“When you’re writing, you’re trying to find out something which you don’t know. The whole language of writing for me is finding out what you don’t want to know, what you don’t want to find out. But something forces you to anyway.”
— James Baldwin
The Art of Walking
Written by an Alaskan during a -40° bout.
It wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago that I realized I could see the mountain range from the bridge five minutes from my home. I’ve taken that path every businessday — trodding the mile from my front door to work — for the last year now, and it wasn’t until I chose to look up in just the exact moment, when the skies weren’t slated in clouds or still dark before nine in the morning, that I was able to witness the pink to orange glow of the Alaska range at sunrise. Needless to say, I was late to work that day. I stood on the bridge, my feet going numb and my eyelashes freezing over, and I watched in awe as the clouds pinkened around the glowing mountains. That particular day was during the week of our second deep freeze, in which everyone was disappointed ,but not surprised, by false spring […]
Both Sides of the Ambler Road Project
Understanding the perspectives of the economist and the ecologist
It wasn’t until chartering over the Brooks Range that I finally understood what people meant when they say Alaska is wild. Between the shark-tooth mountain tops and shockingly blue rivers, my mind reeled while trying to comprehend the unequivocal truth that those travel photos on postcards and calendars did their best to encapsulate. […]
Why are Alaska Public Use Cabins so Awesome?
Complete with a Brief History, Valuable Resources, and Useful Tips
This may seem banal, but I wasn’t able to comprehend just how big and how wild the state of Alaska truly is until I shotgunned the facts. Alaska makes up just about 54% of the nation’s wilderness, with 60% of Alaska being designated National Park land. Around a third of the nation's coastal shoreline can be found in Alaska. Alaska is about a fifth as large as the rest of the United States. […]
People Need Music
Representation and Diversity Through Concert Art in the Fairbanks Community
When I would close my eyes and imagine the experience of going to a ‘classical concert,’ passion, love, and fun are not terms that came to mind — let alone diversity, representation, and inclusivity. I often associated it with the same overwhelming boredom and vague adolescent embarrassment of my seventh-grade choir contest (that pimple-ridden, voice-cracking feeling of being in a concert hall linger still.) Needless to say, this sentiment is shared by many, be it an amateur holiday performance, a recorder recital for your kid, or an obligatory church production. […]
The American Dream!
Disclaimer: Must be a Straight, White, Christian Man
“The truth is we don’t know what we don’t know. We don’t even know the questions we need to ask in order to find out, but when we learn one tiny little thing, a dim light comes on in a dark hallway, and suddenly a new question appears.”
— Yaa Gyasi