Yeah. So we had a 6.24 magnitude earthquake here in Alaska yesterday. Its epicenter was 100 miles away and very deep in the Earth's mantle, but still. WTF? That shit is NOT fun. Scared the daylights and the nightlights out of me. I was a mess all day and all night.
Also. I've learned that there are spores that live in the glacial ice. It's not "pure" and it's not necessarily "safe" to eat. Giardia lives in them thar spores and it makes you REALLY sick. I be living proof.
Also, too? The Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean? They are significantly different. One is evil and the other is way more forgiving. I almost died in Prince William Sound about a month after I arrived. Big weather system + ice cold rain + improper gear + lack of food + dangerously low blood sugar + a four mile kayak paddle to safety = An EXTREMELY pissed off and upset person (that would be me).
Oh, it was a scene, man. I won't go into vast detail about the horridness of that kayak trip, but suffice it to say, I will NEVER EVER EVER go on the ocean in a goddamn kayak unless it's 80 degrees, sunny and we are never more than a mile from shore. FOR PETE's SAKE. Oh, it was terrible.
Then I've learned a ton about the geography of Alaska and the vastness of it. That the mountains you see are only a hint of what lies beyond those front ranges...I took these pictures of the Alaska Range (I think) as I was flying home a few weeks ago:
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| That "river" of ice you see is actually a GIANT glacier! Incredible. |
Oooooo! There's a giant Stellers Jay on my back deck right now. (That's not one of the things I've learned - it's just a fact!) I'll try to get a picture of him. They're really pretty birds:
And they're big! Almost the size of a magpie - much bigger than the Blue Jays we had in Michigan and Massachusetts.
Oh, another thing I've learned. Verizon is a terrible phone service in Alaska. When I recently (on Monday) ran the 8.0 update for my iPhone? Well, turns out that it de-activated my phone. And in order to re-activate it, I'd have to go to any of the other 49 states in the United States. Sorry, no can do in Alaska. WTF? It has been days and days of me talking to technical people on my friend's phone and on my husband's phone to try to get my NEW AT&T service activated.
Nope. Nada. Now gonna try a new SIM card. Hopefully THAT will work. Weird to not have phone or text for almost a week! I never in a million years thought I'd say "Thank God for Facebook" - but that's what I've been saying. Especially since yesterday morning when we had that pretty earthquake...
Also, my poor Dad and his wife - their beloved bird, Rusty, died yesterday after a bunch of complications in the last few weeks. Death sucks. Whether is a person, your cat, your dog, your bird. Loss just stinks. THAT I learned quite some time ago. Loss is loss - doesn't matter what it looks like.
The last thing I'll regale you with today is the whole deal about domestic violence. I never really realized that it had touched my life in such a significant way - but it had. Again, no details necessary. After what happened to my 19 year-old friend, it kind of hit me hard the different forms that domestic violence can take. Whether it's sort of subversive comments, nasty sarcasm, name-calling, belittling, or outright rage and hitting - it's all really bad shit and has no place in a loving, supportive relationship.
There are more things I've recently learned about - like what it means to be an "ambivert" and that introverted people generally get a bad rap. And I've learned a lot about theoretical physics lately via books and lectures by Michio Kaku (I've got weird hobbies).
I've also learned that the most important person in your life is YOU. If you don't treat yourself well and with respect, how ya gonna expect anyone else to do it?
Lastly - and this is something I've known for a loooong while - Jon Stewart Rocks! Here's a recent clip that I found via The Huffington Post.
Later, peeps!
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