Friday, February 24, 2006

Alaska Bound

I left earlier this week for Alaska. Anchorage, that is for a project we are going to be working on for work. I came to measure and check out a couple of different spaces for a client we work with. I have to say that it is cold here. Dry cold that burns your nose when you breath it in. I guess now is the mild portion of the winter. The visible part of the ocean between the peninsula is frozen over and the mountains are so beautiful and covered with snow.
Interesting city though, seems like the main source of income for the economy is tourism. There are all kinds of native art shops and museums though. Farther down south are a few ski resorts, they differ by skill level apparently. There is a wildlife park where the moose hang out, but the bears apparently are still in hibernation and wont be up and at em for another month or so. They are beginning to get more daylight per day, the sun currently rises at about 9 a.m. and sets around 7 p.m. During the summer months, the weather gets up to about 70 - 80 degrees farenheight, and the daylight is 24 hours a day. One of the ladies we met with today said that the adjustment is hard when it doesnt get dark out, and people mow their lawns at 11 p.m. and go grocery shopping. She said its easy to forget to watch the clock for bedtime, and that telling your children that its time for bed when it gets dark outside doesnt work here. All in all, very different and interesting place to see.

Tomorrow we are leaving to come home, but I have to say that this has been an incredible experience. When we got on the plane in Denver, there were about 12 service men who also boarded the plane. They were coming home for a two week rest leave from Iraq. It is the first time I have seen a soldier up close, their garments have a pixelated camouflage pattern to them now instead of the typical camouflage that we have seen before. Their boots were clean and laced up, and they all had matching backpacks with their last names printed on them. It was a long 6 hour flight to get here to Anchorage. The flight attendant asked if all of the passengers would remain seated so that the servicemen could exit the plane first since they would have family waiting for them at the gate, and amazing enough, not a soul stood before them. They had expressions on their faces that cannot be explained and they just appeared to be strong and untouchable.

I was coming off of the plane to find them embracing their wives and girlfriends, parents, children, and friends. Some holding their child for the first time. I cannot even express what was going through my mind, and how brave all of these individuals are and how they just do what they have to do, those who go and those who stay.

This place feels a bit secluded from the rest of the world, and it kindof is. If you want to go somewhere, you have to fly. There is a small airport here with hundreds of private planes, cessnas and others. You have to fly to get to other parts of Alaska here, it has not been developed with many highways and roads to travel upon, and with good reason too - there is so much snow and ice. Im going to get to check out a glacier before I leave tomorrow, looking forward to that.

The time change of -3:00 has gotten to me, its in the middle of the night where I come from and 10 p.m. here now. I guess I should get some sleep and then prepare for another long day of travel. The northern lights have not been very visible due to the cloud coverage here now, and the season for visibility is almost gone. Maybe I will have the opportunity to visit Alaska once again.

4 comments:

DreamDriven said...

Your jobs seems to be really interesting!! If I may ask why did you choose the career you are in? From reading your post you have a great eye for decor and love what you do aside from work. I think this is great!! Alaska.... Do you have any others goals in the next couple of years? Enjoy your travels stay warm and have a great weekend.

Steph

Ms. M said...

Hi Steph:

Im working on my architectural license. To obtain this, a graduate from an accredited architecture program must work through a designed internship for 3 or more years to fulfill hour requirements in different sections such as site visits, drawings, standard paperwork like contracts, and other forms that architects use to protect themselves and the client with insurance, project requirements, etc. Once you have fulfilled your requirements, then you are eligible to sit for the architectural licensing exam. It is a series of 9 exams, and they must all be taken within a certain period of time, or you have to start the process over.
Im currently working on some interiors too, that is what my graduate degree is in - Interior Design. I think it is all very interesting stuff, and hard work.
I got back from Alaska today, long trip back home.

Not sure why I chose this career, Ive always been interested in design when I was younger. I decided to give it a shot, and made it through the first year at OU so I stayed and finished it. I think if I had to go back and do it all again, I would definately do it.

Are you interested in this sort of work or career yourself?

DreamDriven said...

Hi Ms M.

In high school I took interior design classes and loved the color layout and the design of rooms. Numbers are not my thing but I would love to make something with my own hands. I hope you have a safe trip and enjoy Alaska.

Ms. M said...

Steph:

Alaska was great. I would love to visit again for vacation sometime.