Trip 3: Days 9-12 "nothing-describing my week"

Aipirin (Tuesday)

Today was a work day. I finished my grant and proofread everything. I read some more of my book. I looked over my data from my first trip out here, in which I learned a lot and grew a lot as a field linguist, but I'm not sure my principal consultant from that trip is actually a Native Kotlik speaker so... But my other consultants look good and that's a fantastic start. Oh well, its all about learning and improving anyways. I went to the school and renewed my search for a new place to stay with one of the teachers, as I don't want to over stay my welcome here, which is sad because its a fantastic place and great hosts. Emailed my grant off for final approval before beginning the submission process. Talked to J. Worked out, ate dinner and hung out until now. So write this, read, then off to bed. Tomorrow I have a busy day of going and trying to talk to elders again!

Its weird, every time I have been to Alaska it has been perpetual day light (June, July, August). This year it does get dark, its dark now. But sunrise is at about 9:30-10:30am and sunset is at 8:30pm, which seems a bit late to me. I expected it to be getting darker earlier and earlier and it just doesn't at this moment seem to be. But I was also expecting snow. Well we'll see what happens as October moves on and turns to November.

Well seriously, that was all that happened today.

Pingasirin (Wednesday)

Well sometimes there is just not much to report. I went and talked to as many elders as I could and one actually said that they'd think about when they have free time next week and let me know by Friday if they see me! The rest were either not to be found or too shy. I finally met the other monolingual speaker, who is bashful, and was able to offhandedly introduce myself so that is maybe a start?

Otherwise I did nothing different today.

Citamirin (Thursday)

It frosted over again over night so this is a good sign that winter perhaps is maybe almost here? Today I called some elders and left messages and talked to the tribal administrator again and got some more contact numbers, even though this is a village of about 700 people with very limited internet areas and plumbing and water, they truly have westernized when it comes to cell phones. No one goes and finds each other or talks face to face except when they accidentally bump into each other, at all other times one must call apparently. At least, that is how it feels this time around. Thankfully, I got a phone. But again besides this no new events occurred, I've been getting a lot of reading and work done. Well, I guess I did see a couple of dogs each get a thrown a meaty moose leg, they looked happier than pigs in a pig pen tossing and dragging these giant legs that are longer than they are around their little areas. It was pretty cute. Also, People have started to recognize me by name when I'm walking around so that's even more amazing and bodes well for the rest of this trip I hope!

Tallimirin (Friday)

Well after talking to a woman yesterday about how the Northern lights were visible yesterday morning, and since I have never seen the Aurora Borealis. And because it gets dark at around 8:30pm and stays until about 9am. I basically had a sleepless night. I got up about every hour or so to look out the window, until I did some way finding and realized my window does not face east like I was thinking (The sun travels east to west but is located to the south (think about the tilt of the earth up here and that will make sense)) but instead faces South (ehm, Northern Lights). So at about 4am I put on my shoes and headed down and out. And it was dark, and I was exhausted and it was cold, and all the houses are raised here due to flooding danger. So I slipped and fell and slid down 6 stairs to the ground. Fortunately if there was going to be a time when I dislocated my arm on this trip, that would be it. But it did not dislocate and I am just a little sore, and here's to thankfully hoping. I got to see the faint white glow of the receding Northerly lights where had I looked in that direction maybe an hour earlier it probably would have been awesome. But now I know, and I've had at least a glimpse to tide me over until another likely sleepless night tonight. And so I am (truly) looking forward to that. Until then, today is just like the past week basically waiting, working, and walking. I'll call the elders all again tomorrow so they have time to think about it and I don't become annoying while remaining persistent. One day they'll find it in their hearts to work with a desperate student with everything to either lose or gain by this trip (atoms arn't beholden to other people reveal, I should have become a meta physicist).

Yep so that is my day.

And that was my very exciting week 2 of field work nothing-described (object incorporation: I described nothing therefore I nothing-described :) (maybe it should be more accurately incorporated as: nothing-new-described? As in: “I nothing-new-described this exciting week”)).