was form Bethel, her song would surely be titled “Party at the AC Value Center.” Mall of America…eat your heart out.

2.) Fur is back in fashion

Never in my life did I think I would hear the phrase “hey…stop by Joe’s place tonight. We’re having a Polar Bear hanging party.” And here I was thinking our family was cool because we have deer antlers laying around in our garage.

3.) That thing on the back of your jacket…is useful

I may have a leg up on these Eskimo’s in regards to financial literacy, but when it comes to staying warm, I stand to learn a lot. Hoods are without question the greatest invention of our modern era and an absolute must in frigid temperatures.

4.) Broken down cars are great weed barriers

People in the lower 48 spend way to much time fretting about their lawn and garden. Bethel has found a simple solution to the weed (and grass and tree) problem. Just leave your old cars in your lawn. Problem solved! Might have to convince The Preserve in Greenwood Village to relax their covenant laws a bit. Wonder how Tom would react to that one???

5.) Breakfast is overrated

Throughout my days subbing at the high school, I have learned many great lessons from my kids. The most practical however is to skip breakfast entirely and instead chug two Monster Energy drinks. A surefire way to stay focused and make it to lunch.

6.) Being on time is all relative

My first month in Bethel was torture. Everywhere I went I found myself waiting around wondering if I was in the right place. Then I discovered the secret to being on time in Bethel. If someone says…be at the park at 1:00; it means you start thinking about going to the park at 1:00 duhh… Regardless, it’s a great system

7.) 32 Degrees is warm

This statement will most likely cause some controversy as 32 is technically the freezing point, but after a full Winter in Bethel I can now say that 32 is a pleasant temperature. I laugh when I think back to our middle school days and how recess was cancelled when temps were below freezing. Toughen up kids…schools not cancelled in Bethel till it’s -50 (actually true).

8.) Inappropriate jokes are…appropriate

As I’m writing this blog and about to talk about inappropriate jokes, one of our foundations board members walked in to share several inappropriate jokes. How fitting. Inappropriate jokes are a sure sign of cleverness and career potential. The dirtier they are in Alaska, the faster you will be promoted. As much as I would like to give an example, I will not for fear my mother will cut off all care packages.

9.) Cars Don’t Matter

My mother will be so proud of me on this one…but the type of automobile you drive makes very little difference on your “cool” factor in Bethel. Considering that 70% of Bethel does not have a car, having one is cool enough. But for you car enthusiast out there who must look cool while driving, here are some Bethel tips for cool cars. Drive a big truck, put a really big gas tank on the back of your truck, have a snowplow for your truck. Get the picture…trucks are cool

10.) The Tooth Brush was discovered in Bethel

How do you know that tooth brush was discovered in Bethel? Because if was discovered anywhere else it would have been called a teeth brush.

An Excuse for Adventure

How often do we live in a place and not take full advantage of all the great things around us? I know I do way too often. I realize that we have jobs and responsibilities to uphold and it never hurts to have a little down time, but looking back more often than not I realize I could have done a little more with that day, or a little more with that week. Well…I definitely don’t have that excuse this past weekend. What a great extended weekend!

This past Thursday as I might have mentioned in my previous blog, Jess arrived in beautiful sunny downtown Bethel. After three flights, eight hours of flying, an extended layover in the Anchorage International Airport, six bags of peanuts, two crying babies, and a partridge in a pair tree; Jess finally arrived in the last frontier. With her, she brought Mother Natures graceful sunshine (at least for a few days) and some warmer temperatures. Immediately upon her arrival, I whisked her around Bethel like a kindergartner showing their parents their school for the first time. Trying to look cool, calm and in control, I immediately drove her across the ice road in hopes of showing her what a “wild man” I have become throughout our several months of separation. What Jess doesn’t realize is that behind my charming smile and cool demeanor, I am just as nervous as she is about getting on and off the river during spring conditions. (One of the keys to life…don’t let em see you sweat). Our first day was filled with long walks, stories about the dogs, gossip about friends, griping about the cost of groceries, yoga class, and of course conversation about the weather. Of course lying, I say “You know how lucky you are it’s not like -100 Jess. I used to think that was cold, but now it’s like a refreshing ocean breeze.”

After a long walk and seeing me shiver in the nice temperatures, Jess picked up on my white lies and we got on with our trip. The last weekend in March is historically one of the busier weekends all year in Bethel between the Camai Dance Festival, the sled dog camp out race, and another sprint sled dog race. Camai is an annual three-day dance festival celebrating Alaskan Native tradition and heritage. Dance groups from all over the world and YK Delta fly, drive and snow machine in to participate in this historic festival. Dance groups range everywhere from the Midnight Cloggers (twelve middle aged white homemakers from Anchorage) to local villagers dancing away in praise to commemorate the good salmon catch this past summer.

On Saturday, Jess and I followed up the teams for the annual camp-out sled race. The camp-out race consists of about seven-eight teams that stroll up river casually Saturday, camp-out, have a little party and Sunday race back to Bethel. Thanks to Jerry’s generosity and an invention called studded snow tires; Jess and I followed the dogs (and people) up river Saturday for about two hours before turning back. The ice road was in good condition, but I found myself at least once throwing the truck in reverse after hearing some ice pop to go ask some native fisherman if the ice was thick enough to drive. The answer was always yes…but it always feels good to have some reassurance.

By far one of the highlights of Jess’s trip to Bethel was having the opportunity to participate in some manuking (aka ice fishing) and snow machining. If you were to look up the term manuking in the dictionary it would probably say something like…the art of standing still in very cold temperatures for long periods of time, with a line tied to a stick bobbing up and down in hopes of catching a semi frozen fish. Regardless, it was a great time had by all and my first time manuking in Alaska. In total, we caught about 10 fish between the five of us. Of course, Jess had three fish pulled out of the ice before I even had my first bite. I think she is still a bit bitter as I was forced to steal her pole “stick” and fishing hole while she was in the truck warming up in order to have some luck of my own. The secret to manuking is fish eyeballs. Once we had our first catch, we popped both eyes out of the Pike, put them on our hooks and the rest was easy. Here fishy fishy….

Keeping with our trend of frozen sports, Jess and I also had the chance to do some snow machining up river and through the sloughs on Tuesday. Everyone else in the world calls it snowmobiling, but here in AK they call it snow machining or snow-going. Thanks to the generosity of one of our foundations board members Frank, Jess and I were equipped with two beautiful machines. Frank was even nice enough to lend Jess and I his beaver skin hats and bunny boots to complete the full food chain ensemble! Snow machining can be an absolute blast if one is equipped for the weather as Jess and I were. These machines are getting pretty sophisticated these days as well. It might sound crazy flying across a frozen bumpy river at sixty miles an hour; but I assure you it is completely feasible and safe and can even be accomplished with heated thumb warmers on your machine.

Good company makes all the difference in the world. It brightens your day, gives you someone else to talk to besides two dogs and creates a perfect excuse to get out of your routine and shake things up a bit. Overall, it was a great extended weekend with Jess and a nice way to finish off the remaining weeks of winter. Bethel is a hard place to describe to someone over the phone or blog. People always ask what I love most about Bethel and in many regards it’s the same things I don’t like about Bethel. It’s remote and quiet, very simple, embodies a small town feel and makes you appreciate the small things in life. But at the end of the day if you have a love for the outdoors, it’s pretty tough not to enjoy the worlds biggest frozen playground right out your backdoor.

Extra Cirricular’s: Bethel Style

Spring is in the air and everywhere I look I see flowers blooming, grass turning green, trees beginning to show their buds and those winter “bunny” boots traded in for this years newest J Crew flip flops. With a sigh of satisfaction, I say to myself…ahh…what a life! I begin to hear dogs barking ever so softly, but the barking keep getting louder and louder. Suddenly I realize I have a dog in my bed and those pleasant thoughts were just a dream. Before I start my morning ritual of coffee, shower, breakfast and feeding the roommates, I do my usual stroll out into the family room with my I-Phone where I get my neighbors wireless internet and check the weather. After pacing around the room for a minute or two in order to get adequate reception it finally loads up and reads -22, feels like -35! I glance again…what how can that be? It’s March 15th; spring is just around the corner. Then I realize I have been saying that very same thing for about the last 14 days. Well I think, at least it’s sunny today! Spring in Bethel doesn’t exactly follow the rest of the world. In fact, if I recall “Spring” has been colder than December, January or February. Although the cold temperatures persist, the increase in daylight is absolutely amazing as our days increase around 6 minutes every day. That’s around 40 minutes a week…way more time than I actually spend working a week. (Just kidding)

Although cold…the last month in Bethel has been absolutely beautiful. There are few things I have experienced as breathtaking and calming as looking across the icy tundra at high noon. While Bethel may not have the mountains or city sky rise to look at, it does have one of the most crystal clear blue skies of any place I have lived. The increase in days is also a definite plus as it is now light well into the evening. A few months ago I was having a hard time believing that when I arrived in August it was light until around 11 p.m., but once again mother nature is making me a believer.

So, what do Bethelonians do after work and on the weekends? Glad you asked! Every Saturday around 15-20 of us meet at “Pinky’s Pond” and get suited up for our weekly broomball match. Pinky’s Pond is the local Bethel Park equipped with playground, softball field, skate park and of course ice rink. The term “ice rink” refers loosely to a frozen pond that the city plows and maintains throughout the winter months (a.k.a. most of the year). Although makeshift, it is probably the coolest ice rink thingamajig out there. Broomball has fast become one of my favorite past times in Bethel. While running around for hours on end in sub zero temperatures might sound like torture to many, I assure you that it is top quality entertainment. I find myself constantly laughing at how bad I was the first time I played broomball in early November. I literally looked like I had never seen ice before. Needless to say though…this city slicker has found his ice legs in the past few months and is enjoying every minute of it.
For those of you not accustomed to broomball, the basic concept is hockey without skates and a puck. Broomball is played on a similar sized ice rink as hockey and instead of skates, we wear “bunny boots,” and instead of a puck we use a miniature soccer ball that theoretically is suppose to be somewhat bouncy, but when the temperatures approach -20 the ball is more like a block of ice. Since we don’t wear pads, there is theoretically no checking or hitting, but a little physical contact is a.o.k. The great part about broomball in Bethel is the variety of ice conditions. You might think that ice is ice…but you couldn’t be farther from the truth. Some weeks after lots of wind and a little snow, the ice is the slickest thing you could ever imagine. These weeks our broomball games look more like slow motion ESPN curling footage as we struggle to chase down the ball. Other weeks, the ice takes on a more sure-footed feel and our broomball games turn into more of a track meet where speed is of the essence. While temperatures can be absolute frigid at times, I have yet to walk home from our Saturday battles without being absolutely drenched in sweat.

This past month also served to be the start of my acting career. That’s right…I am now an all out thespian. Well, maybe not all out, but I definitely have had my first full out experience in the drama life. A few weeks back I got a call saying that someone had dropped out of the high school musical “Back to the 80’s…the Totally Awesome Musical” and they were wondering if I would be able to fill in. Full of curiosity I said yes and unknowingly signed away my next two weeks of life. In short, it was an excellent life experience and great way to become actively involved within the Bethel community. My role in the musical way to play Corey Senior. Corey Senior played the modern version of himself as he looked back on his high school days at William Ocean High School. My part entailed me being the play narrator as well as sing short version of Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love a Bad Name.” When I heard that I would be singing a short song I told myself “no problem John…you used to be part of the Regis Jesuit boys select choir.” What I didn’t realize was that my singing days were a long time ago. I’m pretty sure when we first started practice the rest of the crew was like…”oh boy…this could be a long night,” but after a few weeks of practice I got my confidence back and ended up doing great in the performance. This past weekend we had three shows (Friday-Sunday) and in total had about 600 people show up to witness the third annual WARPT (Western Alaska Rural Performance Theater) musical.
I have to admit, it was a pretty darn good performance for Bethel Alaska standards. The musical came alive with radical 80’s clothing, smash hits from the Proclaimers, Michael Jackson and even a six-person rock band. Top the performance off with some high quality choreography and the end result is some pretty awesome entertainment full of lots and lots of laughter. Not a bad way to spend a couple weeks! This acting gig has also given me some real Bethel street cred. One of the more priceless moments of the whole experience though was seeing many of the high school students faces when I first came on stage. I think it went something like, Oh shit…that’s Mr. Leer our substitute teacher.

Take Two

Well…I am back from the latest writers strike and have managed to work out a better contract with management, so Bethel Adventures will continue as regularly scheduled…sporadic.

As January 9th approached I waited in anticipation of how Bethel would look nearly two months after my previous departure. I realized it was not going to look like my Colorado break of skiing, hiking and enjoying home cooked meals, but also realized that I had a strong desire to finish what I started. Upon arrival in Bethel, I was greeted with a subtle (50 mph) breeze blowing ever so gently across my face and a warning from the captain of 40 below wind chills as a reminder that I was no longer basking in the Colorado sun. Ahh Bethel…it’s good to be back. Not much has changed in the Alaskan bush in two months besides shorter days and colder temperatures. My boss Jerry hit it on the head when I arrived and stated that style is irrelevant in Bethel; it’s all about what keeps you warm. All in all though it’s nice to be back and experience what a real Alaskan winter is all about.

This past month has been a busy month in Bethel between the Kuskokwim 300 (K300) dog sled race, resettling in with work, moving into my new house and learning the ropes as a substitute teacher at the local high school. The k300 is considered one of the top three events throughout the year in Bethel and consist of a 300-mile dog sled race along the river and through various villages. I was hoping for a treat and that’s exactly what I got, as this years race was one for the record books with record cold temperatures, hurricane force winds and a lack of snow that hasn’t been this extreme in years.

After watching the start and finish I can safely say that I never want to be a professional dog musher, or a dog for that matter. In the two hours between my arrival and departure at the starting line, I have never experienced such cold weather. Being the tourist that I am, I decided to take my gloves off for a few seconds and capture the glory of the moment with my fake Sony Chinese camera. In a matter of a minute, my hands were as cold as ice and took the remainder of the two hours to regain feeling. The race proved to be a good one though as local Bethel villager passed legendary racer Lance Mackey in the final leg of the race to claim the 2010 K300 title.

In other news, I am all moved in and settled into my new living quarters and the three of us are getting along just fine. My two roommates are a bit needy but they don’t take up to much space. The only real issue we have had so far is bad breath and excessive hair loss, but we’re looking into various treatment programs and should hopefully have a solution soon. Jake’s kind of the leader between the two (the other being Raven) and calls most of the shots around the house. We got off on kind of a sour foot, but Jake and I have been bonding nicely this past week. Having two roommates has been good for my biological clock though, as both Jake and Raven enjoy company on their early morning walks. Overall it’s a good situation and I will probably learn a thing or two from Jake especially, as he’s kind of the ladies guy around town and knows all the right things to say.

My trip home was excellent and a great chance to catch up on some of my favorite past times. Over Thanksgiving break I was fortunate enough to make it down to Omaha and watch my first ever Missouri Valley Conference Volleyball Tournament in Creighton’s brand spanking new woman’s athletic facility. The Jays fell a bit short in the end, but Jess managed to make the all-tournament team and made a memorable departure from Creighton Athletics. She will be greatly missed on the volleyball court by teammates and fans alike, but is looking forward to her next challenge of Physical Therapy School this coming fall. Jess was accepted to Creighton this past week!

In between my time of Thanksgiving and Christmas, I managed to score a job as a Christmas Tree Salesman. It is a highly sought after position and extremely competitive, but would be happy to share some pointers to anyone looking for a new profession. Never in my life have I had such an interesting experience. I won’t really call it good or bad…just interesting. My first week was spent in Vail with co-worker Bob. Bob, the owners brother, greeted my with an eye patch on his left eye and an explanation of how I am an Indian and he is a Chief, and how I shouldn’t try and be the chief. Note to self…don’t be chief. For those of you who have never had the opportunity to sell Christmas trees I will enlighten you. It’s kind of like selling used cars; you start high and work your way down.

The job was a good experience though and was an interesting take on what it’s like being the guy selling over priced “fresh” trees and trying to rip people off to the best of your ability. I will be forever indebted to Bob though as he showed me the tricks of the trade and taught me to be a selling pro. Bob’s life lessons:
• Always charge tax even if there is none
• Play to the women and call the husband a tight wad
• Lie about when the trees were cut
• Break into apartment complexes because they have free washing machines
• It’s never to early for tequila on the job
• Wear an eye patch even though you don’t need one; people feel bad for you