Today at 7:15PM AST (10:15PM CST, 11:15PM EST, sometime on Tuesday Central European Time – if your internet is up by then, Germany) I will officially will have lived in Alaska for six (6) months.

Knowing this day has been coming, I spent some time over the last week wondering how to mark this anniversary of sorts. I mean, its hard to sum up the last six months in one little post.  I mean, look at your own last 6 months and do the same — then think about the upheaval of a new life and … well, you get the picture.  As much as I would love to give you a big rundown of what my life up here has been like, my ego tells me “It’s a flippin achieved blog!  If they were smart enough to read this post … they can go back to the other ones I’ve written.” (Can you tell it’s a Monday?)

As I brooded about it, I stood next to the window near my desk – the low hanging clouds showing the snow/rain mix to the north blocking the view of Denali, and I chatted with a co-worker about the weather and what we can see.  It reminded me of the conversation I had with the son of the woman who owned my house before, and how from the back porch I can see the Chugachs and the snow falling on it.  Then I thought of the conversation I had about the many waterfalls cut into the different hills and valley, and what they might be like come spring.  Then another brought up in a meeting this morning when it was suggested how great its going to be when the sun is up hours and hours and all the things we get to do then.  These were all amazing things I love about this place — but what I loved was that there are so many of us that talk about what makes it amazing, almost like we need each other to remind ourselves where we are and how lucky we are to be here.  It feels like, sometimes, being Alaskan means not just being in a great place, but sharing it with others as best we can.

For the past six months I have written ninety-seven (97) posts to The Bear Feed.  Some of you have read them all, some not so much.  I’ve tried to do my best to describe how stunningly beautiful, how surprisingly rewarding, and how much fun it is to live in Alaska.  But reading through it, unless you have lived or been to this place you really have no idea how understated my blog is.  To be honest, there isn’t a day that goes by I wonder what it would have been like to make a different decision than I did 6 months ago; but I am glad I have been able to experience what I have experienced so far.  In the end, I know y’all wouldn’t read this if you didn’t enjoy reading it, and I appreciate you for that.  But you’re appreciated just as much for giving me the chance to share this place with you so I can remind myself how amazing it is.

Thank you for reading The Bear Feed for any part of the last six months, and let’s see what is ahead of us in the next six months.