Happy Independence Day.


The 4th of July in Bethel is no different than any other place in America: flag waving, parade, lots of candy . . . . But there are no fireworks at night because it doesn't get dark enough.  The Bethel celebration was kicked off with a parade that ended in Pinky's Park.  There were local food vendors and games for the kids.  Lots and lots of people milling around.  The day was cool and windy, unlike the past few days that have been sunny and in the 70's.

Bethel has been our home for over a month now.  I guess you could say we've settled in and life is not much different than any other place.  We get up, go to work, watch Brad play soccer, and then the day ends.  If I could complain (although it won't do any good), I'd mention that I greatly dislike all the dust.  The floor of the house has a continual layer of silty dirt.  No matter how often I sweep, it's always there.  Mix in the dog hair, and it makes for grossness.

 

The fishing season has been limited here.  The salmon have been over fished recently and there have been restrictions on when the locals can net fish.  We kayaked last weekend on the river and floated up a small slough and found several fish camps.  The salmon was cut and hanging to dry.  We spoke to a woman and she said she dries the fish for a few days on a covered fish rack and then puts it in the smoker for a couple of weeks.  The fish rack needs to be covered otherwise the sun would cook the meat.

Our kayaking adventure was quite enjoyable.  We paddled against the current both ways, but didn't go that far.  The river is cold and big.  And muddy/silty so you can't see the bottom.  I was almost beached in my boat because I didn't know I was only in about an inch of water.  My paddle hit the bottom more than once.  Several people whizzed by in their boats and that made Alex wish more and more that our boat was here.

 

These kids were swimming in a small branch of the river.  They helped to push me in the kayak.

We do know that the barge arriving on July 7 will have our truck and boat on it.  We're not really sure about the rest of our stuff, and for all I know it's heading west to Russia or south to Chile.  I suppose losing all the stuff we don't really need wouldn't be a bad deal, but there is a lot of stuff we want and need.  We are forever hopeful that the shipping container will magically arrive next to the boat, because if it doesn't, I'll be calling the moving company and will attempt to raise holy hell.

For me, work has been quite interesting.  I've learned that Bethel is a place that has a lot of disease and illness and many of the native people have died during epidemics.  Before the Haemophilus vaccine, many children died from meningitis, and some just suffered profound brain damage and seizures.  There is still a high prevalence of tuberculosis here as well.  The vaccine rate for both children and adults is high and no one seems to object to being vaccinated (and yes, I know there is no vaccine for TB).  We were told that the Hepatitis B vaccine was tested here in the delta and that Bethel holds a supply of botulism anti-toxin.  The only other anti-toxin is at the CDC in Atlanta.  If I were to stand on my soap box today, I'd say that EVERYONE should be vaccinated against every and all illnesses possible.  The minimal pain inflicted with a shot is nothing compared to a communicable disease that can kill you.  Vaccines don't cause illness or autism either.  And they don't leave scars.

The berries are ripening!  We have picked blueberries and salmonberries, a.k.a bakeapple or cloudberries.  Who doesn't like fresh blueberry pancakes or blueberry shortcake?  We will attempt to make jam, but our canning stuff is on the barge, so I'm not sure what the jam will be put into.  Maybe it'll just go into my belly.  The salmonberries are precious.  People will pick them and then sell them for $75 per gallon bag.  Good thing there are a few patches just behind the house.

Blueberries and Salmonberries

 

 

Last weekend, we took advantage of the beautiful weather.  We found a short trail from a small boat launch to the harbor.  The salmon was hanging up behind  a house

Everyone is friendly

Here is where we work:

  

The"New YK" building where I work

Hospital proper where the clinic is located

Here are a few more photos  

 

Alex's home made bug net.  He sewed it by hand!

Alex is standing below our house

Yes, it gets warm here