Touchdown, extra points

On Sunday the 10th I made it to Bethel. Mom and Dad took me to the bus stop at 5 am and by 8 I was in Chi Town. There I stood in long lines, and when I finally got to the front of each, my business at hand (check in, security scan)took a matter of seconds. I was a little saddened to miss Six Flags last week, but I guess I got to have about the same thing at the airport.
My flight from Chicago to Anchorage was about 6.5 hours and put me there at 1 PM AKDT. From there I got to enjoy a nice 5 hour layover (make that 6 hour after our delay), during which I made a couple last phone calls and took a couple of airport naps.
We finally boarded the 737 for Bethel. I thought it was hilarious. We've all been to an event where somebody comes and finds another somebody sitting in the seat that is by rights theirs. Well, that happened over and over again. Everybody just got in and sat down wherever, and this flight was filled. Nobody was sitting where their ticket said to. As the pre-flight announcements went, people kept getting booted out of the wrong seat as new passengers straggled in. The last one was yours truly. At least I was in the right row. And my rightful seat was a window one, so all the better.
I was picked up by Jimmy, who runs the Tundra Oasis (the house I am staying at.) My roomates are all really good folks. We have coffee to drink in the mornings. We have wireless internet in the house. I have a queen sized bed in my room, as well as a TV, which gets more channels than I have time to look at. SO the living situation is very nice here. I'm going to enjoy it to the fullest before I head out to the villages.
Bethel is unlike any town in the lower 48 that I know of. It has about 7,500 residents, and the one main road is about 17 miles long. There are little subdivisions scattered here and there along this road, separated by low bogs and sloughs. Boardwalks make for a nice dry footing on a shortcut if you're walking, otherwise there are cabs to get you around. I've been fortunate enough to live with folks who also work for LKSD and have vehicles. One more thing I should mention. Today we picked up some groceries for our dinner here at the T.O. and to give an idea of the price differences, a jar of off brand pickles will run you $8.69 here in Bethel, AK. Water, power, fuel, and any necessity will be steep. So, if you take it, eat it, if you're done, turn off the lights, and if it's yellow, let it mellow.
I've taken some pictures which I would love to share. As soon as the download software shows up I will do just that.