Why I Live in Alaska - Part II

Submitted by: Teresa Knopp - We may not have drive-in theatres or outside pools, but we do have the northern lights, sunsets at midnight, and can view our natural wildlife in our back yards, instead of through a 10 foot tall, chain-link fence. Or better yet, pay to drive through a “wildlife” or any other park; we get that just about every time we drive to work! We are able to witness the amazing “coffee thrown in the air and never hits the ground” at -50, and actually appreciate +10 after a week at -45. Most importantly, we have FREEDOM. You can throw up the garage doors and go snowmachining or 4-wheeling at any time, fireworks aren’t illegal, and our kids can play in the front yard w/ the sprinkler w/o the parents worrying about being fined for using too much water or using water at the wrong time of day. Our hunting isn’t paying to have a few pheasants (that are so used to humans they don’t even startle) released into a specific field. They call it “sport”. We call it “bringing home dinner”. Yes, we have to deal w/ plugging in our cars so they start in the morning (some people even go as far as to drain the oil and bring it in the house at night!), hanging extra curtains up in the summer time, and driving two or six hours (depending on the direction) to the nearest city, but it’s a small price to pay for what we receive for free.

Submitted by: Candy Corty - When I was a kid visiting Alaska would have been a dream come true. I grew up and still had a desire to come here perhaps even live here. I Met my husband and he also wanted to live here. It took us 10yrs but we finally made it. It's been 5 years now and I still love it here. The summers are amazing. Being outside at 10pm with the sun still shining makes the mosquitoes almost tolerable for me. Having long dark winters is just another plus as far as I'm concearned. I love seeing the stars from the top of the world! There the brightest and biggest I have ever seen stars. It still gets me. The Northern lights make me feel like a kid on Christmas morning every time I see them. Wildlife here actually is wild! I've seen moose, hawks, eagles, owls, wolverine, fox & raven, to name a mere few. Seeing swans migrate! "who knew". Living here is a dream and a privledge. I'm proud to raise my children here. I've have met some of the nicest people anyone could ever hope to know right here in the middle of nowhere. Living on my own land where I can pretty much do whatever I want is almost impossible to find anywhere in America. My daily commute into town is filled with anything from ice fog to snow drifts.The view is of mountain ranges, buffalo and open land. My family in the lower 48 think we're all crazy for living up here. I tell them they may be right but if this is what crazy looks like I'm ok with it. I live here for all these reasons and more. I may have been born on the east coast but Alaska is my hometown.