Sept 29th (last one, I think)

Hello everyone! Bet you've been wondering what happened to my blogs....well, I was out of touch long enough that I wasn't even writing. My bad. But now it's time to update all of you on the latest happenings. Our last hunt was full of rain, wind, cold weather and more rain. The hunters had to endure some terrible downpours while they hiked the creeks looking for the elusive brown bear. And almost all the bears they saw were sows with cubs. Which means there was no shooting of any bears. Sad to say. The final evening was calm with no rain but that still didn't bring out the boars. They were well hidden apparently. So we ended the season without a bang.....get it, no bang! hahaha, I still crack myself up. Now, I'm home and getting used to being on solid ground again. What a change to look out and see green grass right outside my door, plus I can go for a walk whenever I want. Except for I have a sore throat, (thank you to the guy behind me on the plane that was sneezing all the way to Seattle) and Byron woke up with a kidney stone last night. Aren't we the awesome pair? Hopefully he will pass that thing sooner than later so he can get busy in his shop. He's chomping at the bit to set everything up and get started on projects. His new shop is outside of Mac about 5 minutes, so no noise ordinance or permits to worry about. Hoping this works out well for him. My job will be to set up a website for him, which I haven't done before but I've been doing lots of things this year that I've never done before so there ya go! How do I describe this past 6 months? Those of you that have followed along already know a lot of what happened and how the trip evolved. I appreciate all of you that took the time to read my blogs and comment whenever possible. It truly made me feel less alone at times. And I was never really alone just without familiar surroundings. My galley became my home kitchen. My bunk room became my master bedroom. The dining area became my living room (sort of). The back deck became my back yard with a compost pile (the ocean). Just one year ago I was working at home as a Transaction Specialist, which means I was in front of my computer for 10 hrs a day, processing insurance payments to patient accounts and determining correct payment amounts via appeal processes. I had very little people contact which wasn't good for me. So, when Byron was offered the position as a cook on the boat Bear in Alaska, I stuck my hand up and said "pick me, pick me". He doesn't like to cook anyways and was getting his woodworking business off the ground so the job was much more suited for me. However, I had never done anything remotely close to cooking on a boat, for hunters, bear hunting, in SE Alaska. However, when an opportunity comes along to change the direction of your future, in a good way, how can you turn it down? Even though it meant walking into something totally foreign with people I had never met before in an area I had never been before. What was I thinking? I don't know, but it was the best decision I could have made for me and for us. I learned that I could think fast on my feet, I could cook on a diesel stove and actually have things come out edible, I could sleep on a boat in choppy waves rolling me from side to side, I could learn to operate a skiff without beaching it or blowing up the motor (only after the captain shot his rifle off to stop me). I met the most interesting people along the way, men and women with a taste for adventure but as down to earth as the guy next door. One guy (Bothersome) that wasn't down to earth at all but I only had to put up with him for 8 days so thank the Lord for that! And one out of all the people I met, that's pretty good odds, I think. I found an Alaskan sister, Minnie, my partner in crime, my mentor, my co-conspirator, my calm voice in the midst of a storm. She took the time to show me all the ins and outs of the boat and it's inner workings. What to do when and how to fix this. Why this needed done and how come I should do that. When I sent her the text that said....."get me off this $&@# boat", she understood, completely. I could be brutally honest and she knew exactly what I was feeling. Love that woman for the rest of my life. And then there's Brad, her husband, my captain. The big dog on the boat. The one that knows every square inch, every tiny nut and bolt, how to avoid seasickness, how to get the diesel stove running after the wind blew it out, (3 times in an hour), how to avoid the whales trying to ram the boat, how to be calm when his cook was ready to slap Bothersome right upside the head. He knows all that stuff and more. But he is also an engineer which means his personality is sometimes "hidden". :-) He's got one but you have to pull it out and engage him in something interesting to talk about before he'll open up a conversation. Plus he's a "little" bit chauvinistic.......hahaha, I know what all of you are thinking, how on earth did we even get along?? Well, I prefer to think that I enlightened him on a few subjects, got him to see that women were the best thing to happen to men since the beginning of time.....okay, maybe I wasn't that convincing but I tried pretty hard. We had some great discussions and I respect his drive and determination as a sea captain as well as his skills. He still needs some work but between Minnie, their daughter Holley and myself we might get him to come around. If they will let me help, that is. As for the future, well, I'm open to just about anything. I haven't decided on my return next Spring but they have invited me back so the possibility of returning for another season is high. I have a few months to make that decision. I plan to spend time with my family who, by all accounts seemed to miss me. And I'm pretty sure the grandkids each grew several inches while I was gone. Can't wait to spend time with them over the winter. My husband, bless his heart, is not letting me out of his sight for now. He was so encouraging and support over the entire season but even he has his limits. :-) We both agree it was a fantastic way to broaden our horizons and open our eyes to new things. We now know that we can do way more than we thought we could 6 months ago. But we also know that it wouldn't have worked without complete faith in each other and a belief that God gave us this opportunity to grow and experience life. Knowing my support group at home had me in their thoughts and prayers daily, kept me going when all I wanted to do was get off the boat. :-) Thanks to all of you again for following me on this journey. I would love to continue a blog as writing is one of my passions and this has been a total blast for me. Let me know if you are interested in hearing any more from me. Who knows what the future holds? I don't and I like it that way. Keeps me on my toes. Take care and God bless! love ya.....dj