by Tele | Dec 2, 2011 | Culture, Reading & Writing, Women in Fishing
As much (and as loudly) as I grieve our autumn migration, leaving our Sitka family for the winter, it doesn’t take long before I remember that this transient lifestyle brings the best of several worlds into my life. Our winter-life offers...
by Tele | Nov 16, 2011 | Alaska, Commercial Fishing, Culture, Women in Fishing
When new friends learn I’m a commercial fisherman, their eyes often drop in an almost-unconscious survey. What they see — a petite, 5′2″ female — doesn’t match the burly machismo touted as an industry requirement. “But isn’t that hard work?” is...
by Tele | Nov 6, 2011 | Alaska, Commercial Fishing, Culture, Environment, F/V Nerka, Family
My mom recently saw an online photo of her daughter, protest sign held proudly high. “Oh, gawd!” Part embarrassed laugh, part groan; her response revealed a long-internalized instruction to be quiet and polite. Those were the prevailing lessons of my...
by Tele | Oct 18, 2011 | Alaska, Culture, Environment, Sitka
Today is Alaska Day, and, I have to admit, I have mixed feelings. On October 18, 1867, Russia formally transferred control of the Territory of Alaska to the U.S. Commemorated as a statewide holiday, Alaska Day is a really big...
by Tele | Oct 12, 2011 | Alaska, Culture, Reading & Writing, Women in Fishing
Early September, I hit land and jumped online. Waded through weeks of spam, mass mailings, and impersonal updates. Just when I felt like I might as well have stayed at sea, a message from Annie Boreson leapt out: I just wanted to...
by Tele | Sep 5, 2011 | Alaska, Culture, Environment, From the Galley, Hooked Favorites, Sitka
Year-round, Sitka’s bulletin boards are thick with flyers of talks, classes, performances. My Hokey-Pokey presence – one foot in the community, one foot out – has often meant that if it sounds like something I’d like to experience, it’ll happen while...
