Day One on the job

I went out on one of the tour boats today for the first time. Deckhand training (finally) ended Thursday with the completion of CPR training; and as I found that I had yesterday off, I decided on the spot to go to Anchorage one last time before the boys leave for Valdez. I enjoyed one of the most beautiful drives in the country for the second time in four days, impressed with how much it had changed already. Between snow melt, blooming fields and flowers, it promises to be a breathtaking and much-photographed drive throughout the season.

In Anchorage, I ran some much-needed errands and also picked up a bike that I found on Craig's List. Timm volunteered to ride it back to Ian's house since all 3 of us left little room for a bike, and promptly got hit by a car. Poor guy! Fortunately, he was fine and the front tire just got a little warped, but it's still ridable.

Anyways, I started today with little clue of what to do or expect. Training left me only with a strong dislike of OSHA and pretty strong feelings of impatience to be actually doing something. I got put with a really stellar crew: one guy was actually from Maine, and all were really friendly and fun to be around. My first day was long but so amazing: we saw orcas, humpbacks, a black bear, bald eagles, puffins, mountain goats, seals, sea lions, massive glaciers... we unloaded at the Fox Island lodge for a salmon bake dinner and skipped rocks on the most amazing beach. Every single rock is perfect for skipping. I've heard they have a big rock-skipping contest there at the end of the summer. Sounds like my kind of place! The day was long, but I got 2 free meals out of it and enjoyed my time. My water bottle is currently full of freshly-melted glacier water!

For the last few days, I have been noticing all of the other opportunities around me in Seward that sound very tempting. There's a culinary academy and jobs through the National Park Service doing trail maintenance, and I'm sure I could find a job cooking if I wanted to. I miss cooking a lot and I'm not a huge fan of all of the overhead at this company, so we'll see. I'm definitely going to get what I can out of it, but not overlook other doors that might open up along the way.

I'm spending tonight (um, squatting) in employee housing- there's an empty bunk and my friends who live here offered it up, even though the company is still trying to tell me that they're all full. That's ok, though- I have a cabin on and off, but maybe not permanently, that's 3 miles out of town, owned by a really nice couple who already feel like they're my foster parents. I'd rather live there when possible and scramble for a couch/throw up a tent when it doesn't work out than live here in what feels like an overcrowded dorm. It's nice to have my own space to come home to away from where I socialize.