You're a very welcome addition to these Blogs, Roa. I look forward to seeing lots of interesting entries from you!

-BC

I typically see that there are tax breaks and salary bonuses for living in Alaska: is it because there's a high cost-of-living up there? Or is it that shipping costs are ridiculous, as AK is almost a country unto itself?

Not saying Seward's icebox isn't welcome among the lower 48.

-KIE

Yeah, we have no sales tax up here. Only smaller towns charge it for maintaining roads and such. Evey year we get a dividend check. Right around october, it sure is nice to get that $1000 or more check! It should be going up soon because of these insane gas prices. Currently $2.17 per gallon for unleaded.

The driving conditions are hazardous on the Seward Highway, so I may be waiting a few days to go back home.

Beleive it or not, it really doesn't cost all that much more to live up here than it does in the lower 48. Granted some things are spendy, but its worth it considering all the fresh air and beautiful scenery you get! I was born and raised here in Anchorage, and have traveled out of state. After vacations I can always say I feel relieved when I get home after taking that first breath of fresh outside air!

Living in Seward is great too! Its a pretty small town, 120 miles from anchorage, about a mile long and built on the feet of mountains by the ocean. It a major tourist stop for cruise ships in the summer. Every day, enormous cruise ships dock at the harbor and the tourists get to shop around town. Seward still retains a lot of its history in buildings, stores and more. I may make a photo entry blog of a trip around town. I'll show y'all pictures of historic buildings, and places that were almost buried by the flood that happened in october. Theres a gigantic motor that sits in the water by an old mooring dock that was there before the 64 earthquake. Theres a bunch of great sights. Seeing the shipyard is especially interesting, as there are boats drydocked there that make my big old suburban look like a micro machine! The machine that lifts those boats is pretty incredible too!

Keep an eye out for another entry soon!

Wow. Alaska. Niiiiiiiice.

And snow up and over your head... wow... I wish it did that in Jersey.

Of course I'd probably be tired of it by now if it did that regularly. It's the rarity that makes it so amazing, I suppose.

Unfortunately this year is looking like less of a rarity and more of an impossibility. DARNED WEATHER.

...

Where was I originally going?

Nice to see ya here and hope to hear more of Trials of Terror!

Roa has a blog? O_O

Yay!

-Omi

I wish I lived in Alaska. And cool, a Roa blog.

so like wut does it snow up ther a lot or somethin.

over the last few years we were starved for a good hard snow, and there were many forest fires because of it.. This year should be much better as far as summer dryness. There wont be any LOL