| CARVIEW |
- Anchorage, AK
- Kotzebue, AK
- Fairbanks, AK
- Glennallen, AK
- Philadelphia, PA
- Albuquerque, NM
- Houston, TX
Unlike last year, this year I went back to the previous rule of only counting a city once, on the first time I was there. As always, this only counts cities where I spent at least one night. Other previous years for comparison: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014.
So yeah, a pretty quiet year for me travel-wise. Work travel has decreased a lot both because the projects I was working on are mostly done and because the state budget crisis has resulted in restrictions on travel generally. Hard to say what 2017 will bring.
]]>Here’s the list:
- Albuquerque, NM
- Anchorage, AK
- Kodiak, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Nome, AK
- Wales, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Bethel, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Dillingham, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Juneau, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Philadelphia, PA
- Anchorage, AK
- Kodiak, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Dillingham, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Gambell, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Fairbanks, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- McGrath, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Cordova, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Bethel, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Hudson, MA
- Anchorage, AK
- Bethel, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- St. Mary’s, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Albuquerque, NM
- Anchorage, AK
- Nome, AK
- Anchorage, AK
- Albuquerque, NM
- Phoenix, AZ
- Albuquerque, NM
- Anchorage, AK
As compared to previous years, this gives a better sense of the nature of the travel I do, which in 2015 was unusually extensive due to some projects I’ve been working on throughout the state. A lot of back and forth between my home base in Anchorage and other parts of the state, basically, with only a few personal trips out of state. (Since this list still excludes day trips, it actually understates the amount of travel I’ve done by a bit.) 2016 will likely involve a lot less travel, which will be a relief.
]]>Shortly into the date, she asked me what I do in my spare time. This question drives me crazy, as does the fact that it’s very common on first dates. I guess a lot of people really like to talk about their hobbies or something, because this keeps coming up in small-talk situations (not just first dates). For me, though, this is problematic, because what I do with my spare time is probably the least interesting aspect of my life. I mostly just screw around on the internet, which is what I said on this date after “nothing, really” wasn’t a sufficient answer for her. She immediately translated that to “videogames and porn,” to which I responded with “no comment” (which made her laugh), because there is some truth to that, although “Facebook and blogs” would be a more accurate characterization of how I spend most of my time. Regardless of the details, though, it frustrates me that I keep having to talk about this on dates when there are so many other things that I could talk about that would be more interesting to both of us.
I’m particularly frustrated that work isn’t considered more of a standard conversation topic on dates, because in addition to taking up a lot of my time and most of my emotional energy, which leaves little energy left for hobbies, my job is really interesting and unusual. I’ve been to lots of interesting places! My work involves a lot of interesting topics that regularly make the news! Ask me about that!
Now, of course I realize that I could just bring up these topics myself if I think they’re so much more interesting. And, fair enough, I probably should make more of an effort to direct the conversation in contexts like this. I’m sufficiently shy and awkward to make that sort of effort seem very intimidating, though, especially in a first-date context.
Anyway, I’m mostly just venting here. The date did go fairly well overall, and while I haven’t yet followed up on it I probably should. I do like her quite a bit, and I think there is still some potential despite the awkwardness of the first date.
]]>One way in which this sort of lifestyle is easier for me than for a lot of people is that I don’t have a family or any particular obligations at home that would make it difficult for me to travel this much. I’m getting to the age where a lot of my friends are getting married and having kids, so I’m no longer the kind of young person who could be expected to do this sort of thing as a matter of course, but as it happens I’m not at that point in my own life so it still works. It’s not a bad life, really, and I’m gaining a lot of valuable experience. The projects that are the reason for most of this travel are mostly going well, too, which is encouraging. Anyway, things are good, even though I don’t have much time and energy left for blogging.
]]>Edit: And now that I’ve complained about that, it appears that the old interface is available when editing posts, at least, so that’s something. Still, annoying.
]]>The first part of the trip went fine; I went to the first regional meeting, which went well, then to the other regional hub where I spent the night. The visit to the first community the next day also went well, and we overnighted in the school there in the expectation of continuing with our itinerary the next morning.
Well, morning came, and with it heavy snow and the intensely strong winds for which that area is famous. We ended up staying three more days, each day waiting to see if the weather would clear up enough for planes to get in, and each day being disappointed, until today, when the storm finally broke and it was beautifully cold and clear. The flights today worked out fine, and I just made it back to my apartment in Anchorage. It’s awfully nice to be home.
It’s obviously not pleasant to be stuck somewhere for much longer than intended, but the experience this time was actually not that bad. The school was very hospitable, so we always had a warm place to sleep and plenty of food to eat, and there is a store in the community where we could get any additional food or supplies we wanted. The school also had internet access, so I could get some work done and keep track of how things were going in the office. It was interesting to see what it’s really like to wait out a storm like this, and the community itself was very welcoming and friendly, so it was a pretty pleasant time given the circumstances.
]]>- Anchorage, AK
- Juneau, AK
- Fairbanks, AK
- Noorvik, AK
- Nome, AK
- Philadelphia, PA
- Bethel, AK
- Aniak, AK
- Glennallen, AK
- McCarthy, AK
- Albuquerque, NM
- Sitka, AK
- Phoenix, AZ
- Unalakleet, AK
- Flagstaff, AZ
As in past years, the exclusion of day trips makes this list slightly incomplete, but less so this year since I did fewer day trips and many were to places where I spent the night on other trips. Overall it’s a pretty good picture of my life these days.
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