1. How confidently do you open a bottle of wine or champagne? I don't think I've ever tried lol
2. When did you last cut something with scissors? Yesterday
3. Which of your household tools is fancier than necessary? I don't think any of them are super fancy..
4. When did you last wield a hammer? Years ago
5. What is your can opener like? I probably have one, but I don't think I've ever used it..it's probably a regular one though..

I've still been in a LOT of pain since I got my tooth pulled, a very deep ache, which is exhausting and makes my head feel fuzzy. I finally couldn't take it anymore and went to the clinic (my dentist is closed on Fridays)..he prescribed a high dose of Motrin and antibiotics (he said the extraction site looked a little angry). Hopefully that'll help! I feel like I've been in pain this whole month, ugh. I'm ready to feel normal again lol. I also went to the eye doctor (my vision has gotten a little blurry), and I'm back to -7 in my right eye, yayy me. :P My prisms changed the most, so much that he can't put the full strength in my lenses, but should be able to see well most of the time. I hope I can keep my current frames, I get compliments on them and I love the color!

And here's yet another pic of Curti being cute hehe:

"If I fits, I sits!!" Awww! His facial structure makes him look perpetually surprised lol

( feb 26-27 )

1. What has recently tugged at your heart strings? At work Danae has been working to clear snow around the building at work, but there's still a "ledge" there (she only has so many spoons..more than me though lol). Yesterday a customer in a wheelchair couldn't get over the ledge, so she had to get out of her wheelchair so her bus driver could get it over the hump, and then the lady had to CRAWL over to where her wheelchair was! I saw her do that one other time at the bookstore's previous location, and about died because I thought she had fallen! It was upsetting to both Danae and I..the customer didn't seem too fazed, but it's still not ok! Alaska is definitely not a great place for wheelchairs. The lady is pretty tough though, she was telling me about the snow she had to shovel around her house..she must have great upper body strength! We were glad when she got safely on the bus, phew!
2. How much yarn do you have in your house? I have a couple things made from yarn, if that counts..
3. When did you last throw someone a line, or when did someone last throw you a line? Danae and I help each other out at work, if that counts
4. With whom are your conversations a tightrope-walk? Shelby..she's very intimidating! Not very empathetic either :/
5. When did you most recently rope someone in to something they were reluctant to do? Maybe when I saw the doctor's assistant on Monday..

It's chilly out, but SO nice and sunny for once! The brightness hurt my eyes after so many gloomy days (we got almost two feet of snow in ten days!). It's exhilarating not having a migraine! The customers were happy too lol. It's not going to last though..an even bigger storm is expected to arrive Sunday and last until Tuesday. They're predicting total snow accumulations between 8 and 16 inches!!! D: That's crazy, we have enough snow now!! I hope I don't get migraines again, though thankfully I have that awesome new medicine lol

This morning I went to put my boot on and felt something in it..Curti left me a gift of his favorite white mouse toy! Awwww, he loves me!! So cute and touching <3

( 20. What is family life like right now? )

1. What do you picture when you think of lawyers? A courtroom, lawyers arguing/defending, lots of money to pay haha, etc
2. What do you picture when you think of accountants? Someone in an office on a computer, doing mathy stuff :P
3. What do you picture when you think of clergy? Catholic priests in fancy robes, and maybe carrying candles, fancy churches, etc
4. What do you picture when you think of garbagemen? Men on trucks jumping down and getting trash out of trash cans. I also wonder if they realize how important they are..when it was -40, the garbagemen couldn't collect the trash, and it all piled up..it made the hallway where I live smell awful! Pretty crazy lol
5. What do you picture when you think of a best friend? Dana, fun times with friends, a supportive/happy person, San Diego, etc

Ugh, my migraines have been worse this month..I might need a higher dose of Amitriptyline. Yesterday I checked the weather and it said a big snowstorm is coming tonight/early tomorrow..yep, that'll do it (Danae is sensitive and could feel it too). Annoying lol

( feb 7-13 )

Curti is way too cute!

An interesting pose haha. I love his super fluffy tail! He probably needs a bigger cat tree :P

People donate the coolest things at work, like this super cool maritime compass!

The top..

Inside! SO cool!! I definitely had to buy that haha. It's like Christmas every day at the bookstore :P

Tomorrow at work is another First Friday 50% off sale..hopefully it'll be busy, since people have been discovering us again!

( feb 2-5 )

1. When did you last enjoy some Asian cuisine? Yesterday
2. What’s something you’d like to do in South America? See Perito Moreno Glacier
3. What’s a popular tourist thing in Europe you have very little interest in? The Tate Modern in London..I find art museums kind of boring
4. Which of Australia’s strange animals do you find most fascinating or adorable? Platypuses are pretty fascinating, like the fact they're venomous mammals!
5. What’s something interesting you just learned about Africa? *googles* Sudan has more pyramids than any other country on earth (223)

Danae has definitely lightened up the bookstore! Since we opened last year the atmosphere has felt oppressive and heavy, which she noticed as soon as she walked in the door the first time. Now there's music playing and another happy presence around! Tomorrow is Juella's last day..I always felt her to be unnecessarily strict and was constantly watching me, which was uncomfortable. Danae and I are also very alike, I'm pretty sure she's autistic too..we even have the same eyeglass prescription! The store has gotten busier, we get donations every day now (I'm so happy when I can say yes when someone asks me haha), and the customers are much happier. It's so cool they still support us and haven't forgotten us, after everything that's happened. Fairbanks has such a great community..if the store was anywhere else, it would have shut down months ago. After the awful summer/fall, it's great to see everyone happily shopping again! Danae and I will definitely keep the fun/positively going :D

My family has been taking turns going to Payson, since dad's feet have gotten worse and can't really travel right now..Ryan and Jo just went, mom and Ryan are going in April, and I'm going with Jo at the end of April. By that time, it will have been a year since I traveled anywhere..way too long! I haven't been there since 2021! Hopefully the weather will be nice

( jan 24-30 )

1. What is your favorite movie about a fresh start? The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, maybe? It definitely gets points for partly being filmed in Iceland with Of Monsters and Men playing haha
2. What is your favorite post-apocalyptic movie? The Road was very bleak, but well done too..Viggo Mortensen makes every movie he's in better LOL
3. What is your favorite animal movie? Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey, Finding Nemo, etc
4. What is your favorite me-against-nature movie? Twister, The Day After Tomorrow, 2012: Ice Age, etc
5. What is your favorite movie about forgiveness, atonement, or mercy? The whole movie isn't about those things, but both Les Mis and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe have forgiveness/atonement in them

Yesterday, for the first time since December 13, the temperature got above 0, ending a 32 day streak, the second longest since 1908! When I went outside this morning, it was 25 degrees, which felt AWESOME haha. Since the warm wind was pushing the cold up into the hills, the temperature on Birch Hill dropped 20 some degrees in 20 minutes (Bill was watching the thermometer up on Birch Hill on his phone haha)! In the mountains, the wind could gust up to 60-80 MPH! Chinooks are so cool lol. Next week it's supposed to get below 0 again, but at least we get a few days of warmth!

At work we've gotten a few donations here and there the last couple months, and it definitely picked up this month..we EXPLODED with donations yesterday (we have to count everything, and we got in a little over 1200 items!!), and had to put some boxes in the conex! There were a lot of great books that came in, which is awesome..seeing the same books all the time definitely got old lol. I'm glad customers have stayed loyal, last summer was rough!

( jan 14-16 )

1. What was the last item you returned or exchanged at a store? Does donating books count?
2. When did you last leave the house and then turn right back around and go back inside? This morning, I forgot to put the apple juice I take to work in my bag
3. What’s the latest you’ve ever returned a library book? Not sure..
4. What location among places you’ve traveled would you most like to see again? Carcassonne, Valdez, etc
5. What’s an unlikely movie sequel you’d like to see? I'm sure there's one, but I can't think of it at the moment..

The good news is that Danae (the new Bookstore Manager) is very nice..she's from the village of Unalakleet, kind of near Nome..cool! She jumped right in, greeting customers, shelving, etc. I don't know if I could be that confident on a first day of doing something! The bad news is that Bill is getting laid off next week because our budget is "in the hole" and not great (the bookstore brings in a lot of money for the Literacy Council, and last summer's sale numbers were pretty awful..ouch). He's not upset though, he said he'll find another job (his one year anniversary was this week too, aww!). I'll miss him though, I love his dry sense of humor!

( jan 7-9 )

The past few days, this is what it's looked like outside:

Ice fog is "a suspension of numerous minute ice particles in the air," like exhaust..it can definitely smell bad (when I walked to work, the smell would get in my hair D:). It was -42 when I woke up yesterday morning! Today it's MUCH warmer, -13! It felt downright tropical LOL, and the ice fog went somewhere else. The National Weather Service said "Dec 2025 in Fairbanks was the 8th coldest and 12th snowiest Dec on record. Fairbanks has also seen 29 days+ of temps at or below −15°F." Crazy!

Ryan recently quit his job (probably the happiest I've ever seen him!), so he and Jo have been working hard turning his office into a lava tube/cave. How cool is it?

SUPER cool!!! That's amazing (they're going to fill the gaps at some point, I think). I'm really impressed that they did most of it without my parents' help. Here's another view:

So cool! Maybe he'll let me spend time in there too LOL

Tomorrow I go back to work! (2026 is already going by fast!) It feels like I had been at my parents' house a long time haha. Earlier Shelby texted Bill and I and asked us to come over to their building first for a quick meeting. I'm sure they just want to see us after the break and to meet the new manager, but I'm still panicking haha. I've never been good with the "I need to talk to later" thing. :P Bill said he's been sick the last couple of days, and isn't sure he'll make it in tomorrow. I felt like I was getting sick yesterday, OF COURSE because I was like "but I don't want to go back to work and real life!" I should know better by now lol. Luckily, after saying "wait, just kidding, I DO want to go back to work tomorrow!" some of the day yesterday, I feel better today. Phew! Hopefully he gets well soon. Hopefully it'll be busy since we've been closed since December and people miss us and are tired of being cooped inside lol (I definitely needed that break though, I was SO tired and worn out!)

( dec 3-5 )

Hello 2026! Amazingly, people in my parents' neighborhood shot up fireworks..I watched some from the warmth of the house LOL. Last month was the coldest December Fairbanks had seen since 1980, with an average temperature of -21.5 degrees..crazy!

Curti and I have been spending the holiday break well:

Awww, somehow he keeps getting cuter! <3 Definitely one reason I can't live without a cat..I feel our connection deeply when he chooses to sit in my lap/shoulder, etc lol

( the new 365 day meme: january! )

Wow, only one day left of 2025! This has definitely been a HARD year. The last week has been super cold, in the -30s and -40s. The ice fog was so bad you couldn't see the other side of the lake. Mom and I went to town today because it was "only" -27, and the next few days are going to be in the -30s and -40s again..the high for Saturday is forecasted to be -43!! Depending what weather site you look at, the lows could be in the -50s!!! I've never felt -50 before, but I'm curious to experience it haha. I'm supposed to work Friday and Saturday, but we close if the weather is -40 or colder at 7 AM, so Lucie will probably tell me to stay home. This is definitely one of the longest, harshest cold snaps I've experienced! Curti has been more snuggly too hehe, he's so cute. <3 Here are the highs and lows of 2025!

Lows: Losing Abby in March, which was devastating. We were soulmates..she stole my heart as soon as she sat in my lap at the animal shelter. She loved everyone! At the end she was so weak she'd just fall over when trying to walk on my bed, and had that "I'm done" look in her eyes, and she was SO skinny..I couldn't watch her suffer like that. I sobbed SO hard at the vet, and mom and the vet did as well..I told her how much I loved her and what a great cat she was. I watched her last breath and then she was gone. I got her cremated and have tattoos of her pawprints on my arm. I cried SO hard again when I walked into my apartment without Abby, and saw her water and food bowls on the floor. It was recently after that I went to bed and felt something at my feet..I'm sure it was Abby, telling me she was still with me, just in a different way, and another time I thought I heard her meow. Oof, that always make me very sad when I think about it. I'll never forget her <3

The move at work, which was very rocky and tiring, and then Vicki saying she was quitting after the move happened (I still miss her SO much). Bill and I felt abandoned during the summer and, the managers seemed to do everything in their power to make us suffer. Everyone was always complaining and hardly any customers came in anymore. Bill and I were about ready to quit! Amanda only lasted like a month, we were abandoned again, until we finally got a temporary manager. That's something I hope I never experience again. I hope the manager starting in January is nice!

I sprained my ankle in March. Very painful! In August I exhausted myself and didn't feel well, I had awful face pain and a migraine and a sore tooth, and had to get the tooth pulled. I then threw my back out, all in the same week! I'd rather not experience that again either lol

Dad's mental health hasn't been great since last summer, and his neuropathy is worse..hard to see :(

Highs: After Abby died, I started looking for a new cat. I looked at pictures online, went to a shelter, etc, but there wasn't an instant connection like there was with Abby. One day a picture of a tiny kitten was posted online..I showed mom the picture, and we both felt a connection, a very good feeling like "this kitty is the one!" We cleaned my apartment and got new cat stuff, and then met the owner in town. The kitty was meowing and scared, but as I held him, he relaxed and started purring. I'd been chosen! (Mom originally said no male cats because they might spray..of course a male cat chose me haha.) He explored around my apartment while I thought of a name. I said "hmm, Wilson? Nah," and then thought "can I shorten curtain?" I wrote it out and I was like "oh, curti!" I called it out to him and he responded right away! I said it again and he answered again, which in total happened in like 10 seconds..he approved! I knew he was smart from the very first day. He can be a handful, but he's SO cute and sweet, and has a fun personality. When he curls up in my lap, I think "just another reason I can't live without a cat" haha. I feel the connection deeply when he's on my lap! I'm very glad he chose me <3

I saw the play The Fourposter in April, which I never thought Fairbanks would do. Super cool!

I went to Santa Fe in May and hung out with Aunt Cindy and Uncle Dean and their friends, and saw Drew Lynch live. He's so good at improv and isn't afraid to laugh at his stutter. Pretty cool!

In June, as a birthday present, I went flying around Black Rapids Glacier and the surrounding area with mom and her friend. I wish I had seen more of the glacier, but I still drooled over the snowy landscape..Alaska is just so pretty!

Going to the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics with mom and Ingrid, and helping with the blanket toss, and going to Music With Reindeer with them as well

Those are the major things, at least! I can't wait to do my end of year book post tomorrow, I look forward to it all year haha!

( dec 27-30 )