Another Montage

"I Jokes"

One of the many things that I've picked up one while listening to my students is the phrase "I jokes" or "just jokes". It's something that the village as a whole uses and I've caught myself using it a few times. So instead of saying "I was just joking" or "WHOA - Don't hit me! I was just kidding!" you simply say: "I jokes".

Getting Out

the tri-fecta (Kimmy, Julie and myself) were invited out to go camping in a cabin out near fish camp Friday night.

We eagerly took the oppurtunity to change our surroundings. Later that night, I had my first "steam" in a homemade sauna and was proved a fool by thinking that the cold water was going to lower the temperature -- far from it. We made a bonfire and watched the sun take its time setting below and very still Iliamna Lake.

Another Sunset

Here's another sunset pic - this time at 11:01 at night.

Kokhannok At Night

This is the view from my classroom at 10:47 at night

A Montage of Kokhanok

First Day of School

The big day finally came around. My classes consisted of two English classes and two Social Studies. I decided to take my English classes out for a walk down to the beach ... little do they know I'm going to have them write about it tomorrow. Oh, Mom, before you say anything, I lost my razor and I've ordered a new one.

Things got a little nervous when two girls decided it was in their best interest to climb on top of a rusted out building.


My Social Studies started off with a quiz to see what they know about US History from 1865 to now. There's not a lot.



The little kids seem to be looking up to me - that's literally and figuratively.



The school bus is actually a Ford Expedition. I'm thinking about calling Ford up and seeing if they'd be willing to do a commercial on our bus.

Berries

Went out and picked berries before driving out to Lake Gibraltor (those pics I'll get up shortly) yesterday.

The red berries are known as "cranberries" and the darker ones are "blackberries" while the blue are .... you can guess it.

I went out to King Salmon as part of training and met "Red" who owns a native artwork store. A shy man at first, he truly opened up when someone expressed an interest in the pieces for sale.

Texans...

I'll let the picture speak for itself but this is our dear Kimmy, Kokhanok's sole Texan, filleting salmon for the first time.

"Now that's something you don't see everyday"

While hauling boxes downstairs into the library, my boss and I overheard the radio saying that Penn Air was going to be landing in ten minutes. Todd said "Oh that should be Greg to get these doors on" - naturally I volunteered to drive the pickup down to the air strip and pick him up.

When I get there the town multi-purpose jeep was already parked. I say "mutli-purpose" as it's been used to get mail, haul out a boat, patrol for poachers, pick up kids and for a new duty I was soon to discover. I assumed that it was at the "strip" to get the rest of the mail as today was Wednesday, one of the few days we get mail, but no. The front passenger door opens and out walks the state trooper, fully loaded, complete with vest, gun, pistol, rifle and state issued hat. He keys into the back door and out hops one of the towns denizens who curiously raised his hands to the trooper. The trooper retrieves handcuffs from his back pocket, slaps them on this guy and the two walk over to the plane that has just landed where both are greeted heartily by the pilot.

Greg gets into the truck and we drive back to the school. When I get back, I tell Julie (the Science \ Math teacher and praiser of my coffee) about what I had just seen. Without blinking, she goes "oh yea, that's ________ he was being shipped off to Anchorage for domestic abuse...didn't you hear the radio last night?"

Kokhanok Day Five

Get settled, that's important.

I will say that it seems as though I've lived a few months here already on account of what I've done. The first night I arrived, the other two new hires and myself keyed into the school and wandered about. We found the school to be a complete mess. The school is going under a remodel and with 12 days out before the doors open for students doors were unhinged, carpeting was non-existent, books and materials for all the grades and subjects were scattered throughout the building, desks were broken and the ever precious "teacher binder" was discovered in the far back corner on a shelf buried under by boxes. I wouldn't have been surprised had a moose strolled through the room.

The housing is far more than what I expected so that's a relief and I'm working with the most laid back crew probably ever assembled - and for good reason. When it come to the staff, everyone has a distinct and colorful background making us all individuals in our own right. One has a deep Texan accent bordered by an outgoing energized personality, another has worked for almost twenty years in Yellowstone and is gifted with an "aw-shucks" sensibility.



Another co-worker got married on Sunday to one of the locals and I know now that Russian Orthodox weddings are long. The newlyweds hopped on a Honda and drove down the dirt road to the Community Hall for the reception where my apple crisp was left lonely to heaps of Agutuk (berries mixed with either salmon or crisco).



The younger kids are wonderful. We've run into them now & then on the playground - just outside our front door - and have gone on walks with them. These walks soon turn into "hey - let's tell the new teachers about..." and in short order we're hearing about "hairy man", "little people", "hula-hooks", and the infamous lake monster.

Training Alongside Lake lliamna

I arrived on the 7th to the village of Newhalem for a series of training activities designed to prepare me for the next nine months. It's a wierd world to be in when you take off from Anchorage sipping an espresso, typing out a text message and within fifty minutes to be in a location where *everything* is flown in, the internet and telephone lines drop from service for weeks at a time and the runway is longer than the road - but that's to be expected.

What I didn't expect was the very real openness of the locals. Last night, Bill (the science teacher for Newhalem) was invited to a wedding reception here in town. I went with him along with three other new hires to the event which was hosted in the teen center. Between the five of us, we all agreed that it was the best reception any of us had attended. A live band played while being entertained by the sight of young and old dancing. The floor was subjected to waltzes, a Russian "hop" dance, swing and that thing that I do when I don't know what to do. My favorite sight was watching one gentleman, well into his 70s, dance the floor with just about every lady there. Despite not knowing a soul in the place, it felt as though we had been there our entire lives and we had just returned home. It was very welcoming and reassuring to feel that way.

Knowing we had a 7am meeting, we left the sweaty building to a parking lot of 4 wheelers still well lit at 11:30. A deep harvest moon was making its appearence to the east and compelled by it all we hiked down to the shore. Utter silence is a wierd thing to describe but it's here in big scoops.

It's hard to concentrate on DIBELS, PEPs, and gearing together a thematic unit when, all the while, out the window the lake is shifting colors and mountains - endless mountains - cloak themselves behind commuting clouds. It reminds me of Flathead Lake in Montana...up until you realize that there are roads crisscrossing those mountains and there will be lights of buisnesses on later that night.

Kickoff to Kokhanok

With over 42 people, the party was a success. Granted not even half of the ribs were consumed but who's counting? The Duck-Farts were finished off, my mother came damn close to choppin' off the hands of Ms Runge for just wanting a slice of the cake SHE MADE, Stromer relished the crowd as usual and if you're down with an off key, unrehearsed version of "Beyond the Sea" - well you came to the right place.