Mushers on the Horizon

Today was a little less hectic. I suppose it is always better to have the craziest day be the first one, though I think it's a little too soon to say if yesterday will, in fact, be the craziest day. In addition to being slightly less busy on the wards, it was slightly less cold. Only -9 degrees when I got up today. I walked to and from the hospital but it still felt awfully cold to me. The one item I forgot to bring was a scarf. This is necessary for tying around the face to shield from the wind (making the temp -20 with wind chill I heard). Tomorrow I might tie a sweater around my face. No one here judges. We're all in the same freakin' cold boat out here. That goes for hat hair as well. It's just a fact of life. Vanity really has no place in the tundra.

My latest exciting discovery: a small space heater in my very small bathroom. I turn that bad boy on full blast before taking a shower and the room becomes a small sauna. If it weren't for that little warm-air-blowing angel I'm not sure I'd ever take my clothes off here. How all these women here end up pregnant baffles me. It is definitely too cold for any sort of nakedness. I guess the natives are just heartier folk.

Another very exciting tidbit: The Kuskokwim 300 dog sled race starts this Friday in Bethel. The race is apparently a very big deal in the dog sledding world. It is the "most highly-regarded mid-distance dog sled race in the world, annually attracting top mushers in the sport," according to wikipedia. For more info check it out here. I'm hoping to catch the sight of the mushers and their dogs starting the race on Friday night. I think there's a big celebration afterwards with fireworks (fireworks are big in the winter out here because it's never dark enough early enough to light them off in the summer). I am really in awe of these mushers who spend nearly 50 hours covering 300 miles on a sled. Do they eat powerbars? Gu? Gatorade? Maybe I will glean some more information from the crowd if I make it out there Friday.

Well, I think it is about time to pack it in for the night. More tomorrow, no doubt.