can you say "temperate rainforest"?

Heidi, an already good friend of mine out here, took this picture while we were hiking out to the river, not far from where I'm staying. I had to get a picture of this because not only does it show the moss that grows so much on the trees out here, but it looks like a moss covered man. I'm getting some overtime out here, and having a great time. I have to get someone a camping stove, so I'll have to stop there.

-J

Great view, very cool friends

In the foreground is Gil, he's my roommate and a very cool guy. In the background is Katie, another of the employees out here. Katie has a way of looking at people she's just met like she already knows them and has for a long time. One of the support people sent out from the corporate office said during a training session that she'd never seen a team of seasonal employees like us. None of us have been here any longer than a couple of weeks, most of us for only a few days, and we already treat eachother like old friends and family. For the most part you'd only see someone eating alone or hiking alone if they wanted to be alone.
The beach in this pic is just a short walk from the cabins where we sleep. You can get an excellent view from the lodge and sunset lasts for hours up here, it starts around 9 or so and lasts until nearly midnight. I'm really happy being here. I hope everyone back home is well.

A new sunset, at 9:30 pm.

I wanted to share this with you, my first impression of Alaska. I was coming in at about 9:30 at night, and we were literally flying off into the sunset. I only got this shot after we were turning and getting ready to land. The sunset was the slowest I've seen, but I'll probably see slower. I wonder how long it takes for that to get old, because watching the sunset is great and it often seems like it's just not long enough, but up here, it could be going overboard. Dusk lasted until almost midnight. I was laughing from the moment we started to descend until well after I got off the plane. It's beautiful here. I wish I had been taking pictures as I got off the plane, but like I said, I was laughing. I'm too poor for a hotel room, so I'm hanging out in the airport, but I think it should still be a pretty good summer. Actually I lost my debit card and my cell phone in Seattle, but on the upside I did get to see my little girl while I was there. As we said goodbye she gave me a really long hug. It crossed my mind that it would be a moment to cry. Perhaps I should say heart instead of mind, I mean I felt it, but at the same time I just felt so happy to have that time with her, even if I knew it would be the last time I'd see her before September. I hope to find time to post pictures frequently during my stay here. I hope all of you are well.

-J

Results

I just got my grades back for this past semester. I got 4 A's and a B+. That means I graduate from culinary school with a 3.65 GPA. I'm pretty happy about that, and so is buddha.