Today was much more successful than yesterday.

I ate better and went places and talked to people, which is much nicer than wondering up and down Spenard and eating at a gross taco place.

The out of state volunteer meeting was today and I instantly fell in love with the Iditarod volunteer personality. It's a very Hunt/Cutler sense of humor that's sometimes biting and usually very dry. In short, I feel very at home with these people. Also you can see the dog-ness in the dog people, which I love. They're often a little rough-looking and share some subtle dog mannerisms like vigorously scratching their neck with one eye squinted (with their hand, not foot, guess that's a difference), or sneezing only through their nose.

Pretty much every word of advice or warning here is also accompanied by an anecdote. Like the one about the hand injury that made an EMT faint after having to thaw the injured woman's hands to remove her gloves, which were frozen to the blood filling them. She sustained the injury from trying to break up a dog fight. Warnings are also all the same in that they end up with the same moral - protect the dogs. We were told not to get dehydrated, less for our own health, but more because it makes you sluggish and make poor decisions, which makes it harder to take care of the dogs. I also learned not to wear anything pointy, and to never lean over a husky, as they can jump around 6 feet flat-footed and it's not uncommon to end up with a broken nose. Also that some of these dogs are very friendly family dogs, but some are bred to just love running, but not much else, so it's important to keep an eye on small kids running around because they could be mistaken for snacks. Sled-dogs are serious business and I am soooo excited about hanging out with them.

This evening I took a bus downtown to wander around. I found my way pretty easily after having looked at a map a few times before leaving, and found some cute boutiques and the 5th Avenue mall mixed in with stores like Alaska Fur and Anchorage Outfitters. Just like any downtown, the contrast between the people in the cafe in Nordstrom (yes I had dinner there: missed you mom!) and the people waiting for the bus in the transportation center was also striking. This is something I always loved about being in a big city; the types and breeds of people you see are infinite and the range is expansive. But in this big city, there are also mountains and snow and (nearby) lots of dogs. I like it.

An aside: I caught The Daily Show last night and Stewart did an excellent job ripping Fox News a new one (not that he does this infrequently) and also expressed the exact same feelings I had stumbling upon Sarah Palin on Leno late Tuesday night. I'm not sure it was a new episode last night, but it's the one with the guest who wrote the book about American and British media during WWII, which also sounds very interesting, and I recommend you find the show on Hulu.