08/21/2006: "When friends from Outside visit"

Rod arrived late last night and I gave him the walking tour of Douglas including my sailboat where we drank red wine and watched the stars (first clear night in a long time). I didn't go to sleep until 5:00am so... 2 1/2 hours later I had to get up to go to faculty convocation at the university. I got a little weepy eyed listening to all of our university's successes and a few faculty have already come up to me because they've heard I'm leaving (the rumor is that I’m going to be vice-provost ...hmmmm) I sat right behind the professor who commissioned me to do her book cover art for the Roadside Geology series. Ooops! So, I'm bumping that up my list of to-dos.

So, I only went in for a half day as we're doing the super-accelerated tourist jaunt since Rod's leaving tomorrow night. We're getting ready to go sailing, then lunch at the Island Pub, possibly a tram ride/hike if the rain holds off later in the day. Then there's the glacier, the university campus, downtown, the Hangar on the Warf, etc. etc. I feel sleepy.

But the really good news (and I don't know if this is a secret but if it is I'm going to out him on my blog) is that he says he's planning to move to Seattle probably by the spring if all goes well! Fun! You're next Subi...when are you and yours coming back to the states?

And finally, it is indeed feeling more like the fall everyday. My yard is already collecting a nice assortment of leaves, and last night it was cold enough to see your breath. It's hard for me to imagine that others of you are still having a summer...I dislike the rain but I love the smell of the autumn, the dying leaves (even the horrid stench of spent salmon in the channel and rivers) it is the most poignant time of the year for me.

Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers, away;
Lengthen night and shorten day;
Every leaf speaks bliss to me
Fluttering from the autumn tree.

I shall smile when wreaths of snow
Blossom where the rose should grow;
I shall sing when night's decay
Ushers in a drearier day.

Emily Jane Brontë

Replies: 10 Comments

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Kasia said

i love the smell of autumn, too. The wet ground, the dead leaves, the rain. I guess it is my favourite season. It makes me feel nostalgic, but I like it, too. So, if you leave Alaska - when will that be?

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Elise said

Hi Kasia, I won't leave until after this semester. The new school where I'm going to be working has given me time so that I don't leave my current employer in the lurch.

So, I'm guessing it will be the beginning of December.
:(

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Elise said

oh, and as far as moving goes, I can always come back to Alaska after a couple of years if things down there don't work out.

That's the nice thing about making change, you can always change back.

on Tuesday, August 22nd, willow said

That's right, you can always change back! I moved to ME/NH for 3 years and it never felt quite right, so here I am back on my rock! It's not always easy living here, but it's so beautiful and I know great people here. That's what makes it feel like home!

Sounds like you have a good plan Elise!

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Elise said

hey Willow, that's encouraging to hear actually. I keep trying to convince myself that I've made the right decision but it is tough, especially now when I'm running into all of these friends of mine (faculty who've been off for the summer) and they are just hearing that I'm leaving and making a big deal about it etc.

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Jackie said

E: Congratulations on accepting the job! I look forward to meeting you IRL - there will be NO excuses when you get down here (other than that you'll be in Centralia - a couple hours away from Seattle!). But I'm sure you'll get to the City once in a while. Wow - what an exciting time of transition in your life!

Autumn in Kodiak is one of my favorite times of year too. The grasses smell so wonderful as they dry in the sun. The smell of highbush cranberries, the salmon rotting along the rivers. (that may not sound attractive - but I know what you mean!) I love the windstorms we get in August/September, and the moon-rises so huge and orange over the ocean.
:satisfied:

on Tuesday, August 22nd, subi said

who, Rod or Rick? Gawd, I will AT LEAST be out there to visit you...it's been over 2 years since I was last in the US :( will you be in the city itself or the outside surrounding area?

I LOVE that you're quoting Bronte here! I will be visiting the Bronte house on my upcoming trip to England...did I tell you I'm reading at Cambridge? In OCt!

on Tuesday, August 22nd, subi said

oh and don't visit the arboreitum too often! hahaha. :P

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Elise said

I'll probably live in Olympia Jackie so that puts me even closer to Seattle...I plan to go there quite often, as soon as I learn how to drive in the traffic!

meeting IRL will indeed be fun.

I am not a fan of the windstorms we get here because they usually damage my property and my house often sounds like it is about to be ripped from its foundation...but even the negative aspects of life here are beginning to seem "charming" now that I'm trying to mentally prepare for my departure...still months away.

on Tuesday, August 22nd, Elise said

Hey Subi, I think we were posting at the same time...

I will be about an hour outside of Seattle but I'd drive it happily just to have coffee with you at the airport!

You're giving a reading at CAMBRIDGE!??? That's AWESOME! I'm soooo proud of you! Wow, this Oct? I'd love to attend but probably not the best timing for me.
:(
as for the arboretum, OMG! I forgot all about that!
:blush:
What a wild and crazy time. I miss you, truly I do.

Oh, and it's Rod who is planning to move to Seattle...Rick is still in DC and very happy there. I've talked to him several times recently, trying to make this whole move or not to move decision and the 19th was both he and Jenni W's b-days...plus they had a b-day party in Baltimore for Fiona. Cheap tickets there are one of the most attractive aspects of living in the lower 48, ya know?