Thanksgiving "Break"

What started out as not planning to be in North Carolina turned into a really long, great visit back for Thanksgiving! I was asked to go on a trip to New York City to help babysit and everything worked out for me to be in Lenoir for Thanksgiving. As usual, it was great to be back and see family and friends. 

While I was in New York, I got to visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. My great-grandfather, Henry Gabrielsen, came through Ellis Island from Norway when he was 6 years old. Around 12 million people passed through Ellis Island on their way to the U.S. The 1st floor of the main building was where all the luggage was dropped off to be shipped. The 2nd floor was the waiting area where families waited to be questioned by officials and doctors before being shown 1 of 3 doors. One end of this room had 4 or 5 podiums where the officials wrote down in the register or log book information about each immigrant- where they came from, where they were going, age, gender, etc. During this questioning, doctors would examine them and if they were deemed ill, they were either sent to the hospital complex also on the island or back to their homeland. Sometimes doctors only had 6 seconds to complete an examination. Behind the podiums were the stairs to the 3 doorways. If you got sent to the right, you had to go to the hospital- to the left and you were sent back to your home country- down the middle and you were free to enter the U.S. 

Reading books I had always imagined lots of rooms in this huge building. While the building WAS fairly large, I was surprised that the waiting area and interview and doctor's examination all took place in the same space. 

Part of the main building was still closed due to repairs from damage during Hurricane Sandy so I didn't get to see everything, but I did get to see enough to get a great idea of what it was like. I can't imagine the chaos in that building. Up to 5,000 people a day were processed through. Amazing. 

The day I went was really snowy and cold and bad weather so I went back another day when it was clear to get some perspective on distance and size from Manhattan to the islands. Here's some pictures!

 

Lady Liberty

The main building on Ellis Island

Baggage Area on 1st floor

2nd floor - waiting area, interview area, and examination area all in this space. Most of the room would have been filled with benches. I am standing beside the podiums looking out where people were waiting. 

Looking across the dock area to the hospital complex. These are not available for visitors to see.....they haven't ever been I don't think....not just because of Sandy. 

Me in front of the building. :) 

I also got to go to the World Trade Center Memorial while I was in New York. That was a really great memorial to see. I'll post pictures from that soon! 

I came back to Cody last Thursday and head back to NC on Wednesday.....I will be in Wyoming for a grand total of 6 days in the month of December. I will say that I was extremely happy to NOT be in Wyoming last week.....the high was 0* and I heard from a couple people that it was -30* on one of the days. Not fun at all!! 

Register Cliff and the BAT CAVE!!

It's time for another history lesson!! A few miles away from the infamous wagon ruts is an area called Register Cliff. This is a pretty large cliff face that pioneers carved with their names or initials and the dates that they passed through that particular area. There are names and dates from the early and mid-1800s through today. They've fenced off the area that has the earliest dates so that people won't try to carve over them (thank goodness!). On one trip to Register Cliff, Dad saw a McKee carved into the cliffside. The plaque in front of it said that they've found a 1797 date that they believe was carved then (and not just somebody from 1999 carving a 1797), along with a couple other early dates...but most of them are from the pioneers. It was interesting to also note on the plaque that in all the diaries and written accounts of life on the trail, nobody mentions carving their name into Register Cliff. Settlers mention Independence Rock, Devil's Tower, and other notable landmarks along the way, but they haven't found any written mention of Register Cliff.

Also carved into Register Cliff is a former cellar used by the family that settled alongside the cliff. Many years ago, on one of our early trips West, we stopped to see Register Cliff. I think I was about 5 or 6, so Mike was 8 or 9. This place is fairly isolated and not usually very crowded, so as soon as we got there, Mike and I hopped out of the car and ran up to the cliff. We decided to go into this cave area, and ran right in while Mom and Dad were still walking up. We were inside for about 3 seconds when something incredibly scary happened. Also in the cave with us were hundreds, thousands, even MILLIONS of BATS!! (I don't actually know how many there were. It just seemed like a lot!) They started flying out of the cave all around us. I screamed....I don't know if Mike did or not......and we started running back to the entrance of the cave. The next thing I knew, I felt this hand pushing me to the ground and as I fell, I saw Mike's back fleeing past me. I vaguely remember crawling to the fence at the front and being rescued by Mom and Dad. Every now and then, we'll see something that reminds us of the Bat Cave and share a laugh and shiver. 

As I've gotten older and thought about this event more, I have decided that Mike was actually pushing me towards the entrance to get out and was being a helpful older brother to save us from the bat attack. It sure didn't feel like it at the time, but i'm thankful for the rescue. :) 

Those Wagon Ruts

Over this weekend, I went on a trip to Laramie to visit the University of Wyoming. It is on my list of potential grad school programs, and honestly, I wasn't that impressed when Dad and I drove through campus last January. After promising to go back and talk to people and visit more thoroughly, I finally did....and I'm so glad that I was able to. I have a much better grasp on the school and the History Dept. and feel like I can make a much more informed decision when the time comes for me to do that.

About 40ish minutes away is Cheyenne, the state capitol, but more importantly, Chickfila. I was lucky to have Quincy along with me for company and a quasi-guide, and when we were planning the trip, I laid down the law and said there was NO WAY I was getting that close and not going to Chickfila. She graciously agreed to the slight detour (which literally is pretty slight in terms of distance out here!) despite having never had Chickfila before and not understanding the depths some people will go to to have it. She gets it now. :) So off we went to Chickfila and the mall and Target!! Needless to say, it was a great morning.

As we were headed back to Cody (it's a 6 hour drive Cody-Laramie, 7 hours Cody-Cheyenne), I saw a sign for Wagon Ruts. Mom, Dad, and Mike all know how much I love these wagon ruts, but most everybody else does not. These are wagon ruts of epic proportions. On our journeys to the west, we've been to these ruts 2 or 3 times, and they are so awesome.

*Short history lesson*
The settlement of the West with covered wagons happened from the early 1840s to about 1868. Once the transcontinental railroad was completed, people didn't really have to take covered wagons anymore because trains were faster and much safer. So for about 30 years, settlers moved West in covered wagons mostly along the same trail. Some people were so desperate to move West that they piled all their belongings on handcarts and PUSHED and PULLED them as they walked ACROSS THE UNITED STATES! (The handcarts absolutely amaze me. I saw one in a museum last year and it was smaller than the average dining room table. Imagine piling all your belongings on half of your dining room table and pushing it from North Carolina to visit me here in Wyoming. Nuts right?!) These wagon trains were led by guides who had traveled the way before, and mostly used the same trails time and again. Because thousands upon thousands of wagons traveled the same paths, there are many places where you can still see evidence of these wagons even today. This place with the wagon ruts is one of them.


So this particular area is about 15 miles from Fort Laramie in central Wyoming. Wagon trains covered about 13 miles a day on average, so this site is about a day's drive (by wagon) from Fort Laramie. As thousands of wagons crossed a couple hills here, they carved tracks in the rocks that only grew deeper as more and more wagons went through. At some points, I'm not sure how the wagons could even make it...I would think the wheels would be so deep the bottom of the wagons would get scraped by the rocks.

We've had some serious snow last week, and there are still several inches hanging around, so the pictures I took this time are pretty neat. I've never seen these ruts in the snow so it was fun for me to be there this time.

Stay tuned for another history lesson about Register Cliff and a terrifying scary story of

 Mike and Kathryn at the Bat Cave. 

Mike's Ordination

I've made it back to Cody from my trip to Lenoir and Newland for Mike's ordination and installation. The service was really awesome and meaningful for all those involved. Mom and Dad got to have special parts in the service which they really enjoyed. I'm so glad that I got to be there. Here's some pictures:

Mike taking his ordination vows...

Getting robed by Dad and stoled by Mom :)

Laying on of hands

Most of those involved in the service

Mike's first order of business as a minister was to serve communion 

Family picture in Mike and Lesley's new house in Newland, NC

We were all really impressed with the turnout for the service from all the areas represented....the church in Newland, First Pres. in Lenoir, seminary friends, and family from ALL sides. I will point out that I took the prize as having traveled the farthest. I'm still waiting to receive my prize...I'll collect at Thanksgiving. :) 

Hazel, Hazel

So my friends...Bo, Coy, and Hazel Evans, have all moved away. They were my first new friends when I moved to Cody back in January and we have become fast friends. Unfortunately for me, Wyoming wasn't the best fit for them, so they have moved to Arkansas to be close to family. Here are some pictures to document our times together.....and I know they are mostly of Hazel. But let's be honest...who wouldn't want to just stare at her all day long!? :)

...when i first met Hazel she was 9 months old...

...then she had a birthday...

....she taught me some tricks on her motorcycle...

 





...we had a couple picnics in Yellowstone......which would not be complete without Sundrop!!

Once the weather turned nice we got to be outside to have fun!!

  

 Summer was fun with lots of outdoor pool time, the county fair, and hanging out in the yard...

...As summer drew to a close, she really had fun playing with my Dad during their visit...

 ...and Hazel's last escapade before skipping town was to collect candy in her penguin costume...

She and Coy left today on an airplane to start the next great adventure. I am so grateful for my time spent with the Evans' family and their friendship with me. I wish them the best of luck and can't wait to see them again...hopefully soon! I know i'll be getting Hazel updates, so don't be surprised if you see her here again. 

Nothing New

Not much is going on here in Cody...we've had snow a couple of times in the past 2 weeks but it has melted quickly and gotten back to normal(ish) temperatures. This week is supposed to be pretty nice with temps in the mid to upper 50s.

Music Club started back last week, so I went to my first meeting of the year. Our theme for the year is "Songs of Life" and each month has a different time of life that it focuses on. Last week was "College Days" and luckily I had my UNC sweatshirt on, but I was WAY underdressed. I was a little embarrassed until I saw what the theme was. I got lucky on that one! I will be prepared next time! These ladies sure do like to dress up!

Sunday was Mike's first Sunday at his new church...from what i've heard, everything went really well! Praise God! :) I'm really looking forward to being there for his ordination service in a couple weeks. It will be nice to be home again!!

As you can tell, I don't have a lot of news to report. I'm just going back and forth to the museum, working on my upcoming sports exhibit and scanning photos. I'm moving on this week from photos to documents. Part of my grant stipulates that I need 300 documents scanned as well as 500 photos. I've gotten the photos done (although I will probably continue with more once I get the documents done) so I can move on to something else. I've also started substituting again....a 1st grade class last week....that went really well.

That's about all I've got! Hopefully i'll have some exciting news soon. :)

McKee Mania

I apologize, once again, for the lack of blog posts. I blame it on the condition called "McKee Mania." Symptoms include:
         -uncontrollable laughter
         -uncontrollable tears
         -uncontrollable teasing
         -uncontrollable Sundrop consumption (although in certain situations, everyone ELSE's Sundrop is controlled)
         -uncontrollable......

Do you see the theme here? There has been hardly any time for me to blog due to uncontrollable circumstances. Enough time has now passed that I feel mostly recovered from my latest bout of McKee Mania that I can blog again.


The latest case was contracted on September 20th at about 11:45 in the evening. I heard a knock at my door, and this is what greeted me:

Unfortunately, I was not the only person to contract McKee Mania. There were 6 contracted cases throughout the end of September and beginning of October.

Further symptoms include:

-the uncontrollable urge to turn yourself into a human pretzel.

-the uncontrollable urge to sit in outhouses

-the uncontrollable urge to swim in really cold water

-the uncontrollable urge to steal (i mean borrow!) somebody else's jacket

-gaining the ability to climb signs like a ninja

-extreme photogenicity

-and major excitement to FINALLY be in Wyoming!!!!

Other pictures from this vacation on days that McKee Mania was temporarily in remission and people were normal:

In most cases, McKee Mania clears up within a few days after potential allergens have disappeared. But watch out...it WILL strike again!