Camping Out

We  arrived Monday morning to a Juneau blanketed in snow. We secured a mailing address the same day, bank accounts on Tuesday, drivers' licenses on Wednesday, and registered the cars on Thursday. We're official. We live in Alaska. We're residents.

But we're not natives. We're not even "sourdoughs" (long termers.) We're "Cheechako's." Newcomers. Greenhorns. Rookies. (I wonder if Cheechako in the native tongue is at all related to the Hawaiian word "kook"? Hope not.)

And for us, home is temporary. We're camping out. We're holed up at the Extended Stay in a 23x11 room. It's cozy. We're right next (right next) to the airport. The photo to the right is not our weather reality.

Am I writing this from the living room, the bed room, the kitchen, the den? Yes!

It's almost like living in a college dorm room, except my roommate is a GIRL!

It's a good thing I'm madly in love with my wife; otherwise this current arrangement would not fly. You'll have to contact her directly to find out how it's flying for her.

We're Cheechako's. We're living temporary. We're camping out. But we're Alaska residents now. We're permanent. And happy to be so.