Toksook Bay photos

Toksook Bay visit

Toksook Bay, a village of about 600 (220 are students, not including Head Start), is on Nelson Island, NW of Bethel & Nunapitchuk by about 100 miles. There once was volcanic activity here; Imagine rolling green & blonde hills, hugged by the crisp bay, an occasional herd of Muskox snacking on the berries, I'm sure. The island is relatively small, so on the flight in I could see Tununak on the other side too. Remember the 'stone people' photos from spring 2 years ago?

I'm here in Toksook with a couple of boys for the cross-country meet. (Despite 19 odd kids coming to practice here & there, 2 have been committed enough to do double practices for almost a week, hence the 2 traveling.) Three other teams from villages have extended their stay an extra night with us. The village is also having the black berry festival, so there have been fiddle dances, Yurraq (Eskimo dancing by several different villages), arts & crafts sales (couldn't find it). Contests for qaspaqs (Eskimo shirt), a paddle boat race (supposed to be announced over the vhf, no vhf), bike (no word about when or where), "fun run" for anyone who wanted to run 5K, berry picking contest. It's been rather nice, with a lot of breaks from the overcast or night showers with sunny skies & a nice breeze. The hill-side is just littered with berries everywhere. I expected the water at the beach to be frigid, but it was semi-cold to the touch; I could keep my hand in there for a little bit anyway. It's so energizing.

It's also been nice to see some folks I haven't seen in a while (other coaches-Amanda from Goodnews, Ox & Marty - NYO coaches, Deanna & Vikki from Akiuk 2.5 m. away from Nunap.) & meeting new people from the Toksook staff & Bethel. There's a huge movie screen w/ projector, almost as big as Quin's & the kids have been playing an x-box using that screen. What a dream that is!

So now I'm off to bed because we're getting up early to go on a hike to the ridge of the hill where the 'stone people' (stone carrions) are.

Photos to come...

Lunar Eclipse

My new roommate, Maria, & I stayed awake for he lunar eclipse last night, well 1:30-2:30 this am. We also had lightning which looked like it was huge flash coming from the ground & it was soundless. The northern lights were active & looked like a mint green smear getting bigger the higher it went. There was one part which moved, rippling through the air. The milky way was just over head & the stars were magnificent with such little moon light. The moon had an amber overtone. There was also a very chilly wind whisping around us. The dogs were howling away at certain times, you could hear the river water hit against the dock, & there was a bit of chatter from some other folks out watching the night's sky.

Otherwise, things are kind of stressful, but it's the beginning of the school year. Even though I only have 14 students (yay!) the diversity is like a multi-grade class, just two years. I'm coaching cross-country with an all boy team. We've been pulling double practices (7:30am & 4pm) + a Sat. practice so that some will be eligible to play. They need 10 to be able to travel. Also, my online class started last week, lots of reading but it's interesting. This class is nutrition, bodycare, & herbalism & will last 6 mon. That's it for now...

Say "Cheese!"

http://profile.myspace.com/87844930

"Hey everybody!" (If you haven't seen "The Simpson Movie" get in your car & go now. Ok, back on subject...)

From the above website you can see the near 200 photos that I've uploaded. I even put captions with some of them. Go to the 'pics' link under my photo. You should be able to view them even if you don't have a MySpace account.

5% down, 95% to go!