Sometimes the grass isn’t always greener….
July 8, 2020
….a while back my daughter up in Alaska and I were talking and she said to me that metaphorically the grass isn’t necessarily always greener on the other side of the road. Basically she was saying that as much as I think things are better some place other than where I presently am, they really aren’t. This came about when I lamented I should have never left Alaska because of all the insanity of riots and destruction and of course the coronavirus here in Texas and the ‘lower 48’ in general.
She actually turned out to be correct when I took the time to look at the big picture. When I actually took the time to consider more than the self reliant, respectful you do your own thing and as long as it doesn’t encroach on me way of life that most ‘bush’ Alaskans have my actual day to day way of life was much harder to maintain than it is now. It was the little things of hitting my mid 70’s with a body that was not molded from birth to life in the wilderness that had me reaching my tipping point.
It seemed that carrying 20 gallons of water every three weeks to refill my stockpile or hand pumping 55 gallons of fuel oil at -20 or even having to shovel almost ¼ mile of driveway every time I wanted to drive the 130 mile round trip to town on solid ice was quickly becoming a major pain. That’s not even thinking about carrying the generator in and out of the cabin every night to ensure it would start and I would have electricity when my battery bank was drained during those cold Alaskan winters.
So though nearing 100 degrees outside today I sit typing in air conditioned comfort, with electricity on demand and most importantly running water and a flush toilet. Some of the newer followers of my blog have contacted me and requested a look at my old home of almost 20 years so even though I do not like blogs with a lot of photographs I hereby submit my shelter of sanity in the Alaskan wilderness.
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I’m about to move my Tiny House in the woods and am also dredging the idea of going back on grid. I think , as you do, will always look back with found memories and wishing I was back living off grid despite all the extra work..
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things and life changes in my very late 70s, Im getting a very difference perspective of wanting to “go back” and try to be content to “as is” just saying
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Pete,
Thanks for posting these pics. Brings back fond memories of when Margie & I stopped in in Sept. ’15 when you greeted my wife with a “Hello young lady!”
The views of the snow cooled me off even though we, as you, sit in a/c as it’s 92 with a dew point of 72 giving us a heat index of 100 as I write & I’m in the lower level on the north side of the house that sits on a slab just a little below ground.
Now that my brother & sil are moving to Mission, Tx., maybe we’ll see you again someday!
Thanks again!
Hi Trish!
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Thanks for sharing those photos! What an Alaskan adventure.
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Dear Pete,
thanks for the nice pictures.
I think that you really experience the nature…and even it may have been very hard sometimes I wished to have such an experience once in way life.
All the Best and 73,
Uwe
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Your pictures tell a story Pete, even without words. All the photos you had up, what memories. 1/4 mile of shoveling snow just to drive 130 miles? Wow.
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TBG… 1/4 mile sounds bad but because of my heart I usually streatched it out to almost a week of off and on shoveling, plus most snowfalls were cleared by Rose the lady that owned the homestead (when he truck was working). If you look at the drone video (on my YouTube page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6sujqqgaDsPvty5dQJcUQ) of the homestead you will see most snow storms I (only) shoveled my driveway but there were many that I had to do all the way to the highway.
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