This has been a long week. I was wondering why I felt so grumpy and tired today in spite of it being a fun day until Leigh reminded me it was my first full week of work (due to Labor Day last Monday) and I'm just not used to working 5 days in a row like that. Plus this week I got tons of exercise and not quite enough sleep, so it's all coming crashing down on me now.
If I can survive the next two hours at work, and I have faith that I can, the rest of today should be fun. There's a work party thing early this evening that Leigh is attending with me. Then it's the weekend! I've promised myself a nice sleep-in session tomorrow and a great bike ride (assuming the weather is pretty). Sunday will see more sleeping in and a short church service and at some point this weekend Leigh and I will go see a $3 movie. Bring on the relaxation and the fun!
I like to keep up with some Indie bands I like via their blogs, etc. It's a good way to know who is playing when and where, if a new album is coming out, etc because these bands dont' always get much press. When I lived in Buffalo, NYC, and even in Europe it was always possible I'd hear about a group I liked playing nearby and go see them. I love shows in small venues with tickets running $10-$15, plus you get to take pictures, etc. It's really awesome. Anyway, when I lived in Buffalo I saw a few shows in Toronto and could have seen tons more but I always had homework (lame!) and failed to realize how awesome my proximity to Toronto was at the time. In New York I saw The Cliks play a show, which was really fun and only one of many times I have seen them play various cheap/free shows around the country. When I was in Europe I saw The Cranberries in Marseille (OK, not a cheap show or a small venue but still awesome) and An Horse in Berlin- this was probably the best example of why I love Indie bands in every way. The show was amazing, I got to meet the band briefly, the venue was small and fun and attracted an assortment of people and the tickets were very affordable.
The reason I'm writing about this today is that I still like to follow these bands via blogs, etc but now the information is far less relevant to me. So far I'm really enjoying living in Anchorage, but I'm also realizing how isolated I am from the world now. I don't think I could have much more contrast between isolation and the opposite of isolation than my life in the past 12 months. This time last year I was landing in Paris to start my year in Europe, where there are tons of people everywhere and major cities are only a few hours apart. The lack of isolation was probably my favorite aspect of being in Europe because I could see and do so much in a relatively short period of time with relatively very little money. In contrast to that I now live 1,414 miles from the nearest large city (Seattle) as the crow flies and musical acts rarely, if ever, come this far north. Plus flights to the East Coast run about $500-800 per person, so it's not only geographically isolating but also financially isolating as well.
What I must remind myself is that Alaska encompasses some of the best aspects of America: natural beauty, wide open spaces, wildlife, untouched land, etc. There is a great deal of experience and adventure to be had here and I didn't move here for the nightlife or the "metropolitan" experience. I can have those things anywhere. I moved here to start a life somewhere totally different and to have an experience that few others choose to have. So, while the isolation will take some getting used to, instead of focusing on what I miss about other places I need to just focus on what I love about this place. Besides, as far as I know, the rest of the world isn't going anywhere and I have plenty of time to go back for a visit.
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