Things I Learned Living in Alaska.

I learned some things living in Alaska for the past (almost) 2 years.  

1. Alaskans party harder.  You think you do?  You're wrong.

2. Despite the parties, I still don't like whiskey.

3. Riding in shoulder deep powder is 98% exhilarating 2% terrifying.  The fear of falling and getting lost in the snow was enough to keep me upright.

4. How to drive using "braille".

5. That the "shuffle" feature on iPods can ruin an awesome run.  Nothing is worse than being in the zone and iPod decides to change your song. 

6. It's a different world in Alaska. Seriously.  I can't explain it, but it is.

7. We deep fry Salmon.  You may never find this in a restaurant in the rest of the US, but we have 50 lbs in our freezers, so why not fry it?

8. A moose encounter is more intimidating than a black bear.  (I hope I'm not alone on this one...)

9. 60 degrees can be freezing or sweltering.

10. It's not cold until you step outside and the chill literally takes your breath away and instantly freezes your nose, eyes, throat, etc.

11. By day 3 my hair starts getting greasy.  

12. You do get to choose your family and they get to choose you too.

13. Lifties are a special breed of people.  They can vomit off the lift, shovel feet of snow, then still go ride harder than anyone else on the mountain. (I'm not including myself on this, we all know that I don't ride hard.)

I'm loving Idaho but I'm still missing Alaska every day.  We just got the 2013 gear guide in the mail, I'm in heaven.

Appendicitis, what?

That's right, this girl, a week before moving, had her appendix out.  Let me explain.
Sunday afternoon I started experiencing some very minor stomach pain.  Our going away party had been Saturday night, so I played it off as a gas bubble as a result from drinking the night before.  Dylan and I had dinner plans with Greg and Nicole so we went and had a fantastic feast of coconut salmon and halibut.  When I got up from eating the pain was much worse.  Damn you gas bubble!  So we went home, I chugged some pepto like it was fall 2008 and went to bed.  When I woke up at 3:30am with pain I started self diagnosing.  Constipation, food poisoning, gas bubble, cramps.  Eventually I was able to pass back out so I could wake up at 6 and go to work.  That's when I started realizing that perhaps this wasn't a gas bubble.  I sat at work (with my head between my legs, crying) for 5 hours until Johnny finally answered his phone to come take over my duties (this is a whole other story that I am not going to put online.)  I had been texting/calling/crying to my mom while at work and she suggested something to relax my stomach, so I baby stepped to the merc and got some more Pepto.  When that had done absolutely nothing for my pain, she started urging me to go to the ER.  To which I thought, I don't want to go to the ER for a gas bubble!  Well, when Johnny showed up and I stood up, I decided maybe mom was right. I promptly called Cody, cried into the phone that I needed a ride to the hospital and 5 minutes later Cody and James arrived in my chariot to the hospital.  Oh, the things I owe those boys.

Waiting to hear my diagnosis.

Upon my ER arrival, I was quickly taken to a room where I was told to put on a gown, which provided zero warmth, in my freezing cold room.  The doctors and nurses arrived (with warm blankets, might I add) pretty quickly and I was told my pain was either a ruptured ovarian cyst or my appendix.  After some poking, prodding, a few doses of morphine (love), a CT scan, and a couple naps, I was informed that it was indeed my appendix.  This was the time when I could no longer be brave.  I was scared, I was alone, and I had lost a friend due to complications with his appendix.  Shortly after a few more pokes and prods, phone calls to my mom, hundreds of texts, and panicky voicemails to Dylan, he finally got off work and was at the hospital. YAY!  I was scared I wasn't going to get to see him before going into surgery, so it was a major relief when he showed up.  My surgery didn't end up happening until 10pm and by then my pain level was at a 12.  The staff was all very nice and helpful.  They explained everything and were comforting and friendly.  I honestly felt like I was in good hands.  My surgery went quickly and had no complications.  I was discharged into Dylans care at 2:30am and got to come home and learn that I could only sleep sitting up.

Before surgery.  That's the morphine smiling.

As of now, I am feeling pretty good all things considered.  My belly is full of gas from the surgery and that is causing me discomfort and my pain is pretty low.  After the pain I was in yesterday this is pretty much nothing.  Dylan has been babying me all day and took the rest of the week off of work so he can take care of me and finish all the things that I was going to do before we moved.  I go back to the doctor Friday afternoon for a routine follow up.  I am optimistic that I will be feeling better by then, considering how I'm feeling today.
We are still hoping to leave Saturday morning, I won't be able to do much driving since I will still be on medications, and I'm not sure that we will be able to camp along the way, but Dylan has already told me that he's going to make the car super comfortable for me.  I am lucky to have him and Ruckus.  Ruckus hasn't left my side since he got home from Cody's.  Good dog.  I am lucky this happened when it did and not next week.  I am lucky to have such supportive and loving friends and family, who have been texting and calling constantly to check on me.  I am blessed.