Now that my bags are ¾ packed, my only work remaining is picking up my paycheck and returning my truck, the Spartans are in the Final Four, and I’m getting giddy for cooler weather; it’s time for the conclusion of my search for summer 2015 employment.
Just like I knew it would happen, I heard from both jobs on the same day. It’s a tale of an emotional roller coaster to reach this point, and it’s not necessarily where I hoped or expected to be, but I’m still content. It’ll be a good summer.
Way back on March 11th I received a message from my friend Sarah wondering if I’d heard anything from AK Maritime NWR yet. She’d worked on St. George the summer before me and had also gone to UAF, but our paths had never crossed. That is, they hadn’t until I was in Hawaii and forced her to take a break from graduate school studies and take a long walk on the beach to “catch up.” I learned she was also planning on working for the refuge this summer, so we’d been checking in to see if there was any news all winter.
She let me know she’d been contacted and offered a position on Aiktak Island, leaving me wondering when I would hear something. For years the refuge and I just hadn’t gotten the timing right. I’d been busy playing with kiwi, herding tourists, or trapping brant for the past few summers, but the refuge and I had shown mutual interest for years. If I didn’t get a call, I’d feel let down.
Fortunately a phone call from “Unknown” came through while I was entering some data, and I knew it was the refuge.
“Hi Steph! Sorry it’s taken so long to get back to you. First off, do you have a job lined up yet?”
“Nope, I don’t,” I replied.
“I’m sorry to hear that, but that’s good for me. Well, I have good news and bad news,” Marc told me. I could guess the nature of the news before he even could say it; somehow I’d felt it would turn out this way from the start.
“We do have 3 positions on Buldir, but returning employees requested those spots. Aiktak has probably been claimed by a couple.”
“– Sarah and Dan, right?” I cut in.
“What an incestuous community! You know things before I even do!” chuckled Marc. (It’s true, someday I’ll draw up a map, list names of friends, and draw mutual connections.) “The islands you’d shown the most interest in have been claimed, but I can offer you St. George.”
St. George: my home in the Bering Sea that I love dearly! The island that I first dubbed “my island” and subsequently made a travel guide about as a senior capstone project. Although Marc had given me hope that one of the Aleutians would be open, I’d had a feeling that returners would have first dibs and therefore land me with choices in the Pribilofs again.
Marc let me know he didn’t need an immediate decision on Wednesday, but Thursday (12th) would be “great,” Friday (13th) would be “good,” and Monday (16th) would be “not so good.” He was aware of the potential position in Churchill and suggested I send an email letting Dave know I had an offer on the table. He also said he could email Dave to convince him not to hire me.
After letting Marc know I’d be in touch, I sat back down to email Dave, feeling slightly more comfortable in knowing I’d have a job for summer. Since Dave had told me he was hoping to have his decision made between the 13th and 15th, I needed to check in to speed things along.
However, that proved to be unnecessary, as I received an email with the subject line “Decision on field technician position” after I’d typed about 3 sentences of my inquiry email. From that, I knew my gut had once again been right. Out of 500 applicants from 5 countries, I’d made it to the top 2% by being in the top 10 who were interviewed, but he hadn’t selected me for the position. (I’m guessing my enthusiasm for the train ride from Winnipeg to Churchill scared him off.)
Whew. Talk about timing, eh? I felt mixed feelings of disappointment and relief with the verdict. I didn’t have to make a tough choice, I’d have another season of decent pay, and I’d get to spend a whole summer on an awesome island. I’ll probably just have to take myself back to Churchill one of these days.
That tale leads me to where I am now: in the Sacramento airport waiting to start my journey north. I’ll fly to Alaska, stop by storage to grab a warmer sleeping bag, and then spend my weekend refreshing my wilderness first responder skills. Fortunately while the Spartans are playing Duke, I’ll be surrounded by people trained in first aid. When I suffer from a heart attack, help will be on hand!
In about a month I’ll be heading off for summer, which – oddly enough – will be significantly cooler than winter. It won’t be a brand new adventure, but it’ll be like going home.
