Where do you climb when you're already on top of the world?

(Juneau)

Here is just a little update about a flight I took. I was able to fly up with Jen again and do the 4 glacier tour. It was more amazing then the first time I went. I think I might be addicted to flying. haha. Here are some pictures I managed to snap.(Jen and the amazing waterfall we passed)

(On top of the world!)

Also, I took a bike ride to the Mendenhal glacier and took some pictures out there as well.
Sooo many more pictures on facebook. It doesn't take nearly as long to load as on here haha.
-Melissa

A Jumbled Mess Of Everything

(Relay For Life)

So many things have happened over the past few weeks that I am sure I will forget something! Shame on me for not writing this as soon as it happened.

Starting back as far as I can remember...On a day off, a friend and I decided to take advantage of the lovely weather and go zip-lining. It was pretty cool. The longest zip was 750 feet. Not sure if I would actually go again but it was pretty fun. We didn't get to see a whole lot of nature as the zipping sound scares off all the wildlife, but getting that sense of flying with the wind across your face....well it was just priceless.
Moving onward...Not too long ago I got to take a "dead head" at Era, with Jenn. A "dead head" being a flight with just the pilot, up to Dog camp to pick up passengers or supplies. Jenn, being the pilot that all the girls want to be and all the guys want to be with. Well, it was great. We flew low between the mountains and the beauty nearly took my breath away. There were bright green lakes and huge, gorgeous waterfalls. Unfortunately, I was so excited to go that I left my camera at base. Oh well, I'm pretty sure this was a flight I will never forget, especially the quick nose dive she did at the end, just to scare the crap out me. Ha. Caught me a little off guard.
Next on the list. If you read the last entry, you know that I was raising money for the relay for life. Kari and I camped out last weekend and walk laps in the pouring rain for this cause. It was a blast and yet completely exhausting. We were scheduled to walk for 4 hours in the mud. We walked the first two hours, then she took a 45 min slot and I took a 45 min slot and we finished the last 30 min together. I could not move the next day but it was so worth it. Thanks to everyone who supported me and my goal.I wrote a little bit ago about a lady hitting my car. Here's a short update. The lady did come forward and everything has been turned into her insurance. Estimates, pictures etc, and it looks like it will end up costing about $2000 to fix. Not out of my pocket so I really don't care as long as it's fixed right. I just talked to her insurance today and I should hear back from them within the next few days. Yay!
This week has been rather uneventful. I did have one pretty cool thing pointed out to me at work yesterday. I guess the salmon are running and so the creek behind Era is just full of these three feet (sometimes longer) Dog Salmon. It's crazy. I've never seen anything like it. Today an employees dogs were running along the bank grabbing fish and throwing them out onto the shore. It was a little game they were playing with their owner, as she had to follow them kicking the fish back in. I guess all these salmon will eventually die because the creek leads nowhere. They might attract some bears though!!Ah Work...We have had a few days of really low clouds, causing us to cancel some flights. This always makes for a long day of chores or a short day, as everyone goes home and doesn't come back. This was the case today. It actually worked out quite nice for me. Kari left for Oregon today for a week of fishy-ness, so I was able to drop her off at the airport, beats walking, and then I came home and have done nothing but relax all day. It has been rather nice. Tomorrow is another early morning though. We'll see if we get any flight ups or not.
This next month is going to fly by. This week Kari is gone, Katie will be going home for a week at the beginning of August. Hopefully my dad will be visiting sometime at the beginning of August, Kari will be leaving for Norway in August, we move back into housing at the end August and school starts again September 3rd. I'm sure it will be a bit of an emotional roller coaster as well.
Okay, so I think I hit all the major points...
The weeks almost over! Hang in there!
♥ Melissa

Relay for Life in Juneau AK!

This year I am doing the Relay for Life here in Alaska!
Help me out folks!
Either check out my page at:
HERE
OR
Go to my facebook page and donate on there!!
Thanks for your help!
♥ Melissa

"And I'm on my knees...looking for the answers"

The past few days have been filled with a crazy mess of things.
Let me get this off my chest: AHHHHH GRRRRR BADKFHA DKFLASDHFKLHHASLKHDFKASDFLHSD!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok! As most of you know Governor Palin resigned this past week. It's a shame to hear what people are saying. Southeast Alaska really doesn't care for this lady because she wants to move the capital to Anchorage. It is understandable since Anchorage is over four times bigger then Juneau. I find it kind of funny that most of the people, who complain about the governor, don't complain about the PFD money they receive each year, which happened to be over $3,000 this past year. Over all I think the country should be ashamed. This lady could have done some amazing things nationally. BUT she didn't get the job. Not a big deal, she still could have continued doing great things locally. BUT the country couldn't leave her alone. It was nothing short of harassment. I wonder why no other political figure was treated this badly. If David Letterman had said that about my daughter, forget the war of words, I would have made sure his next show was without teeth. Well anyways, I have to admit it depresses me that our country does not hold men and women at the same rank yet. It depresses me that we voted in a man who, just like Hitler, wrote his plans in his book before office. It depresses me that this man has not done crap. What happened to the hope and change and all that crap? More importantly, it depresses me that this small town Alaskan family as been ripped apart in the medias eyes, both before the election and still to this day. It bothers me most that this stoning continues and no one feels bad about what’s happening. Thanks for getting rid of our Governor, a lady who has done so much for our state. I hope you’re happy.
Moving on, I suppose...
The fourth came and went for me with no fireworks or parades or any of that fun stuff. The big fireworks display was held Friday midnight. This is really the only time of day that it is actually a little darker outside. It's weird here because there are few places to get fireworks. No booths like back home. Someone told me that it is because it is illegal shoot fireworks since we are in a rainforest. Duh, that makes since. I stayed home because I had to be a work Saturday. Little did I know that everyone, and I do mean everyone, was downtown for the fireworks display. I guess Era had it's own little prime location you had to have a password to get into. I didn't know this either or I probably would have gone. Everyone said the show was great, though most of them were completely drunk, I'm sure. The parade was the following day, during work, so obviously I couldn't attend. We had a few departures in the morning, then the parade started and we took a few hours off to eat and play games, then back to work again when the roads were open again. This put us about 45 minutes behind. The people really weren't too upset but it did make all of us working have to stay late. I think I left work about 8pm or a little after.
While at work we saw some odd planes fly over on their way to landing here in Juneau. There were two and they were huge and unmarked. Supposedly this means it's a celebrity here in town. Now everyone has their eyes open for some stars roaming the streets here. haha. According to my supervisor Johnny Depp has been in town the last few day. He was in the Red Dog Saloon during the Fourth of July festivities. Go figure, Johnny Depp in a bar.... That’s kind of cool to know though.
After a long day at work, what better way to relax then bowling! haha. A friend was having a birthday party at the bowling alley last night. We were there from 9-12. Yeah it was a long day. But the bowling was super fun. Unfortunately, my entire body hurts today from the games we played at work (football, golf) and the bowling on top of that. I am looking forward to a long hot bath here in the next hour or so...

Not sure if I wrote about this last week but I did get a scholarship for a $4000 tuition waiver. Just a bit of good news to throw in with the rest of the crap. haha.
Have a great Sunday!

♥ Melissa

Just Another One Of Those Days...

Today has royally sucked...big time.
I am sick...I hate being sick, as everyone does, but I am usually good at dealing with it. Not this time. I am whiny and have no desire to do, well, anything. One thing that is great to do when your sick is READ! I have been doing some of that lately. I read the color purple, which was great. Now, Kari and I are watching the movie. Still, the sniffles, coughing, and chills make it hard to enjoy. Hopefully, I will feel up to going to work tomorrow.
Speaking of work...I love my job. I really do. However, on a day like today when weather moves in, people get grumpy. I was yelled at five times today by irate passengers who were mad I could not personally change the weather so they could enjoy their flights. Today I was the messenger and sadly enough, these people were relentlessly shooting the messenger...er Me.
To top off the day, when I arrived at my car to leave for the evening, I noticed something odd. A huge dent with blue paint on the side of my nice shiny black car. What a sad day. Someone hit my car, pretty forcefully, and drove off. What saddens me the most is that this was obviously a fellow employee, as I was parked in the employee only parking. Tomorrow I will have a talk with my supervisor. There are only a few blue cars, so maybe we can figure this all out.
God help me keep control of my mind before it goes completely!!
♥ Melissa