Wild Times in Bethel!!!

This past week we had an absolutely wild Friday night! And by, "absolutely wild Friday night" I am not referring to any raging parties or adventures on the town. Our wild night included...

1) Going to the "Friendly Dog Farm" where John, Jamie (our area director) and I took care of the 35 sled dogs, the same ones that I helped run in the past. The caretakers were away for the weekend and by some miracle decided that they trusted us enough to care for their prized possesions while they were gone. Taking care of these dogs is very different from anydogsitting I've ever done. At no time were we sprinkling kibble in a bowl, patting the dog playfuly on the head or tossing them a cute little doggy treat for being good.

First was the feeding...The moment the dogs even THINK that you're within 100 yards of the dog farm the howling begins. Ever hear 35 hungry dogs howling like they hadn't been fed in three weeks? When Casey was giving directions before the weekend she made sure to explain everything a good distance from the dog yard. Barely paying attention I chuckled to myself thinking, "what the hec is she so worried about?" Well, I learned very quickly. Once we got through the gate into the dog yard even trying to talk to John, who was 5 feet away, was a near impossiblity. I felt like a quarterback trying to send signals to my teamates amid the deafening roar of the crowd at an away stadium. (Basically, nothing like Alumni) John and I quickly retreated to a corner, all while dodging dogs left and right, where we strategized the best way to go about our business. I addition to the hostile atmosphere the food can really send you staggering. These dogs don't get your run-of-the-mill kibble. We had to make a carefuly measured concoction of kibble, left-over restaraunt grease, and chunks of salmon (bones and all) from a pot of a "fish stew". This fish stew is basically just a giant pot (about 3 feet in diameter) of water and full dead salmon. Let me tell you, salmon doesn't smell so good when its left out in a pot of warmed water. The farm has a walk in freezer stocked floor to ceiling with the salmon they use for the dogs. And, according to Casey, they make a transistion from salmon to BEAVER for the winter. In addition to feeding the dogs we also had a few other "small" tasks. One dog needed to take pills (why, I have no idea). All I know is I was the lucky one who got to stick the pill down Rudy's throat. I'm just glad Rudy liked me...I still have all my fingers! Other responsibilities include scooping poop, taking care of some month-old puppies (really cute), and making sure none of the dogs have escaped from their chain. A dog freeing himself from his post is not unlike the scene of a jailbreak. As soon as a dog's free, mayhem erupts! Every other dog in the yard starts hooting and hollering and straining as hard as they can against the heavy duty chain to join the escape. We only had one attempt that was succesfuly foiled when the dog dragged his chain and pole along with him through the yard just a few feetbefore he got tangled with another dog. "FREEEEEDO...ughhhhh"

2) Once we finished with the dogs we headed home. Our journey was interrupted, however, when we noticed a pack of cars on the side of the road and people standing in truck beds craning their necks to see something in the brush. We obviously had to stop and check out the situation. What if we missed something exciting in Bethel?!? We would never forgive ourselves...just kidding...but seriously, we wouldn't. John slammed on his breaks and we all leaped out of the car to see what was going on (John was so excited that he forgot to put the car in gear and it started to roll away...) Turned out that two young moose calves had wandered into town. News got around fast because half of Bethel was there to see them. Even being in Alaska it is extemely rare to have moose in Bethel. Part of the reason is that Bethel is surrounded, for the most part, by tundra which isn't exactly known for being ideal for moose. Unfortunately for my roomates and I there's a no hunting law in Bethel (something about 'safety concerns'), not to mention that moose hunting season was over. The moose flaunted their immunity and seemed to enjoy the attention as all of Bethel watched with excitement. I stood in awe watching these moose eat their dinner, then it hit me...I have been transformed, at least partially, into a Bethelite. Looking around at the masses of people I felt like part of the community and i was really having FUN watching a moose eat a bush. THEN, a voice of reason spoke from above (well actually from behind...). Examining the scene, a man commented only half-joking, "We REALLY need a recreation hall in Bethel!" Aw well...