Halloween Weekend

Halloween!!! What a big weekend it is here in Oscarville with lots of festivities. Friday, Oct 28th we had our Halloween Carnival. The H.S. Student Council puts it on as a fund raiser. There are carnival booths: duck match, ice fishing, ping-pong toss, bean bag toss, and face painting.

Chinace is face painting Bethany.

Jessi and Elizabeth are looking for a match at the duck pond while William watches.

Mr. Straw, our principal, with his little bunny, Ezra.

Cake walk FEVER!!


After the booth events we have a cake walk, which is the big event of the carnival. At one time we had 20 people walking the circle in hopes of scoring a cake. Fun, fun, for everyone!!

Saturday night the H.S. had their annual haunted house. This year they decided not to charge so everyone could enjoy; it was a community service activity. It is great fun to hear all the screams and laughter from the people going through the haunted house. Every year the littlest ones barely make it through, if they make it through at all. This year Anissum, one of my juniors, wanted to make a gallow to have someone "hang" from. And so he did. I love that about my students; they are hand-on capable and they get it done!!~!

Sunday the community trick-or-treated. Tiffany and I decided to dress up (using fabric as gowns) two of Cinderella's wicked and ugly step sisters. We called Valerie and told her she should be Cinderella and Nick could be Prince Charming. Hilarious!!! Yes, there are photos, but not to be seen just now or on this blog. Hilarious!!!! Oh, what can be done with some fabric, a wig, and some crazy make up. Fun, fun, fun....Halloween for all ages.

Boff and Trevor

The Straws: Nick, Valerie, and Ezra (aka the Lil' Dinosaur)

Nathan and Raeanne

Annalayne

Aurora Borealis

Yesterday morning (November 1st)I was walking CranB as I do every morning and was noticing how very clear the stars were. Star gazing in the mornings is incredible here in Oscarville. The clearer and crisper the air the better the viewing. Well, yesterday as I was looking up I saw the infamous Northern Lights, also known as Aurora Borealis, and squealed. Yes, I am a squealer during moments of delight, but those of you who know me already are aware of that little Segue fact. As a tour leader in Alaska I saw the lights a handful of times, but yesterday morning was the first sighting I have had since living here in the Great North. SO AMAZING!!!

I was so excited I ran back to my house dragging CranB (she didn't know what was going on but was content to follow) so I could tell Tiffany. She came outside to look; her first year and already she has seen The Lights!! In all the excitement I didn't grab my Flip camera. A regular photo wouldn't do it justice, but maybe the Flip could have caught the greens shining across the sky with flickers of blue. CranB and I went out again and ran back across the village. Even though we live in a teeny village we have street (boardwalk) lights and the viewing of the Aurora Borealis was seen best on the other side of the village, closer to the Kuskokwim River, on the far side of the two story building. If you had a map of my village this would make more sense. The short of the long of it is the viewing was better away from the lights, away from my house.

In my various viewings of the Northern Lights, the lights look different: the colors, the patterns, the time. This light appeared to be shining up from behind something, but it wasn't. The morning's air crisp and the stars shone bright; there were no clouds in the sky. And yet this green light beamed up into the sky radiating such beauty and energy. The sight simply awesome, and I full of awe.

Winter has arrived, or at least the weather

Our first snow of the season was actually Wednesday, October the 12th, but it only snowed a little and didn't last. Last week I could smell the cold coming; oh, what an invigorating aroma! This week the cold weather came and I believe it might be sticking around this time. Finally! The last two years I've been in Oscarville we were already in freeze up by now, so this seems a bit late to me.

This October, however, snow would fall and melt, then rain would come and chase the snow off the boardwalks, but now the cold continues. We now have slush on the slough banks and ice thickly coating the boardwalks.

It is just a matter of time until the river begins to properly freeze and boats are pulled out and snow-gos are out.

Robotics 2011-2012

Robotics is underway yet again. Actually, it has been underway for awhile now, but we have had a slow start here in Oscarville. Tiffany is coaching our first ever Jr.FLL (Junior First Lego Lego) team (elementary); their challenge this year is Snack Attack.

The FLL (First Lego League)team consists of the junior high students and this year they have The Food Factor Challenge. The high school FTC (First Tech Challenge)team's Challenge is called Bowled Over!

FLL has to build all the pieces for the challenge using legos. It is quite an undertaking! FLL has three major components to its competition: design, competition matches, a research project. This week I had a calling out for all students to come help build the components for the FLL challenge. The elementary students were especially helpful. They were great sorters and helpers and they were very patient builders. I was so engrossed in the process I forgot to take pictures. It is so good to be that involved and we all were. I have made a mental note to take pictures at our future practices.

Stayed tuned for more Robotics updates from Oscarville!!!

Kayaking Again

Over the years I have done my fair share of rowing and paddling in various waters, but you wouldn’t know it if you saw Tiffany and I in Oscarville Slough in our inflatable kayak. You’d hear laughter and see lots of movement in the boat but not distance being made in the water. Why is that? I’ve been told that maybe our choice times of going coincide with the tide making it more challenging paddling up stream. That could have something to do with it, but I think there is more to our challenge. For one, Tiffany and I share the one kayak paddle by unscrewing it in the middle and making two short paddles. Another challenge is the kayak itself. I researched and asked around about what would be best for what I wanted here on the Kuskokwim. I did want an inflatable for ease of transporting, but really I need a water vessel that has ease in the water. I am more accustomed to hard-shelled canoes and kayaks. My kayak is self-bailing which means you sit in water from the get-go. Perhaps not so bad for cool water in a hot place, but cold water in a cold place….I think a wet suit is in order!

Although Tiffany and I were geared up with wet boots and rain gear, we were wet through and through. Yes indeed our waterproof gear keeps the water in and the water out. The trouble is water finds its way between the boots and the pants and makes it way upward and we wiggle and giggle. CranBerry didn’t help matters either because she doesn’t especially enjoy being in the inflatable craft. CranBerry also disliked being wet (as if we delighted in sitting in very cold water), so rather than sit or stand in the boat she straddled the boat by standing on the sides (front paws on one side and back paws on the other). So we tried to move her around thinking it would be easier for us. Oh, no. We guided her to the front of the kayak as we shifted from our bums to our knees and back to our bums. CranB either had her rear end in Tiffany’s face or her front paws on Tiffany’s chest in a reinactment of the famous scene from Titanic.

Just as we were making progress upstream CranB decided to go back to the center of the boat making us giggle and wiggle again, and whenever that happened the paddling stoped and downriver we begin to drift. Laughter echoed in the slough as we bumped into the shoreline trying to hold on to tree limbs while we pulled ourselves together. Tiffany let out a little scream over something green and possible alive. I might have wet myself from laughing so hard, but you’d never know because I was so wet already. We had a few onlookers curious at what the crazy white teachers were doing. One elder saw us and just shook his head. We waved and laughed as we fought our way up current.

When we were ready to head back home all we did was stop paddling and we floated back. How peaceful and relaxing and quick! The current guided us back lickedly split. For all the effort and time it took us to go one direction, it was effortless to return. As soon as the boat hit shore CranB leaped out grateful to be on solid ground. Tiffany and I threw our gear up on the top bank and began pulling the kayak out of the water. We were so full of water that our clothes drug the ground and laughter began again. Thankfully Kalila, one of my students, came by and lifted the kayak out (effortlessly) and helped us put it in the container. What a spectacle we were! I fell over because my pants were falling due to the weight of the water and Tiffany was staggering on the boardwalk. So much fun!!!

Cross Country

This season my team consists of 1 high schooler-Kalila, 1 junior high student-Colton, and 4 fourth graders-Trevor, Irene, Bethany, and Raeanne.



Fri, Sept 2nd: Akiachak (Kalila)



The day before heading to Akiachak I received an email that there was only going to be J.H. divisions competing because too many schools weren’t coming because it was also the opening weekend of moose season. We decided to go ahead and go to Akiachak so Kalila could have a chance to compete. Akiachak is in the Yupiit School district up river from LKSD.

The only teams competing in the Mud Run (5K) was Akiachak, Bethel, Kwethluk, and Oscarville. Kwethluk flew home after dinner so that left only Bethel and us to overnight in the school. Akiachak always feeds us so well. For dinner they served fresh salmon caught by students and staff. Mmmm good.



Akiachak has two stores and, of course, we had to check them both out. Going "to the store" is a must when we travel. Sometimes I think the students look forward to that more than the event. And it is understandable, since we don't have a store in Oscarville. The one run by natives had lots of empty shelves and little selection. The other store now ran by a Welshman had stocked shelves and boxes of goods to be unpacked on all the isles. I have never seen a village store so full of variety and even fresh fruits like bananas and kiwis.

Usually we have a fun relay race the day after the competition, but since only Bethel and Oscarville stayed the night the relay race was cancelled. Fog delayed our departure several hours; small planes were not flying so we ended up catching a ride to Bethel with the Bethel team in a caravan. We were suppose to fly to Napaskiak and be picked up by a parent in our community, but with the change of plans I called Olga, our school secretary and community nucleus, and she contacted our ride and let him know we were now flying to Bethel instead of Napaskiak, but due to the fog the time of arrival was still unknown. Once in Bethel I borrowed a phone to call our ride to let him know we had made it to Bethel and he came and picked us up and took us home to Oscarville. Another great reason to always carry a book to read; both Kalila and I had plenty of time to read while we waited.

Fri, Sept 9th: Kwethluk (Kalila, Trevor, Bethany, Raeanne)
Kwethluk is the only village we go to that offers an elementary division race this is especially exciting since the majority of my team is in elementary. The elementary race is about a mile and a good distance for them to begin with. This was Bethany and Raeanne’s first time to travel so both girls were so excited yet so very shy at the same time. Trevor and Kalila both are quite social when traveling. Trevor continued to encourage the girls to join in basketball because it was “so fun”, but they weren’t quite ready for that. By the end of the junior high race my students had become more confident (louder) in their cheering. At first they thought it was too embarrassing to yell at the runners, but I told them it was helpful to the runners and a sign of positive sportsmanship. So cute they were cheering and giggling at themselves.
Elementary Girls: 1st place Raeanne
2nd place Bethany

Elementary Boys: 4th place Trevor



Sat, Sept 17th: Bethel (Kalila, Trevor, Colton, Bethany, Raeanne, Irene)
Bethel-the biggest and most challenging race of our cross country season. The course is in a sand pit and there are ups and downs and sand galore-nothing like village courses and definitely nothing like our practices in Oscarville. There is only junior high and high school divisions, but I took my four 5th graders because they had earned the right to run.

Friday when we were picked up our driver joked with the students by telling them that the first 50 runners to dinner were going to be given cheeseburgers. Fast forward to race day… Trevor crossed the finish line 47th and immediately asked where to go to get his cheeseburger. Trevor had misunderstood the joke and thought it was for the first 50 runners across the finish line. Trevor said he had run his hardest thinking about that cheeseburger the whole race. He had placed in the top 50th and was disappointed that there were no cheeseburgers. Olga, Trevor’s mother, and Barbara and Galen, Colton and Bethany’s parents, had come to watch the runners run. Trevor and Colton left after the junior high race and went out to eat at a restaurant; Galen bought Trevor his cheeseburger.

Mail

Since Oscarville does not have a post office, I should say the joys and tribulations of sending and receiving mail. Our mailing address is a Napaskiak P.O. Box. Although Napaskiak may only be a mile across the Kuskokwim River, sometimes it seems like a much greater distance.

Because of the challenges or despite them, we enjoy getting mail very much once it makes it to us! We get mail ABOUT every other week. Packages can be at the post office, but it doesn’t mean they are always picked up right away. It is easier to pick up mail in the winter because a snow machine and sled can be driven right up to the post office. This time of year getting mail takes more effort, especially if large packages are involved because it is boating season and once you park the boat there is a fair distance to walk and depending of the tide there can also be quite a bit of mud and muck to wade through.

A few weeks back both Tiffany and I knew we had packages in Napaskiak and were eager for someone to pick them up and bring them over to Oscarville. One Saturday we knew Mr. Straw, our principal, was heading to Napaskiak and we were hoping, praying, and crossing fingers that he would go over before 4pm (when the post office closes) and even more hopeful he would bring back all the mail and packages. Tiffany and I were both working at school (as we so often do on Saturdays) and Tiffany was on the lookout for any sign that the school boat was gone which would mean Mr. Straw was off to Napaskiak. Sure enough it had left well before 4pm so hope was on the rise. You’d think we were waiting for St. Nick himself (oddly enough we were because Mr. Straw’s name is Nick).

As soon as he hit shore I heard Tiffany holler; we both bolted out the front of the school trying to look cool and helpful when we were actually bouncing all over the place thinking (no we aren’t subtle AT ALL) “where are our boxes?” Someone had already carried them to our house and left them on our porch. We dashed over to our house grabbed scissors and our mini Christmas began. Tiffany’s boxes were from her parents and mine were two boxes I had sent myself before I left Oklahoma. She received her life jacket, a definite must living in a boating village and the real desired treats of M&Ms and Mountain Dew plus some other goodies.

Snail mail is without a doubt one of the nicest pleasures and luxuries here in Oscarville. I know we live in an electronic age, but snail mail cannot be beat. It is a true tangible connection to the outside world. I subscribe to various publications and I delight in receiving each and every one of them. I read them cover-to-cover several times; the first read I always save for a weekend so I can sit down and lose myself in the pages of the newest edition. Any personal letter or card I receive is also read several times and then it becomes part of my décor. Receiving pictures, notes, and packages from friends and family reminds me that distance has no place in matters of the heart. I may choose to live in a remote little rural Alaskan village, but by no means do I want to be disconnected from those I care about.