ALASKA, some time in the fall. – Even with a full tank, there was barely enough to drive the truck there and back. One shot, no messing around. That’s what he said when I asked about exploring the villages. Next time, maybe, he said. If we think of packing an extra can of gas. We [...]
Up until not very long ago, I was always stuck having the same tired conversation with gym clerks and cellphone-company sales reps. That Armenian kid Arda, who folds towels at my ghetto, fogged-up 24-hour gym, or those tall guys in dark striped shirts and lots of hair gel, who peddle phones and daytime minutes in [...]
I left Alaska a month ago, almost day for day. It was late October and Fairbanks was beginning its slow decent into deep-dark winter. The sun, which I’d seen pull effortless all-nighters in early August, was starting to get lazy, never showing much before 9:30 AM. It was getting cold, too, but not insane cold. [...]
I was first introduced to Fairbanks’ infamous Boatel in Dawson City, Yukon. It came in the guise of a men’s sized black hoodie with the bar’s full moniker printed in white letters across the back: The Boatel Sleazy Waterfront Bar. It was a chilly night in Dawson City. Around four or five in the morning, [...]