The move to my new domain has prompted me to finally tell you about another much bigger, real move for our family. First, maybe a bit of background. I don’t talk about family stuff that much on the blog, and I’ve realized that the last time I mentioned my husband James’ work was back in 2006 and only once before that in 2005.

James is a Lieutenant Commander in the Coast Guard. We met when we were both in college: he at the Coast Guard Academy and I at Connecticut College in New London. (He auditioned for the a capella group I was starting, but that’s another story…) Anyway, military life has always meant lots of moving. Since leaving Connecticut in 1994, we’ve lived in Seattle, North Carolina, Seattle again, New Jersey (where James did a 1-year graduate program), and Maryland. Selma, who’s now eight had moved four times by the time she was five. Jay, on the other hand, was five months old when we moved here to Maryland, and he’s known nothing else.

We came to maryland in the summer of 2005 (the same time I started the blog), and we knew that we’d be here for about three years. We’ve loved Takoma Park. We live in an amazing neighborhood full of kids and we’ve made great friends and I’ve found a huge fiber-loving community. But James missed being at sea. He’s a true sailor and although working at Coast Guard headquarters has it’s rewarding challenges, it’s not the same as being on a ship. In January, James was awarded command of the United States Coast Guard Cutter Sycamore, homeported in Cordova, Alaska.

USCGC Sycamore

We were thrilled that he was going to be a ship’s captain again, and certainly in shock about the move to such a remote place. In fact, I was out of town on my way to The Needle Arts Association trade show when we got the news, and we had to do our soul-searching and decision-making over the phone. (The fact that James could convince me to move to Alaska by telephone reminded me how caring, thoughtful, and convincing he really is!)

We’re sad to be leaving Takoma Park, but I’m actually quite a fan of the periodic moving. I love setting up house in a new place, learning about what an area has to offer and experiencing different parts of the country. Cordova, Alaska is going to be different from anywhere else we’ve ever lived. Obviously, there’s the whole Alaskan winter thing, but on top of that, Cordova is not connected to the rest of the world except by plane or ferry–it’s kind of like being on an island. It’s a small fishing town with a large science center built on money collected as a result of the Exxon-Valdez oil spill. The science center means that Cordova has more Phd’s per capita than any other US city.

We won’t be able to visit until we actually move, but we’ve already done a bit of legwork to get settled. We’ve found a lovely-sounding house to rent on a lake that’s walking distance to school and town. I’ve found out there’s a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farm in Washington State that makes weekly deliveries of organic produce. And importantly, there’s a yarn store! It’s called the Net Loft, and they don’t have a web site, but I’ve heard from many sources that it’s a great shop. I’m looking forward to getting to know a new LYS.

I’m sure I’ll be talking lots about Alaska and our move in the coming months, but I’ll leave you with a couple of my favorite shots of Cordova:

A virtual move and a physical one…
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