Six months ago in Michigan I thought living through the darkness of an Alaskan winter would be an interesting experiment. In all of the places where I have lived (NJ, OH, MI), I have always loved the Winter Solstice, the turning point of the year, when we celebrate having survived the longest night. I assumed, from the comfort of a light-filled Michigan summer, that winter in Alaska would be the same, but more.
There is a big difference between imagining something and living it.
Most of us are so clock and schedule driven that we forget the little time-cues that bombard us throughout the day. Living here in Alaska has been a sharp reminder of biological rhythms.
The sun rose at 9:58 this morning and set at 3:43 this afternoon. And even when the sky is clear, the angle of the sun is odd, never rising above what would make most people think that it was mid-morning, or late afternoon.
Every day feels like a Saturday when you sleep late, stumble out of bed in whatever clothes you slept in, drink a cup of coffee while you read the paper, slouch around all day, and go to bed at night feeling like you never really got up.
Which explains why it's 12:57 a.m. and I'm blogging.
Good thing we're heading south to sunny MI for a few weeks at the "holidays."
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2 comments:
Reading about people's experiences living in Alaska leaves me feeling envious. I'm sure, like you said, there's a big difference between imagining and living it...I'm terribly curious about it, though. Is it really hard to adjust to it?
Like most things, adjusting to Alaska seems to be different for different people.
I've been here since August, and haven't been working (at least, not at a job). That has given me more time to notice the effects of living this far north. It has also, however, given me the flexibility to sleep when I need to, rather than when I have to.
People who are working or going to school full time find that they notice less the on-going effects of moving to AK. But they also find themselves asking, "What's wrong with me? I'm completely exhausted." And those of us who have been noticing things all along "enlighten" them...
A good sense of humor helps, and the ability to be a amused observer of your own experiences.
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