Happy 50th, Alaska Marine Highway!

The ferry M/V Malaspina came to port as part of the celebration of the Alaska Marine Highway System’s 50th birthday. This ferry was the one that brought us to Petersburg in September 2006, so it holds special memories for us. Not too long after that the Malaspina was reassigned to a different part of the state, so it’s been quite some time since we’ve seen her in our waters.

On this occasion we got to board the boat and wander around the decks as well as take a tour of the bridge. The ship certainly has new equipment and electronics, but it still has quite a bit of original 1963 equipment that is maintained and used as backup in case primary systems fail.

AMHS 50 Years VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Bookshelves! (and other things)

After 19 or so months of most of our books sitting in boxes, quite a few of them came out to see the light today. We had been through all these boxes during all this time, but we now have a few bookcases so that we don't have to go searching through half a dozen boxes to try to find the book that we need.

Elise ordered four bookcases from IKEA in Seattle, had them sent to the Alaska Marine Lines (AML) port in Seattle, and then had them barged up to Petersburg. She picked them up on Monday and spent yesterday and today assembling them and putting them up.

Today was another spring-y day. It was a bit more cloudy, and by evening rain started to fall. But being optimistic, I swapped the wheels with studded tires on my bicycle for wheels with thinner and smoother (and lighter!) tires. With the weather warming up a bit more, my gear shifters are also starting to work a little better. I suspect that in the cold the shift cable gets stiff and the shifter fails to hook the end properly. The end result is that on my rear cog, I can only get about four gears out of the eight that are available. Today was the first time since last autumn that I was able to shift through all eight.

Our church has set dates for the Quit Now smoking cessation seminars. I sent in an ad to run in the local paper. We begin on Thursday, March 27 and meet seven times over the course of about two weeks. Since I'll be the presenter, I'll need to review the materials and make sure I know them well enough.

One Year

Today marks our one-year anniversary leaving the Lower 48. Friday will be the one-year mark for our arrival here in Petersburg.

An anniversary seems like a good time to take a look back and do some evaluations. But is it really? How do I evaluate a journey where the destination and goals are unknown? Is it possible to measure any sort of progress in such an environment?

Looking at only the numbers, the obvious conclusion is that there has been no progress. Our church attendance remains pretty much the same from a year ago, although a few faces have changed. None of the member families that had stopped attending have yet to return on a regular basis. Although from the start, numerical growth was never an objective (and that's easy to say), the fact is that it is something that is always there in the back of my mind, wondering if there is anything that can be done to cause growth.

What were some of our objectives?

The primary one was simply to live a life of grace and trust in God. What is my own evaluation here? I think I can summarize by saying that this year was one full of extraordinary challenges to my trust in God's grace and faithfulness. There were times when I thought I wouldn't make it without completely breaking down. But I do believe that I have experienced growth and have come out stronger for it. I've spoken about it in some of my sermons and in conversations with individuals.

Another objective was to build relationships with the community, both as individuals and as a church. Elise is much better at the individual relationship building. Through her work and just being herself, we are beginning to know people here. As a representative of our church, I've participated in a number of events this past year. We've also offered a few events of our own. We want to let the community see that we are here to offer positive things and we're not just taking up real estate.

It's hard to know for sure how we've met these objectives. Not only are they ongoing, with no defined endpoints, but there is very little feedback available to measure effectiveness. We make efforts towards an elusive, distant goal and hope that we are on the right track. There are rare occasions when someone says something to us where we get a glimpse behind the scenes to help us realize that, yes, we must still be on the right path.

I think that this coming second year will continue to be much of the same. We'll be holding the previously mentioned meetings at the end of this month, just to see if there is any sort of interest. That's the one change from the past year. Otherwise, it's more of simply being visible in the life of the community, getting to know more people, and living a life of grace and trust.

Feeling at home

This evening, I got out a number of the candles that we unpacked this week and lit them. For the first time since we started our moving process back in Portland a year ago, it feels like we've finally come home. Just staring at the flames glowing around the room gave me a feeling of peace, relaxation, and home-ness... if you know what I mean.

These images don't convey the full sense of what I felt, but it's the closest thing you readers are going to get.

Ten Months

As of today, our time in Petersburg has reached ten months. We've experienced Fall, the snowiest Winter in decades, all of Spring, and are now in midst of Summer.

It's nearly unbelievable that just a year ago we were still trying to figure out how we were going to accomplish the move. We were so overwhelmed with all that had to be done, that we hadn't really done much. We hadn't even contacted any Real Estate brokers...

But that is all past. And speaking of Real Estate... Patience is the watchword around here. The documents that we have to sign are finally in the mail to Petersburg this afternoon. The schedule now is for us to sign on Monday, and then the transfer of title to be recorded on Wednesday, which is when we take possession of the property. I'm still not holding my breath... I'll believe it when we actually get the keys.

Shelley found out that one of the girls she knows, who is just a month older, started her first job yesterday. Shelley also accidentally washed her Tamagotchi.

I tried to take it apart, dry it out and get it working again, but discovered that the connections between the PC Board and the LCD panel is done via some sort of thin layer of conductive adhesive. In the process of taking it apart, it no longer stays together, and there isn't enough pressure in the case to force it together. So unless someone out there has some ideas, the Tamagotchi is dead.

Anyway, Shelley discovered that Amazon sells some versions of the V4 Tamagotchi's for around $15. (They are available here, too, for close to $30 + tax.) But she needs a few more $$$ for that.

Shelley also is getting a little tired and bored of hanging about the house. So all the pieces came together and she found out that Trading Union might have work that she could do. This morning, she left early and returned with a job application. She filled it out and took it in, had her first job interview, and it looks like she will be starting a job next week.

Our little girl is growing up... Though she still says she doesn't want to drive. She's getting close to where she can get a learner's permit...

Farewell, Malaspina

One final post tonight. We saw a ship moving outside our window. It looked awfully familiar. Checking the time, it was just 15 minutes after the scheduled departure of the Malaspina. It was cool seeing the ferry that had been our home for 2 days one last time sailing by our new home on land.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

And so the adventure continues

We drove out from the ferry terminal to where we believed the apartment to be. Once we found it we looked around to see if anyone was around. There wasn't anyone.

Elise found the unit with the number we had been told open, empty, and lights on. Amy found keys in a kitchen drawer. So we moved in, left a message with the manager, and hope that we have the right apt.

On the way we paused at the downtown grocery store but it was already closing time. So after we unloaded a few items, Elise made her way to the larger one near the airport. We will be having some oven baked boxed pizza tonight. We noticed that we have to purchase a microwave oven. And curtains - or at least some butcher paper. Now I know everyone here knows what everyone else is doing, but we probably don't need to make it easier than is necessary.

The apartment is 2 bedrooms, and with nothing in it yet, it seems large enough, but I'm sure that once it is filled with all the stuff we had shipped, it will be packed wall to wall. The interior has a 70's or an 80's look to it.

There was a family from Idaho on the ferry with us through to Ketchikan. They had sold or given away everything except what fit into a cargo trailer that came along. Some friend they knew has a house on Prince of Wales Island that needs house sitting, so off they went. Compared to that what we're doing seems tame.

The apartment manager just got back in and stopped by, so yes! We are in the right place.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

Petersburg Arrival

This is just a short entry to note our safe arrival to Petersburg.

Much remain before us. To start with we need to establish basic services and a PO box for mail delivery.

Last word from the moving specialist is that our cargo will arrive the first week of October. Until then we will remain in a camping state.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

Wrangell

We are docked in Wrangell at this moment. It is a small town of around 2,000 located just south of Petersburg and is the closest town. It is a 3 hour ferry trip between the two towns, or a 30 minute flight.

From the town I can see numerous smaller islands all around, one after another, each one nesting behind another, forming ever dissolving silhouettes towards the horizon.

Although a smaller town, the Adventist church in Wrangell is larger and more active than Petersburg. That can likely be attributed to the more consistent presence of a pastor at the church who also lives on the island. One reason we made the decision to move to Petersburg is to remedy one of the reasons that we believe is an obstacle to improvements in the work of the church there. We hope that a consistent, personal presence will help establish our church as a solid presence in the community.

Petersburg and Wrangell are a church district. Dave Brown, also most recently from Oregon, is a retired pastor who is overseeing the district. He lives in Wrangell and we expect to see him in Petersburg about once a month.

The SE Alaska Adventist summer camp is located on Vank Island which is between Wrangell and Mitkof Islands.

I imagine we will have occasion to make our way onto Wrangell from time to time.

I've had chance to converse with a couple of the galley crew each time we go through for a meal. One particularly has been interested in the reasons behind our move and what we will be doing. To let God lead and then simply tell our story - I think that is the heart of what we are called to do. Leave all the rest up to God.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

Ketchikan

We arrived this morning in Ketchikan. It is a good sized city - the last one we will see in probably many months. We encountered more rough seas during the night. Fortunately, being in bed helped with surviving the rolls.

Unlike the earlier weather forecast, we were greeted by mostly cloudy skies with some sun and no rain. As we leave Ketchikan behind, shafts of sun rays beam down through the clouds onto the hills rising up out of the water.

All around us islands rise up- some probably 3 or 4,000 feet high. This is as close to unspoiled wilderness as one will likely find anywhere. At least on this side of heaven, this is probably the best example of what it must have been like when God separated the waters from the land - I can see the waters in the air and below, and the dry land between.

Our cats appear to be fine and have adjusted to life in a crate. They only have half a day more of this before they have new lands to explore.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

En Route

(This will be posted a day after it is written after I get inside data range.)

The sailing out of Bellingham was simply magnificent. The setting sun lit up the city we were leaving behind.

During the evening pet call we discovered that Stripey had made the litter box his bed. The following morning, both cats had climbed into the litter box as their resting place.

The cafeteria aboard the Malaspina has a decent selection of foods - even for vegetarian types. Cost per meal range from $5 to 15 depending on what one gets.

We awoke to rain this morning (Wed). The going got quite rough a few hours later as we entered Queen Charlotte Sound and were no longer protected from the ocean swells. The bathrooms became a rather popular destination for many of the passengers. Amy lost it, but Shelley was absolutely unaffected. Who knows, she could make a good sailor one day.

I don't know if the crew expected this degree of roughness as I heard quite a few crashes from the galley. I heard from a passenger that was in the area that kitchen items were flying about during the roughest parts.

Once the swells began to settle down, the clouds also broke to show some sun and reveal the beauty of the Canadian islands.

The clouds and rain have returned this afternoon, together with gale force winds. Even so, as we pass by what seems like stone's throw away from the islands, the mist and clouds add a unique beauty to the scenery.

I had T-Mobile service for a few hours after we started out, and then I was able to get Rogers signal. Mt Verizon service was getting analog roaming from Canada this morning.

We've seen other ferries, boats, sailboats, and barges pass by traveling in the other direction.

At this time of year there aren't that many passengers going northbound. The ferry is relatively empty.

The skies cleared up a bit this afternoon as we passed through Waglisla in the Bella Bella Indian Reserve. This was the first sighting of any significant civilization since Vancouver BC last night. The combination of clouds and sun make for some good photo ops.

For a few minutes a rainbow appeared over the water and framed an island. Superlatives fail to express the magnificence and wonder of this part of the world. The theme of ocean, sky, and landforms may be the same, but the variety of ways in which they are manifest make every moment unique and not to be repeated again. It's like music - 12 notes per octave, but the way they are combined and placed in sequence, the way they are interpreted results in infinite possible performances.

We saw the first bald eagle of this voyage near the village of Klemtu. This is a native Canadian village along this ferry route. The rain was coming down fairly hard during this time.

I learned tonight that this sailing encountered the first rough seas of the season. All summer long the seas were calm going through the rough areas that we experienced today. So the best time to use the ferry is during the summer months - better weather and calmer seas.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

Now on Board

Well, with all the security and such we didn't actually start boarding until 4 PM. We are in our stateroom that looks out currently to the Fairhaven part of Bellingham.

She's a good sized boat. Two miniature horses are on board a pickup just behind ours. Lots of dogs yipping away below.

One more hour until launch.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

At Bellingham

After one final hectic night of packing, sorting, and cleanup, we started out this morning. We stopped at Elise's family for one final visit and goodbyes and then headed off out of Oregon.

Our cats seemed to do fairly well in the car. For a few hours they were able to roam inside the vehicle and find appropriate perches.

We are now at the port, waiting in front of the M/V Malaspina and should be driving onto her in a few more minutes.

It's a partly cloudy day here. Very beautiful outgoing weather. The forecast for the Inside Passage isn't so good, however. We'll see how it goes.

The next entry will likely be from somewhere in Alaska.

Sent wirelessly via BlackBerry from T-Mobile.

Ready to Go?

By this time tomorrow, we will be well out of Oregon. The reality that we are leaving Oregon for good is finally hitting home.

I spent much of the morning breaking apart boxes, filling the trashcan past full, taking apart wooden shelves, and disassembling my bicycle to put into a bike box. That last bit was not fun. While attempting to take one of the pedals off, I skewered my right pinky knuckle on a chainring tooth and it bled for quite a while. And I think in that same instance I sliced a bit of one of my other fingers, not quite to the flesh, but close enough to have some pain. And then trying to take off the other pedal, I crushed my thumb between the crankarm and the pedal wrench. This is why I am not a mechanic and not a handyman.

With all that done, I started to walk through the empty house, looking into each room and through the windows for one of the last times. That's when it really hit me that we are going to be leaving all this behind for good. It's not the house that we will miss, but the memories that the things and places trigger.

When we started looking for a new house four years ago, I didn't really want to move (not that I want to move right now either). I was happy where I was. But we looked around, found this house, fell in love with it, and watched it go from frame to completion, adding some of our touches to it. The view of the Sherwood area valleys and hills today is just amazing, as the morning rain dries up, the sun comes out, the clouds and the light combine to make the landscape glow.

Our previous cat had died here. We used to hold a number of church group meetings here. We've had hospitality dinners, friends and families here, children growing up, birthday parties, holidays... When we moved in here, I swore up and down that we would never move again, that this was going to be the place where I would live until the end of my time. Well, I guess never say never...

A few things that I will miss -- the people that we've gotten to know and grow close to, the memories, and the variety of restaurants. That last one is bugging me. We went to an Indian restaurant last night. Petersburg has one Chinese, one Mexican, and a general American type (meat, burgers, pasta) restaurant. Where am I going to get some Thai or Indian food? Or Japanese? I guess I'll just have to cook them myself.

We've managed to find homes for everything. Late last week, I thought we would never find homes for some of our furniture, but enough people wanted what we were giving away so that yesterday, just about everything got taken. I'll be taking the last few items out today, and the house will be completely empty.

Last weekend before we leave Portland

We have just entered our final weekend in Portland. It's still hard to imagine that next weekend, we will be in Petersburg.

We had dinner this evening with a few friends at Romano's Macaroni Grill in Bridgeport Village. The waiter we had during the dinner has been to the area we are going. He has family in various locations in Alaska, including many of the communities in the Inside Passage. He spent this last winter working in Skagway. Was this a coincidence...? Or was it yet another one of the small mileposts along the path of our journey that reminds us that we are still on the path laid out to us by our Lord?

We had an unpleasant surprise today that could have turned out much worse than it did. After the movers took all of our stuff and weighed it, it came in at 11,500 lbs.! This was 3,000 lbs. more than the estimate. The moving specialist, Marcy, with whom we've been working was reluctant to share this unpleasant bit of news this morning. We both fully expected the total moving cost to go up another several thousand $$$s.

When she called back a few hours later, it turns out that the initial quote overestimated the insurance, and the ocean freight didn't increase all that much. So the actual increase over the initial quote was just $500 -- a much more manageable increase. We were both very surprised at this turn of events and could only conclude that God is still working things out for us.

A number of people have mentioned to us how brave and courageous we are. It may look that way externally, but inside we are anything but. Even while the movers were working the past two days, the thought was always there that we should still abort the mission. I would like so much to stay with people and surroundings we've grown comfortable with.

After I had sent out a brief e-mail update this morning, I received a reply asking if we were certain we were making the right decision. Were we doing this for the right reasons. Were we being pressured into this? Even though we were close to the point of no return, we could still hit the abort button.

As I contemplated why we were going to make this move, I reflected upon all the things during the past two years that had led to this point. And in the midst of doing so the two stories of the Israelites approaching the land of Caanan, the Promised Land, came to my mind. In the first, they could see no human way of conquering the land, gave in to their fears, and ended up wandering about for forty years. In the second, forty years later, they couldn't see how the land would be theirs, but trusting in the God that had led them this far for forty years, they faithfully stepped into the rushing waters of the Jordan to see God work.

What I've been realizing is that I may make plans based on the best information that I have, but my ability to predict the future is worse than bad. But making those plans gives me the courage to take the next step. That is all God wants from us -- to take one step at a time. God provides just enough survey of the landscape around us for us to go in the direction that He wants. When we take that step, He opens up just a little bit more of what true reality looks like. And it often looks very different from what we thought it did.

The Israelites didn't know how they were going to cross the flooded Jordan. All they had were instructions to step into the river. And when they did, the waters were parted.

As we go off to Petersburg, we don't know how God has already planned to provide for us. All we know is that He has been faithful so far, and so there is no reason to doubt that His faithfulness will stop after we arrive.