I would have imagined that the first reference would have been obvious, but I realized after the fact that I had the name wrong! What I was imagining was the original Overboard movie, the part where the yacht turns around, and the actress, in her satin pajamas and sleep mask slides right out of bed. I thought it was Goldie Hawn, but the more I think about it, I think it was the actress that played her mother. I was TERRIFIED that this would happen during the night. Consequently I slept in a tight little ball, waiting to fall out of bed. As you may assume, I did not fall out, though I did talk about the possibility nearly nightly. I will say that the only two times that I really felt the ocean was at night. There's no one to confirm that because Louise sleeps like a rock, but I did hear people talking about it at breakfast the next morning (affirmation that I didn't make it up!). ;)
The bottom line, is I didn't fall out of bed, nor did I need the plethora of sea-sickness items I brought with me. I had these fetching glasses with me, Bonine, Dramamine, ginger in two forms, and two prescriptions for anti-nausea. Don't you sort of wish that I had walked around the boat with these on everyday? It's okay to laugh right out loud... ;)
As you may have read in one of the other blogs, I was reading a lot about John Muir, and becoming reacquainted with him and his "work" with glaciers. And I was sharing all my information with my travel buddy. Only here's the tricky part: my chemistry teacher in high school was named Larry Muir, and his name just kept rolling off my tongue!
I don't remember much about Larry, but one memory I will never forget. My high school had a Monday morning meeting where we sat by advisory. My advisor was adamant that we didn't get seated until everyone arrived. So we were late walking in, the announcements had begun, and the only seats left were on the top row. I went up first, and here's where this story starts. The left two legs of my chair were not totally on the platform. And I fell. I think I screamed. I know I was wearing a dress. I know that because I will never forget when it fell over my face on the way down, blocking my view of my white Sam & Libby flats (LOL). But the embarrassing part came when I hit the floor. I landed on my lab partner, and broke his fingers or his hand or his something. Everything's blurry after that mortification. Cautionary tale, kids: sit with your advisory or you might be hit by falling people! And wear pants. Always wear pants. The next morning as chemistry class began, Larry took a look around - I was limping in the door with a VERY swollen hip, and David showed up with a cast on. Larry gave a nervous laugh, and announced we should switch up the lab partners. LOL. So while Larry is forever ensconced in my memory, it's not for his knowledge of glaciers, though he got a lot of credit for them on this trip!
What fascinated me so much about John Muir was what he was able to deduce using maps, and his theories on how glaciers behaved. He had maps from when Vancouver went through (roughly 100 years prior), and compared those with what he was witnessing first hand. As early as the late 1800s, he was making a call for the conservation of our wild places. It's troubling that over 100 years later, we are still exploring this topic. But along with conservation, he was adamant that we get out and play in the dirt, that we connect with nature:
"Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountain is going home; that wildness is a necessity; and that mountain parks and reservations are useful not only as fountains of timber and irrigating rivers, but as fountains of life."
Happy Sigh.
So, travelers, that was our trip! Every adventure and visit I've had to Alaska has been different, and all have been amazing. If you haven't been to Alaska, go! If you've been, go again; chances are there's something new to see. :)
"I have seen the sun rise over Paris, above the ruins of Machu Picchu, and on the horizon of an elephant-dotted African savanna, and none of them can equal the dawn breaking in Glacier Bay."
~Mark Adams, Tip of the Iceberg
That's (finally) it for us! Until next time...
💚
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