Life in Juneau

There are, on one hand, a number of aspects of JVC Northwest that will make this year of service in Juneau unique, and at the same time, a number of unique aspects of Juneau that will make a year of service with JVC Northwest equally distinct.

One of the four values of JVC Northwest is simple living.  Depending on the geographic location, community, and individual, simple living can take a number of forms.  Personally, in my community, and in Juneau, simple living has manifested itself particularly through energy usage, diet, simplicity of time, and relationships.

As a JVC NW volunteer, I commit to living in solidarity with those whom I am serving.  Financially, this manifests itself in a simple budget that allows our community, as a group, to all pitch in from our living stipend to cover rent, utilities and food, and a small, individual stipend for personal discretionary use (toothpaste, a bagel/coffee now and then, etc).  The cost of living in Juneau, which is only accessible from the rest of AK/the USA by boat or plane, is quite high, so many foods and items that are relatively inexpensive and taken for granted elsewhere in the lower 48 (meat, fresh produce/vegetables) are much harder to acquire up here.

To save money, and to try to live a simple lifestyle, we use as little energy as possible in the house.  This includes keeping the heat usage to a minimum, being conscious of how much hot water we use with dishes and showers, and making items such as soap, shampoo and other cleaning products which are much cheaper to replenish and are more environmentally friendly in terms of ingredients and packaging.
This higher cost of living applies to all of our food as well.  We are lucky to have a CostCo in Juneau, which allows us to buy in bulk at reasonable prices, but we still have been forced to cut many luxuries from our diets.  That means usually a lot of rice, beans, lentils and oatmeal, among other things.  As a community, we have prioritized healthy diet choices over the absolute cheapest option.  We are lucky to have a bread-baker in our house, so we have fresh bread all the time, which is also more cost effective.  By no means are we starving, conversely, I feel that I am eating healthier than I have at almost any time in my life (I'm never going to write-off Mom's cooking though).  We are very lucky to have a supportive community that is familiar with JVC Northwest.  There are a lot of former JVs (FJVs) in Juneau who generously donate to us on occasion, providing some of those things such as fruit, meat and other luxuries that we are not always able to get our hands on.  We have a neighbor who fishes regularly, and gave us some delicious, fresh halibut and flash-frozen salmon recently.  Aligning the diets and food preferences of 7 people in conjunction with a tight budget is an additional challenge, but it is in these little challenges that will lead to the most personal growth for me:  Communication, reevaluation, prioritizing what is really necessary and important in life.  Among many other things, I will carry these experiences along with me in life after JVC.

One of the applications of simple living that I am enjoying the most right now is the simplicity of time and relationships.  We don't have any internet/wifi or cable in our house (I'm currently sitting in a bagel shop in downtown Juneau called Silverbow Bagels).  I have a cell phone (no smart technology as of yet), and we have a TV in the house, so we're not completely void of technology.  Obviously, my priority is to my volunteer site, but outside of volunteer hours and community activities/meetings, my obligations are pretty limited.  I am able to read for personal enjoyment (didn't get a chance to do much of that during my 4 years at Holy Cross), go hiking, trail running and engage in community events around Juneau.  There is a great folk/bluegrass music scene here, and I'm looking forward to getting into some of the barn dances in town (swing and contra dancing), I'm teaching myself the guitar (a slow process - sometimes frustrating, but enjoyable), and occasionally stopping in for tea with one of our support families in town.
Basically, the fat has been cut out of my life.  Time has gone the way of my meat consumption: from sirloin steak to venison if you follow my metaphor.  I find myself becoming more intentional in how I choose my activities, how I spend my time, and how I approach my relationships with friends and loved ones.  Instead of dropping a quick call to someone as I'm on the run, I try to set aside a dedicated time to be fully involved in a telephone conversation.  Texting is a nice way to keep in touch here and there, but cutting out quantity while improving quality of conversation has been thoroughly refreshing.

A deluge of text, I know.  I have some more pictures to put up later, including a camping trip with my volunteer agency and some other hikes around Juneau.  If you made it this far, thanks for reading!