Day 21: Week 2

(September 29)

Bear Sightings: Still 0

Yes, I am still alive. No, I haven’t seen any bears yet. I’ve been busy this week, hence the lack of updates. I’ll try to remedy that with this post. 

Here are some otters as my apology

We worked with the 6^th graders this week in the Discovery Room, due to their schedule we go in on Monday and on Friday for a total of about 3 hours. This is the biggest class we work with; there are 28 kids in the class. Our focus with the 6^th graders is the arctic biome and how that environment effects and is effected by the oil industry. On Monday we brought in trays of frozen muck meant to simulate permafrost and had the kids build clay houses on them. When we came back on Friday we examined the structures and how they had fared when the “permafrost” melted. We talked a little about how climate change can influence the permafrost layer.

We also talked about what defines the “arctic” (area north of the Arctic Circle, north of the tree line, or where it doesn’t get above 10 degrees Celsius in the summer) and what sort of plant and animal life you can find there. I gave a talk about energy and nutrient cycles within the environment. The coolest thing we did was “blubber mittens.” A blubber mitten is a pair of Ziploc bags nested inside one another and filled with Crisco (any type of fat will do). Then you have the kids compare putting their bare hands in a bucket of cold water to putting in their hands protected by blubber. 

Our Tuesday lecture this week was a training session for something called Salmon Blitz. The volunteers go out two to the streams on the delta on two different days, the first day to set minnow traps and the second day to see what they caught. The types of fish caught and their sizes are important, the goal is to map out where salmon spawn, and where they spend the first few years of their lives before they head to the ocean. I signed up to go out, but I didn’t have time this weekend. Luckily the program goes on for weeks so I should have a chance next weekend!

Most of my office time was spent prepping for the Discovery Room or trying to figure out how to edit the tapes from the previous lecture series. I finally got them converted into a file format that Windows Movie Maker (for Windows XP) would read, and started editing late on Thursday. I did take an online “course” that qualifies me to drive a 15 passenger van on field trips, and I spent my day on Sunday (today) getting CPR and First Aid certified. I also got out of the office on Monday to do some water sampling out on the lake. We took a canoe out to where the glacial runoff starts to mix with the lake water and took temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and nitrogen and phosphorus measurements.

The water was super green that day, apparently you can usually see the bottom though.

 BEAR FACT: Bears don't like surprises. When you are out hiking take precautions to make sure bears can sense you coming.

DAY 13: Finishing up the Week

(September 21)

Bear Sightings: 0

The rest of my week has gone well, if slightly uneventful. I met my boss, Kara, on Wednesday. She gave me another tour of the town, and introduced me to some people. Part of my duties will be putting up fliers about the lecture series, so it’s important for me to know my way around. Thursday evening was my first lecture series; the talk was given by one of my coworkers at the science center. She is doing research on a type of shorebird called oystercatchers and their breeding grounds on the coast of North Carolina.

This is the Prince William Sound Science Center, where I work.

I recorded the lecture, and my job now is to edit the video footage and put it up on YouTube. We’re still trying to figure out the format we want to use. We can do full video or just the audio with the powerpoint presentation used as the visual. My goal is to put something together that will be similar to a TED talk, where you have video of the speaker with some of the more important slides from the presentation put up full screen.

On Friday I began work on the video from the lecture. Figuring out the strange file system on the camera and downloading the software I needed to utilize it took up my morning. In the afternoon I went out to the site where the science center holds their summer camps to do a little work. There are a couple of cabins, one of which is still a work in progress. We put up waterproof sheeting on the outside, which will be covered up by siding at a later date. It was really nice to get outside on one of Cordova’s rare sunny days. 

BEAR KEYWORD: “Bearanoid” – A colloquial portmanteau of “bear” and “paranoid.” It is used to describe an intense feeling of worry that you may encounter a bear at any moment. Use: “I went for a hike but I turned back early because I was alone and I got bearanoid.”

Forest of Bearanoia

Some friends and I went mushroom hunting after work at The Haystack, part of the Chugach National Forest. This is a huge boulder mound in the middle of the delta that was deposited by the glaciers. The floor is covered with a thick spongy moss and soil, and it's pretty dim and creepy from the dense trees. I wasn't having much luck or patience with the mushrooms, so I decided to walk down the trail (about a mile each way). There's a cool overlook of the river delta at the end of the trail. I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure I saw a pair of bald eagles out there. Despite my worries, I did not encounter any bears; my companions had picked their fill of mushrooms by the time I returned and we headed home.

I have a new phone number and mailing address up here. If you would like either of them, just email me or leave a comment.

DAY 9: Starting to Serve (I’m technically ‘serving’ not ‘working’)

(September 17)

Bear Sightings: 0

The coolest thing I’ve done so far is the Discovery Room. This project is for 3^rd through 6^th graders and involves students in doing their own scientific research. Depending on the age group the students learn weather monitoring, water sampling, and even build aquatic ROVs (Remote Operated Vehicles). In addition to learning how to collect and record data the students learn how their observations relate to the world around them.

On Monday I was in a fourth grade classroom, primarily as an observer. Marita and Lindsay, my coworkers, did the heavy lifting with the lectures while I took pictures of the proceedings. We spent some time reviewing what the kids had learned the previous year. Then we split them into two groups; one group learned to test a water sample for nitrogen and phosphorus while the other learned to use a Niskin bottle and other equipment. After a while the groups switched instructors, and we finished up with a review of what we’d learned.

Saw a bald eagle while we were driving around on Monday

Today (Tuesday) we went to see the fifth grade class, with the same basic outline. Lindsay was unable to join us, so I took over teaching how to use the equipment. Photosynthesis came up in our review, and I was asked to give an explanation of how to balance an equation (water + carbon dioxide yields sugar + oxygen). I did a review of how to count the atoms in each molecule, then gave a simplified explanation on the Law of Conservation of Mass. I expected the kids to get bored and have to make a quick ending to my talk, but they were engaged the whole time, and most of them followed the math! It felt pretty awesome!

BEAR FACT: Bears have personal space just like we do. Bears will act to protect food, cubs, or their bubble.

My boss returns to the office tomorrow, I’m excited to get into more of the work. I’ll be video taping and making fliers for the weekly lectures, trying to modify the ROVs to have variable speeds (instead of on vs off), and continuing to meet with the students in the classroom or in the field once a month.

Day 7: Untitled

(September 15)

Bear Sightings since last post: 0

Total Bear Sightings: 0

BEAR FACT: You can't outrun a bear.

Today was my last day before I start work. It was sunny out for once, so I took the opportunity to take a hike. I walked partway around the lake, saw some planes land (on land and on water), and took some pictures.

New desktop background!

I took my dinner out on the back deck and watched the sunset, I didn't feel like I should give up any sunlight while I've still got it. The meal was punctuated by the splashes of fish jumping out of the water. My temporary roommate, Emily, flew back to Oregon today, depleting the fish stores considerably.

Sad freezer.

Its a little strange being up here by myself. Not in a scary bear/axe murderer attack sort of way. It's just been a really long time since I haven't had a roommate. I'm looking forward to some human interaction at work this week.

I thought I’d extend this post a little with a bit of sticker shock. I present to you: Excerpts From a Cordovan Grocery Receipt.

Black Beans - $1.20/can (bulk)

Prego Pasta Sauce - $4.65

Ground Beef - $3.87/lb

Eggs - $3.75/dozen

Milk - $4.49/half gallon

This has been Excerpts From a Cordovan Grocery Receipt.

Day 6: Intro to Cordova

(Saturday, September 14)

Bear Sightings since last post: 0

Total Bear Sightings: 0

I’ve now spent a full 24+ hours in Cordova. For the record: it is gorgeous here. I would like to apologize for not updating sooner, it has been a really full couple of days. That being said, it’s going to be tough to remember everything. I’ll probably make some interesting format decisions, so just bear (pun intended, Kristen) with me.

On Wednesday of Orientation Week (9/11, a national day of service) we volunteered at a soup kitchen called Bean’s Café. We all had different jobs throughout the day. I started with outdoor trash pickup (in the rain), then moved inside for table and chair cleaning. Not much later I traded up to reorganizing the storage trailer, we opened up a lot of space; and our “boss,” Lee, was very grateful. The whole group finished up the day packing beans and spices into bags; we made soup kits to sell as a fundraiser. I don’t remember anything of note after we left the café, probably because we just went home, watched a show, and I fell asleep on the couch.

Everyone signed a banner for us to take with us.

Thursday (last day) of Orientation Week: We did our final paperwork, copied IDs (I have the wrong passport!), and met with an Alaska State Representative for our swearing in (yeah, we have an oath!). If you want to see pictures, they are here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/100977458@N04/sets/72157635501136649/. After lunch we went for a hike along the waterfront trail; I went on to REI, then met up with friends at a restaurant (Moose’s Tooth has amazing beers) and a select few of us had a final round downtown. All told I walked about 11 miles that day; Anchorage is a pretty cool city.

BEAR FACT: Alaska is one of the few places in the world where all three species (Black, Brown, and Polar) of North American bears live.

Friday was travel day, I got my bags repacked, went out to pick up lunch, and then it was off to the airport. My flight was extremely short, only 50 minutes. I’m not sure they could have finished the water and peanut service if the plane hadn’t been half full. I was lucky enough to sit on the landward side, so I got amazing views of the mountains on my way in, I even saw a glacier (not surprising since there are 4 or 5 around here)! I was picked up by Marita, a future coworker, who showed me my place and around town. I picked up some groceries and then wound up at a potluck someone was having. It was a lot of fun, and I got to meet some more coworkers, all of whom were very nice.

On Saturday I woke up to an amazing view, had a chance to do some laundry, then I went out to explore town. It takes me a little over half an hour to walk to work; it isn’t bad, but I’m going to look into borrowing a bike from somebody. I stopped in a couple local shops, a book store and an outdoor clothing store. I also picked up some more essentials at the grocery and hardware stores. When I got home I made some taco soup to share with my temporary roommate (leaving Sunday) who is leaving me salmon which she caught and cleaned herself!

Most of these are headed for the lower 48, but I get to keep some!

I’m excited to start work on Monday! I’ll be headed right into the thick of it; I’m going to be in classrooms on Monday and Tuesday afternoon. Other than that, all I know is that I should be in at 9 in the morning.