Our Poor Little Renegade

So Ms. Cold Nole and I have been getting along quite well over the first couple weeks of our time here in Anchorage. That's more than I can say about our poor car. We are eternally grateful that the car didn't start having issues until we reached Anchorage (rather than having problems halfway through Canada). But, the sure volume of issues, not to mention cost, have gotten us pulling our hair out.

First to go were the brakes. They didn't squeak at all.... they just started grinding. Which is bad. We were able to replace the pads and 1 of the rotors but they weren't able to fix the emergency brake. Luckily, there aren't very many hills in Anchorage for us to need the e-brake. Next, the day after we get the car back, the engine light goes on. By the time it comes to my attention, the car dies in the parking lot of Ms. Cold Nole's job. Thankfully, we have AAA (Thanks Mom!!!). Got the car back to the shop, of which was swamped and had our car some 3 days, come to find out the alternator went which may or may not have damaged the transmission with the low voltage output and these new fangled cars. Ugh. Story ends with a price tag of some $1300 for the car for the week. The ironic part is we didn't take MY jeep up here because Ms. Cold Nole was convinced it was old and of course would break down. 0_o

One good thing that came from this is that right next to the repair shop (which i spent most of my week at) is the Moose's Tooth Pizzeria and Brewery. Apparently, based on Urbanspoon.com reviews, these guys have the best pizza in town. I'm inclined to agree. I think I've eaten there 6 times already? They are that good. Otherwise, the search for a job for Mr. Cold Nole continues. We're getting along okay here. Miss you guys! Come visit!

The Eagle Has Landed

So we made it into Anchorage, AK. Who knew we had to drive around a glacier to get here? Not us. I'm still amazed at the beauty of this place. The mountain passes driving into town are scary but inspiring. I'm sure these feelings will all change once it's covered in snow for months on end but for right now, it's awesome here.

We've gotten most of our stuff up into our new appartment, the last of which will be emptied out of our uhaul this morning. Then, we're off to take care of oodles of legal paperwork so Ms. Cold Nole makes her new employers happy. Couches come in tonight and we are very much looking forward to that. I can't wait to not see and more cardboard boxes.

Day 6

So today's drive was probably the most beautiful, serene and awe-inspiring event of my short life. The stretch of the Alaska Highway that runs through British Columbia is buried in between the Rocky Mountains and just crawling with natural wildlife. We've had to slow down for moose, caribou, deer, stone sheep, wild horses and bears to name a few. We stopped on the edge of Lake Muncho to hop out and take it all in. The winding roads through the mountains (most with no guard rails) can be a little scary, so if you do this trip make sure you drive during the day light.

We stopped in Whitehorse for a bite to eat to learn that it is the capital of the Yukon Territory. It's.... not very big. We got some burgers at an A&W and pushed on until dusk. We stopped in a little town called Haines Junction and stayed at the Cozy Corner Inn. Great place to stop. Clean rooms, good water pressure (unlike our last stop) and a comfortable bed.

Today is the final leg of our Continental Journey from Tallahassee, FL to Anchorage, AK. I know Ms. Cold 'Nole and I will be relieved to be in, but both feel the trip hasn't worn on us like we thought it might. The endless amounts of driving just can't sour how beautiful here.

Next stop, our new home!

Days 4 & 5

Tough loss by the 'Noles last night. You could tell the whole game that OU was simply a better team than FSU, Congrats to them for playing so hard. Now, back to the Journey! We've been on the road now for 5 days and traveled 2500+ miles.

Yesterday we drove through Saskatchewan and Alberta. We stayed the night at a very nice Quality Inn in Regina, the capital of Saskatchewan (pronounced like Vagina). Oli peed on the bed ofcourse but other than that it was a great experience. Cool little town. Also, Ms. Cold 'Nole and I were so impressed with the football fans here in Canada. There was a Saskatchewan RoughRiders football game yesterday and almost everywhere we went people were wearing jerseys, flying car flags, etc. It felt like being home on a gameday (except the colors were wrong). Kudos to you Canada, just went up a few knotches in my book.

Edmonton is a BIG city, We drove by the oilers arena. Who knew hockey was also so big here? Anyway, we got in town, drove to seriously like 5 different places trying to find the FSU OU game on tv. Finally stopped at Outback Steakhouse and was able to take in the last 3 quarters. I know, all of this different food/flare and we go to Outback. I guess we like to stick to what we know.

Off to the BC and Yukon Territories tonight. This is where the fun begins! See y'all later!

Day 1, 2 & 3

Well we've set off on our journey to the great white north. First stop was in Huntsville, AL to visit our great friend Nate and crash for the night. Nate took us around and showed us the sights, including all of the secret government bioweapon plants and missile engineering plants. We're talking zombie apocalypse ground zero here. Get out soon, Nate!

Then, we were off on the road again to quickly find out that Kentucky has the absolutely worst maintained highway roads of anywhere around. Seriously home state.... step it up a little. A massive rainstorm slowed us down through St. Louis as well as our GPS deciding it no longer wanted to function. We've used the darn thing to drive around towns we've known for like 3 years and the first time we need it.... it dies. /irony. Anywho, Ms. Cold Nole bought us a new smartphone which sufficed to get us to Minneapolis.

Oli, by the way, is a miniature Houdini and keeps sneaking out of his seat belt harness. Damn dog is too crafty for his own good. Back on the road tomorrow after a day us rest with great buds Sylvalyn and Doug. KeyYaa!!

The Hardest Part...

So Ms. Cold Nole and I were driving to our planned goodbye dinner with friends last night. She asked how many people I made the reservation for. I told her 25. "Are we going to even need that many?" "What if no one comes?". We needed space for 30...

After 9 years here, we've made some awesome and amazing friends. We're so thankful so many of them came out to say goodbye, waterworks by both of us in the car afterwards. It's not goodbye forever, because we'll see them again. It's still really hard though.

We also had to say goodbye to our dads as well yesterday, as they both had to drive home to get back to work. I had to watch my dad drive away with my jeep. I was crying to see them both leave.... what? I love my damn jeep.

Anyway, we're getting on the road tomorrow to start an amazingly long drive. We'll keep you guys updated as we go along.

The great purge....

It's amazing the amount of junk two human beings can accumulate over the course of a few years. It seems unreal that when I moved into this place 5 years ago I had a coffee table, a futon mattress, and a teapot.

Priorities. Tea is important.

Now, I can't even fathom where all this stuff came from. Given, I'm am a art-driven pack rat with more craft-oriented hobbies than I can count. So maybe I should have expected this. But it is still overwhelming. And surprisingly, it feels pretty good to get rid of a lot of this stuff. I know Mr. Cold Nole is cringing through this whole process, but it feels like such a relief to me to shed some of this excess.

I'm feeling practically spartan.

I have power over the clutter.

I am the master of my stuff.

But the teapots are coming with me. All of them.

Let The Packing Begin

Alrighty. So, after an awesome day at Universal Studios: Islands of Adventure, the Cold 'Noles are back in Tallahassee. If you're a Harry Potter fan, definitely go to that park when you get a chance. We ate and drank pumpkin juice/butter beer at the Three Broomsticks, bought a wand at Olivander's, the whole 9 yards. Saddest part though was having to say goodbye to some loved ones.

Our good bud Erin came to the park with us for fun times in the evening but had to say goodbye to her for who knows how long when our night was over. Ms. Cold 'Nole cried, which always twists up my insides. The next morning we had to say goodbye to her brother, too. More crying... more twisted insides. This is going to be the toughest part, hands down. We have another week or so to enjoy everyone's company here in Tallahassee and I promise you we're going to make the most of it. Did I mention this is the really tough part? Ugghh....

Off to purging useless wardrobe pieces now... and play some poker with some buds.

Mountains, Love seats, and reality.

Something about purchasing furniture has made this whole process so much more real to me. Perhaps it's because having furniture that isn't mis-matched hand-me-downs is a luxury that I could not afford without this new job. Or maybe it just seems more binding. A lease can be broken, but buying couches?

That's it, we're staying.

I love these couches. I'm not leaving them.

Aside from our furniture finding ventures, Mr. Cold Nole and I have leased a simple apartment with a beautiful view, and I had a chance to finally see where I would be working. The library is small but absolutely beautiful, and the people whom I met working there were so friendly and welcoming - I know now that this is the right choice. As much as I'll miss Tally and the people I have there, we've got a great opportunity here.

We have a place to stay!

So, today was a very exciting day for Mr. and Ms. Cold 'Nole (I've been informed that Mrs. Cold 'Nole prefers Miss). We found some very delicious local eateries, one of which served reindeer sausage for breakfast. Oh yes, we ate reindeer. Mother-in-law Cold 'Nole still can't handle hearing "reindeer sausage" without gagging a little though, which has made for some fun conversation today. But don't let her reaction stop you because it was delicious.

Most of the day was filled with touring different apartment complexes and ranking them as we went along. Some places were better than others for sure, but we happened on a diamond in the rough. We stopped about halfway through the day at a little place called Alpine Meadows, which the modern style of the relatively new buildings made me blurt out I thought it looked like a prison. We met with a very nice leasing agent, told him what our price range was and set us up with a top level, corner unit with an amazing mountain view. We decided to go look at another place outside of town, and quickly decided we liked our mountain view at Alpine. When we made it back, a different agent was about to sign up a group of Iraqi foreign exchange students for OUR spot. Luckily, they don't take wads of cash, but rather, preferred the check Ms. Cold 'Nole quickly wrote instead. I love my wife!

More updates to come. Miss you guys already and we haven't even left yet!

I Hate Moving

I've had a big car or an SUV for as long as I can remember and the one thing your friends always think of is "Oh, i'm moving. Who do I know with a big car/truck/SUV"? Now, don't get me wrong. I'd bend over backwards to help most of my friends but I hate moving.

When Mrs. Cold 'Nole and myself were deciding on whether or not we really wanted to take on this adventure, that was probally the thing that stuck out to me the most.

"I'm going to hate this damn move".

Is that bad that I feel that way? Anyone else hate the act of moving this much? I'm planning on uprooting my life, move thousands of miles away from all of my friends, family and organized sports that I love and the one thing really making me sore is the thought of lugging boxes and furniture up and down stairs.

Now, time to pack up the car and drive to Orlando. Our flight to Anchorage leaves tomorrow and we'll be looking for a place to stay while we're up there. Be back in Florida in about a week to start the dreaded "moving" process. ::cold shivers up my spine::

Let's Get It Started

We are the (soon to be very) Cold 'Noles. Our goal is to use this blog to help record our upcoming adventures, keep our family and friends updated on how things are going for us, and perhaps be used as a guide for what to do (or NOT to do) when moving to Alaska. We hope it's informative and entertaining.