Happy February 2012

Let it snow, let it snow,let it snow!  I know Alaska has been in the National news with all of our snow.  I am lovin' in!  We receive snow every other day and it is delightful.  This is a pick up truck parked on my street.  You can see how much snow we have by the piles of snow everywhere!  The weather people are just out of words when they present the weather report.  All they have to say is "Yes it is going to snow again." 

 Last Friday during school we received another 12 inches of  fresh beautiful white snow.  It was like a coffee clutch as all the teachers brushed off our cars before heading home for the weekend.

 This is what an Alaskan snowplow looks like.  They are so tall and very forceful.  This plow is parked in the street and you can see it reaches side to side. 

 Just before the school is our yield sign.  Can you see how much snow is piled up there?  This is wonderful having all this snow but it is getting a bit risky driving around.  The snow piles on the street are so high that you can't see cars on the street.  So as you pull out or try to turn you have to be extra cautious because your car can not be seen. 

This is my snow gauge outside my class room. It is really a cement pole to prevent cars from parking too close to the school building.  This is what 9 inches of snow looks like.  It continued snowing throughout the weekend.

Our landlord had to come and shovel snow so we could get into our garbage bins.

Can you spy something in the tree?  We go cross country skiing and we found this wonderful surprise.  I spy something in the tree can you?

I spy a blue Christmas ornament hanging in the tree.  Apparently, there was a scavenger hunt for kids over the weekend and this was one of the markers.  It looks so pretty hanging.  We told the Parks department they should continue hanging these ornaments throughout the ski season.

 This is our playground area.  The kids have to be reminded over and over again NOT to dig snow caves.  This is such a tempting past time.  We have had such warm weather (in the mid 20's) that cave ins and avalanches are very common.  Many of the homeowners are on the roof of their house shoveling off the snow.  Some are worried about the roof caving in but more concern should be for the ice blockage.  I have been listening to the news and the snow around the exhaust pipes of the roof need to be cleared so there isn't an ice build up.

I am taking several classes after school and weekends.  I am learning about how to improve the test scores of the Alaskan native boys.  They don't do as well as other groups and the school district is trying to present strategies to help the boys.  The instructor brought a fishing visor from the Southeastern area of Alaska.  Please note the decorations (beads and whiskers) which make this gentleman a great catch for any girl wanting to be married. 

In this picture you can see the whale bone and whiskers very well.

 Anchorage downtown has all the ice sculptures lit every night.  This is a Raven and it is about 15 feet high.

 This is to let you all know that a teachers job is never done.  I am collecting plastic water bottles so I can make a smoking machine for each of my fourth grade students.  My roommate, Beth, is so patient because I have all this stuff all over the apartment. 

Here we are at the bar to watch the Super Bowl.  Niki and Beth were not as lucky as I was. I won football money the first and second quarter! Yippee!

I hope you all are enjoying your warm winter.  I am enjoying our snowy and cold winter.  I only have 100 days left to enjoy Alaska.  I am excited to start a new chapter in life with David but I am going to miss Alaska so much.  I have the most wonderful job in the world and the most beautiful scenery.  Remember, smile at a stranger today because you never know how much a small gesture can change the moment. 

Hugs from

Sheryl the Nanuq of the North.